An inspiration to his teammates this season, Oskar Lindblom is the Flyers Masterton Trophy nominee.
As we all know, Oskar Lindblom has been out since December. The Flyers winger was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma and has been receiving treatment in the Philadelphia area.
He is the Flyers nominee for the Bill Masterton Trophy. The trophy is awarded to the player who best exemplifies perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.
All 31 NHL teams have a nominee for this award. They include players such as Connor McDavid, Jay Bouwmeester, and Bobby Ryan.
The Professional Hockey Writers’ Association proudly announces chapters’ nominees for the 2020 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy: pic.twitter.com/EpBQDoMhe5
— PHWA (@ThePHWA) June 9, 2020
The winner of the Masterton Trophy is selected via a poll by the 31 chapters of the PHWA. Three other Flyers have taken home the award before. They are Ian Laperriere (2010), Tim Kerr (1989), and Bobby Clarke (1972)
With a statement through the team, Lindblom mentioned he was honored to be nominated. He also enjoyed seeing all of the support from fans and the league as a whole.
"“This past season has been a difficult one for sure, but the positive support I’ve received from my family, my girlfriend, teammates, the Flyers organization and Flyers fans has been a tremendous help and inspiration through these times and I look forward to the day I’m back on the ice."
Before he was diagnosed in December, Lindblom was enjoying what could’ve been a career season. He was tied for the team lead with 11 goals. He also had 18 points in 30 games. That has obviously taken a back seat to all of this.
In fact, the Flyers had dedicated this season to Lindblom. His jersey and equipment were hung in his stall during every game. Beginning with the game just two days after the devastating announcement.
Some things are bigger than hockey.
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) December 15, 2019
The @NHLFlyers had Oskar Lindblom’s stall set up in the visitors dressing room at Xcel Energy Center to honor their teammate. https://t.co/gxgDaPDnSp #OskarStrong pic.twitter.com/2SzE0zDTmy
Lindblom has been able to make it back and visit his teammates both at practice and after games. It has brought a clear boost to the Flyers to see Lindblom. Especially when he was able to make it for the team’s photo day.
A true inspiration to everyone in the NHL, Lindblom is determined to make his way back to the Flyers in the near future. And we all wish him the best.