Should Hurricanes goalie Alex Nedeljkovic be in the Calder Trophy conversation?
.jpg "Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic makes a pad save on a shot from Tampa Bay Lightning’s Ryan McDonagh as Steven Lorentz (78) defends during the first period of an NHL hockey game Tuesday, April 20, 2021, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Carlson)")
Goaltenders don’t win the Calder Trophy in the NHL, do they?
OK, a few have been named the league’s rookie of the year. Goalie Steve Mason won the Calder with the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2009. Andrew Raycroft won with the Boston Bruins in 2004 and Evgeni Nabokov with the San Jose Sharks in 2001.
That’s the list of goalies and the Calder since 2000. A short one.
Which brings us to Alex Nedeljkovic of the Carolina Hurricanes, and his chances of being in the Calder mix for 2021.
Nedeljkovic has the numbers: a 1.87 goals-against average, .933 save percentage and three shutouts. He stepped in when goalie Petr Mrazek went out with a thumb injury in January and has been ever valuable for Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour as the Hurricanes have put together a big season.
“Alex has undoubtedly been one of the league’s best rookies,” NHL analyst Matt Larkin of The Hockey News told the News & Observer on Friday. “On top of the three shutouts, he leads the league in five on five save percentage and goals saved above average per 60. When he’s played, he’s been as good as any goalie in the league.
“What will hold him back in the Calder discussion is being ‘Binningtoned,’ in that the sample size might be too small to win Nedeljkovic the Calder because his role was smaller to start the season before Petr Mrazek got hurt. But it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him get some votes along with Dallas’ Jake Oettinger.”
Jordan Binnington had a huge role as the St. Louis Blues won the 2019 Stanley Cup. The goalie was called up from the AHL in December 2018 and went 24-5-1 in the regular season with a 1.89 GAA and .927 save percentage. He then won 16 playoff games in the Blues’ run to the Cup.
Binnington was second in the 2019 Calder vote, finishing behind forward Elias Pettersson of the Vancouver Canucks. Pettersson had 151 of the 171 first-place votes.
Nedeljkovic, a former second-round draft pick by Carolina, has played 18 games this season after his 32-save victory over the Florida Panthers on Thursday. He has a 12-4-2 record, teaming with goalie James Reimer while Mrazek was out.
But how does he compare to forward Kirill Kaprizov of the Minnesota Wild, generally considered the Calder favorite. He scored his 20th and 21st goals in 46 games on Friday, a franchise record for a rookie. Forward Jason Robertson of Dallas has had a tremendous season. Others mentioned have included forwards Josh Norris and Tim Stützle of Ottawa.
“I think his body of work is not quite there yet to include him in with all those guys,” Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said Thursday. “Hopefully by the end of the year. We’ll have to see how many more starts he gets.
“Certainly his play has warranted it. It’s tough when you look at the other guys who have played all year. But that’s where those awards get tough to really say, ‘Hey, you should be in there when your body of work’s not quite there.’ But definitely by how he’s played, for sure.”
Canes captain Jordan Staal, asked if Nedeljkovic should be in the Calder conversation, quickly replied, “Absolutely.” He’s biased, of course, but made some good points about the goalie the players call “Ned.”
“Every time he’s started he’s given us a very good chance to win,” Staal said Thursday. “You ask our D, he’s been amazing moving the puck, so it just takes more stress of our D zone. He does things that other goalies can’t do. Obviously he’s made some big saves at key times.”
Nedeljkovic had to make some high-quality saves Thursday to help pull the Canes past the Panthers 4-2 in the matchup of Central Division leaders. He was the backstop on the penalty kill as the Panthers went 1-for-9 on the power play and scored only on a 5-on-3. He faced 19 shots in the third as Florida had 16 scoring chances in the period (naturalstattrick.com.)
With 3:20 left in regulation and the Canes leading 3-2, the Panthers’ Jonathan Huberdeau had an open net during a scramble in front of the Canes net. But Nedeljkovic made a quick push to his left to get a piece of the puck with his glove.
“He’s been a gamer for us,” Staal said. “All our goalies have been really good this year and Ned’s no different. Him being in that conversation should be a must.”
OF NOTE: Brind’Amour said forward Jordan Martinook was “not great” Friday after being hip-checked into the boards in Thursday’s game. Brin’Amour said the hope was it would not be a long-term injury but said Martinook would not play Saturday against the Panthers.
Forward Teuvo Teravainen (concussion symptoms) took part in the limited team practice Friday and but probably will not play Saturday, Brind’Amour said. “He looked really good today, though,” he said.
Carolina Hurricanes vs Florida Panthers
When: Saturday, 7 p.m.
Where: BB&T Center, Sunrise, Fla.
TV: BSSO (Bally).
This story was originally published April 24, 2021 at 7:00 AM with the headline "Should Hurricanes goalie Alex Nedeljkovic be in the Calder Trophy conversation?."
