Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck has secured two major awards, needing more space for his growing collection of hardware. On Thursday in Sunrise, Florida, Hellebuyck was named the recipient of the Hart Trophy, presented to the NHL`s most valuable player. This marks his first Hart Trophy. Additionally, he won the Vezina Trophy as the league`s top goaltender for the third time in his career, and the second consecutive season.
He is the first goaltender to win the Hart Trophy since Carey Price of the Montreal Canadiens received the honor ten years ago.
Hellebuyck expressed the significance of the achievement, especially for a goaltender. “It means a lot,” he stated. “It`s one of those things that doesn`t get swung towards the goalies too often, so any time a goalie gets a sniff at it, you take notice… you look back at the year, it was just such a fun year and we had so much positivity around the locker-room and everyone was just kind of living in the moment and enjoying the year. With team success, individual success comes and just to get one of these is pretty special in my world.”
Dominant Regular Season Performance
The 32-year-old native of Commerce, Michigan, had a remarkable 2024-25 regular season, leading the league in key statistical categories. He posted a record of 47-12-3, a sparkling .925 save percentage, a 2.00 goals-against average, and recorded eight shutouts.
Award Voting Details
In the voting for the Hart Trophy by the Professional Hockey Writers Association, Edmonton Oilers center Leon Draisaitl was the runner-up, followed by Tampa Bay Lightning winger Nikita Kucherov in third place. Kucherov recently received the Ted Lindsay Award, which is voted on by the NHL Players` Association, as the league`s most outstanding player.
The Vezina Trophy winner is selected by the NHL`s 32 general managers.
Hellebuyck`s dominance in the Hart voting was evident, as he appeared on 183 out of 191 ballots, earning 81 first-place votes and a total of 1,346 points. Draisaitl received 53 first-place votes and finished with 1,209 points. The race for third place was exceptionally close, with Kucherov (973 points) narrowly finishing ahead of Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon (972 points), who was the Hart winner in the 2023-24 season.
For the Vezina Trophy, Hellebuyck was the clear choice, receiving 31 out of 32 first-place votes from the general managers. He finished ahead of Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Lightning and Darcy Kuemper of the Kings.
Historical Context
This Hart Trophy win places Hellebuyck among an elite group. He is only the fourth goaltender in the NHL`s post-expansion era (since 1967-68) to receive the award, joining Dominik Hasek (1997, 1998), Jose Theodore (2002), and Carey Price (2015). Prior to expansion, four other goaltenders won the Hart: Roy Worters (1929), Chuck Rayner (1950), Al Rollins (1954), and Jacques Plante (1962).
The 130th overall pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, Hellebuyck is now the fourth goaltender to win the Vezina Trophy at least three times since the current award format was introduced in 1981-82. He joins Dominik Hasek (six wins), Martin Brodeur (four wins), and Patrick Roy (three wins).
He is also the first goaltender to win the Vezina in consecutive seasons since Martin Brodeur accomplished the feat in 2007 and 2008.
Playoff Performance and Other Finalists
However, Hellebuyck`s exceptional regular-season statistics did not translate into similar playoff success. Despite recording two shutouts during the postseason, he managed a .866 save percentage and a 3.08 goals-against average, winning just six out of thirteen starts. The Jets advanced past the St. Louis Blues in a dramatic seven-game first-round series but were eliminated by the Dallas Stars in six games in the second round.
His playoff performance in previous seasons also saw challenges, with a .870 save percentage in 2024 and a .886 save percentage in the spring before that, both resulting in five-game first-round losses. Earlier in the year, Hellebuyck was the starting netminder for Team USA at the February 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, where they lost a close final game to Canada.
Looking at the other finalists` seasons: Nikita Kucherov led the NHL in 2024-25 with 121 points and tied Nathan MacKinnon for the league lead in assists with 84. Leon Draisaitl topped the league with 52 goals and finished tied for third in total points with 106, alongside Boston Bruins winger David Pastrnak.
Vezina runner-up Andrei Vasilevskiy posted a 38-20-4 record with a .921 save percentage and a 2.18 GAA for Tampa Bay, including six shutouts. His team was eliminated in five games in the first round by the Florida Panthers.
Darcy Kuemper, the other Vezina finalist, had a 31-11-7 record, a .921 save percentage, and a 2.02 GAA with five shutouts in his debut season for Los Angeles. The Kings surprisingly won the first two games against the Oilers in the first round before losing the next four.
Tristan Blackwood