NHL rookie of the year finalists announced

Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon has a chance to pull off a rarity after being named a finalist on Wednesday for the Calder Trophy.

Since Mario Lemieux in 1984-85, only one player - Chicago's Patrick Kane in 2007-08 - has won the rookie of the year award after being selected first overall the previous June. Former No. 1 overall picks Alexander Ovechkin and Bryan Berard also won the award but didn't enter the NHL immediately after the draft.

Tampa Bay Lightning forwards Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat also were finalists. They and MacKinnon were the top three rookie scorers in the league this season.

MacKinnon led the way with 24 goals and 63 points while Palat had 59 points and a rookie-best plus 32 rating. Johnson tied MacKinnon with 24 goals and had 50 points.

This also was an excellent year for rookie defensemen - Winnipeg's Jacob Trouba, Boston's Torey Krug, Anaheim's Hampus Lindholm and Pittsburgh's Olli Maatta - but none finished among the top three.

Flashy San Jose Sharks forward Tomas Hertl was the early leader this season, but MacKinnon emerged as the front-runner after Hertl was injured by a knee-on-knee hit from the Los Angeles Kings' Dustin Brown.

MacKinnon put together a 13-game point streak from Jan. 25 to March 6, breaking Wayne Gretzky's NHL record for the longest single-season point streak by a player age 18 or younger (12 games). MacKinnon had 18 points during that stretch.

Johnson's 24 goals broke a Lightning rookie record and Palat's point total was three shy of Brad Richards' Lightning record.

The winner of all the awards will be announced on June 24 at the NHL awards show in Las Vegas.