Chara Named Norris Trophy Finalist
BOSTON (CBS) -- For some players, being named a finalist for a prestigious league award could be the highlight of their year. But you can forgive Zdeno Chara if he's not overly excited to receive this news on Thursday morning.
The Bruins' captain was named a Norris Trophy finalist, along with Nashville's Shea Weber and Ottawa's Erik Karlsson. The news comes the morning after Chara and the Bruins were eliminated from the playoffs in overtime of Game 7 against the Capitals.
The award is given to "the defense player who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-around ability in the position" and is voted on by members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association.
Chara led all NHL defensemen with a plus-33 rating and, at the age of 35, posted a career-high 52 points (12-40-52). He's a Norris finalist for the fourth time in the past five seasons and won the award in 2009.
Weber posted a career-best plus-21 rating while scoring 19 goals and assisting on 30 more, and he's a finalist for the second straight year. Karlsson led all defensemen with 78 points (19-59-78), finishing the season with 25 points more than any other defenseman. The 21-year old finished with a plus-16 rating on a team with just a plus-9 goal differential overall.
