Philadelphia Flyers' Sergei Bobrovsky Making Case for Rookie of the Year

As the season enters the home stretch, the predictions for the annual awards given by the NHL seem to become more frequent.

The Philadelphia Flyers have had a spectacular season and a big part of that success has been standout rookie goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky.

Bobrovsky has shared the workload with veteran journeymen Brian Boucher, but has stood as one of the best rookies in the NHL.

While many players will be in contention for the Calder Memorial Trophy, Bobrovsky is one of the top contenders.

To preface this conversation, it has to be mentioned that, unlike most of the other rookies being considered, he had never stepped foot in North America before joining the Flyers.

He played three seasons in Russia with the Metallurg Novokuznetsk, which was one of the worst offensive teams in the Kontinental Hockey League during his time with the team.

Coming to Philadelphia, Bobrovsky knew almost no English and had never played in a North American-style league in his life.

Not only has Bobrovsky managed, he has flourished.

“The confidence is the most important thing for me so I can calm down and play to the best of my abilities and keep winning,” Bobrovsky said through a translator.

While Bobrovsky has split starts with Boucher, he has still managed to play in 43 of 66 games for the Flyers. Bobrovsky has also shocked people with his 25 wins, which puts him 15th in the NHL in that category.

One of the biggest surprises has been the consistency of the rookie.

“I came out and played every game the same way,” Bobrovsky said.

While his fellow rookie, Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford, has been impressive as well, Bobrovsky has a goals against average of 2.52 and a save percentage of .917, which ranks him 16th and 18th in the league respectively.

Some of the other contenders for the Calder Trophy would be the Carolina Hurricanes’ Jeff Skinner, the San Jose Sharks’ Logan Couture and the New York Islanders’ Michael Grabner, but Bobrovsky may have the strongest case.