The Washington Capitals may have fallen short in the first round of the playoffs, but the hockey world certainly took notice of the team's accomplishments this season, honoring the club with several key trophies during the NHL's annual awards show.
Not surprisingly, Washington's own Alexander Ovechkin was the night's big winner. The superstar scorer walked away with four prestigious awards, winning the Art Ross Trophy as the league's leading point scorer, the Maurice Richard Trophy as the league's top goal scorer, the Hart Trophy as the league's MVP, and the Lester B. Pearson Award as the league's best play as voted on by the players. Since the Richard Trophy was first awarded in 1999, Ovechkin becomes the first player in NHL history to win all four individual honors in the same season.
Ovechkin also joined Detroit's Sergei Fedorov as the only Russian player to ever win league MVP honors. Of course, while Ovechkin was overjoyed to win the awards, he was quick to admit he missed out on the only trophy that really matters: the Stanley Cup.
Washington coach Bruce Boudreau also had a banner evening, winning the Jack Adams Trophy as Coach of the Year. It was a storybook season for the 53-year-old Boudreau, who didn't even become an NHL coach until November 22. Under Boudreau's guidance, the Caps went 37-17-7 and won the Southeast Division, making the playoffs for the first time since 2003.
Washington's Nicklas Backstrom was also up for the Calder Trophy, which goes to the game's top rookie, but he lost out to Chicago's Patrick Kane. It was the lone disappointment in an otherwise magical night for the Capitals.
