2023 Calder Trophy winner debated by NHL.com

The 2023 NHL Awards will be held at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on June 26 (8 p.m. ET; TNT, SN, TVAS). A total of 11 award winners will be announced at the ceremony, and the General Manager of the Year winner will be announced during the 2023 Upper Deck NHL Draft on June 28, also in Nashville.

In the lead-up to the events, NHL.com writers will debate who they think should win most of the awards. Today, deputy managing editor Adam Kimelman and staff writers Tracey Myers and Mike G. Morreale debate the Calder Trophy, which is given annually to the League's top rookie.

The three finalists this year are forward Matty Beniers of the Seattle Kraken, defenseman Owen Power of the Buffalo Sabres and goalie Stuart Skinner of the Edmonton Oilers.

Kimelman: Beniers is an easy choice for me. As the first draft pick in Kraken history, he had a lot of pressure on him, but delivered in a huge way, and was a major reason they reached the Stanley Cup Playoffs this season. He led NHL rookies with 57 points and tied for the lead with 24 goals, but there was more to his season than that. The Kraken controlled 51.7 percent of the 5-on-5 shot attempts when Beniers was on the ice, and he was plus-16 in even-strength goal differential while averaging 14:27 of even-strength ice time per game, third among Seattle forwards. Beniers has the look of a foundational piece for the Kraken; what we saw this season was only the beginning.

Myers: Speaking of voting for a guy with a lot of pressure on him, that's why I'd go with Skinner. First, you can't get much more pressure than being a goalie. Second, Skinner came in as backup to Jack Campbell, whom the Oilers signed to a five-year, $25 million contract ($5 million average annual value) on July 13. But after Campbell struggled, the Oilers turned to Skinner to bail them out and he finished 29-14-5 with a 2.75 goals-against average, .914 save percentage and one shutout in 50 games (48 starts). Were his stats off the charts? No, but they were exactly what Edmonton needed to finish second in the Pacific Division. He'd be the first Oilers player to win the award (yeah, I'm a little surprised by that) and would be the first goalie to win since Steven Mason with the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2009. I'd love to see it.

Morreale: I think Beniers is the favorite here, but Tracey made valid points about there being even more pressure on Skinner because of the position he plays. I'll take it one notch higher, however, and say the pressure Power faced as the No. 1 pick in the 2021 NHL Draft was even greater in his first full NHL season playing for a team and rabid fan base desperate for success. He persevered as a second-pair defenseman and was a huge reason the Sabres remained in the hunt for a playoff berth much of the season, leading rookie defensemen in assists (31) and points (35), ranking second in shots on goal (130) and tying for second with a plus-10 rating in 79 games. He led all rookies in average ice time (23:48) and led first-year defensemen (minimum 40 games played) in 5-on-5 on-ice shooting percentage (10.5 percent). He became a fixture on the Buffalo blue line, exhibiting great patience and a powerful shot for a team on the rise.

Kimelman: You both make tremendous arguments, but what separates Beniers is the fact that he played 80 games in a key role on a team that reached the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Skinner played 50 games, and while Power looks like he'll be a big piece of the Sabres moving forward, Buffalo missed the playoffs, and he didn't always get the most difficult matchups defensively. Beniers was the Kraken's No. 1 center and stepped up his play in all the big spots. He had 31 points (16 goals, 15 assists) in 41 road games, second for Seattle, and the Kraken were 29-5-3 when he had at least a point. And since Beniers made his NHL debut on April 12, 2022, the Kraken are 50-34-8, a .587 points percentage; before his arrival they were 23-43-6, a .361 points percentage. Beniers had made a tremendous impact as a rookie and is very deserving of the Calder Trophy.

Myers: OK, but a goalie playing 50 games is a pretty good comparison to a forward playing 80. Skinner tied for 15th among goalies in games played this season (established starters Juuse Saros of the Nashville Predators and Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets led the NHL, each playing 64 games). That's after Skinner had played 14 NHL games prior to this season. By the way, I forgot to mention this in my pressure-is-on argument: Skinner grew up in Edmonton. Hometown kid responsible for the net for the hometown team. Anyway, back to stats. Skinner's 29 wins were the most by an Oilers rookie goalie (Grant Fuhr had 28 in 1981-82), and his 10 wins in March were an Oilers record as well. As Mike said, Beniers is the favorite in this race, but I absolutely love what Skinner did this season and I believe he's worthy of the Calder Trophy.

Morreale: Fact: The Sabres were 20-5-3 when Power had at least one point. Sure, his numbers might not impress because he wasn't on the top power-play unit, which was quarterbacked by defenseman Rasmus Dahlin, and he did begin many shifts in the defensive zone when tasked to defend top players. His even-strength ice time per game (20:44) was the most by any rookie since the League began tracking the statistic in 1997-98. He was sixth in the NHL in that category this season; San Jose Sharks defenseman and Norris Trophy finalist Erik Karlsson was first (21:51). Power became a big part of the Sabres penalty kill later in the season too. He also was the first Sabres rookie defenseman since Tyler Myers in 2009-10 to have three assists in a game and was the third-youngest defenseman with a goal streak of at least three games in the past 35 years, scoring in three straight games from Jan. 23-26 (three goals). Power might be a long shot to win the award but is a worthy finalist for sure.