Hart wins Clarke/MVP Trophy, two other awards

Carter Hart
      PHILADELPHIA – Goaltender Carter Hart was the big winner when the Flyers announced their season awards prior to Tuesday night’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets at the Wells Fargo Center.
      Hart became just the fourth goaltender in team history to take home the Bobby Clarke Trophy for most valuable player.
      The only other goaltenders to win the honor are Pelle Lindbergh, Ron Hextall and Roman Cechmanek.
      Hart also won the Gene Hart Memorial Trophy for being the player who demonstrated the “most heart.” The award is voted upon by Flyers fans and honors the memory of Gene Hart, the late Hockey Hall of Fame announcer.
      Also, Hart received the Toyota Cup for accumulating the most points in “Star of the Game” voting.
      Other award winners:
      >Barry Ashbee Memorial Trophy (best defenseman): Ivan Provorov.
      >Pelle Lindbergh Memorial Trophy) (most improved player): Owen Tippett.
      >Yanick Dupre Class Guy Memorial Award (character, dignity and respect for the sport): Justin Braun.
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      Hart entered Tuesday night’s game posting a record of 21-23-10 with a 2.94 GAA, a .907 save percentage and two shutouts in 54 games (53 starts) this season. He ranks 11th in the NHL in saves (1,482) and shots against (1,634).
      The 24-year-old set career highs in games played, games started, saves, shots against and shutouts. The backstop skated in his 200th career NHL game April 8 at the New York Islanders to become the fifth goaltender in franchise history to reach the milestone.
      He is the 12th goaltender in team history to record two-plus seasons of 20-plus wins. He earned his 80th career win on March 17 vs. Buffalo to become the youngest goaltender (24 years, 216 days) in Flyers history to record 80 wins with the club, besting Hextall’s 24 years, 229 days (NHL Stats).
      The Sherwood Park, Alberta native, tied his career-high 48 saves Dec. 15 at the New Jersey Devils and also stopped 48 shots and tied his career-high 51 shots faced vs. Florida on Oct. 27 to become the second goaltender in team history to have two-or-more games with 48-plus saves.
      Hart opened the season on an eight-game point streak (6-0-2) to become the fourth goaltender in franchise history to have started a season on an eight-game point streak: Pete Peeters (22-0-5 in 1979-80), Bob Froese (9-0-1 in 1982-83) and Dominic Roussel (8-0-0 in 1993-94). He also started the season on a career-high season-opening five-game win streak from Oct. 13-27 to become the seventh goaltender in Flyers history to win each of his first five games of a season and first since Hextall (5-0-0 in 1995-96).
      Provorov took home his his fourth Barry Ashbee Trophy. He entered the final home game with the possibility of playing in all 82 games in a season for the fourth time in his seven-year NHL career.
      The 26-year-old is the sole defenseman in team history to skate in 82-plus games in a season three times and has played in 530 of 533 Flyers games since 2016-17. The blueliner owns 24 points, 24 penalty minutes, two power-play points, two shorthanded points and 114 shots in 80 contests this season. He ranks second on the team and 15th in the NHL with 156 blocked shots.
      He tied his career-high 10 blocked shots on Oct. 13 vs. New Jersey which tied the franchise record he set for most blocked shots in a game (also, Nov. 2, 2017 at St. Louis). He recorded his 200th NHL point (assist) on Nov. 26 at the New York Islanders and skated in his 500th career NHL game on Jan. 26 at Minnesota. Provorov is the all-time franchise leader in blocked shots (1,029), ranks second among all-time Flyers defensemen in even-strength goals (54), tied for second in overtime goals (3), third in shots (1,069), fourth in goals (64), tied for sixth in points (214) and 10th in games played and assists (150).
      Tippett was selected by his teammates as the Flyers’ most improved player. The forward leads the Flyers in power-play goals (7) and shots (224), ranks second in goals (24) and third in points (45) in 75 contests this season.
      The 24-year-old has set career highs in games played, goals, assists (21), points, power-play points (10) and shots and tied his career best in game-winning goals (3)
      The Philadelphia chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association (PHWA) selected Braun as this year’s recipient of the Yanick Dupre Class Guy Memorial Award.
      This award is presented annually to the Flyer who best illustrates character, dignity and respect for the sport both on and off the ice. The award honors the memory of Yanick Dupre, who died on August 16, 1997, at the age of 24 after a 16-month battle with leukemia. Dupre played parts of three seasons with the Flyers (1991-92, 1994-95 and 1995-96), recording two goals and 16 penalty minutes in 35 games.
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About Wayne Fish 2387 Articles
Wayne Fish has been covering the Flyers since 1976, a stint which includes 18 Stanley Cup Finals, four Winter Olympics and numerous other international events.