Del Zotto has put his offensive tools to good use for the Rangers

Kate Beckinsale (Writing by Belinda Goldsmith, Editing by Bob Tourtellotte). ) Written By: Mark “The Hard Hitter” Ritter Before the 2009-10 NHL season began, the consensus pick for the NHL’s Rookie of the Year/Calder Trophy winner was John Tavares. Tavares, who was selected first overall by the New York Islanders in the 2008-09 NHL Entry Draft, came into the NHL with a tremendous resume and the reputation as being a tremendous competitor.Tavares was thought to be the favorite, but it would not come without some competition. The other leading candidates to win theCalder Trophy were the Tampa Bay Lightening’s defenseman Victor Hedman and, to a lesser degree, the Colorado Avalanche’s forward Matt Duchesne, each player with tremendous resumes, each one with a great skill-set.

With most NHL teams 10 games into the 2009-10 season, the race for the Calder Trophy has become very clouded with as many as 10 players now in the running.Let's face it, picking the Calder Trophy winner is never an easy task. It's one thing to "do it" at the junior level, quite another to be an impact player at the NHL level. Many a rookie before them failed to impress and, to be honest, outside of a few no-brainers like Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin, Mats Sundin, and Mario Lemieux (to mention a few), picking a blue chip prospect is a crap shoot at the best of times.This season, with so many players quickly establishing themselves as legitimate candidates, it looks as if the competition for the Calder will be both fierce and deep rooted. Tavares, Hedman, and Duchesne are all still in the running, that said, based on the early results, none of those players can be considered the favorite. Truth is, there has been a changing of the guard and you might be very surprised at which players have eclipsed them.Here's is a look at the Calder Trophy leaders after the first 10-12 games of the 2009-10 NHL season:Michael Del Zotto Heading into the 2009-10 season Del Zotto was well off the Calder Trophy radar.

At 6’0" and 211 pounds, Del Zotto already had NHL size but, being a defenseman, the odds of Del Zotto making the Rangers roster were slim. Del Zotto, a prototypical offensive defenseman, had a strong preseason and quickly established himself as an offensive threat while adapting to the ultra tough role of NHL defenseman. Del Zotto has put his offensive tools to good use for the Rangers. His 10 points ranks him third overall amongst NHL defensemen and ties him for first overall amongst NHL rookie players.