On Monday, it was announced that Victor Hedman, veteran Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman, was one of the three finalists for the James Norris Memorial Trophy. The annual award purports to honor the “defense player who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-around ability in the position”. Since the best defense is usually a good offense, the award usually goes to the blueliner that has a really good season points-wise.
Was Hedman one of the top three defenders this season? It probably depends on who you ask. The beauty of stats is that you can usually find a handful to support whatever argument you want to make.