Roundtable Awards: The Brad Marsh Award

As part of our post-season wrap ups and moratoriums, the writers here at M&G are offering their insights into the Calgary Flames season, and voting on intra-site awards for various players.

The first award is the Brad Marsh award, named for the first Calgary Flame captain (not to be confused with the first "Flame" captain. Leading the team through 2 playoff rounds, and giving the city its only sports bright spot for several seasons, the award we've named for him is the team MVP award: who was the best player on the team, regardless of position, stats, or name recognition. Read on for the votes.

Mitch:

Mark Giordano is my MVP for the Flames. One of only a handful of Flames who was playing well throughout the entire early part of the season in a losing cause. Gio impressed me so much this year that I actually see him as the best candidate to be Captain of the Flames, if Iginla was to suddenly leave. That should say it all.

Hayley:

Jarome Iginla–Say what you will about the Captain’s decline, but Iggy recovered nicely from a down season in 2010-11 and finished the season strong. He added 17 points to his total from 2009-10–11 of which were goals–finished second on the team in even strength points/60 with 2.41 and hit two more career milestones, becoming one of the few players to score thirty goals in ten consecutive seasons, scoring his 1000th point, and hitting 40-goals for the fourth time in his career, all while playing twenty minutes per game against some of the toughest opposition. He may be aging, but there’s no question that he was often the best player on the ice for the Flames this season, and it’s a shame he didn’t get a shot at the post-season.

Ryan:

I give this award to Jarome Iginla. I’m not saying that Jarome was necessarily Calgary’s best player the whole season, but he was definitely the most valuable. If Iggy was suddenly injured, the Flames don’t have anyone else to step into that goal-scorer’s role. He’s not the physical force in the corners that he once was, but he’s definitely the most lethal shooter on the team. And while he’s not dominating other team’s first lines, he’s still facing them and notching 43 goals on the year. He was easily the Flames most valuable.

Arik:

Mark Giordano is the only player deserving of this award. Without him, there's no way the Flames would have even sniffed the playoffs much less come within, well, sniffing distance. With his absurd blocked shots numbers, consistent on-ice play, and ability to fill any situation, Mark Giordano was the best regular player on the team. Moreover, he was the heart and soul of the team. The guy played his heart out every single night, and nobody can argue that.

Craig:

Steve St…. Jarome Iginla.

And the winner is…..

Jarome Iginla.

by Arik Knapp