It’s Masterton day, the day the nominations for this award are made public. I don’t like this award, or its process, and if you made me emperor of the NHL, I’d mothball it, and I’d replace it with an award that recognizes people who make the NHL better.
The award is named for Bill Masterton, and is given by the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association, an organization I never aspire to join. The award is for “the National Hockey League player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.” The first clue that this award is all about things not said is that the official NHL page for it glosses fairly lightly over Masterton’s story and doesn’t really tell you the way in which he persevered.