SUNRISE, Fla. - The National Hockey League today announced that Florida Panthers Captain Aleksander Barkov has been named the winner of the 2024 Frank J. Selke Trophy, awarded annually “to the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game,” as selected by the Professional Hockey Writers Association.
“This season Sasha once again demonstrated his unique ability to dominate the 200-foot game, and this award is deserved recognition of not only his talent and effort but also his selfless devotion to his team,” said Florida Panthers President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Bill Zito. “His commitment to training and preparation are second to none in this league. We all follow Sasha’s lead and are proud to have him as our captain.”
Barkov was previously awarded the Selke Trophy following the 2020-21 campaign. He becomes the second Finnish-born player in NHL history to win the award multiple times, joining Jere Lehtinen (1998, 1999 and 2003). He is the fifth player born outside of North America to win it multiple times, joining Lehtinen, Pavel Datsyuk, Sergei Fedorov and Anze Kopitar.
Barkov, 28, appeared in 73 regular season games with Florida in 2023-24, and led all Panthers forwards with a plus-33 rating and a career-high 57.3 faceoff win percentage. He ranked second on the team in assists (57), third in points (80) and power-play points (29) and fourth in goals (23).
The 6-foot-3, 215-pound native of Tampere, Finland led all NHL skaters who played in at least 70 games this season in on-ice goals for percentage at five-on-five play (69.7%). He also became the Panthers all-time leader in assists (445), games played (737) and shots on goal (1,948), having already owned the club records for goals (266), points (711), power-play goals (75) and game winning goals (48).
Originally selected in the first round (second overall) by Florida in the 2013 NHL Draft, Barkov was also a finalist for the Selke Trophy in 2021-22. Former Panthers captain Brian Skrudland had been a finalist in Florida’s inaugural season in 1993-94.
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