On Tuesday, Carey Price was named the 2015 Lou Marsh Award winner. The award is voted on by a group of Canadian journalists and is handed out annually to Canada’s best athlete, amateur or professional. This is the first time that Price has received this honour.
The award was established back in 1936 and is named after Lou Marsh, a former Canadian athlete, referee, and sports editor.
While hockey players have won the award more than athletes in any other sport (a total of twelve times), it has been rare that an NHL’er has won in recent years. In the last quarter century, only two hockey players had won the award, Mario Lemieux (1993) and Sidney Crosby (2007 and 2009).
Part of the reason that voters have shied away from voting for NHL’ers (or NBA players, for that matter) is that their playing seasons are split over two calendar years while the award is handed out annually. However, Price’s record breaking season was enough to sway the voters.
Last year, Price set a new franchise mark for wins in a season with 44 while posting a 1.96 GAA and .933 SV%. That earned him not only the Vezina Trophy for the NHL’s Top Goalie but also the Hart Trophy (League MVP) and Ted Lindsay Award (MVP as voted by the players). He also had a strong postseason, recording a 2.23 GAA and a .920 SV%, marks that were well better than his career average in the playoffs.
Price’s numbers thus far in the 2015-16 season certainly haven’t hurt his cause either. In twelve games this year, he has a 10-2 record with a 2.06 GAA and a save percentage that’s one point better than last year at .934. Unfortunately for Montreal fans, it will be a while yet before he sees the ice again as he is still at least a month away (and likely longer) from returning to game action.
Click here to learn more about the award and its namesake.