How is Michkov not a Calder Trophy finalist? Flyers' rookie a clear snub

Matvei Michkov led all rookies this season in goals (26) and even strength points (46).

He was tied for second in overall points (63).

He was the only player in the NHL to put up both three or more overtime goals and three or more shootout goals.

He played in 80 of 82 games as a 20-year-old from Russia jumping into the NHL.

But somehow, he was not a Calder Memorial Trophy finalist Monday. The NHL's top rookie honor will come down to Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson, Sharks center Macklin Celebrini and Flames goalie Dustin Wolf.

The award is voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers Association. The winner is expected to be announced at some point in June.

Hutson is the likely front-runner to win it after leading all rookies in points (66) and assists (60), while playing big minutes for a Montreal team that went to the playoffs. His assists mark tied an NHL record for most by a rookie defenseman.

So Michkov had a tall order to become the first Flyers player to ever win the Calder Trophy. But how he wasn't voted as a finalist is hard to comprehend. He won the rookie goal-scoring race, he did a ton of his work at even strength and he delivered in clutch moments.

More: How Michkov embraced a 'boring process' to become an even greater scorer

"I think he's probably the one guy that I've played with in my career that he wants to be the best player in the NHL," Travis Konecny said over two weeks ago. "He believes that he can be and you can't teach that. That's just something that he wants and he believes in — that's a powerful thing. If he can continue to figure out how to play on both sides of the puck and help us win games that way, too, he's a really big part of this."

Celebrini finished with the same number of points as Michkov, but played in 10 fewer games. He had a minus-31 rating, while Michkov had a minus-18 mark.

Wolf was Calgary's No. 1 goaltender, going 29-16-8 with a 2.64 goals-against average and .910 save percentage. The Flames had a 96-point season but missed the playoffs. Wolf made his NHL debut two seasons ago.

Last season, Connor Bedard won the award with 22 goals, 61 points and a minus-44 rating in 68 games.

Michkov's 26 goals led the Flyers and his 63 points were second to Konecny. He recorded the most points by a Flyers rookie since Mikael Renberg had 82 in 1993-94. Renberg's mark is a franchise record for most points by a rookie in a season. Michkov finished eighth on the Flyers' all-time rookie single-season scoring list.

"He's a special athlete, person," general manager Danny Briere said over two weeks ago. "He sees it, he's extremely intelligent. He has got a different mind. It's part of the reason that makes him who he is. There's something special around him, just in his approach."