Chara Nominated For Norris

Former Ottawa Senator Zdeno Chara has been nominated for the Norris Trophy, awarded to the best defenseman in the regular season. Chara has had an excellent season, and is certainly deserving of the nod:

These stats don't even begin to tell the full story. Chara played an average of 26:04 per game, and helped lead this Bruins team to the top of the Eastern Conference. He was also a large factor in their sweep over the Montreal Canadiens over the past week, and their performance in the rest of the playoffs will largely depend on his role as a shutdown D-man.

I realize that Chara is a bit of a sore spot amongst Sens fans - the guy still gets articles written in the Citizen about what his loss meant to the Senators as recently as two months ago - but he deserves the recognition. Chara was a great member of the Senators organization, and it's somewhat amazing he has yet to win the Norris, despite previously being nominated.

The reason he hasn't won the Norris is one of his fellow nominees this year: six-time winner Nicklas Lidstrom of the Detroit Red Wings. The reason he may not win this year is Washington's Mike Green, also nominated and considered the favourite to win the award this year because of his outstanding offensive numbers.

Oh, and for those keeping score, Wade Redden does not appear to have been nominated.