Who will win the Masterton Trophy as the NHL's most dedicated player?

Masterton Trophy 

The Bill Masterton Memorial trophy is awarded to the player that best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey.

The members of the 30 chapters of the Professional Hockey Writers Association submit a nomination and the three top vote getters are the finalists.

The award was presented to the NHL by the Professional Hockey Writers Association in 1968 to commemorate the late Bill Masterton of the Minnesota North Stars who died on January 15, 1968.

A $2,500 grant is made by the Professional Hockey Writers Association annually to the Bill Masterton Memorial Fund in the name of the player who wins the award.

Former Red Wings winners: Brad Park (1984) and Steve Yzerman (2003). Notable past winners: Bobby Clarke (1972), Lanny McDonald (1983), Doug Jarvis (1987), Mario Lemieux (1993), Bryan Berard (2004).

This year's finalists for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy are: Chris Chelios of the Detroit Red Wings, Steve Sullivan of the Nashville Presdators, and Richard Zednick of the Florida Panthers.

Chris Chelios, Detroit 

Chelios' dedication to the game of hockey has extended his career to lenghts attained by very few. This past season, at the age of 47 he played in his 25th season in the NHL, a mark achieved by only himself, Mark Messier and Gordie Howe. The three time Norris Trophy winner has played in 1,644 games which ranks 4th all-time.

Steve Sullivan, Nashville 

Sullivan's perseverance allowed him to return to the NHL nearly two years after suffering a back injury. Sullivan underwent two back surgeries to repair a fragmented disc and intensive training before finally returning to the Predators lineup omn January 10th after missing 687 days due to the injury.  He played 41 games this season and scored 32 points. Sullivan is just the third player in NHL history to play 150 games with a team, then miss more than 600 days before returning to the same team (Jim Peplinski and Mario Lemieux).

Richard Zednick, Florida 

Zednick recovered from a severed carotid artery in his neck, sliced by a teammates skate, which required life-saving surgery at a Buffalo Hospital. Zednick lost five pints of blood from the gash and a scar on his neck is a reminder of the terrible injury. Zednick returned to the NHL and played 70 games and scored 17 goals this season.

The winners will be announced on Thursday, June 18 during the 2009 NHL Awards Show from the Pearl Concert Theater inside the Palms Hotel in Las Vegas and broadcast on Versus in the United States and on CBC in Canada. For more on the Awards please visit: nhl.com