Canucks make history with Hughes’ Calder Trophy nomination

In case you missed it, earlier today the NHL announced its nominees for the Calder Trophy. The Calder, of course, is given annually to the NHL’s top rookie. 

This year’s candidates are:

Quinn Hughes - Vancouver Canucks
Cale Makar - Colorado Avalanche
Dominik Kubalik - Chicago Blackhawks

Check it out:

A pretty impressive group, but let’s get real… it’s really a two horse race between Hughes and Makar. Fans and analysts have volleyed opinions on both young defenders back and forth and there’s still no clearcut winner. I wouldn’t be surprised if either guy wins by the smallest of margins.

And, while Hughes’ nomination is an accomplishment in and of itself, it speaks to a larger accomplishment for the Canucks’ organization. In fact, it’s historical. With Hughes’ Calder nod the Canucks now become the first team since the NHL’s expansion era started in 1967 to have a Calder Trophy nominee in three consecutive seasons.

Check it out:

Brock Boeser - 2018 - (Runner up to winner Mathew Barzal, edged out Clayton Keller)
Elias Pettersson - 2019 (Winner. Beat Jordan Binnington and Rasmus Dahlin)
Quinn Hughes - 2020 (Up against Makar and Kubalik)

Not bad... not bad at all!

Between Boeser, Pettersson and Hughes the Canucks have the makings of an incredible young core. Throw in goaltender Thatcher Demko and other intriguing young players like Adam Gaudette, Jake Virtanen and prospects like Vasili Podkolzin, Nils Hoglander and Jack Rathbone and there's lots to get excited about if you're a Canucks fan.

In other Canucks news, forward Micheal Ferland rejoined the team after being deemed "unfit to play" earlier this week.

Check it out:

While it wasn’t exactly clear whether or not Ferland was dealing with an injury or an illness, the use of the term “unfit to play” raised some eyebrows across the NHL. In fact, other players like Timothy Liljegren of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Corey Crawford were also deemed “unfit to play”, which lead several media members to wonder if the term is actually a covert phrase for “has contracted COVID-19.” 

Well, evidently his issue was not COVID-19 as he has not been forced into isolation and quarantine.