Fast Named Chiasson Award Winner

RALEIGH, NC - The Carolina Hurricanes today announced that forward Jesper Fast has been selected by his teammates as the winner of the 2021-22 Steve Chiasson Award. The Carolina chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association (PHWA) also nominated goaltender Antti Raanta for the 2021-22 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, named forward Andrei Svechnikov the winner of the Vasicek Award and selected goaltender Frederik Andersen as the team's most valuable player.

The Steve Chiasson Award is given annually to the Hurricanes player that best exemplifies determination and dedication while proving to be an inspiration to his teammates through his performance and approach to the game. Fast, 30, has recorded 34 points (14g, 20a) in 82 games in 2021-22, his second season with Carolina. The 6'1", 191-pound forward has established new single-season career highs in goals and points and matched his single-season best in assists, all of which were previously set with the Rangers in 2017-18 (13g, 20a). He also ranks fourth on the team in plus/minus (+24) and sixth in hits (109), and his 36 blocked shots rank second among Hurricanes forwards. The Nassjo, Sweden, native has registered 200 points (75g, 125a) in 550 career NHL games with the Rangers and Hurricanes from 2013-22. While with New York, he became the first player in Rangers history to win their Players' Player Award in five consecutive seasons (2015-20).
The Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy is awarded annually by the PHWA to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to ice hockey. A player from each NHL team is nominated by the local chapter of the PHWA. Raanta, 32, has posted a 15-5-4 record, 2.45 goals-against average, .912 save percentage and two shutouts in 28 appearances in his first season with Carolina. The 6'0", 195-pound goaltender won the 2021-22 William M. Jennings Trophy alongside Frederik Andersen as the netminders playing at least 25 games for the team allowing the fewest goals. Raanta earned a win in his Hurricanes debut against Chicago on Oct. 29 and began the season with a 5-2-1 record, posting his first Hurricanes shutout against Montreal on Dec. 30. He closed the regular season with a 9-2-3 record in his last 16 games, including a 36-save shutout against Colorado on March 10. The Rauma, Finland, native has earned a 108-70-24 record, 2.46 goals-against average, .919 save percentage and 15 shutouts in 226 career NHL games with Chicago, NY Rangers, Arizona and Carolina from 2013-22.
The Josef Vasicek Award is given annually by the Carolina PHWA for outstanding cooperation with the local media. Formerly known as the Good Guy Award, the award was renamed in 2012 by the Carolina PHWA in honor of Vasicek, a former Hurricanes forward who died in a plane crash in Russia in September 2011. Svechnikov, 22, has become the youngest player to ever win the Vasicek Award after becoming the youngest player to win the Chiasson Award in 2019-20. The 6'2", 195-pound forward has tallied 69 points (30g, 39a) in 78 games this season, setting new single-season career highs in goals, assists, points, plus/minus (+19) and power-play goals (9). He opened the season with a point in 12 of Carolina's first 14 games (7g, 11a), including five of his team-high 21 multi-point games in 2021-22. Svechnikov is one of just two NHL players with at least 60 points and 180 hits this season, joining Ottawa's Brady Tkachuk, who has tallied 65 points (29g, 36a) and 267 hits. The Barnaul, Russia, native has earned 209 points (89g, 120a) in 283 career NHL/Hurricanes games since debuting in 2018-19, and he ranks first in career points among all players selected in the 2018 NHL Draft.
Andersen, 32, is the first goaltender to be named the Hurricanes' most valuable player since Cam Ward in 2010-11. He has posted a 35-14-3 record, 2.17 goals-against average, .929 save percentage and four shutouts in 52 appearances this season and ranks second in goals-against average and tied for third in save percentage among all NHL netminders with at least 10 games played in 2021-22. Alongside Raanta, Andersen won the Jennings Trophy for the second time in his NHL career (2015-16 with Anaheim, alongside John Gibson), becoming the eighth netminder in NHL history to win the award with multiple teams. The 6'4", 238-pound netminder also leads the league with four assists, the most in a season by any Hartford/Carolina netminder since Sean Burke recorded six in 1995-96, and he established a new single-season franchise record for road wins by a goaltender (17-8-1). Andersen opened the season with wins in each of his first eight appearances, becoming the third goaltender in NHL history to record a win in each of his first eight games with a franchise. He later improved to 34-13-3, tied for the second-most wins by any netminder in league history through his first 50 games with a franchise. Andersen was also named to the NHL All-Star Game for the second time in his career and led the Metropolitan Division to victory in the three-on-three tournament. The Herning, Denmark, native has posted a 261-114-51 record, 2.59 goals-against average, .916 save percentage and 23 shutouts in 445 career NHL games with Anaheim, Toronto and Carolina from 2013-22.
See the chart below for full lists of Hurricanes players selected/nominated for these awards:
*NHL finalist