LAS VEGAS – Winning the Vezina Trophy for the second time gave Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck a second chance at a couple of things.
Hellebuyck, who also won the award given to the NHL’s top goalie in 2020, forgot to thank his offseason goalie coach Randy Wilson that time. He made sure not to make that mistake again on Thursday night at the 2024 NHL Awards at Fontainebleau Las Vegas.
“It was nerve-racking just making sure I didn’t miss anyone this time,” Hellebuyck said.
Becoming the 23rd goalie to win the Vezina Trophy multiple times also gave Hellebuyck the opportunity to celebrate with some friends and family at the NHL Awards. He missed out on that when there was no ceremony in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Just having those guys around, I think they might enjoy it more than I do, just because they’re not around this every single day,” Hellebuyck said. “I at least play the game, so I get a touch of it here and there. Just having them around, it means the world to me, because I really wouldn’t be here without them.”
This was the fourth time Hellebuyck was a finalist for the Vezina, which is voted on by NHL general managers. The 31-year-old was the runner-up in 2018 behind Pekka Rinne of the Nashville Predators and finished third last season, when Linus Ullmark of the Boston Bruins won the award.
This season, Hellebuyck beat out fellow finalists Thatcher Demko of the Vancouver Canucks, who finished second in the voting, and Sergei Bobrovsky of the Florida Panthers, who finished third.
Hellebuyck and Bobrovsky, who won the Vezina in 2013 and 2017, are the only active goalies to win the award more than once.
“It really hasn’t sunk in yet,” Hellebuyck said. “If I had to be fully honest, it’s kind of a stepping stone for what I want to be, the best in the world. So it was kind of showing me I’m doing right. I’ve had a lot of people around me that have been helping me along the way, so I know it feels good for them that they’re doing right with me as well, and I look forward to celebrating with all those people.”