Minnesota Wild award watch list

September 3, 11:19 AMMinnesota Wild ExaminerJoseph Gunther

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The 2009-10 season has not started, but it is not too early to look at the Minnesota Wild's potential award winners.

Last season, the Wild had just one award nominee, but this year could be different.

Here are the Wild's top award candidates and what each player needs to do to win the award.

Jack Adams Award

The Jack Adams Award is given to the league's top coach. The Wild need to be among the NHL's best teams in order for Todd Richards to win the award. If the Wild win the Northwest Division, Richards will be considered. If the Wild win the Western Conference regular season, Richards will win it. Richards' lack of NHL head coaching experience will make it difficult for him to win the award. It may take the best season in Wild history for Richards to win the Jack Adams Award. Last season's winner: Claude Julien, Boston Bruins.

Vezina Trophy

The Vezina Trophy is awarded to the league's top goaltender. The Vezina is the trophy most known in Minnesota. Niklas Backstrom was the only goaltender to finish in the top five of the four major statistical categories. Despite having the best statistics, Backstrom was a runner-up. Backstrom needs to prove his success is not due to the defensive system of former coach Jacques Lemaire. If Backstrom can put up outstanding numbers while leading the Wild to a top seed in the Western Conference, he will win the award. Last season's winner: Tim Thomas, Boston Bruins.

Norris Trophy

The Norris Trophy is awarded to the league's top defenseman. The Wild have a few players that could win the award, but the most likely candidate is Brent Burns. Burns missed the final quarter of the season with concussion-like symptons. Burns will need to stay healthy and needs to improve upon his 15 goals and 28 assists in 2007-08. He also needs to continue scoring big goals late in games. Last season's winner: Zdeno Chara, Boston Bruins.

Selke Trophy

The Selke Trophy is awarded to the league's top defensive forward. Mikko Koivu is the perfect candidate for this award. He is the most consistent two-way center in the NHL. Now that Koivu is being recognized as an NHL star. He has a chance to win the award just by continuing to do what he has always done. In order to take himself over the top, he needs to prove that he can play at both ends of the ice in an open system. His plus-minus rating will need to improve, but the new system should take care of that. Last season's winner: Mike Richards, Philadelphia Flyers.

Calder Trophy

The Calder Trophy is awarded to the league's top rookie. The Wild will have a veteran lineup. Whether or not a rookie will play for the Wild will depend on two questions. The first question is, will Tyler Cuma be ready for the NHL after missing most of last season with a knee injury? He nearly made the team last season, but was returned to his junior team for further development. Due to the injury, he is most likely to play another year in juniors. He should jump to the Houston Aeros or Wild when the junior season ends. The second question is, will Colton Gillies make enough improvement to earn a roster spot? It will be beneficial for Gillies to spend the season in Houston to further develop his offensive game. If Gillies plays for the Aeros, a roster spot opens for a rookie like Robbie Earl. Earl is a gifted offensive player that will need to lead all rookies in scoring to win the award. Last season's winner: Steve Mason, Columbus Blue Jackets.

Hart Trophy

The Hart Trophy is awarded to the league's MVP. The Wild have two options that should be the team's front runners for the award, Koivu and newcomer Martin Havlat. Koivu's production has increased in each of the last three years. If Koivu can stay healthy, he missed three games last season and 25 games the previous season, his production should continue to grow. He needs to have a phenomenal season while outscoring some of the league's favorites to win it. Havlat needs to stay healthy, last season was the first time he topped 75 games in a season. If he can lead the Wild in scoring and be among the league leaders, he will get serious consideration. Last season's winner: Alexander Ovechkin, Washington Capitals.

It will take the best season in the team's history for anyone on the roster to win an award.