Calgary Flames' Jiri Hudler Wins Lady Byng Trophy, Gives Speech in His Socks

You knew Jiri Hudler's speech had all-timer potential when he took the stage in bright red and blue socks.

The Calgary Flames forward stepped up to receive the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy at the NHL Awards in Las Vegas on Wednesday night. His first order of business was to apologize for his shoelessness—a first for league award ceremonies.

"I have no shoes on," Hudler said. "I'm sorry. But I got a new suit on."

Hudler's speech included a shout-out to Vegas ("what a place") and a glib anecdote about waking up Wednesday morning to find he'd been selected as the liaison of responsibility between Flames head coach Bob Hartley and young star Johnny Gaudreau.

The Czech ended it with a shout-out to his daughter—the cherry on top of a great year on the ice.

"Best day of my life was January 7th, my daughter was born, Anna Josefine," Hudler said. "Sports awards are awesome, but life is life, and I love my daughter."

The best part about Hudler's shoeless routine was it didn't end.

The forward showed up for his post-ceremony presser (Really? A post-award ceremony press conference, NHL?) in his loud socks and left in shoeless fashion, per SportsNet's Chris Johnston and The Fan 960's Dean Molberg:

According to the Edmonton Sun's Mike Zeisberger, Hudler took his shoes off because the new kicks were pinching his feet.

"I was sitting there for an hour and half," Hudler said, speaking of his uncomfortable shoes. "I thought Lady Byng was going to be first trophy, but it's not. Obviously it is the most important one."

Hudler is the first Czech player in NHL history to take home the Lady Byng Trophy—an award given to the player who exemplifies sportsmanship, skill and "gentlemanly conduct." He's also the first NHL player to go shoeless for an acceptance speech and post-show presser, making him the ceremony's clear-cut MVP.

Life is life, guys. And Vegas is one helluva place.

Dan is on Twitter. Hudler and Vegas were meant for each other.