As this season鈥檚 winner of the Art Ross Trophy, Jamie Benn is in lofty company. Stan Mikita, Phil Esposito, Bobby Orr, Guy Lafleur, Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr are some of the noted names on the trophy awarded to the National Hockey League player who leads in scoring at the end of each regular season.
Central Saanich native Benn, captain of the Dallas Stars, became the NHL scoring champion Saturday with three goals and an assist in the Stars鈥� game against Nashville. He finished the regular season with a career-high 87 points.
Benn says winning the trophy is bittersweet. 鈥淚t was not really the trophy I was going for,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a tough one 鈥� the No. 1 goal is to make the playoffs and win the Stanley Cup.鈥�
Nevertheless, it鈥檚 a formidable achievement, especially considering Benn played with an injured hip.
It鈥檚 also a good omen 鈥� most of the names on the trophy are repeat winners.
For 20 years, from 1981 to 2001, only three players won the trophy: Gretzky, Lemieux and Jagr. During his 20-year NHL career, Gretzky won the Art Ross Trophy 10 times, including seven years in a row. The legendary Gordie Howe won it six times, as did Lemieux. Esposito and Jagr each won the award five times.
The trophy was presented to the NHLin the 1947-48 season by 91原创-born hall-of-famer Art Ross, who played from 1905 to 1911, and became general manager and head coach of the Boston Bruins.
Benn is the first player born and raised in B.C. to win the Art Ross Trophy. We hope he wins it again, and we wish him well in his quest to someday hoist aloft the Stanley Cup.
