Could the NY Islanders dominate NHL Awards season with three trophy winners?

The whispers started as a joke on a podcast, but by midseason they felt like prophecy.

“Is it realistic to say that the [New York] Islanders might have the rookie of the year, the Vezina winner, and the Jack Adams winner?” Jonnny Lazerus asked on the Tri-State Hockey Podcast, half-laughing, half-marveling at what was unfolding. “Well, the first two, I think, are slam dunks at this point. The last one's a great argument for it.”

On Long Island, it didn’t sound like hot take theater anymore. It sounded like a headline waiting to be printed.

The rookie—Matthew Schaefer—was no longer just the future. He was the present, piling up points with a poise that belied his age, logging heavy minutes, and looking utterly unfazed by late-game pressure. Every night he added another clip to the Calder Trophy highlight reel, turning skeptics into believers one shift at a time.

And then there was Ilya Sorokin, playing the season like a masterclass in calm dominance. Mike Rupp tried to capture it on air, searching for the right comparison. “You know, I think with Sorokin, when you're talking about him, it's like, I always find that to be really unique when you have goaltenders that… he's got that calming presence to him," said Rupp. "A little Carey Price-esque for me. You know, Carey was maybe a little smoother, but he's certainly smooth, Sorokin.”

What made it even more impressive was the environment. The Islanders were better defensively, sure—but not airtight. “There’s still not a great goaltending environment for any goaltender,” Rupp added. “If I want to start nitpicking the New York Islanders… they still give up a shitload of, like, stuff that you don't want to give up.”

And yet Sorokin kept erasing mistakes like they never happened.

Then came the Jack Adams debate. Rupp hedged his bets. “I'm still thinking John Cooper for me… but, you know, Todd McClellan, Patrick Roy, they got to be right there… so he's certainly in that conversation, right, at the top of the conversation.”

Roy may not be the favorite, and may not even end up a finalist, but there's still time.

Three trophies. One team. One season.

Hey, it could happen.