Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins
Bergeron, the 2011-12 winner of the award for the best defensive forward, showed up for another stellar season for the Bruins. He lead Boston with a +24 rating and led the league in faceoff percentage with a 62.1%. Bergeron once again showed his ability to keep the puck out of the defensive zone, and was used by Claude Julien as the leader of the penalty kill unit. Bergeron is used against the oppositions’ top lines on a nightly basis, proving his worth at even strength. His contributions helped the Bruins to the 4th best penalty kill unit for this season, as well as 4th best goals against average in the league at 2.15.