PHWA announces NHL team nominees for the 2016 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy

The award goes to the player who reflects perseverance and sportsmanship the most.

Updated Mar 28, 2016, 11:08 PM UTC

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Each year the NHL makes sure to appreciate the hardest working players in the league with the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy. On Monday, the 2015-16 nominees from every team rolled out.

The Masterton is awarded each year to the NHL player “who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey.” In past years the award has gone to players who recovered from injuries, suffered personal loss or simply worked the hardest to succeed.

Teams don’t nominate players; instead, chapters of the Pro Hockey Writers’ Association in every NHL city offer their nominees. That explains why Buffalo media members have been hounded all day for nominating Sabres forward Ryan O’Reilly, who awaits trial for a drunk driving arrest.

The winner is selected in a poll by PHWA members, with the top three vote-getters earning nominations before the NHL Awards in June.

Here’s the list of nominees by team that have been announced so far, per the PHWA’s Twitter feed. Keep checking back as the day progresses for more updates.

Team	Nominee	Merits
Anaheim Ducks	Andrew Cogliano, F	The NHL's reigning holder of the Iron Man streak with over 670 games.
Arizona Coyotes	Max Domi, F	Overcame medical issues and worry about size for a great rookie year.
Boston Bruins	Jonas Gustavsson, G	Struggled with elevated heart rate this year (and his whole career).
Buffalo Sabres	Ryan O'Reilly, F	He stays late after practices.
Calgary Flames	Mark Giordano, D	Leader on the Flames despite lost season. His 51 points is seventh by a defenseman this year.
Carolina Hurricanes	Nathan Gerbe, F	Overcame short stature and back problems to thrive on and off the ice.
Chicago Blackhawks	Michal Rozsival, D	The 37-year-old vet came back from a shattered ankle.
Colorado Avalanche	Carl Soderberg, C	Enjoying a good career after an injury left him blind in one eye.
Columbus Blue Jackets	Fedor Tyutin, D	Leader on a struggling Blue Jackets team despite various injuries over the season.
Dallas Stars	Jamie Benn, LW	NHL's scoring leader in 2014-15 despite severe hip injury.
Detroit Red Wings	Pavel Datsyuk, C	Has played through multiple injuries the last few seasons.
Edmonton Oilers	Matt Hendricks, F	Hard work ethic for a struggling Oilers team.
Florida Panthers	Jaromir Jagr, F	Panthers point leader at the ripe age of 44.
Los Angeles Kings	Vincent Lecavalier, F	Veteran enjoying resurgence after trade from Flyers.
Minnesota Wild	Nate Prosser, D	Leader in locker room despite missing almost 30 games for the Wild.
Montreal Canadiens	Mike Condon, G	Undrafted free agent has performed admirably after Carey Price's injury.
Nashville Predators	Carter Hutton, G	Backup to Pekka Rinne is a good teammate on and off the ice.
New Jersey Devils	Andy Greene, D	Played over 300 consecutive games.
ew York Islanders	Travis Hamonic, D	Recovered from a knee injury and put family first in a trade request.
New York Rangers	Mats Zuccarello, LW	Recovered from a life-threatening skull fracture and brain contusion.
Philadelphia Flyers	Shayne Gostisbehere, D	Recovered from a torn ACL.
Pittsburgh Penguins	Pascal Dupuis, LW	Retired after continuous blood clot problems.
Ottawa Senators	Zack Smith, F	Recovered from a dislocated wrist injury.
San Jose Sharks	Joe Thornton, C	MVP-worthy season after being stripped of the captaincy.
St. Louis Blues	Brian Elliott, G	Lost and regained his starting role.
Tampa Bay Lightning	Anton Stralman, D	Stralman was almost out of the league before becoming a key player.
Toronto Maple Leafs	James Reimer, G	Weathered rough years in Toronto with class before a 2016 deadline trade.
Vancouver Canucks	Dan Hamhuis, D	Worked hard to recover from numerous injuries.
Washington Capitals	Dmitry Orlov, D	Is a blueline regular after a year on the bench.
Winnipeg Jets	Dustin Byfuglien, D	Is a leader for the Jets.