Artemi Panarin up for two awards to be announced September 21

On Monday night, Rangers fans and Artemi Panarin will find out if he is going to be named the MVP of the league. The Rangers leading scorer is up for two awards, the Hart Trophy (MVP), and the Ted Lindsay award for MVP as voted by the players.

Artemi Panarin is competing against Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche and Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers for both awards.

MacKinnon thinks Panarin is the MVP

When it comes to the competition, some could say Panarin has the “leg up” on the competition. At least that’s how one of the people he’s competing against thinks.

Panarin controls puck at practice (Photo: NYR)

Nathan MacKinnon who finished this shortened season with 93 points, knows who should win it.

“I knew he was a free agent so I was kind of watching him with Columbus. What an amazing player,” MacKinnon said. “And then I watched him all season – just from talking to him, really nice guy, so maybe I’m a little biased with that – but that’s why I think he should win the Hart this year.”

The Score

The majority of hockey experts believe that Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl will take home the honors. Draisaitl put up 110 points and was the only player at the pause to break the century mark. Draisaitl plays with Connor McDavid and while Panarin has talent like Mika Zibanejad around him, it’s undeniable that he was the MVP of the Rangers this season.

Panarin thanks GMs for NOT drafting him

In a Zoom conference after learning he was up for the award, Panarin had a special message. Always lighthearted and fun to be around, he commented on his nomination for the Ted Lindsay award.

“I would like to thank all the GMs for not choosing me in the draft,” he said during a Zoom call on Tuesday. “It allowed me to choose the team where I wanted to play, that played my style of hockey and allowed me to be successful to begin with.”

Panarin via Lohud

Head coach, David Quinn had nothing but praise for his star forward. “He comes here every day with a smile on his face,” Quinn told reporters. “[He] practices with passion and enthusiasm, doesn’t have many bad days, if any at all. Guys want to be around him. He’s a great teammate.”

On Monday, we will learn just how much hardware Panarin will take home.

Anthony Scultore has been covering the New York Rangers and the NHL since 2014. His work also appears at... More about Anthony Scultore

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