- Dahlin, Landeskog and Toews are the 2025-26 Bill Masterton finalists
- Award honors perseverance and dedication to hockey
- Read below for each player’s story plus video of the comebacks
The NHL has its three finalists for the 2025-26 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy.
Buffalo Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin, Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog and Winnipeg Jets center Jonathan Toews were announced Monday as the top three vote-getters from the Professional Hockey Writers Association. The trophy goes to the player who best exemplifies perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey.
All three stories carry serious weight.
Dahlin spent the year leading the Sabres back to the playoffs while his fiancée, Carolina Matovec, fought through heart failure, a heart transplant and the loss of the couple’s unborn child. He took a leave of absence in November to be with her in Sweden, then returned again at Christmas and after the Olympics. Matovec was finally healthy enough to join him in Buffalo in March.
Teammates have raved about how he held it together through all of it.
“That’s why he’s our captain,” Sabres forward Tage Thompson told The Athletic. “That’s why he’s a leader.”
Landeskog’s case is its own kind of remarkable. He missed three full regular seasons after playing through injury during Colorado’s 2022 Cup run, had four major knee procedures, and became the first NHL player ever to come back from cartilage replacement surgery when he stepped onto the ice in last year’s playoffs. His first full season back also included a broken rib from crashing into the net in January.
Here’s the video of his first goal in nearly three years from Game 4 against Dallas a year ago:
The Avs went 45-7-8 with him in the lineup this season and rolled to the Presidents’ Trophy.
Toews didn’t play a single NHL game from 2023 to 2025 while battling long COVID and Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome. He came back this year on a one-year deal with his hometown Jets, suited up for all 82 games, and posted 11 goals and 18 assists. His 62.1 percent faceoff win rate led every center who took at least 1,000 draws.
Video of his first goal as a Jet, a tipped power-play marker against Calgary back in October:
The Masterton has gone to some emotional places lately, including Sean Monahan’s win last June after the death of his close friend Johnny Gaudreau. This year’s group fits the same mold.
Calder Trophy finalists drop Tuesday.
