Mark Messier Leadership Award
| Award details | |
|---|---|
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Given for | Individual who leads by positive example through on-ice performance, motivation of team members and a dedication to community activities and charitable causes. |
| History | |
| First award | 2006–07 NHL season |
| Most recent | Shea Weber |
The Mark Messier Leadership Award is a National Hockey League (NHL) award that recognizes an individual as a superior leader within their sport, and as a contributing member of society. The award is given to a player selected by Hockey Hall of Fame center Mark Messier to honor an individual who leads by positive example through on-ice performance, motivation of team members and a dedication to community activities and charitable causes. It was first awarded during 2006–07 NHL season and sponsored by Cold-fX.
In its first season, the Mark Messier Leadership Award was awarded quite differently from most other trophies in the NHL. In 2006–07, five players were honored with monthly awards as selected by the NHL based on the qualification of potential recipients, while the final decision was made by Mark Messier. The league did not announce monthly winners in 2007–08. At the end of the regular season, one player is chosen as the Leader of the Year. The first winner of the annual award was Chris Chelios of the Detroit Red Wings.
The award's namesake, Mark Messier, played in the NHL for twenty-five seasons with the Edmonton Oilers, New York Rangers, and Vancouver Canucks; his 1,887 regular-season points are third all-time behind Jaromír Jágr and Wayne Gretzky, and his 1,756 regular-season games second to Gordie Howe. Messier is, to date, the only person to lead two separate franchises to the Stanley Cup as captain, accomplishing this with the Oilers in 1990 and with the Rangers in 1994.
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