Every year, the'Hart Memorial Trophy, formerly the Hart Trophy, is awarded to the most valuable player in the National Hockey League, as voted by the members of the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association.'
As of the 2022-23 season, the trophy has been awarded 98 times to 61 different players, and 19 players have won it multiple times. Wayne Gretzky won the trophy nine times during his career, the most of any player in NHL history.
NHL Players With Most MVP Awards in Career
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| RANK | PLAYER | MVP AWARDS WON |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wayne Gretzky | 9 |
| 2 | Gordie Howe | 6 |
| 3 | Eddie Shore | 4 |
| 4 | Alex Ovechkin | 3 |
| Mario Lemieux | 3 | |
| Bobby Clarke | 3 | |
| Bobby Orr | 3 | |
| Howie Morenz | 3 | |
| 5 | Connor McDavid | 2 |
| Sidney Crosby | 2 | |
| Dominik Hasek | 2 | |
| Mark Messier | 2 | |
| Guy Lafleur | 2 | |
| Phil Esposito | 2 | |
| Stan Mikita | 2 | |
| Bobby Hull | 2 | |
| Jean Beliveau | 2 | |
| Bill Cowley | 2 | |
| Nels Stewart | 2 |
There are eight defensemen who have won the Hart Memorial Trophy since its inception. Herb Gardiner (1926-27), Eddie Shore (1932-33, 1934-35, 1935-36, 1937-38), Babe Siebert (1936-37), Ebbie Goodfellow (1939-40), Tommy Anderson (1941-42), Babe Pratt (1943-44), Bobby Orr (1969-70, 1970-71, 1971-72), and Chris Pronger (1999-2000) were all been named MVP during their careers.
The defenseman with the most trophy victories is Eddie Shore (4) and the most recent is Chris Pronger (1999-2000).