Columbus Blue Jackets' Zach Werenski 2nd in Norris Trophy voting for NHL's best defenseman
The best season of Zach Werenski’s career now includes a second-place finish in the voting for the 2024-25 Norris Trophy given to the NHL’s top defenseman.
After a vote by the Professional Hockey Writers Association , the Blue Jackets star finished behind Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche .
Maker received 176 first-place votes, 13 for second place and two for third. Werenski received 13 first-place votes, 132 for second, 38 for third, seven for fourth and one for fifth. Maker had 1,861 points, followed by Werenski's 1,266 and Vancouver 's Quinn Hughes ' 918. Hughes got two first-place votes.
More: 3 reasons why Columbus Blue Jackets' Zach Werenski is a Norris Trophy finalist
Werenski, the only Blue Jackets defenseman ever named a finalist for the Norris Trophy, led the team in scoring in 2024-25 by setting career highs in goals (23), assists (59) and points (82) to average a career-best 1.01 points per game. He also led the NHL’s mid-season 4 Nations Face-Off in scoring and helped the U.S. win the men’s world championship gold medal on May 25 in Stockholm, Sweden.
Werenski also played a lot of hockey. He led the NHL in ice time with 2,166:22 and averaged 26:45 per game, 1:02 more per game than the next closest player (Makar 25:43). He also put together a 22-game home point streak that ended Feb. 25. It tied the third-longest point streak by a defenseman in NHL history. Phil Housley had a 22-game stretch in 1991-92 for the Buffalo Sabres .
Off the ice, Werenski acted as the Blue Jackets’ stand-in captain for more than half of their resurgent season after Boone Jenner underwent shoulder surgery for an injury that occurred during a preseason practice.
Among his offensive exploits, Werenski netted five power-play goals while quarterbacking the top unit and scored one shorthanded goal. He also scored five game-winning goals and put a career-high 298 shots on net among 638 attempts.
Defensively, Werenski played regularly against the opposing team’s top line and played a top role killing penalties. He blocked a career-high 131 shots, which ranked second on the team behind defense partner Dante Fabbro ’s 136, and the Blue Jackets generated 52.3% of all even-strength shot attempts with Werenski on the ice.
Makar led all NHL defensemen in goals (30), assists (62) and points (92) while posting a +28 plus/minus and logging 25:43 per game for the Avalanche.
This is a breaking news story that will include comments and further analysis to come
Blue Jackets reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at bhedger@dispatch.com and @BrianHedger.bsky.social
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Zach Werenski finishes 2nd in Norris Trophy vote for Blue Jackets
