Art Ross Trophy

NHL award
trophy_name = Art Ross Trophy

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Established= 1947–48 NHL season
Holder = Alexander Ovechkin
Awarded = "player who leads the League in scoring points at the end of the regular season"cite web |title =Art Ross Trophy History|url =http://www.nhl.com/trophies/ross.html|publisher =National Hockey League|accessdate =2007-08-20] The Art Ross Trophy is awarded to the National Hockey League player who leads the league in scoring points at the end of the regular season. It was presented to the NHL by former player, general manager and head coach Art Ross. The trophy has been awarded 59 times to 22 players since its inception in the 1947–48 NHL season. The current holder is Alexander Ovechkin, who scored 112 points in the 2007–08 season.

History

The Art Ross Trophy was presented to the National Hockey League in 1947 by Arthur Howie "Art" Ross, former general manager and head coach of the Boston Bruins and Hockey Hall of Fame inductee as a player. Elmer Lach was the winner of the first Art Ross Trophy, which was awarded at the conclusion of the 1947–48 NHL season.

Wayne Gretzky won the Art Ross Trophy 10 times during his 20-year NHL career. Gordie Howe and Mario Lemieux each won it six times. The non-Canadian player with most awards is Czech Jaromir Jagr. Gretzky is the only player to win the trophy for more than one team and Joe Thornton is the only player to win it while playing for two different teams in one season.

Players from the Pittsburgh Penguins have won the trophy 12 times; players from the Montreal Canadiens have won it nine times and the Chicago Blackhawks have seen players win the award eight times. [Although Joe Thornton, winner in 2005–06, started the season playing for the Boston Bruins, he finished with the San Jose Sharks and the award counts for the Sharks. Therefore, Boston Bruins players have won the trophy seven times.] For two decades, from 1980 to 2001, only three players won the Art Ross Trophy—Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, and Jaromir Jagr. The streak ended when Jarome Iginla won the trophy in 2002. In 2007, 19-year-old Sidney Crosby became the youngest player to win the Art Ross Trophy and the youngest scoring champion in any major North Americanprofessional sport. [cite news |title =Penguins' Crosby captures Art Ross Trophy as NHL scoring champion|url =http://www.nhl.com/nhl/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=298728|author =National Hockey League|publisher =National Hockey League|date =2007-04-09|accessdate =2007-08-22] Only one defenseman has won the NHL scoring title: Bobby Orr did it in 1969–70 and 1974–75. [cite news |title =Bobby Orr - Biography|url =http://www.legendsofhockey.net:8080/LegendsOfHockey/jsp/LegendsMember.jsp?mem=p197902&type=Player&page=bio&list=#photo|publisher =Legends of Hockey.net|accessdate =2007-09-19] Alexander Ovechkin became the first Russian player to win the Art Ross Trophy, winning it in 2008.

The NHL rules stipulate three tiebreakers in case two or more players are tied in points:
#Player with most goals
#Player with fewer games played
#Player scoring first goal of the season

Winners

;Key
*^(#) Including the number of scoring titles prior to the inception of the trophy

coring leaders (1918–1947)

References

;General
* [http://www.nhl.com/trophies/ross.html Art Ross Trophy history] at NHL.com
* [http://www.legendsofhockey.net/html/silver_splashartross.htm Art Ross Trophy history] at Legends of Hockey.net;Specific

ee also

*List of NHL players
*List of NHL statistical leaders