As the NHL season approaches its climax, so does the speculation for the most valuable player in the playoffs. Mixed Miro Heiskanen that Alexander Barkov are strongly involved in the race for the Conn Smythe trophy, which a Finn has never won before.
Heiskanen has piled up incomprehensible data on the counter over the past few days and weeks. First, he played seven matches without conceding a single goal. The performance is completely incomprehensible when you take into account the kind of superstar-level scoring power the opponents have found. On Tuesday, the net finally fell even when Heiskanen was on the ice, so the goal difference in the previous eight games in this shift is now 14–1!
Tuesday also saw the 60th power point of Heiskanen’s NHL career in the playoffs. The defenseman who made his way to the NHL from HIFK is the second most effective defenseman in the playoffs for the last five years, ahead only of Colorado Cale Makar. Before the age of 25, only Makar and the great legends have reached the same score as Heiskanen Bobby Orr and Paul Coffey.
Hockey expert Ismo Lehkonen Heiskanen is a clear top name for the most valuable player in the playoffs.
– Heiskanen’s playing is at an unimaginably hard level at both ends of the court. He is completely fearless, which is impressive. No matter what happens in the rink, his heart rate stays down. An absolutely amazing player, praises Lehkonen.
In North America, Heiskas has started to be talked about more over the course of the spring, but often especially the brilliance in the defensive game wants to go unnoticed by the general public.
For example, the Evolving-Hockey data site gives the additional value that Heiskanen brings to the defensive game as a numerical value of 98, which means that only two percent of other players are ahead of this. For a player known above all for his puck skills, the reading is staggering.
For comparison: For Makari, the site gives a reading of 22, Edmonton To Evan Bouchard 65.
– Heiskanen remains in the shadows because he doesn’t often do anything explosive on the field. He doesn’t suddenly drive something onto his roof there or often do spectacular magic tricks. Heiskanen’s playing is like cold, cool mathematics all the time, Lehkonen explains.
– Everyone has noticed what kind of rhythm change Miro made from the regular season, and the rhythm change came even in the Colorado series. This is how good players work. The playoffs are completely different from the regular season.
Incredible Barkov
The MVP favorite of at least Heiskanen’s level is Florida’s Aleksander Barkov. Of course, after Monday morning’s home loss, the panther pack is winning 1-2 in the semi-final series with a loss against the New York Rangers.
In order to win the award, the staff from Tampere must sweep New York out of their way. However, nothing has caught Barkov in Florida throughout the spring.
The center forward, who received his puck education in Tappara, has played at an incredible level at both ends of the court. On the offensive end (14, 6+9) this has excelled with an average of more than a point per match and in defense has done, as usual, the precise work of a surgeon.
It can even be difficult to describe Barkov’s comprehensive, near-perfect playing. The small details of defensive play with game numbers, stick pressure and everything, is at a level that very few people in the world can reach.
And the stats praise the team captain: 55 percent of starts, 67 percent of expected goals and dangerous shots, the most puck steals (19) of any player, the second most blocked shots among Florida forwards, and so on.
– The determination in his playing is at an incredible level. It takes years to be able to play in the NHL at that level as a center forward, explains Lehkonen.
– Whatever a single exchange asks for, he makes it win. If ten exchanges are taken, he will win nine of them and one will be a draw. There will be absolutely no mistakes in your area. Reliability is at a high level. He makes playing as a center forward an art.
Barkov is not a player who chases his own points, but for one reason or another this often hits the spot when the team needs a goal the most.
– He understands that the goal has to be dug from somewhere. This was well seen in the equalizer in the last match. He hits the turbo button at the bottom, is even more explosive than Napsu’s normal and decides to rush to the goal from somewhere in between, Lehkonen praises.
According to many, Barkov’s greatness is due to his completely exceptional game intelligence.
– How do you teach something like that? One summer is not enough for that, it is a lifelong journey, where the player is interested in even the smallest things, Lehkonen reminds.
Of course, there are also candidates from other teams if, for example, Edmonton doesn’t find an alternative as clear as Florida and Dallas.
– If Rangers continue from that, it is clear that the goalkeeper will be the focus to Igor Shestjorkinwhich has put a Florida guard Sergei Bobrovsky in that case to the back pocket, Lehkonen sees.
There could be up to three candidates in Edmonton, but Lehkonen surprises by leaving the German monster off the list Leon Draisaitl.
– Uh, I’m not that turned on by him.
– There are two options in Edmonton. Defenseman Evan Bouchard, who did great things from the blue line, or a superstar Connor McDavid.