THE NATION AWARD WINNERS

8 years ago

It’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for. The red carpet event of the century! Of course I’m talking about the first annual Nation Awards! What are the Nation Awards? Probably the most important award show of our generation, and I’m not kidding.

BEST FACIAL HAIR

One of the manliest prizes ever conceived, the Best Facial Hair award goes to the man bursting with style and testosterone. This year we feature a crop of facial forests that is sure to please.

The nominees are…

Anton Lander
Brent Burns
Mike Brown
Braden Holtby
Scott Hartnell

And the winner is…

Brent Burns!

THE “6 or 7 passes” AWARD FOR MOST IMPROVED

In Craig MacTavish’s season ending presser he qualified the progress late in the season by the ability to make six or seven passes in succession. Whether or not this dedication to mediocrity can be passed off as improvement is up for debate, but we wanted to honour those that made progress in 2015.

The nominees are…

Oscar Klefbom
Anton Lander
Mark Stone
Jiri Hudler
Devan Dubnyk

And the winner is…

Our old friend Devan Dubnyk!

LEAST LIKELY TO BE SEEN AGAIN

Sometimes players come and go. Whether or not you think they should have been in the league in first place is irrelevant. These heroes had a cup of coffee in the hardest league in the world and deserve our recognition.

The nominees are…

Jesse Joensuu
Dany Heatley
Dallas Eakins
Viktor Fasth
Linus Omark

And the winner is…

Linus Omark!

MOST KISSABLE

Sometimes you see a guy and you just want to give him a smooch. This award represents the player that has a face that you just can’t get enough of and wouldn’t opposed to bringing him in for the real thing.

The nominees are…

Taylor Hall
Bob Nicholson
Henrik Lundqvist
Carey Price
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins

And the winner is…

NUUUUUGGGGEEEEE!!!

DEVAN DUBNYK AWARD FOR MOST LIKELY TO REBOUND

Sometimes a player will have a bad year, maybe even a horrible year. Luckily for some, one bad year doesn’t necessarily mean the end of a career. Some players have the ability to bounce back and reclaim their place as a useful/successful NHL player.

The nominees are…

Nail Yakupov
Nathan MacKinnon
Mike Smith
Taylor Hall
The Entire Oilers Franchise

And the winner is…

The Edmonton Oilers franchise just can’t stop winning (off the ice)!

UNSUNG HERO

These players don’t ever seem to get enough credit. These players are often the glue that holds a team together, and takes care of the heavy lifting that often goes unnoticed.

The nominees are…

Boyd Gordon
Niklas Hjalmarsson
Matt Hendricks
Cam Talbot
Dennis Wideman

And the winner is…

Nik Hja…. Heyjar… Jarmel… CONGRATS NIK!

COACH OF THE YEAR

A successful coach can make a good team great and our list of nominees certainly accomplished a great deal with their respective teams.

The nominees are…

Bob Hartley
Joel Quenneville
Dallas Eakins
Jon Cooper
Todd McLellan

And the winner is…

Bob Hartley! *spits*

MOST PUNCHABLE FACE

Sometimes you see a player and you want to hit him. Sometimes even the thought of certain players will send you into a Hulk like fit of rage. This category honours those players that drive you absolutely insane just at the sight of them.

The nominees are…

Zack Kassian
Ryan Kesler
Max Lapierre
Dion Phaneuf
Brendan Gallagher

And the winner is…

Zack Kassian could not be here to accept the award as he’s currently trying to find his way out of this ball pit.

THE SILVER LINING AWARD

As Oilers fans we always seem to be spending the summer looking for bright sides. We spend months recharging our batteries to prepare for another season, and sometimes it takes a silver lining to get us there.

The nominees are…

Winning the Draft Lottery
New Management and Coaching Staff
Oilers Success at the World Championship
Never Ending Coyotes Offseason Drama
Canucks First Round Exit

And the winner is…

Winning the draft lottery!

BLUNDER OF THE YEAR

Everyone loves a blooper and we’re no different. Even though NHL players are professional athletes they’re also human beings, and sometimes make mistakes. This category is dedicated to those mistakes that were so bad that we were able to remember them months later.

The nominees are…

Hedman/Bishop Collision in the Stanley Cup Finals
Tim Murray’s Lottery Disappointment
Don Cherry’s Weekly Mispronunciations
Any MacT Press Conference
Trading Jeff Petry

And the winner is…

The Jeff Petry Trade!

LEAST MOST VALUABLE PLAYER

Every hero needs a villain, and every miserable NHL season needs a hero. This category is dedicated to those players that may not have had the year they were hoping for, or a year that even merited a paycheque.

The nominees are…