Bridgestone Messier Leadership Award

Preparing for the NHL Awards in Las Vegas, let’s take time to reflect on the candidates of the Bridgestone Messier Leadership Award. This trophy, in honor of Mark Messier, is presented to a player who “exemplifies great leadership qualities to his team, on and off the ice during the regular season.” Fitting since it’s named after the great Mark Messier, but let’s not reminisce here and take a look at the nominees instead. All captains here as Daniel Alfredsson from the Ottawa Senators represents the East, while Dustin Brown of the Los Angeles Kings and Jonathon Toews of the Chicago Blackhawks represent the West.

Daniel Alfredsson has no doubt led the Senators throughout this season despite all the injuries on their top players, and is a huge reason the team managed their way into the playoffs earning the nickname “Pesky Sens.” Alfredsson is highly respected by his teammates, displayed in each interview where his teammates practically gush about his performance and dedication to his team as captain. An advantage Alfredsson has, is the fact that he’s from the “underdog” team and is likely to retire soon – a center of attention as he was noted grabbing a puck from an on-ice official before leaving the rink after a 7-3 loss. While Alfredsson has great history with Ottawa and is loved by his team, factors going against him are that he is from a somewhat ignored team in the East, no matter how pesky they might be, and his comments recently that sounded as if he lacked faith in his team that is now behind 3-1 in the series. Alfredsson later claimed his comment was taken out of context and that he still holds faith in his Pesky Sens, but damage may have already been done, and it is not a good leadership quality to display any lack of faith in the team you captain. However, if Messier chooses to hold this against Alfredsson or not is ultimately up to him.

Dustin Brown’s case is a bit different than Alfredsson’s. Brown leads last year’s Stanley Cup champions and as such, has a very large supporting fan base. Brown, though a controversial hitter and holding one suspension this year, is a very physical player on a team that thrives in physicality. He has led his team to the second round of the playoffs where they lead the San Jose Sharks 3-2 in the series, which is significantly better than the past two Stanley Cup champions the season after they won the Cup. With popular fan advantage, the only factor against Brown is his suspension earlier this season where he sat down two crucial games at the end of the regular season, being a major factor as to why the Kings lost against the Detroit Red Wings, earning them a spot in the playoffs. Brown is – and as a Wild fan this personally hurts to admit – a good leader to the Kings with his physical style of play, but suspensions are not a sign of good leadership; you can’t lead if you can’t play.

            Captain of the Chicago Blackhawks, Jonathon Toews, has probably the best case in my personal opinion. The team has been remarkable the past few years, and while they may have underperformed the two years after their Stanley Cup championship run in 2010, the Blackhawks absolutely dominated this season – largely due to the leadership of Jonathon Toews. The Conn Smythe winner infamously known as “Captain Serious” has led his team to a marvelous run this season, earning them top spot in the league along with the President’s Trophy. The Blackhawks, like the Kings, have a large, influencing fan base to improve Toews’ case, and unlike Brown, Toews has not been victim of suspension. Unfortunately Toews has been unable to find the back of the net this post season and that has caused some frustration, as demonstrated by the performance against certain Detroit Red Wings players. Yet Toews is still a great playmaker and leader to his team and holds a very strong case for the Messier Award.

            In the end, it’s Mark Messier who decides which player is more deserving, and while fan bases may be influencing, personal opinion is what matters most here. All the captains have strong cases here, but out of all those Toews holds perhaps the strongest of the three. Each holds a great case and all certainly have their flaws, but no leader is perfect; it’s how they handle their imperfections that makes them a great leader. But we’ll just have to wait and see who the great Messier chooses when the scene shifts to Vegas.