Gabriel Landeskog of the Colorado Avalanche was named the winner on Tuesday of the Mark Messier NHL Leadership Award, presented "to the player who exemplifies great leadership qualities to his team, on and off the ice, during the regular season and who plays a leading role in his community growing the game of hockey."
Messier solicits suggestions from team and NHL personnel to compile a list of potential candidates for the award. However, the selection of the winner is Messier's alone.
The No. 2 pick by Colorado in the 2011 NHL Draft, Landeskog has served as team captain since Sept. 4, 2012.
"It's a huge honor to get to win the Mark Messier Leadership Award," Landeskog said. "Obviously it goes without saying that no leader is going to sit here and take the honor and accept the award on his own. It's because of my teammates that allowed me this opportunity, and even though I'm the one wearing the 'C' on my chest, it's leadership by committee.
“There are plenty of guys in that locker room with 'A's on their jerseys or no letters on their jerseys. Guys bring so much to the table. We all lead in different ways."
Landeskog captained the Avalanche to the Stanley Cup in 2022. He then missed the next three regular seasons after having four knee surgeries and became the first NHL player to return after having knee cartilage replacement surgery, doing so for the first game of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs, where he had four points (one goal, three assists) in five games.
He had 35 points (14 goals, 21 assists) in 60 regular-season games this season and 11 points (six goals, five assists) in 13 playoff games.
The left wing also captained Sweden at the 2026 Winter Olympics, where he had four points (two goals, two assists) in five games.
"I think for me, leadership kind of comes back to the golden rule of being a good teammate," Landeskog said. "It's not that hard being a good teammate. And then obviously with experience, leadership is a bit easier and you're just more comfortable doing certain things or taking certain decisions, but (this is) very special and I'm humbled by it."
In 798 regular-season games for Colorado, Landeskog has 606 points (262 goals, 344 assists). He has 82 points (34 goals, 48 assists) in 87 playoff games.
