Could Toews be the NHL's best rookie?

With the National Hockey League playoffs just around the corner, hockey fans in the West have been sizing up the teams and the players headed to the post-season.

As well, there has been a feisty debate on radio stations from Calgary to Winnipeg about the award winners in 2008.

Alexander Ovechkin, Martin Brodeur over Jarome Iginla for MVP? Brodeur as an easy Vezina choice? Nicklas Lidstrom or maybe Brian Campbell as the league’s top defenceman? All interesting arguments.

Here in Winnipeg, there has been a heated debate over the Calder Trophy. The question being asked by many local hockey fans is this:  Although he missed 16 games with a knee injury this season, could Jonathan Toews still be the NHL’s rookie of the year?

Granted, Patrick Kane, Toews teammate with the Chicago Blackhawks, leads all rookies in scoring with 19 goals and 50 assists in 80 games while Washington’s improving young star, Nicklas Backstrom is next with 14 goals and 53 assists.

But Backstrom is followed by Toews, the Hawks 19-year-old associate captain.

The 6-foot-2, 205-pound Winnipegger who doesn’t turn 20 until April 29, has 23 goals and 30 assists for 53 points in just 62 games. He’s also a solid plus-10. While it’s very likely Kane will win the Calder, Toews has been outstanding in just a little more than two-thirds of the season

No doubt, with Kane and Toews, the Blackhawks have a legitimate championship future and an even better opportunity to win back some of the fans the team had lost after years of mistakes and mismanagement.

In fact, earlier this week, Nashville Predators head coach Barry Trotz, a guy who deserves coach of the year honours if he gets that no-name Preds crew into the post-season, told us that he believed the Hawks might have the brightest future of any team in the Western Conference.

"It’s been kind of an odd year for us because we played well against Detroit (3-3-2 this season) but we struggled against St. Louis and Chicago," Trotz said. "I really thought that Chicago was the most talented team in our conference. The Hawks are going to be a great team, very soon."

Hawks head coach Denis Savard would not disagree. He certainly believes that he has three or four of the best young players in the game.

"These kids are so impressive the way they carry themselves as teenagers," Savard told the Chicago Tribune. "They are smart. Productive. They see their futures ahead of them. Most important, they learn from everything around them. They ask questions and just soak up the experience they've had this season.

"Some nights they're going to make mistakes. But it's not because of a lack of will or how hard they compete. You can't ask a player - any player, much less kids like this - to play 82 straight great games. It's not going to happen, even though you like to have it. But with these two, they're on pace to play 65-70 really good ones."

As outstanding as Kane has been, it’s quite interesting to think what Toews’ numbers would be if he hadn’t missed four weeks with an injury to his left knee. He leads all rookies in goals, he’s second to Backstrom in plus-minus and second to Edmonton’s Andrew Cogliano in game winners.

"Hey, I just take it all day-by-day," Toews told me during a recent interview on 92-CITI-FM. "Whatever challenge comes around, I just try to make the best of it."

A typically modest Jonathan Toews response.

However, if you click on Youtube and go to  www.youtube.com/watch?v=obp8G2JFgkM you can watch one of the most impressive goals of the year.

No matter the challenge and no matter who wins the Calder, Jonathan Toews does have sick moves.

To go with a very bright future.