S53 Awards Nominations: Day 2

Last off-season some of the fellas in the awards committee got together to pump out a few articles highlighting each award and the list of nominees it hopes of generating some hype and discussion ahead of the ceremony. It went over well so we're back at it again in S53! Much like last time we'll highlight the awards over the course of the next few days in the following order...

Day 1 - Bojo Trophy and Jesster Trophy
Day 2 - Dar Trophy and Richan Trophy
Day 3 - McBride Trophy and Uppercut Trophy
Day 4 - Stevens Trophy and McKeil Trophy
Day 5 - Mexico Trophy, Razov Trophy and Littleton Trophy


Dar Trophy
The first award up for discussion is the Dar Trophy, awarded to the best two-way (defensive) forward as deemed by the committee. Named after old timer Jeff Dar, the award is often one of the most heavily discussed and, much like the Bojo award highlighted yesterday, can often be interpreted in a few different ways. Our list of nominees are...

Collin Gibbles (3) - One of two forwards to receive at least 3 nominations during the nomination process, the Minnesota Chiefs forward finished the regular season with 29 points and a -30 rating. While registering only 4 hits, he collected an insane 181 blocks and 51 takeaways (against 34 giveaways). Paired with a defensive game rating of 88 he was a very active presence in his own end.

Lil' Manius (3) - The other "favorite" based on nominations, the New Orleans Specter center is the only one on the list on a playoff team. Finishing the season with 52 points, strong emphasis needs to be placed on his equally impressive defensive game. Despite an ugly 16-27 takeaway to giveaway ratio, his 119 hits, 80 defensive game rating, 58.6 CF% and most importantly relative CF% of 10.5 on a playoff team are solid.

Commander Shepard (2*) - The winner of a three way tie, the hulking Winnipeg Jets winger finished the season with 36 points, including 15 goals. Highlighting his defensive play he had a takeaway to giveaway ratio of 44-26, 88 shot blocks, and a defensive game rating of 65. While is CF% of 47.1 is rather lacklustre, his relative CF% of 9.1 makes a bit more agreeable.

Other notable forwards that received nominations include Maxime Bouchard (2) and Mika Kandinsky (2).



Richan Trophy
The other award we're looking at today is the Richan Trophy awarded to the player deemed the most improved by the awards committee. While this typically entails looking at players numbers between this season and last, emphasis is placed on players that have "broken out" and not players that simply rebounded from a down year. Our list of nominees are...

Slap McShotty (6) - Receiving 6 of a possible 7 nominations, New England Wolfpack forward Slap McShotty had a whirlwind of a season finishing with 59 points, a improvement of 27 over last seasons total of 32, his career best at the time. He finished second in team scoring behind only Ola Wagstrom, a nominee for the Mexico Trophy for league MVP.

Maxime Bouchard (5) - Receiving 5 nominations, the Calgary Dragons forward exploded on to the scene in S53 finishing the season with 57 points. His previous best was 37 back in S50, and this season saw him improve by 28 points over last seasons total of just 29 points. Another notable fact is he led her entire team in scoring this season.

Bobby Sharp (3) - The third and final nominee, the Buffalo Stampede forward received 3 nominations from the committee following an impressive season where he finished with 49 points. A 23 point improvement over last season it dwarfs his career best of 34 points set in S50. He finished 4th in team scoring.

Other notable players that received nominations include Eko van Otter (2), Akashi SixNine (2), Ola Wagstrom (2) and Gabriel Johnson (2).



That's it for today folks. See you again tomorrow for the McBride and Uppercut award discussion!