Adam Fox of the New York Rangers, Erik Karlsson of the San Jose Sharks and Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche were named finalists on Thursday for the 2022-23 Norris Trophy, awarded to the NHL defenseman demonstrating the greatest all-round ability.
Members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association voted for the award at the end of the regular season. The top three vote-getters are finalists, with the winner to be announced June 26.
Karlsson, 32, became the sixth different defenseman in NHL history to record 100 points in a season. His 25 goals, 76 assists and 101 points led all blueliners, making him the first to accomplish the feat in a single season since Washington’s Mike Green in 2009-10.
Karlsson, who won the Norris Trophy with the Ottawa Senators in 2011-12 and 2014-15, also led all players with 21:51 of even-strength ice-time per game.
Makar, the reigning Norris Trophy winner, battled through injuries to rank second among defensemen with 1.1 points per game. He totaled 66 points (17 goals, 49 assists) with a plus-16 rating in 60 games.
A finalist for the third consecutive year in his fourth season, Makar, 24, was second in voting in 2020-21. He’s also won the Calder Trophy as top rookie in 2019-20 and the Conn Smythe Trophy as most valuable player of the Stanley Cup playoffs in 2021-22.
Fox, 25, was eighth among NHL defenseman with 72 points (12 goals, 60 assists) and a plus-28 rating in 82 games for his second consecutive 70-point season. The last Rangers defenseman to accomplish that was Brian Leetch (two times, most recently in 1995-96 and 1996-97).
Fox, who won the Norris Trophy in 2020-21, tied for fourth among NHL defensemen in assists and eighth in points. Fox was the only NHL defenseman who registered 70 or more points and had a plus-25 rating or better during the season. He also tied for the most takeaways among defensemen with 88.
–Field Level Media
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