Philadelphia Flyers: The Hunt for the Barry Ashbee Award

From the News of Delaware County

From a defensive mindset, the Philadelphia Flyers have had a great season so far.

Their six top defenders have been the most solid group in the NHL, boasting five of six defenders with plus-10 or higher.

“We have a great team, no matter who is in the lineup,” Flyers defenseman Matt Carle said.

“We just have to go out there and win.”

And win they have.

The Flyers defense has helped the team win 39 games so far this season and the team has maintained a goal differential of plus-46.

So, with such a large contingency of candidates for the Flyers' annual best defenseman award—dubbed the Barry Ashbee Award after the legendary Flyers defender—who is the favorite in this race?

Many people will say players like Chris Pronger, Kimmo Timonen and Andrej Meszaros deserve the honor, but I believe the winner of the award will not be one of these gentlemen.

If the award were to be given out today, it would have to go to young defenseman Matt Carle.

Carle is second on the team to Kimmo Timonen with 26 points. The improved play of Chris Pronger will only help his numbers increase.

“I had a good season last year and I wanted to try to build on that,” Carle said on his success this season.

“Just want to take steps to get better.”

As a defenseman, your main goal is to help keep the puck out of your team's net.

Carle has been a plus-23 this season, which ranks him as the fifth-best player in the league in the goal-differential category.

The true reasons he would win the Barry Ashbee Award this season are the intangibles that he brings.

Carle has a great attitude in the Philadelphia locker room and is a young player who knows the meaning of hard work.

His dedication can’t be questioned. If you do question it, tell that to the 116 shots he has blocked this season; he ranks 18th in the league in that category.

There is still plenty of season left for the other defenders to make a push for the title, but as of right now, Carle is the leader in my eyes.