Martin, Havlat Finalists For NHL Awards

Less than a week ago, Jacques Martin was a top candidate to be fired. Now, he’s a nominee for coach of the year.


For third time in his five years behind the Senators bench, Martin, 48, was named a finalist for the Jack Adams Trophy — which Martin won in 1999 — along with Detroit’s Scott Bowman and Philadelphia’s Bill Barber.
And Martin won’t be alone at the awards ceremony being held June 14 in Toronto. Senators rookie winger Martin Havlat is also a finalist for the Calder Trophy, along with Tampa’s Brad Richards and San Jose goalie Evgeni Nabokov.
“I think it’s a credit to the organization. I’m really honoured,” said Martin on May 11 from Hanover, Germany, where he’s attending the world championships for Team Canada.
“It says a lot about what we accomplished during the regular season. I can’t be the only one to take a credit for this. We had 109 points and everybody contributed to what we did.”
Martin, who has been criticized since the Senators were swept last month in the first round of the playoffs by Toronto, has 133 wins in the last three regular seasons.
The Senators announced Tuesday that Martin, who has two years remaining on his contract, will be back next season after GM Marshall Johnston took a few weeks to evaluate his position.
“We’ve got a good team here and we’re going in the right direction. We’ve got quality people here and everybody realizes that,” said Martin.
While Havlat likely won’t win rookie-of-the-year honours, he becomes the third Ottawa player nominated for the award in the last six years. Daniel Alfredsson and Marian Hossa were also candidates.
Havlat, 19, finished with 19 goals and 23 assists. Richards was the Lightning’s leading scorer with 21 goals and 41 assists. Nabokov was one of the top goalies in the league.
“That one is a credit to the scouting staff,” said Martin. “They’re able to find guys like Marian Hossa and Daniel Alfredsson.
‘Nobody knew Martin Havlat when he came to camp, but he made sure everybody knew who he was by the time it was over. He’s a great kid, an exciting player. That’s great for him.”

Bruce Garrioch