Who Should Win the PWHL Forward of the Year Award? – Hockey Writers – PWHL News

The Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) announced the winners of some of its early season awards this week. The finalists for Rookie of the Year were revealed on Tuesday, Coach of the Year on Wednesday, and yesterday (May 16), we found out who the Finalists of the Year are.

Each finalist had a great first season in the PWHL, but one of them clearly played at a high level. Before we get into this argument, let’s remind ourselves of the winners; PWHL New York center Alex Carpenter, PWHL Montreal center Marie-Philip Poulin, and, last but not least, PWHL Toronto right wing Natalie Spooner.

Less is More for the Carpenter, Poulin and Spooner

Carpenter started the season with a bang, quickly leading the points division. At the end of the season, they found themselves tied on three points while being second in points. He played in each of his team’s 24 games and scored 23 points, not far from a point-per-game pace.

Poulin needs no introduction, so we’ll go without, but he was one of three players tied for second with 23 points. Unlike the other two players, however, he did not play every game for his limited team. 21, which means he finished the season with 1.10 points per game (P/G).

Related: Montreal’s Dramatic PWHL Win Highlights Continuing Problems

In the end, Spooner was in every game his team played, scoring 20 goals and picking up seven assists to lead the scoring race with 27 points. While he wasn’t above the P/G pace, he scored 0.83 goals per game, which is an impressive feat. As the player with the most points and goals at the end of the season, he has won two awards.

Two Horse Race

No offense to Carpenter, but I see this as a two horse race. While Mbazi scored more points, his team was one of two teams that failed to make the playoffs, and to me that kills his chances of winning.

As for the other two finalists, on the other hand he has a legend of the game nicknamed “Captain Clutch” who was very important to his team’s success. On the other hand, she has an amazing athlete who has been terrorizing the league’s pitchers all season and did so not long after giving birth to her first child, a little boy named Rory.

Both players are contenders for the award but only one can bowl with distinction. As much as Canada (while the United States can’t help but be surprised) adores national treasure Poulin for her worldwide accomplishments since bursting onto the scene at the 2009 World Championship, that’s not what the award is about. You should forget about the three Olympic gold medals, the four World Championship gold medals, the Olympic silver medal, the seven World Championship silver medals, the bronze World Championship medal, and many others obtained at various levels, and focus only on this season. in the PWHL. If you can do that, you will eventually agree, whether or not you want to, that Spooner deserves an award.

There’s Another Prize Up for grabs

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying Poulin had a bad season, I’m just saying Spooner’s was better. However, I believe Poulin should win one of the other undeclared awards, the Billie Jean King MVP Award. Why? Because this distinction is given to the most important athlete in their team. Without Poulin, this Montreal team can’t even qualify for the playoffs. When he injured his knee and missed three games, there was no life in Montreal’s game, they weren’t scoring five of five goals, the power play wasn’t scoring, the penalty kill was struggling, heck, even the fans were struggling. .

In addition, Poulin is a great player and makes everyone around him better. Mikyla Grant-Mentis was never better in the PWHL than when she rode shotgun on Montreal’s first line with Poulin and Laura Stacey. Lord knows Grant-Mentis is a great player in her own right, she won the PHF MVP in 2021 and became the highest paid women’s hockey player when she signed an $80,000 USD contract with the Buffalo Beauts. However, with Poulin, he gets even better. A similar argument can be made for Montreal’s Catherine Dubois who spent most of her time on Montreal’s fourth line but shined most when on the ice with Poulin.

While I honestly believe that Spooner was the best player this season, I can’t argue that he was an important player for his team; No one is as important to their team as Poulin. One of these days, someone will be taking that title, but the time is not yet.