Noah Juulsen's career comeback with Canucks rewarded with Masterton nomination
Noah Juulsen is the Vancouver Canucks nominee for the 2024 Bill Masterton Trophy.
The award is given annually to the player “who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.”
All 32 teams get one nominee as decided by a vote from their local Professional Hockey Writers Association (PHWA) chapter. The Vancouver chapter thus nominated Juulsen for the trophy this year.
The top three vote-getters from around the league, as determined by a membership-wide runoff, will be designated as finalists. From there, one winner will be selected.
Juulsen is enjoying his season yet as he currently has one goal, six assists, and seven points across a career-high 53 games. He’s also been an important penalty killer and one of coach Rick Tocchet’s first choices when down a man.
The former first-round draft pick fought through serious health issues to reach this point. An errant puck hit him in the face during a 2018 game against the Washington Capitals. The injury caused vision and eye problems that put his career prospects in jeopardy.
From that date, Juulsen has fought through several other adverse scenarios such as being placed on waivers multiple times and spending considerable time in the AHL. Despite all of that, the 27-year-old has managed to persevere and is now a contributor to one of the NHL’s best teams.
The BC native has a chance to play his first playoff games this spring, as the Canucks have already clinched their spot.
The trophy is named after former NHL player Bill Masterton who passed away from injuries related to a hit sustained in a 1968 game. No member of the Canucks has ever won the league-wide award in the past.
The Canucks nominee last season was Brock Boeser. The NHL winner last season was Kris Letang from the Pittsburgh Penguins.
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