標籤: votes

Two Washington Capitals rookies were recognized for the 2025-26 Calder Trophy. Ryan Leonard and Justin Sourdiff both received top-12 votes for the NHL’s Rookie of the Year.

Leonard finished eighth in the voting with one third-place vote, four fourth-place votes and 19 fifth-place votes. Meanwhile, Sourdough finished in 12th place with a fourth-place vote and a fifth-place vote.

Meanwhile, New York Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaefer won this year’s Calder unanimously. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft did so by earning all 198 first-place votes.

Leonard made his NHL debut at the end of the 2024–25 season, recording one goal and an assist in nine regular season games and eight playoff games. He then returned for his first full NHL season and finished with 20 goals and 25 assists in 75 games.

Additionally, Leonard was a vital part of the lineup and helped spark the Capitals’ power play. Although he missed a period due to injury, he returned and led the team in goals by March.

Meanwhile, the Sourdough Capitals had a new addition via trade with the Florida Panthers. After some call-ups and time in the AHL he made quite an impact in his first full NHL season.

Following an injury to Pierre-Luc Dubois in late October, Sourdiff moved from the fourth-line wing to full-time centre. In 78 games, the 24-year-old player recorded 15 goals and 20 assists for 35 points.

Harry Lichtman is an award-winning journalist who covers the Washington Capitals for SportsNut. He also contributes to the sites… More about Harry Lichtman

The NHL has announced the winner of the Calder Trophy, given annually to the first-year player who makes the most impact, and although a few Montreal Canadiens players were in the running, the trophy was awarded to New York Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaefer.

It’s a fair decision, considering that Schaefer is an 18-year-old defenseman who somehow managed to score 23 goals. Full marks to the young blueliner for a fantastic year in an incredibly difficult situation.

Montreal Canadiens Brass Tacks

Ivan Demidov was the runner-up for the award, having a remarkable rookie season where he recorded 62 points in 82 games, leading all rookies in scoring in the process.

That being said, it was not a close vote. Schaefer won every first-place vote, leaving Demidov to receive the majority of second-place votes.

Demidov was given 120 votes in second place, while Beckett Seneca (Anaheim Ducks) was given just 41 votes.

Interestingly, Canadiens netminder Jacob Dobbs received the fourth-most second-place votes, enough to finish fourth in all Calder Trophy voting.

Coming into the season, there was no guarantee that Dobbs would play more than a handful of games, and yet, he not only managed to take over as the team’s de facto starter, but he has also been their most valuable player in the playoffs.

Full voting table for the Calder Trophy for Best Rookie, won unanimously #island Defender Matthew Schaefer. pic.twitter.com/mlxsfErw9v

– NHL News (@PuckReportNHL) 13 May 2026

We should also note that Oliver Kapanen received some votes, and despite the fact that he is currently in the playoffs, it cannot be denied that he was the surprise story of the season for the Montreal Canadiens.

Playing the majority of the season alongside Ivan Demidov, Kapanen scored 22 goals in 82 games. Yes, Demidov gave them plenty of high-end scoring chances, but Canadiens history is littered with players who failed to capitalize on their scoring opportunities, while Kapanen did a great job of complementing the team’s offense during his first season in the league.

Mark has been covering the Habs for over a decade. He previously worked for the Journal Metro, The Athletic, The… More about Mark Dumont

The NBA Board of Governors has approved a vote to explore the possibility of adding two new expansion franchises specifically in the Las Vegas and Seattle markets, as first reported by ESPN.

As a result of approving this vote, the bidding process to launch expansion franchises in Las Vegas and Seattle will officially begin, and is expected to generate offers in the $7 billion to $10 billion range for each new franchise.

The process will involve the NBA along with investment bank PJT Partners as a strategic advisor to evaluate potential markets, ownership groups, sector infrastructure and the macroeconomic implications of the expansion.

“Today’s vote reflects our board’s interest in exploring potential expansion in Las Vegas and Seattle – two markets with long histories of supporting NBA basketball,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in the league’s press release. “We look forward to taking the next steps and engaging with interested parties.”

The idea of ​​NBA expansion is no longer a consideration, as the board has officially begun the process of a 32-team league, with high-ranking executives telling ESPN that it’s a matter of “when, not if.”

At this time, there is no timeline for potential expansion bids to be evaluated or accepted, but given the amount of interest there is in these markets for NBA expansion, the process is expected to move quickly.

There was growing momentum among NBA board members, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, and members of the league office to approve this notion of expansion, especially with the revenue generated by new teams in Las Vegas and Seattle.

A potential final vote for expansion to Las Vegas and Seattle will be held later this year, which would officially take the league from 30 to 32 teams.

If Seattle makes a bid and is accepted, the NBA would welcome the return of the Seattle SuperSonics, who were disbanded when the franchise moved to Oklahoma and became the Oklahoma City Thunder.

If the SuperSonics were to return, all of their records and team history would be handed over to them by the Thunder, who do not already recognize the previous team’s success as their own.

Along with Seattle, Las Vegas has long been viewed as the next stomping ground for a new NBA franchise, especially considering how long the league has been doing business with the city.

Not only has the NBA Summer League been held in Las Vegas during the offseason since 2004, but the NBA Cup has also held its semifinal and final rounds in Las Vegas since beginning in 2023.

The WNBA moved its San Antonio franchise to Las Vegas in 2018, becoming the Las Vegas Aces, and the NHL established the Las Vegas Knights as an expansion team in 2016.

MLB also officially announced the relocation of the Oakland Athletics to Las Vegas in 2023, and they are building a new $2 billion stadium that is expected to be ready for the 2028 season.

With the NBA officially taking the next step to add two new franchises in Seattle and Las Vegas, the conversation has now turned to which current Western Conference franchises will move to the Eastern Conference to balance the league at 16 teams per conference.

It is expected that either the Minnesota Timberwolves or the Memphis Grizzlies will move east, with the Timberwolves seen as the likely favorite in this scenario.