- Cole Caufield, Anze Kopitar and Jake Sanderson named 2025-26 Lady Byng Trophy finalists
- Kopitar chasing a fourth Lady Byng that would tie Pavel Datsyuk for the all-time record
- Read below for the full breakdown plus video of each finalist’s case
The NHL named its 2025-26 Lady Byng Memorial Trophy finalists on Thursday, and the three nominees come from very different chapters of the league.
Cole Caufield, Anze Kopitar and Jake Sanderson got the call. One had a season Montreal hadn’t seen in 35 years, one wrapped up a 20-year career, and one did something only a handful of defensemen have ever done.
Caufield finished with 51 goals and 88 points in 81 games while only spending 14 minutes in the box all year. He’s the first Canadiens player to hit 50 goals since Stephane Richer in 1989-90, and he led the NHL with 12 game-winning goals.
His 29 go-ahead goals are the second-most in a single season in NHL history, trailing only Brett Hull’s 39 in 1990-91. Caufield is also the first Canadiens finalist for the Lady Byng since Mats Naslund in 1987-88.
Here’s the video of his historic run to 50:
Kopitar’s nomination is its own story. The 38-year-old Kings legend retired this spring after 20 seasons in Los Angeles, walking away as the franchise’s all-time leader with 1,316 career points across 1,521 games.
He’s already a three-time Lady Byng winner, and a fourth would tie him with Pavel Datsyuk for the most by a forward. Kopitar logged 38 points and 10 penalty minutes in 67 games this season, with Drew Doughty already campaigning to take over the captaincy.
Watch the standing ovation as Kopitar took his final NHL shift:
Then there’s Sanderson. The 23-year-old Senators defenseman racked up 54 points and eight penalty minutes in 67 games while leading Ottawa at 24:50 per night.
Only a handful of defensemen have ever won the Lady Byng, and just two have done it in the last 13 seasons, both of them Jaccob Slavin. Sanderson would be the fifth blue-liner ever, and the first Senators finalist since Daniel Alfredsson in 2003-04.
He also picked up a gold medal with Team USA at the Milano Cortina Olympics earlier this year.
The Vezina finalists were announced earlier this week, and the rest of the NHL hardware will be handed out at the awards show this summer.
