| Who will win the 2008 NHL Calder Trophy? |
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| Written by Stan Leung | |||||||
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Monday, 28 January 2008
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 At the midway point of the NHL season, Point-Spreads.com has identified three rookies that have emerged to be the front runners for the 2008 Calder Trophy. The Calder Trophy is the award to the best rookie in the NHL. Here is a list of the top three NHL rookie standouts for the first half of the season.The Chicago Blackhawks have finally assembled a team of young stars and one of their brightest is American Patrick Kane. SportsBetting.com has the Chicago Blackhawks listed at 50 to 1 odds to win the 2008 Stanley Cup. The Blackhawks made him the first overall pick in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft and so far he has lived up to his number one potential. He is not only the brightest rookie in the 2007/08 class but also brings back respectability to the US Hockey program. Patrick Kane has thrived playing in Chicago, who for years have had poor ownership and losing records. Chicago is a major NHL market and the NHL needs to have one of the biggest sports markets do well. Right winger Kane plays alongside fellow rookie Jonathan Toews. Both these fine rookies are a bright spot to the Hawks franchise which has been so dismal for a long time now. Kane leads all NHL rookies with 45 points and if he keeps this pace, he might have a chance to break the 100 point make which has been only been done by a 6 other rookies. The others being Teemu Selanne, Peter Stastny, Alexander Ovechkin, Dale Hawerchuk, Sidney Crosby, Joe Juneau and Mario Lemieux. Kane’s line mate Jonathan Toews is closely behind Kane in the rookie race. Toews sits third in NHL rookie scoring and is a big rookie at 6 foot 2 and 203 pounds. He was selected by the Blackhawks with the third overall pick in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft. He is making a big impact to the Hawks squad alongside Kane and Havlet. Jonathan Toews actually has more upside to be a better NHL star in the future but not at this time. Rounding out the list is Nicklas Bäckström. He has been the biggest surprise this year as he starts on a line with Alex Ovechkin. Bäckström was a top prospect in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft and was selected 4th overall by the Washington Capitals. This Swedish sensation has the ability to make Ovechkin better. Throughout the season he has been able to find Ovechkin with pin point passing. Nicklas Bäckström has a very mature sense about the way he plays. SportsBetting.com has the Washington Capitals listed at 40 to 1 odds to win the 2008 Stanley Cup.                        |
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| Last Updated ( Sunday, 27 January 2008 ) | |||||||