It’s official. The young Isles winger has captured the hardware that’s given to the NHL’s rookie of the year.
Mathew Barzal is the first Islander to win the award since Bryan Berard did after scoring eight goals and 48 points as a 19-year-old defenseman during the 1996-97 season.
Overall, he is the fifth Islander in franchise history to win the Calder Memorial Trophy joining Berard, Bryan Trottier, Mike Bossy, and Denis Potvin.
The New York Islanders traded up at the 2015 NHL Entry Draft to select Barzal 16th overall and he nearly made the team out of training camp.