Each team has played at least 41 games, which means we’re officially at the halfway mark of the NHL season. Where has the time gone?
It’s around this point where trade deadline plans, potential playoff matchups and award frontrunners start transitioning from distant conjecture to, well, not so distant.
Amidst the flashy lights of the Hart, Art Ross, Rocket Richard, Norris and Vezina Trophies, the Calder — awarded to the league’s best rookie — can slip between the cracks.
In 2024-25, we’re seeing that there is no shortage of talented NHL freshmen. Amongst skaters, only three points separate the top three in rookie scoring, but it’s entirely possible that the finalists could include players from all three positions.
Of course, the Calder Trophy isn’t handed out in January, but with the new-kid-on-the-block jitters firmly in the rearview mirror for all the league’s newbies, it’s a good time to take a look at whose stock is on the rise as the race tightens up.
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Here are four candidates who could take home the Calder Trophy in June (listed in alphabetical order):
All stats courtesy of Natural Stat Trick and Money Puck
Macklin Celebrini, San Jose Sharks
When the Sharks selected Macklin Celebrini first overall at the 2024 NHL Draft, we had an idea he would be a special player. Through 33 games of his young NHL career, he’s lived up to the impossibly high expectations.
On a rebuilding Sharks team that’s had little to celebrate in prior years, the beginning of the Celebrini era has brought some offensive excitement that may not be winning games just yet, but is sure fun to watch in the meantime.
The youngest player in the NHL has potted 13 goals and 16 assists in 33 games, his 29 points good for third in rookie scoring this season. It’s important to note, however, that Celebrini has played less games than his first-year competitors due to a hip injury that sidelined him for 12 games. As such, he leads NHL rookies in points-per-game, with .875.
He’s also leading all rookie forwards in time on ice, with 19:46. The North Vancouver native is used in the top six and on the power play for the Sharks and perhaps what’s most impressive is his efficacy at five-on-five. In addition to his eight power-play points (four goals, four assists), Celebrini has eight goals and 17 points at five-on-five.
Yet to complete an NHL hat trick, the 18-year-old already has three multi-goal games. In nine of his 29 NHL games, he’s recorded five or more shots. At even-strength, Celebrini’s underlying stats show he’s still got a bit of a learning curve at the NHL level — 46.26 per cent Corsi for and a 19 to 24 goal differential while he’s on the ice — but that’s likely in part due to where the Sharks stand in their rebuild. Still, much of the offence runs through the youngster already and will probably continue to do so for years to come.
Heck, he’s already showing his leadership, even in Year 1.
Lane Hutson, Montreal Canadiens
Few other rookies have been relied upon more in their first year in the NHL than Lane Hutson in Montreal.
Selected with the 62nd-overall pick at the 2022 NHL Draft, Hutson is developing into a bona fide No. 1 defenceman for the Canadiens just 44 games into his NHL career. Hutson plays on the top pair with veteran Mike Matheson and leads all rookies in ice time with 22:24 per game and is emerging as one of the most valuable offensive defencemen on their roster.
The 20-year-old leads all rookies with 32 points in 42 games (three goals, 29 assists) and is third behind only Nick Suzuki (43) and Cole Caufield (40) on the Canadiens.
Some of that can be attributed to his spot on the top power play, most definitely, but much like Celebrini, what makes Hutson such a talented rookie is his ability to produce offence at five-on-five. All three of his goals and 14 of his 32 points have been scored at even-strength, in addition to his 14 assists on the power play. At six-on-five, Hutson quarterbacks the first unit and effectively controls the offence for the Canadiens power play, which is operating at 21.9 per cent.
The Canadiens are also outshooting their opponents 352-341 and outscoring them 36-35 with Hutson on the ice at five-on-five. Without Hutson, opponents outshoot the Canadiens 591-506.
After a lacklustre November, Montreal has been on the upswing, locked in a tight battle for an Eastern Conference wild-card spot, and that’s thanks in large part to Hutson, who is riding a four-game point streak.
The last time the Canadiens had a Calder Trophy winner was in 1972, when legendary goaltender Ken Dryden took home the award. Will Hutson break that 53-year drought?
Matvei Michkov, Philadelphia Flyers
The Flyers took a risk when they drafted Matvei Michkov seventh overall in 2023. The Russian was under contract in the KHL with SKA St. Petersberg through 2025-26, and there was no guarantee that he would join Philadelphia anytime before that.
But he did, signing a three-year, entry-level contract with the Flyers ahead of this season, and he’s been flexing his offensive might on the rest of the league ever since.
Perhaps no rookie this season has the same ability to score clutch goals as Michkov. Of his 13 goals, three have been in overtime — in fact, Michkov leads all NHL rookies in overtime goals.
In addition to getting the call at three-on-three, Michkov is quickly establishing himself as a power-play specialist. Six of his 13 goals have come on the man-advantage and he’s added seven power-play assists.
He’s got ample confidence too — and perhaps some nerve — which he demonstrated by attempting to pull off a lacrosse-style Michigan goal, despite the famous aversion to that showmanship possessed by head coach John Tortorella.
Perhaps Michkov’s one knock is how often Tortorella has healthy-scratched or benched the rookie. Michkov can be a liability defensively at times, and his minus-12 on the season, combined with an on-ice 19-27 five-on-five goal differential, contributed to the coaching staff deciding to scratch him three times this season.
However, it’s all part of the plan for the Flyers and Tortorella to turn Michkov into a more complete player.
“He’s going to learn that there is another side to the puck,” Tortorella told reporters last week in Toronto.
Despite bouts of streakiness and some extended pointless streaks, Michkov possesses a raw offensive talent that should keep him on the shortlist for Calder favourites if he can stay the course over the second half of the season.
Dustin Wolf, Calgary Flames
Dustin Wolf has appeared in games for the Flames across three campaigns, yet it’s only been this season that the undersized netminder is getting a real shot at proving himself in the big leagues.
A seventh-round pick for the Flames in 2019, Wolf worked his way through the system and managed to find success at every level and, in his second year of professional hockey, received the Lee Cunningham Award as the AHL’s most valuable player, among other accolades. In 2024-25, following Jacob Markstrom’s trade to New Jersey, Wolf finally earned an opening-night roster spot out of training camp.
Since then, he’s been part of a tandem for the Flames that has guided them to the fringes of a playoff spot during a season in which no one thought that possible and has been relied upon to guide the team through tough stretches.
His .916 save percentage, 2.50 goals-against average and two shutouts not only rank above the NHL average this season, he also ranks seventh in save-percentage leaders league-wide. Wolf’s numbers clock above Vezina Trophy-winners Linus Ullmark, Andrei Vasilevskiy and Igor Shesterkin, while the rookie faces an average of 30 shots per game.
The Flames also have a 14-6-3 record at the Saddledome, thanks in large part to Wolf, who was between the pipes for all but three of those wins. In Calgary, Wolf has a 1.98 goals-against average and a .936 save percentage, losing just two games in regulation at home.
His play has earned him a run at the No. 1 position over veteran Dan Vladar, getting the start in the past four games.
Wolf absolutely belongs in the Calder conversation, but his position as a goaltender — though crucial for his team — puts him at an inherent disadvantage. The last goalie to be named a finalist was Alex Nedeljkovic, in 2021, but the last goalie to actually win the award was Steve Mason, in 2009, making it exceedingly rare for a goaltender to win Rookie of the Year in this day and age.
Still, Wolf has proven that all his minor-league success actually translated to the bigs, and even if he’s not one of the three names on the final ballot in June, Flames fans can rest easy knowing they have the makings of a franchise goalie on their hands.
