Charlie McAvoy is without a doubt the Boston Bruins top player on the blue line, but he is on the outside of the conversation when it comes to being the NHL’s top defenseman, at least for this season.
McAvoy wasn’t listed as finalist recently for the Norris Trophy — the award given to league’s best defenseman — with Tampa Bay Lightning’s Victor Hedman, Nashville Predators’ Roman Josi and Colorado Avalanche’s Cale Makar the only players left in the running for the hardware.
McAvoy shrugged off not being a final candidate for the award on Monday during the Bruins’ exit interviews, as he sees other aspects of his job being more important than claiming individual success.
“I don’t really play hockey for that,” McAvoy told reporters, per team-provided video. “I play to win as a team. My job is to do the best I can every single night for this team to get results to win hockey games. That’s really all I can concern myself with.”
Just 24 years old, McAvoy has already cemented himself as a premier defenseman in just his fifth season in the NHL. McAvoy takes on a massive role for the Bruins, leading Boston in time on ice per game this past regular season at 24:39. McAvoy also ranked sixth on the team with 56 points on 10 goals and 46 assists.
McAvoy’s value on the Bruins is certainly unquestioned, but the only problem when it comes to his Norris candidacy is the being NHL loaded with highly-skilled defensemen — Hedman, Josi and Makar all had at least 29 points more than McAvoy.
It still wouldn’t be a surprise though in the future if one day McAvoy finds himself as a finalist for the Norris Trophy.
