Leon Draisaitl Wins 2020 Ted Lindsay Award over Nathan MacKinnon, Artemi Panarin

NHL players believe Leon Draisaitl was the best player in the league during the 2019-20 season.

Draisaitl won the 2019-20 Ted Lindsay Award during Monday's NHL Awards show, beating out fellow finalists Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche and Artemi Panarin of the New York Rangers.

In July, the NHL Players Association announced the three forwards were the finalists for the award that goes "to the most outstanding player in the NHL" as determined by his peers. The members of the NHLPA vote on the award, differentiating it from the Hart Memorial Trophy and other awards.

MacKinnon was a finalist in 2017-18 but fell short in the race to Connor McDavid, while Panarin and Draisaitl were both first-time finalists.

The three finalists were all over the NHL's leaderboard this season.

Panarin wasted no time establishing himself as the best player on the Rangers during his first season with the team following stints on the Chicago Blackhawks and Columbus Blue Jackets. He tied for third in the league in points with 95 and tied for second in assists with 63. He also led the league in even-strength points with 71.

Panarin, along with the rest of the league, found himself looking up at Draisaitl in many of the statistical races.

The Oilers star led the league in points with 110, assists with 67 and power-play points with 44. He also tied for the NHL lead in game-winning goals with 10.

As for MacKinnon, he was fifth in the league with 93 points, third in even-strength points with 62 and fourth in power-play points with 31.

MacKinnon also had an advantage over Panarin and Draisaitl in terms of team success in the postseason. Panarin's Rangers lost to the Carolina Hurricanes in the qualifying round, while Draisaitl's Oilers lost to the Blackhawks in the qualifying round, as well.

Colorado, by contrast, advanced to the second round of the playoffs where it lost to the eventual Western Conference champion Dallas Stars in overtime of Game 7.

Still, that was not enough for MacKinnon to top Draisaitl in the race for the Ted Lindsay Award.