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ERIC DUHATSCHEK, Hockey Reporter for the Globe and Mail at the Calgary office. Photo by Chris Bolin for the Globe and Mail.Chris Bolin/The Globe and Mail

Five days after his whirlwind NHL rookie season ended, the Calgary Flames' Johnny Gaudreau headed back to Boston for summer school, because of a promise he'd made to his mother – that he'd get his college degree, even after leaving school early to sign a pro contract.

That's what Gaudreau's been up to until Monday, when he took a break from his studies to travel to Las Vegas for the annual NHL Awards ceremony.

Gaudreau is one of four Calgary Flames players nominated for a major award – their best showing in ages – and a function of their turnaround season, in which they made a 20-point year-over-year gain in the standings and won a playoff round for only the second time in 25 seasons.

Altogether, five Canadian teams qualified for the playoffs this year, after only one made it the year before, and that collective breakthrough is the main reason why it could be Canada's day at the awards this year.

In addition to Calgary's four nominations, Montreal has goaltender Carey Price poised to win three key pieces of hardware – the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player, the Vezina Trophy as the league's top goalie, and the Ted Lindsay Award, for most outstanding player, as chosen by his NHLPA peers. Price would become the first goalie since Montreal's José Théodore in 2002 to win both the Hart and the Vezina in the same year.

Price's Montreal teammate, P.K. Subban, along with the Ottawa Senators' Erik Karlsson, is once again a finalist for the Norris Trophy, as the NHL's top defenceman. Flames' defenceman Mark Giordano was the early Norris Trophy favourite until a biceps tear ended his season prematurely, but he is a finalist for the NHL Foundation Player Award for community service.

Calgary coach Bob Hartley is the odds-on favourite to win as coach of the year, while Jirí Hudler, their leading scorer, is a finalist for the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy. Winnipeg Jets' captain Andrew Ladd is a finalist for the Mark Messier Leadership Award, while Ottawa's unlikely goaltending hero, Andrew Hammond, is a candidate for the Bill Masterton Trophy, for perseverance, dedication and sportsmanship.

Gaudreau's competition for the Calder Memorial Trophy features Senators' rookie Mark Stone, who was one of the league's top second-half scorers, along with Florida Panthers' teenaged defensive sensation, Aaron Ekblad.

The Calder and the Norris – where the Los Angeles Kings' Drew Doughty is the third nominee – are expected to be the closest races.

Gaudreau acknowledged the adjustment of returning to school after a year in the NHL has featured "a whole bunch of different emotions. At times, it's a lot of fun, seeing all your old buddies and old teammates, and at times it's kind of stressful, too. I was playing in the NHL and not really worrying about school. Now, on a Tuesday night, I gotta be studying for two hours rather than just hanging out with some of the guys watching the hockey game."

Many young professional athletes are also sartorial wonders, but Gaudreau's fashion style in his first year could be summed up in one word: casual.

But for this year's NHL Awards, which will take place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Wednesday, he's dressing up to the nines, and spent part of Tuesday getting fitted by high-end clothier Harry Rosen for the event.

"If I wasn't playing in the NHL, there's no chance I could afford a suit like that, obviously," said Gaudreau. "I do dress casually and I'm not a big fashion guy, but I thought this was a special occasion and I thought if I'm going to have a time to get a suit like this, this is probably the time to do it.

"I talked to my parents and I talked to the Flames and they thought it was a good idea. Maybe I'll get a little more fashion conscious after seeing this kind of suit and being around a company like this. You never know."

Knowing the rookie race is going to be close, Gaudreau is anxiously awaiting the verdict.

"For me, I know Stone and Ekblad are two other really deserving candidates. Just looking back at their seasons and mine, they're all kind of similar. It's just really cool to make the top three because there are a few other guys who could have easily been there, like [Filip] Forsberg or [John] Klingberg. So it's exciting for me to be a part of it. I'm happy with how far I've come. Hopefully I win, but those two are definitely deserving as well. So who knows?"

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