 | |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
|---|---|
| League | National Hockey League |
| Awarded for | "Most valuable player for his team" in theStanley Cup Playoffs[1] |
| History | |
| First award | 1964–65 NHL season |
| First winner | Jean Beliveau |
| Most wins | Patrick Roy (3) |
| Most recent | Connor McDavid Edmonton Oilers |
TheConn Smythe Trophy (French:Trophée Conn-Smythe) is awarded annually to themost valuable player (MVP) of his team during theNational Hockey League's (NHL)Stanley Cup playoffs. It is named afterConn Smythe, the longtime owner, general manager, and head coach of theToronto Maple Leafs. The Conn Smythe Trophy has been awarded 54 times to 47 players since the1964–65 NHL season. Each year, at the conclusion of the final game of theStanley Cup Finals, members of theProfessional Hockey Writers' Association vote to elect the player deserving of the trophy. The trophy is handed out by theNHL Commissioner before the presentation of theStanley Cup and only the winner is announced, in contrast to most of the otherNHL awards which name three finalists and are presented at a ceremony. Vote tallies for the Conn Smythe Trophy were released starting in 2017.[2]
Unlike the playoff MVP awards presented in the othermajor professional sports leagues of the United States and Canada (theSuper Bowl MVP, theNBA Finals MVP, theMLS Cup MVP and theWorld Series MVP), the Conn Smythe is based on a player's performance during the entire NHL postseason instead of just the championship game or series.
The most recent winner isConnor McDavid.[3] He is only the sixth player in NHL history to be awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy while being on the losing team. The last player to do it before him wasJean-Sebastien Giguere in 2003.[4]
The Conn Smythe Trophy was introduced in1964 byMaple Leaf Gardens Limited to honourConn Smythe, the former owner, general manager and coach of theToronto Maple Leafs and a member of theHockey Hall of Fame as abuilder.[1] The centrepiece of the trophy is a stylized silver replica ofMaple Leaf Gardens, the arena built under Smythe's ownership of the Maple Leafs, and their home from 1931 to 1999. Backing the arena replica is a large silver botanically accuratemaple leaf. The arena replica and leaf are set atop a square wooden foundation, the front of which bears a dedication plaque. Additional tiers below the foundation, sloping outward, contain maple leaf-shaped plates bearing the inscriptions of the winners' names.[5]
The base of the Conn Smythe Trophy has been expanded twice over the years to accommodate more winners. Although the 16 nameplates on the original base tier were filled up after1980, a new tier was not added until the1983–84 season. Following the2000 Stanley Cup playoffs, the 20 nameplates on the new tier were filled, so the first nine winners' nameplates were moved up to the remaining three sides of the foundation tier. The remaining nameplates were shifted accordingly to keep the winners in chronological order. Due to thecancellation of the 2004–05 season, the trophy was not filled again until2010, after which a new tier was added, making room for 24 more names.
The first winner of the trophy wascentreJean Beliveau of theMontreal Canadiens in1965. The first player and only defenseman to win it twice wasBobby Orr, who scored the Cup-clinching goals for theBoston Bruins in1970 and1972.GoaltenderBernie Parent (for thePhiladelphia Flyers) and centresWayne Gretzky (for theEdmonton Oilers),Mario Lemieux, andSidney Crosby (for thePittsburgh Penguins) have also won it twice each, with Parent, Lemieux, and Crosby each winning theirs back to back (1974/1975,1991/1992, and2016/2017 respectively). GoaltenderPatrick Roy is the only three-time Smythe winner and the only player to win the trophy as a member of two different teams (with the Canadiens in1986 and1993, and with theColorado Avalanche in2001); his wins also fall into three different decades.Ken Dryden, the1971 Smythe winner, is the only NHL player to win this trophy before winning theCalder Trophy as rookie of the year (in1972): Montreal called him up to play only six regular season games.Dave Keon is the only Maple Leafs player to win the trophy donated by his club's parent company, while his eight playoff points in1967 is the fewest ever by a non-goalie Conn Smythe winner as he was a defensive forward.
Though the trophy rewards a player who performed particularly well over the entirety of the playoffs, it has never been given to a player whose team did not at least reach theStanley Cup Finals. The trophy has been awarded to members of the team that lost the Finals six times, most recentlyConnor McDavid of theEdmonton Oilers in 2024. The only two skaters to win the award while his team lost the final round are Edmonton'sConnor McDavid and Philadelphia'sReggie Leach, the latter of which won it in1976, as he had set a league record for most goals in the playoffs (19), which included a five-goal game in the semifinals and four goals in the Finals, even though the Canadiens swept his Flyers.[6] McDavid set the all-time playoff record for assists in2024 and led the playoffs in scoring by ten points, despite theFlorida Panthers defeating his Oilers in seven games.[3]
Ten players born outside of Canada have won the Conn Smythe Trophy. The non-Canadian winners are AmericansBrian Leetch, who won it in1994,Tim Thomas in2011,Jonathan Quick in2012, andPatrick Kane in2013; RussiansEvgeni Malkin,Alexander Ovechkin andAndrei Vasilevskiy who won it in2009,2018 and2021, respectively; and SwedesNicklas Lidstrom,Henrik Zetterberg andVictor Hedman, who won it in2002,2008 and2020, respectively.
Three players have won the Conn Smythe Trophy and theHart Memorial Trophy forMost Valuable Player during the regular season in the same year: Orr in 1970 and 1972,Guy Lafleur in1977, and Wayne Gretzky in1985. These three players also won theArt Ross Trophy, having scored more points than any other player during the regular season (Orr only in 1970), while Orr also won theJames Norris Memorial Trophy as top defenceman to give him a record four individual original NHL awards in 1970.[1][7]
As of 2024, the Conn Smythe Trophy has been awarded to centers 20 times, to goaltenders 17 times, to defencemen 12 times, and to right wingers eight times, while the only left wingers to have won the award areBob Gainey of Montreal in1979 and Alexander Ovechkin of Washington in2018. Players with the Montreal Canadiens have received the most Conn Smythe Trophies with nine. Players with theDetroit Red Wings,Pittsburgh Penguins, andEdmonton Oilers have each received five, and the Philadelphia Flyers andNew York Islanders have each received four.
| C | Centre |
|---|---|
| LW | Left wing |
| D | Defence |
| RW | Right wing |
| G | Goaltender |
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