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Jets’ Connor Hellebuyck joins exclusive group with Vezina, Hart Trophy wins
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- Jets’ Connor Hellebuyck joins exclusive group with Vezina, Hart Trophy wins
The post Jets' Connor Hellebuyck joins exclusive group with Vezina, Hart Trophy wins appeared first on ClutchPoints .
The Winnipeg Jets did not deliver the Stanley Cup Playoffs performance they had expected. After winning the Presidents' Trophy, they lost in the second round to the Dallas Stars . Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck has his struggles in the postseason, but had a historic regular season once again . He was awarded the Vezina Trophy as the best goalie and Hart Trophy as the league MVP on Thursday, just the fifth player ever to win both.
Hellebuyck is the first goalie since 2014-15 to win both the Vezina and Hart Trophies. Carey Price of the Montreal Canadiens did it that year with a ridiculous 1.96 goals-against average and a .933 save percentage. To compare, Hellebuyck had a 2.00 GAA and a .925 save percentage. Jose Theodore did it for the Canadiens in 2001-02. Dominik Hasek did it in consecutive seasons for the Sabres, 1996-97 and 97-98, and Jacques Plante won both in 1961-62.
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This is Hellebuyck's third career Vezina and second in a row . It is hard for anyone besides Connor McDavid to win the Hart Trophy in this era, considering he already has three in ten seasons. Hellebuyck has his first MVP after his best season yet.
The Jets could have traded Hellebuyck during the 2023-24 season, as his contract was expiring. But they decided to keep both the goalie and center Mark Schiefele on lengthy deals. It has already paid off in the regular season, as they both had great years next year. All of Winnipeg's focus will be on the playoffs next year. In the tough Western Conference, they think they have the team to win a title.
Hellebuyck got all but one first-place vote for the Vezina Trophy. One voter gave Andrei Vasilevskiy their first-place vote, and the other 31 went to Hellebuyck. He narrowly defeated Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl in the Hart voting, where eight players received first-place votes.
