Kris Letang named nominee for 2018 Masterton Trophy!
The Pittsburgh chapter of the PHWA has nominated Kris for the Masterton Trophy.Ā The Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the NHL player who ābest exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to ice hockey.ā All 31 NHL cities nominate a player, with 3 finalists being chosen in June. Those finalists are the nominees for the award presented at the NHL Awards in the summer.
This is Kris’ 3rd nomination, he was nominated in 2014 and 2015.
Great quotes from Post Gazette article – which you can read here (also source for our post)
āItās a great honor, but at the same time itās always because of an injury or something that happened,ā Letang said.
Letang admits he sometimes wonders if thereās anything he could have done in his career to avoid the injuries that have kept him off the ice for substantial time. As he said, the Masterton Trophy is a significant honor, but it also usually indicates a player is coming back from a severe injury. All things considered, Letang likely would rather not be in the position to have been nominated for the award three times.
But if he played it a little bit safer? He wouldnāt be Kris Letang.
āI always think about it,ā he said. āWhat if some nights I didnāt take those hits and I just tried to live another day? But it was me. Itās my personality. Iām a guy thatās trying on every little play. I wonāt live with regrets. Iām part of a team that they know what kind of player I am and Iām ready to put everything on the line. I wonāt have any regrets on that.ā