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Predicting the NHL's Masterton Finalists

The NHL has quite a few reasonable options to receive this year's Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy.

Nick Horwat

Mar 29, 2025; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Columbus Blue Jackets center Sean Monahan (23) controls the puck in the third period against the Ottawa Senators at the Canadian Tire Centre. Mandatory Credit: Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Images
Mar 29, 2025; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Columbus Blue Jackets center Sean Monahan (23) controls the puck in the third period against the Ottawa Senators at the Canadian Tire Centre. Mandatory Credit: Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Images / Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Images
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The NHL has announced the 32 nominees for this year’s Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy and there are a lot of different directions this award could go. The Masterton Trophy is handed out every year to the NHLer who “best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to ice hockey.”

Most of the time, the award goes to a player who battled through some sort of struggle, never gave up on the game of hockey, and continued to pursue at the NHL level.

Each chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association selects their team’s nominee before the list is trimmed to a final three. This award is never an easy one to hand out, but who will the NHL decide on for their three finalists?

Before diving into predictions, Vancouver Canucks forward Dakota Joshua and Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog deserve honorable mentions.

Before the start of the season, the Canucks announced that Joshua would miss time after being diagnosed with testicular cancer. Joshua made his season debut on November 11 and has played 53 games this season with 12 points (6G-6A).

Landeskog hasn’t played a second of hockey since winning the Stanley Cup in 2022. A brutal knee injury has held him from the Avalanche lineup for going on three whole seasons. He is yet to give up hope and was recently assigned to the American Hockey League for a conditioning stint.

Sean Monahan – Columbus Blue Jackets

Really, the entire Columbus Blue Jackets organization deserves a nomination, but Sean Monahan is the perfect selection. Monahan joined the Blue Jackets over the offseason looking forward to reuniting on the ice with his best friend Johnny Gaudreau. Tragically, Monahan never got that chance as Gaudreau and his brother died in a biking accident before the start of the season.

Monahan and Gaudreau started their NHL careers together as members of the Calgary Flames. The two grew into some of the best players in Flames history and were on the verge of rekindling that success in Columbus.

The entire 2024-25 season has been full of emotion in Columbus and across the hockey world. Numerous tributes have been paid to the Gaudreau brothers and Monahan has been right there the whole way.

Monahan has also helped lead an unexpected turnaround for the Blue Jackets this season. A playoff berth seems unlikely, but they’re still in the hunt as the season winds down. Monahan has 50 points (18G-32A) in 49 games played.

Justin Kirkland – Calgary Flames

Justin Kirkland isn’t the most well-known name on the Masterton nominee list, but the Flames’ 28-year-old forward is lucky to be in the position he is today. Kirkland almost lost his life in a car accident in January of 2023 as a member of the Anaheim Ducks organization.

According to Kirkland’s wife on Twitter, the injuries sustained in the car accident were life-threatening and “if the 14 breaks in his nose was 2mm closer to his brain he would’ve been paralyzed from the head down or declared ‘brain dead.’”

Kirkland is lucky to be alive, let alone playing at the NHL level. He had played games between the near-fatal accident and joining the Flames organization, but he never recorded a point. In his second game with the Flames, Kirkland scored his first career goal against the Edmonton Oilers, capping off a long journey back to the NHL.

An unfortunate ACL injury in November put Kirkland on the shelf for the remainder of the season after 21 games and eight points (2G-6A).

Alex Ovechkin – Washington Capitals

The Washington Capitals have been one of the most entertaining teams in the NHL this season, a lot of which has been thanks to 20-year NHL veteran Alex Ovechkin and his chase to become the NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer. Not only did the 39-year-old break Wayne Gretzky’s record, but he battled through a broken leg to get there this season.

Heading into his 20th year in the NHL, there were genuine questions about if Ovechkin would be able to put up the 42 goals needed to break the record during the 2024-25 campaign. He got off to a ripping hot start but was then sidelined for six weeks with a broken fibula.

Ovechkin returned after missing 16 games and continued on his pace like he never left. Ovechkin notched career goal No. 895 against the New York Islanders, surpassing a record that was once thought untouchable.

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Nick Horwat
NICK HORWAT

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