Mark Madden: Sidney Crosby not being among Hart Trophy finalists shows criteria are skewed

Sidney Crosby had little chance to win the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP. He finished 10th in points with 62 in 55 games, a whopping 43 behind scoring champ Connor McDavid of Edmonton.

But Crosby isn’t even a finalist.

In the era of 200-foot hockey, Crosby is the best 200-foot player. His Penguins finished first in the East Division despite missing Evgeni Malkin for 23 games. They went 16-5-2 sans Malkin.

It invokes a never-ending question that applies to the MVP of every sport: Does the award go to the “most valuable” player or to the perceived best player?

The answer: Whatever is convenient and serves agendas.

Case in point: In 1988-89, Mario Lemieux had 199 points, 31 more than Wayne Gretzky. Those 31 points were all goals; Lemieux netted 85.

Lemieux was plus-41, Gretzky plus-15.

Gretzky’s Los Angeles Kings had four more points than Lemieux’s Penguins. Each team was second in its respective division.

Lemieux wins MVP in a runaway, right?

Nope. Gretzky got 40 out of 63 first-place votes. Lemieux was totally left off two ballots. Detroit’s Steve Yzerman had 155 points, 44 less than Lemieux. Yzerman nonetheless got five first-place votes and 14 second-place votes.

Lemieux was the most obvious choice ever for any MVP award ever. He didn’t get it. Gretzky’s win was likely because he had played his first season in Los Angeles and he is not French.

The snub resonated deeply with Lemieux. Years later, on my radio show, Lemieux said, “I judge myself by Stanley Cups and scoring titles because nobody votes on those.”

Hopefully Crosby thinks likewise.

Crosby is one of the top five hockey players ever. Crosby winning just two Harts is absolutely absurd. As network analyst Pierre McGuire said, Crosby is the most disrespected superstar in any sport. At best, Crosby is too often taken for granted.

The criteria for this year’s NHL MVP are even more skewed because teams only played within their division.

The North (Canadian) division was the weakest, most wide open and least physical.

Scoring wasn’t appreciably higher in the North. But the division’s style was amenable to stars producing, as witnessed by four of the NHL’s top five scorers (and five out of 10) coming from the North: McDavid and teammate Leon Draisaitl were 1-2, Mitch Marner and Auston Matthews of Toronto 4-5.

McDavid led the league with 105 points in 56 games. Matthews had the most goals, 41 in 52 games. They are MVP finalists along with Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon.

The three finalists have zero Stanley Cups among them. McDavid and Matthews went out in the first round after doing a disappearing act statistically. Neither plays 200-foot hockey. MacKinnon got eliminated Thursday night. (Crosby didn’t have a great playoff, either. But he has three Cups and two playoff MVPs.)

Crosby should have been a finalist, perhaps replacing Matthews.

No matter. His value always has been evident in Pittsburgh.

But what are the criteria? What’s the award mean?

It depends on the year and the agenda.

It’s not been a great playoff for star players. The New York Islanders have one semi-star: Matt Barzal. Yet the Islanders have eliminated Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak. Defending champ Tampa Bay — featuring Victor Hedman, Nikita Kucherov and Steven Stamkos — are next on the Islanders’ hit list.

In the NHL, system and coaching are eclipsing star power. Block shots, clog lanes, shut down the opponent. That’s what hockey is currently. Efficiency negates entertainment.