Anze Kopitar, a three-time Lady Byng winner, recorded just 38 points in 67 games in the 2025-26 season, yet is a finalist for an award meant to recognize 'high playing ability.' This is a joke, right? How does a player with those numbers even sniff an award that supposedly celebrates "high playing ability"? It seems the NHL just doesn't get it.
The Lady Byng Trophy is intended for players demonstrating 'high playing ability' alongside gentlemanly conduct, but its recent recipients are primarily recognized for their low penalty minutes rather than top-tier offensive production. Are we really pretending this is still about skill?
The Lady Byng Trophy risks becoming a niche award for disciplined veterans, further detaching it from its historical recognition of truly dominant, yet sportsmanlike, superstars. It's a gold watch for avoiding the box, not for brilliance.
Kopitar's consistent presence as a finalist highlights a specific type of player the award now favors, prompting a closer look at its criteria. This award isn't about peak performance anymore; it's about being a nice, old guy who doesn't take penalties. Anze Kopitar has been selected as one of three finalists for the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy for the 2025-26 season, according to LA Kings Insider. He is the defending champion, having won the award last season and for the third time in his career, also per LA Kings Insider. Kopitar has been a finalist for the Lady Byng Trophy on five occasions (2015, 2016, 2023, 2025, 2026) and won it three times (2016, 2023, 2025), reports NHL. His repeated nominations signal that the NHL's interpretation of "high playing ability" for the Lady Byng Trophy has become so diluted that it now rewards longevity and penalty avoidance over actual elite offensive output.
The Modern Byng: Low PIM, Moderate Production
Thirty-eight points in 67 games? That's "high playing ability" now? Please. The only "high" thing here is his penalty avoidance, which seems to be the real criterion. Kopitar finished the 2025-26 season with 38 points (12 goals, 26 assists) in 67 games, according to LA Kings Insider. He recorded just 10 penalty minutes in the 2025-26 season, the second-fewest among Kings skaters who played at least 40 games, also from LA Kings Insider. Anze Kopitar recorded just 10 penalty minutes (PIM) in the 2025-26 season, tying his 2014-15 and 2020-21 seasons for the third-fewest in a single season over his career, according to NHL.com. These statistics suggest the award's emphasis has shifted heavily towards penalty avoidance, even when offensive output is not at an elite level. The consistent re-awarding of the Lady Byng to players like Kopitar, who are past their offensive primes but maintain low penalty minutes, signals that the trophy has transformed into a lifetime achievement award for "good behavior" rather than a recognition of peak skill and sportsmanship in a given season.
