Both current and former members of the Buffalo Sabres received honors at the 2019 NHL Awards in Las Vegas Wednesday night.
Rookie defenseman Rasmus Dahlin finished as a top-three finalist for the Calder Trophy as the rookie of the year. It was Vancouver Canucks center Elias Pettersson who was voted as the Calder Trophy winner. However, Dahlin was selected to the NHL's All-Rookie team.
Voting for the Calder Memorial Trophy as selected by members of the PHWA: pic.twitter.com/YbRGKOPnTe
— PHWA (@ThePHWA) June 20, 2019Dahllin becomes the eigth player in Sabres history to be selected after a 44-point season.
A few familiar names also received recognition from the league, including Ryan O'Reilly and Robin Lehner.
Add the Frank J. Selke Trophy to O'Reilly's trophy case this season as he was honored as the NHL'sbest defensive forward. After getting traded from Buffalo to the St. Louis Blues last offseason, the veteran forward took home the Stanley Cup, the Conn Smythe Trophy, and now the Selke.
As for Lehner, the former Sabres goaltender was selected for two awards on Wednesday night, winning the William M. Jennings Trophy and the Bill Masteron Memorial Trophy.
The Masterton is given to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey. Lehner was honored after reveiling last summer that he suffered with bipolar disease and addiction. He went on to have the second highest save percentage for starting goaltenders at .930.
Both Lehner and O'Reilly had tears in their eyes as they spoke to the media. Lehner said he hide everything from his Sabres teammates and they've been great since they've found out. He misses them. O'Reilly said he learned a lot since being traded and it made him what he is today
— Paul Hamilton (@pham1717) June 20, 2019Along with fellow Islanders goalie Thomas Greiss, Lehner also took home the Jennings Trophy which goes to the goaltender(s) who allow the fewest goals against on the season.
Here is a look at the other award winners from the night:
Hart Trophy: Nikita Kucherov - Tampa Bay Lightning
Vezina Trophy: Andrei Vasilevskiy - Tampa Bay Lightning
Lady Byng Trophy: Aleksander Barkov - Florida Panthers
Norris Trophy: Mark Giordano - Calgary Flames
Ted Lindsay Award: Nikita Kucherov - Tampa Bay Lightning
King Clancy Trophy: Jason Zucker - Minnesota Wild
Mark Messier NHL Leadership Award: Wayne Simmonds - Nashville Predators
Jack Adams Award: Barry Trotz - New York Islanders
General Manager of the Year: Don Sweeney - Boston Bruins
Willie O'Ree Community Hero Award: Rico Phillips





