This is the third edition of theScore's rankings of the top candidates to be named 2019-20 playoff MVP. We've featured only players still competing in the postseason, which officially included the qualifying round and round-robin stage.
5. Miro Heiskanen
Andy Devlin / National Hockey League / Getty
Heiskanen has cooled off lately, registering a lone point in five games during the Western Conference Final courtesy of an assist in Game 3. However, the Dallas Stars phenom has remained a workhorse, averaging 25:07 of ice time per game in the series and 25:43 per contest throughout the playoffs.
His contributions often go beyond the scoresheet. The defenseman, who turned 21 in July, has already proven he can drive possession at an elite level, posting favorable expected goals for (55.16), scoring chances for (54.05), and Corsi For (50.61) percentages over the entire postseason.
Even while struggling to produce offensively, the young blue-liner improved at the possession game, posting a 59.99 xGF%, a 58.54 SCF%, and a 50.29 Corsi For rating across the five conference final games.
4. Nikita Kucherov
Bruce Bennett / Getty Images Sport / Getty
Kucherov has been instrumental to his club's success as several of his talented Tampa Bay Lightning teammates have missed time due to injury.
The dynamic forward produced an NHL-leading 26 points in 19 games through Round 3. Though only six of those were goals, the 2018-19 Hart Trophy winner scored all of them at even strength, and he leads all forwards still competing in average ice time through the postseason at 21:58.
Kucherov has also driven possession at a significant clip, posting expected goals for, scoring chances for, and Corsi For percentages above 60% at five-on-five in these playoffs.
3. Anton Khudobin
Bruce Bennett / Getty Images Sport / Getty
Khudobin has been solid throughout the postseason, but he's been absolutely unreal lately. The Stars goaltender authored an incredible .950 save percentage in the Western Conference Final against the Vegas Golden Knights, turning aside 153 of the 161 shots his opponents fired on goal.
He has also faced more shots than anyone in the 2019-20 playoffs (610 in 19 games, or 32.1 per contest), and Lightning puck-stopper Andrei Vasilevskiy faced 27 fewer shots in the same number of games.
Khudobin leads his counterpart with an .872 high-danger save percentage in these playoffs, compared to Vasilevskiy's mark of .836. Only two goaltenders have bested Khudobin's high-danger prowess while playing more than five games since the NHL resumed, and both appeared in four fewer contests than the Stars netminder.
His postseason excellence at age 34 - with Ben Bishop having been out for most of the playoffs due to injury - is the biggest reason Dallas is playing in the Stanley Cup Final.
2. Brayden Point
Bruce Bennett / Getty Images Sport / Getty
Kucherov has registered four more assists, but Point has scored three more goals. More importantly, the 24-year-old has outperformed his Russian teammate on a per-game basis while playing through an injury in this postseason, leading all NHL players still competing with 1.47 points per contest.
Point is also tied with three others for the league lead in playoff goals among those yet to be eliminated with nine, and all three have played more games than the Tampa Bay center. In addition, eight of Point's nine markers have come at even strength.
When he has suited up, the younger Lightning star left little doubt that he's been one of the most valuable players in this postseason. He notched a goal and an assist in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final after missing the previous contest, and he logged nearly 26 minutes of ice time in the Game 6 clincher after sitting out Game 5.
1. Victor Hedman
Bruce Bennett / Getty Images Sport / Getty
Hedman is accustomed to producing while shouldering a heavy workload, but the towering Lightning defenseman has taken his game to an even higher level in these playoffs.
He buried his ninth goal of the postseason Thursday night, and he's been on a scoring tear of late, racking up six markers in his last eight games. The veteran's remarkable endurance is on full display as well, as he leads all skaters still competing in average ice time during this postseason with 26:31 after logging 30:41 in Game 6 and a whopping 36:12 in Game 5.
Considering Point's injury and the fact that Steven Stamkos has missed the entire postseason with an ailment of his own, Hedman has stepped up significantly and has clearly been the most valuable player in these playoffs.
The NHL released the full schedule for the 2020 Stanley Cup Final between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Dallas Stars moments after the Bolts punched their ticket to the series with a Game 6 win over the New York Islanders on Thursday night.
The battle begins Saturday evening.
Game
Date
Time (ET)
Networks
1
Sept. 19
7:30 p.m.
NBC/CBC/SN/TVAS
2
Sept. 21
8 p.m.
NBCSN/CBC/SN/TVAS
3
Sept. 23
8 p.m.
NBCSN/CBC/SN/TVAS
4
Sept. 25
8 p.m.
NBC/CBC/SN/TVAS
5*
Sept. 26
8 p.m.
NBC/CBC/SN/TVAS
6*
Sept. 28
8 p.m.
NBC/CBC/SN/TVAS
7*
Sept. 30
8 p.m.
NBC/CBC/SN/TVAS
* - If necessary
The teams will have one day off between each contest except Games 4 and 5, which are scheduled for back-to-back nights.
The Lightning will be considered the home team in Games 1, 2, 5, and 7 after earning more points than the Stars in the regular season.
Dallas has been idle since Sept. 14 after eliminating the Vegas Golden Knights in five games in the Western Conference Final.
Additionally, the Oilers, Flames, and Boston Bruins have checked in on Arizona captain Oliver Ekman-Larsson's availability, Friedman said, adding that there are undoubtedly even more interested teams.
Kuemper was one of the NHL's best netminders this season, although he was not one of the three Vezina Trophy finalists. He finished third in the league with a .928 save percentage, third with a 2.22 goals-against average, and fourth with16.65 goals saved above average.However, injury limited him to just 29 games.
The 6-foot-5 Kuemper was stellar in 2018-19 as well, posting a .925 save percentage and a 2.33 goals-against average in 55 games. The 30-year-old is under contract for two more seasons with a $4.5-million cap hit.
The Oilers and Flames have obvious needs between the pipes. Mike Smith and Cam Talbot are pending unrestricted free agents. Mikko Koskinen and David Rittich remain under contract, but neither goalie has proven capable of handling No. 1 duties.
Ekman-Larsson, meanwhile, is coming off one of the worst offensive seasons of his career, tallying 30 points in 66 games. However, he averaged 17 goals and 45 points per year over the previous six campaigns. The 28-year-old just completed the first season of his eight-year extension, which carries an annual cap hit of $8.25 million, and has a full no-movement clause, per CapFriendly.
The Coyotes have named St. Louis Blues draft guru Bill Armstrong as the team's new general manager. Steve Sullivan served as the interim GM ever since John Chayka and the club parted ways.
Aube-Kubel was scheduled for restricted free agency this offseason.
The 24-year-old was drafted by the Flyers in the second round of the 2014 draft. He established a role in Philadelphia's offense this season, recording 15 points in 36 regular-season games before adding three more in 12 playoff contests.
The Flyers have a projected $7.8 million in available cap space with Aube-Kumel signed. Defensemen Philippe Myers and Robert Hagg, as well as 2017 second overall pick Nolan Patrick, are also due new contracts as RFAs.
Toronto expects to make an official announcement later on Thursday, according to TSN's Pierre LeBrun.
Malhotra has been with the Vancouver Canucks organization since 2016 when the team hired him as a development coach. They promoted him to assistant coach in 2017.
The Leafs have openings on their coaching staff after losing Paul McFarland to a head coaching gig with the OHL's Kingston Frontenacs and letting go of Andrew Brewer.
The Mississauga, Ontario native has played 991 NHL games and totaled 116 goals and 179 assists. The veteran was well known during his career for his two-way abilities and his proficiency in face-offs.
This year's World Junior Championship will take place in the Edmonton hub, reports TSN's Darren Dreger.
The tournament was originally set to take place in both Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta, beginning Dec. 26. It remains unclear if it will begin as scheduled.
Alberta will also host the 2022 tournament, Dreger adds.
The Edmonton bubble was utilized throughout the summer to host NHL teams during the postseason. The hub housed players and staff in three hotels within walking distance of Rogers Place.
Since arriving at the hub in late July, the NHL hasn't recorded a positive COVID-19 test despite playing multiple games daily at the arena.
Rick Bowness sat in the coaches' office after practice and listened intently. It was December 1992, and Jim Thomson, a journeyman forward on the expansion Ottawa Senators, needed his bench boss's undivided attention.
Bowness had just informed Thomson that he was going to be sent down to the Senators' AHL affiliate in New Haven, Connecticut. The player could accept the demotion itself, but one element troubled him.
"I absolutely cannot go to New Haven," Thomson recalled telling Bowness.
Two seasons earlier, Thomson's mother died of cancer and his brother was killed in a car accident. He was playing for the New Haven Nighthawks at the time of both deaths.
Bowness on the Senators' bench in 1992 Rick Stewart / Getty Images
Bowness, then in his late 30s and at the helm of a team that would go on to lose 74 of 84 games in its inaugural season, told Thomson he understood.
"He almost got a tear in his eye," Thomson remembered. "He definitely felt my pain. He said, 'Leave it with me.'"
Days later, the Senators shipped Thomson to the LA Kings.
"I'll never forget that," Thomson said of Bowness' empathy. "In the world of hockey, there's no favors. It's pretty ruthless, especially then, in the '90s. You're a piece of meat."
"Rick Bowness is the ultimate team guy, ultimate glue guy," added Darrin Madeley, Thomson's teammate in Ottawa. "He just happens to be a coach."
Thomson and Madeley are far from the only ones rooting for Bowness right now. The Dallas Stars interim head coach, whose pro hockey career spans multiple generations, has a golden opportunity to win his first Stanley Cup in his 45th year as a player or coach. Eight weeks into a bubbled-up playoff run, the third Cup final of Bowness' career is here, his first as the head man.
"When you watch a team play, you can tell who they're playing for," Stars general manager Jim Nill said Tuesday while Dallas awaits the conclusion of the Eastern Conference final. "This team is playing for the coach, and the coach is coaching for the players. That's a great reflection on everybody."
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Earlier this postseason, Bowness shrugged at the suggestion that he's a player's coach. The man nicknamed "Bones" doesn't like labels. "I don't believe in all that stuff," he told reporters. "I'm just me. I just do it my way."
Bowness is, at the very least, somebody who fits the profile of a player's coach. By all accounts - including more than a dozen interviews with retired and active NHL players and coaches - the 65-year-old possesses a high level of emotional and social intelligence. He's authentic and selfless, treating equipment managers, security guards, role players, and superstars with equal amounts of respect. He's extremely passionate about the game, thorough in his preparation, and always evolving, never losing sight of the ultimate goal: Winning titles.
"He's a hockey lifer," Vegas Golden Knights head coach Pete DeBoer said of the longtime rival who helped end the Knights' season Monday. "He loves the game, has made a great impression on everybody he's come in contact with. He's going to leave that legacy behind, which is really rare."
"He's a coach you just want to do everything for, lay your body on the line for," Stars captain Jamie Benn said. Teammate Joel Hanley added this common compliment about Bowness: "When he talks, you listen to what he says. Respect is probably the biggest word."
Bowness with the Canucks in 2007 Jeff Vinnick / Getty Images
Nobody in NHL history has coached as many games as Bowness, who is nearing 2,500 after breaking Scotty Bowman's record of 2,164 in 2017. The Halifax native began his coaching odyssey as an AHL player-coach in 1982 and hasn't looked back, missing only two seasons - 1998-99, after getting fired as head coach of the New York Islanders, and 2004-05, thanks to the lockout.
Over the years, Bowness has alternated between being an assistant coach, associate coach, and head coach. He's held the title of NHL bench boss, permanent or interim, six times - for the Winnipeg Jets in 1988-99, Boston Bruins in 1991-92, Senators from 1992-93 to 1995-96, Islanders for 1996-97 and 1997-98, Phoenix Coyotes in 2003-04, and the Stars since last December.
Including playoffs, Bowness' all-time record as an NHL head coach is 164-317-48-8. It's an ugly winning percentage, but considering he was hired midseason four times, oversaw the expansion Senators, and got fired one year into his tenure with the Bruins, his raw record shouldn't be viewed an indictment of his coaching abilities. If anything, the fact that Bowness has remained relevant through various eras - as both a front-and-center head coach and a behind-the-scenes assistant - attests to his versatility.
"There's a lot of people who are good at being head coach, but they can't be an assistant coach. Or you have guys who are very good at being an assistant coach but you wouldn't trust them to be a head coach," former Coyotes forward Danny Briere noted. "It's impressive that Rick's able to take on either role, whatever's needed from whomever he's working with."
Cody Hodgson, who played under Alain Vigneault and Bowness in Vancouver, took Briere's train of thought a step further: "You get some coaches who are very talented and not necessarily good people," he said. "But Rick's a great coach and also a good person. So I can see why he's lasted so long in the game and will be able to stick around as long as he wants to."
Bowness' tenure covers four labor disputes between the league and the players' union, several facelifts for the on-ice product, and plenty of upheaval in the coaching ranks. He's a walking, talking, story-telling hockey encyclopedia who's been coaching so long that he's gone from being a peer to his players to being old enough to be their grandfather. Which raises the question: How often does he tap into this reservoir of experiences?
"Everything depends on the situation and the individual involved and your rapport with them. Some guys, when you're talking to them, you know they need a pat on the back. Some guys, they need a good kick," Bowness said. "A lot of it depends on the situation, the timing, but over the years you learn to read people better. Communication with my players has always been the top priority for me, so I get to know them and I make sure I talk to everybody pretty much every day."
Even though Bowness was a forward for nine years as a pro, including 178 NHL games split between the Atlanta Flames, Detroit Red Wings, St. Louis Blues, and Jets, he's made the blue line his area of expertise as a coach. He's widely credited with helping transform Victor Hedman into arguably the best defenseman on the planet. Bowness rarely discussed hockey-related topics within the first few weeks of meeting Hedman, a promising rearguard drafted second overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2009. Instead, he chose to build trust via a personal connection and slowly transitioned into teaching.
"He cares about his players. You can just see it in his actions. Not only in what he says but also in his actions too," said George Gwozdecky, who worked as an assistant with Bowness for Lightning head coach Jon Cooper from 2013-15. "He will never chastise them; he will never embarrass them in front of his peers or in front of other people. If there is a tough conversation to have, he always does it behind closed doors."
Bowness hugs Victor Hedman in 2015 Scott Audette / Getty Images
Bowness can game plan for difficult opponents, make savvy lineup changes, and knows as well as anyone when to challenge a contentious call. He's a smart hockey mind. However, his true value is reflected in his relationships. Stars defensemen Miro Heiskanen, Esa Lindell, and John Klingberg are better players because Bowness has taken the time - first as an assistant, now as the boss - to get to know them over the past two years.
Stephen Johns, another key member of Dallas' deep blue line, leaned on various members of the organization during a harrowing 22-month absence from hockey. At one point, Johns considered suicide as he experienced post-traumatic headaches and post-concussion syndrome from injuries he suffered in the 2017-18 season. Bowness was among those who offered unconditional love and support throughout. "I can't thank him enough for that," Johns told The Athletic's Sean Shapiro in June. "He cared about me, not just Stephen, the hockey player."
"The leader doesn't have to be General George Patton. The leader doesn't have to be Bill Belichick," said Madeley, the former Senators goalie. "This is a weird thing to say, but I would have taken a bullet for Rick during those times because he always treated me with respect."
"Xs and Os are one thing, but if you don't have the communication skills or the ability to connect with people, then I don't think the Xs and Os matter anymore," added University of North Dakota head coach Brad Berry, who played for Bowness in Winnipeg and years later worked with him in the Canucks organization as an NHL scout and AHL coach.
Bowness' willingness to be open, honest, and vulnerable was on display in August when he became the first person inside an NHL bubble to speak at length about the mental strain of this most abnormal playoff tournament. He said what was on the minds of not only some of his players but his rivals.
Bowness at the 2020 Winter Classic Eliot J. Schechter / Getty Images
The 24-team postseason provides a window into Bowness' reach. He has coached at least one player on 18 teams, according to research by The Associated Press' Stephen Whyno. Plus, he coached three current GMs: Nill, Boston's Don Sweeney, and Columbus' Jarmo Kekalainen, as well as two coaches, Arizona's Rick Tocchet and Vancouver's Travis Green. The freshest coach-to-coach connection is Cooper, Bowness' boss in Tampa for five seasons.
"When I came into the NHL, I was a little green. I was comfortable as a coach, but I wasn't comfortable with the NHL yet, and Rick really helped me with that," Cooper said of Bowness' "invaluable" counsel. "He was kind of that mentor you needed - or I needed - and the nuances of the NHL that I didn't know about, he really helped me with."
Bowness was 16 when he met his wife Judy, a hockey lifer herself. Colleagues often cite Judy's warm personality as a nice complement to Bowness' fit within the team structure. She often contacts incoming wives and girlfriends to make them feel welcome. The couple has three adult children: Kristen, who is the manager of diversity development and sled hockey for the Lightning; Ryan, a 2001 eighth-round pick of the Columbus Blue Jackets, who is the director of pro scouting for the Pittsburgh Penguins; and Rick Jr., the former sports information director for the University of Denver men's hockey program. The sport is in the family's DNA.
"At some point, if Rick decides to do his memoirs and reveal some of these stops along the way, people will marvel at it," Gwozdecky said. "You talk about organizations and businesses and why they fail, it's the inner turmoil and the lack of leadership. Yet there's one guy saying, 'Hey, hang in there, follow me, we're going to be OK,' and all of a sudden that team or business continues to succeed as everything else is falling apart around it. That's Rick. He's been that one guy. When everything's falling apart, he's able to keep things together, keep people believing, keep players believing."
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"We're now joined by the Western Conference champion head coach of the Dallas Stars, Rick Bowness," an unidentified voice announced to kick off Bowness' virtual media availability following Monday's clinching win.
Bowness looked to the left with a wry smile, tapped his fingers on the table, glanced toward the camera, then glimpsed to his right. It was the demeanor of a man letting it all soak in. Head coach of a conference champion, a first in a hockey coaching career like no other. He's been to two previous Cup finals, in 2011 with the Canucks and 2015 with the Lightning, but never as the leader. Bowness feels energized by this incredible Stars run.
"It's so rare to get to the finals, man," he said, "you've got to enjoy every minute of it."
Bowness after the Stars' latest win Andy Devlin / Getty Images
Bowness took over in December for Jim Montgomery, who was fired for "unprofessional conduct" and entered rehab shortly afterward to deal with a substance abuse problem. Dallas has since stabilized as a group, found its rhythm offensively, and managed to defeat three quality squads - the Calgary Flames, Colorado Avalanche, and Golden Knights - in close-fought playoff series.
Technically, Bowness still is an interim guy. But, as Nill said Tuesday, he's "earned the right to come back as the coach." The question is, once Bowness exits the bubble and exhales, will the fire inside burn brightly enough for him to continue his epic coaching journey? He's said multiple times in the bubble that he's going to stay in the present and deal with 2020-21 in the offseason.
"Every year, there seems to be guys on the team - whether it's guys that have been in the league for so many years and haven't won, you see the Cup passed to that older guy, older vet. For us, it's really our coach," Stars forward Tyler Seguin told a Dallas radio station in late August.
"He's just such a passionate man and the ultimate role model as far as a hockey guy and a father and a husband," Seguin added.
Thomson, the ex-Senator, wouldn't argue. Some 28 years later, he remembers that moment in the coaches' office like it was yesterday. He can picture Bowness' body language, hear his words, and feel his empathy.
"The man friggin' cares," Thomson said. "Bottom line."
