2010 NHL Awards: Five Things We Learned from the Awards Show

With the 2010 NHL Awards Show has officially brought upon the end of the 2010 season—and what better way to close it out than with Henrik Sedin winning the Hart Trophy?

Overall, the 2010 awards featured some of the best groups of nominees in years.

There were three defensemen who could have won the Norris Trophy, three coaches who could have won the Jack Adams Award, and three forwards who could have won the Hart Trophy.

When all was said and done, there were five lessons to be learned.

Third Time’s a Bummer

Alexander Ovechkin’s 50 goals and 109 points in just 72 games, along with the fact that he led the Washington Capitals to the President’s Trophy, made him a favorite for the Hart Trophy as the league’s most valuable player in many critics’ minds.

It would have been the third consecutive MVP award for Alex “the Great,” but there was another player who had other things in mind—and surprisingly, it wasn’t Ovie’s rival Sidney Crosby.

Henrik Sedin stole the show on Wednesday by collecting his first MVP award. Sedin’s 29 goals were nowhere close to Ovechkin and Crosby’s totals, but his impressive 83 assists were more than enough to help Sedin gather 894 voting points—enough to edge out Ovechkin who finished second with 834 voting points.

“When they said my name, I didn’t really think they said my name. But it was great,” Sedin told ESPN.com after receiving the award.

No ‘Mess’in Around

While Sid “the Kid” didn’t collect his second MVP award, he did win the Mark Messier Leadership Award.

The award recognizes an individual as a superior leader within their sport, and as a contributing member of society. The award honors an individual who leads by positive example through on-ice performance, motivation of team members and a dedication to community activities and charitable causes.

With each season Crosby has become a stronger leader on the ice and one of the better captains in the game. The time he devotes to his “community activities and charitable causes” probably wasn’t anywhere near the time Ryan Miller devotes to his, but the award is more about hockey than anything else.

Sure, it’s no Hart Trophy, but any award given out by Messier has to be impressive.

Fool Me Once...

Maybe I was the only one who noticed, but Patrick Kane is really pushing his luck.

First there was the incident with the cab driver in his hometown of Buffalo. Then Kane was photographed shirtless in a limousine with a group of girls. At the awards show, Kane threw his arm around a half-dressed model who clearly wasn’t expecting it during a live interview.

I’m not 100 percent sure what got to me about the gesture, but it just didn’t seem right for the 21-year-old to be so casual about it. Just given the “incidents” he’s been involved in over the last year, maybe he should lay low for a little while.

Most of you probably think I’m overreacting about Mr. Johnny Coolbreeze (wearing sunglasses in picture), but when he gets photographed with the Stanley Cup in a strip club, don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Play that Funky Music...Goo Goo Dolls?

Most of the awards show went very well, but there is still one issue that needs to be tackled: the musical “talent.”

Don’t get me wrong, Snoop Dogg was actually a lot of fun to watch because he got into the whole concept behind the awards. The Cirque du Soleil bit was a little bit out of place, but still fun to watch...I guess. But who picked Shinedown—who I had never actually heard of until the show, and hopefully will never hear about again—and the Goo Goo Dolls to perform?

Get a few bands that would fit the atmosphere. What do you think of when you think of hockey? Goals, fights, and big hits.

Get a couple of metal bands in the mix. I’m thinking a little Every Time I Die would do the trick. According to a recent study I made up for the sake of this article, 78 percent of hockey players listen to metal—so give it a shot.

We Want Mohr!

Anyone who questioned Jay Mohr’s ability to effectively host the awards show has now been answered.

Mohr was incredibly funny throughout the night and rolled off several quality jokes, my favorite of which was his dig at Washington.

After talking about how intimidating Ovechkin is, Mohr said something to the equivalent of, "The Capitals appropriately won the President’s Trophy, they’re from Washington. Then they did nothing in the playoffs or when things actually matter, just like Washington.”

From berating Henrik Sedin for looking too much like his twin Daniel to making fun of the Phoenix Coyotes organization, Mohr was a quality host and should get another crack at it next year.