Roman Josi is experiencing a life season at the age of 31. In the NHL hockey, he can do an offensive stunt that Jaromír Jágr just seduced from the Czechs. Josi is the defender.
Anyone who has watched Switzerland’s big tournaments in the past has probably noticed Josi’s name.
At eight world championships, this quarterback played 54 matches and collected 33 points (9 + 24). He celebrated silver twice. While driving behind the first in 2013, he contributed to the quarterfinal elimination of the Czech Republic with a winning goal and an icetim of over 26 minutes. At other events, the coaches squeezed him to the marrow, as they did not have a more important player.
In the North American NHL, however, Josi remained a bit in the shadows for a long time. Shea Weber, a tough back with a sample cannon, then an eccentric PK Subban, attracted more attention in Nashville’s stomped defense.
After their departure, however, Josi shines in full swing, two years ago he even won his first Norris Trophy for the best defender of the league. He had previously become the club’s highest paid hockey player with an annual gauge of over nine million dollars. He seemed to have reached the peak of his career.
In the current year, however, he added to the astonishment of the surroundings. After 65 matches, the basic part has 81 points (18 + 63). In productivity, it rises high above David Pastrňák and has about the same number of points as Jakub Voráček and Ondřej Palát together.
He flew up thanks to a 13-match score line, in which he entered the statistics 28 times (4 + 24).
“He’s very good. He’s very good,” said Swiss teammate Ryan Johansen recently. “Unable to believe it. He shows it every night, not only on the offensive, but also in the back while defending.”
Josi is 13 points ahead of Nashville’s second most productive player, striker Matt Duchene. With icetim 25:19, he is also the busiest man on the team. During the season, he also edited the match, in which he played more than half an hour of net time.
If Josi maintains the set pace and gains at least 19 points in the last 15 clans, he will break the 100-point limit. It is an extraordinary goal for the attackers (of the Czechs, only Jágr reached it), for the defenders it is directly supernatural.
The last bet with a 100-point season was in 1992 Brian Leetch of Rangers. Previously, only four quarterbacks succeeded – Paul Coffey, Al MacInnis, Denis Potvin and, of course, Bobby Orr. So there is no European on the list. Josi may be the first.
He should at least beat forward Paul Kariya, who set an 85-point Nashville record in 2006 in one season.
Josi did not play in the NHL for a club other than Nashville. | Photo: Reuters
Surprisingly, however, it is uncertain whether Josi will win the second Norris Trophy. Canadian Cale Makar from Colorado is also experiencing a sensational year. It is currently at 74 points (24 + 50). The Rangers’ Adam Fox and Tampa’s Victor Hedman, who collect roughly a point per game, are not completely out of the game.
Nashville trainer John Hynes, of course, defends his horse. “Roman is the best defender in the world,” he said.
“If you look at the other backs, I’m not sure if there’s anyone among them who influences their club like Roman,” Hynes continued. “He decides between him and a few other guys, but Roman’s ability to defend, play weaken and collect points… I don’t know if anyone else is like that.”
While Josi is close to the Norris Trophy, Hart’s trophy for the most useful NHL hockey player is likely to escape him.
Among the current favorites are mainly the forwards – Auston Matthews, Jonathan Huberdeau, Connor McDavid… The exception is Rangers goalkeeper Igor Šestťorkin.
Although Josi draws Nashville to the playoffs, he has one downside. He’s a defender. They receive the Hart Trophy exceptionally. Chris Pronger last succeeded in 2000, beating Jaromír Jágr by a single vote. He previously celebrated in 1972 (!) Orr.
A common argument for “discrimination” defenders is that, unlike the attackers, they have their own prize – the Norris Trophy. Probably only Makar can turn Josi’s turn around.
