Hart Trophy unpredictability fitting for NHL season full of surprises

LAS VEGAS -- Who will win the Hart Trophy?
It's a question that divides the hockey world because, unlike in previous years, there doesn't appear to be a consensus pick among the three finalists, New Jersey Devils left wing Taylor Hall, Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon and Los Angeles Kings center Anze Kopitar.

Each player is a finalist for the first time.
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"That is very, very hard," Nashville Predators defenseman P.K. Subban said. "After we were eliminated [from the Stanley Cup Playoffs], I said that Nathan MacKinnon should be the MVP of the League. But how do you not say that Anze Kopitar should be recognized? How do you not say Taylor Hall should be recognized? The decision this year must be one of the toughest in the history of the League. It's got to be. I wouldn't want to pick. I wouldn't."
The winner will be revealed at the 2018 NHL Awards presented by Hulu at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, SN).
The show will feature current and former players, coaches, general managers and celebrities as presenters. It will include special commemorations for survivors and first responders from the shooting in Las Vegas on Oct. 1, members of the hockey team from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, and surviving members of the Humboldt Broncos junior hockey team.

The Hart Trophy, voted on by members of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association and given to the player judged to be the most valuable to his team, will be the last award handed out following the presentation of 15 others, including the Willie O'Ree Community Hero Award, which will be presented for the first time.
"I'm probably going to be sweating a lot and my heartbeat is going to be up," said Kopitar, who is also a finalist for the Selke Trophy as the best two-way forward in the NHL.
The credentials for each Hart Trophy finalist allow for compelling arguments to be made for any of the three to win.
MacKinnon was fifth in the NHL with 97 points (39 goals, 58 assists) and second in points per game (1.31). He helped the Avalanche reach the Stanley Cup Playoffs by improving 47 points in the standings, matching the fourth-highest season-to-season gain in NHL history.
Hall said if he had a vote, it would go to MacKinnon.
"If I could ever watch their games, I was tuning in to see how he was playing and just the stuff he was doing," Hall said.
MacKinnon threw it back, saying he'd vote for Hall, who was sixth with 93 points (39 goals, 54 assists) in 76 games, setting NHL career highs across the board to help the Devils improve by 27 points in the standings and reach the playoffs for the first time since 2012. He had 41 more points than anyone else on New Jersey.
Kopitar was tied for seventh with 92 points (35 goals, 57 assists), nearly tripling his goal total (12) and doubling his point total (52) from 2016-17. He helped the Kings get back in the playoffs after they missed last season. He had 31 more points than anyone else on Los Angeles.
Somewhat sheepishly, Kopitar said he'd vote for himself.
"Was I the only guy picking myself?" Kopitar said, laughing. "You know what it is, all three of us that are nominated are deserving of it, for sure."
The intrigue for the Hart Trophy race this year is based on the unknown, which is quite different from the previous four seasons, when it was relatively easy to predict the winner and all four won in landslide fashion.
The past four winners, Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid (2016-17), Chicago Blackhawks right wing Patrick Kane (2015-16), Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price (2014-15) and Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby (2013-14), each finished with at least 110 more first-place votes and 463 voting points than the runner-up.

The MVP race arguably hasn't been as wide open as it is this season since 2012-13, when Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin, Crosby, New York Islanders center John Tavares and Blackhawks center Jonathan Toews finished first, second, third and fourth, separated by 204 voting points and 12 first-place votes.
"You could make an argument for all three nominees how they should win it in a landslide," Hall said.
Hall, in fact, said he considers the wide-open race to be a microcosm of the entire NHL season.
"[The] Vegas [Golden Knights], us, Colorado coming back and making the playoffs -- there were a lot of unexpected things that happened in the season," he said. "Now look at the MVP race, you would have never picked these three guys to be in the MVP race. That's what makes our game so awesome: the parity, the unexpectedness of what can happen in hockey. If you come in with the right game plan as a player and as a team, anything can happen."
Make no mistake, though, the three finalists want one thing to happen Wednesday.
They all want to win the Hart Trophy. Badly.
"I flew 14 hours [from Slovenia] and I hope it's not for nothing," Kopitar said.