Bruins center Patrice Bergeron has been named one of three finalists for the Selke Trophy, setting him up to become the NHL’s best defensive forward for the third straight season. Anze Kopitar of the Los Angeles Kings and Ryan Kesler of the Anaheim Ducks are the other finalists.
The Selke seemingly has become Bergeron’s birthright, and for good reason. The center led the Bruins with a 55.9 Corsi For rating during five-on-five play, a measure of his puck-possession dominance despite playing against elite competition.
Bergeron started only 45.9 percent of his five-on-five shifts in the offensive zone because he was needed more for defensive deployment. In comparison, Ryan Spooner started 56.3 percent of his shifts in the offensive zone.
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Bergeron also averaged 2:11 of shorthanded ice time per game, most of any Boston forward.
Despite his defensive usage, Bergeron led the Bruins in scoring with 68 points, on 32 goals and 36 assists.
Bergeron first won the award in 2011-12. After Chicago’s Jonathan Toews won it in 2012-13, Bergeron captured it the next two seasons.
The Selke will be awarded in Las Vegas on June 22.
Slim odds in lottery
The 2016 NHL Draft Lottery will be held Saturday night in Toronto. In a departure this year, the lottery results will set the top three slots in the first round. In previous years, only the first overall selection was determined by the lottery.
The Bruins, having failed to qualify for the playoffs, will participate in the lottery. However, their chances of landing the top pick in the draft are just 1 percent.
Here are the chances for each team in the lottery:
Toronto — 20.0 percent
Edmonton — 13.5 percent
Vancouver — 11.5 percent
Columbus — 9.5 percent
Calgary — 8.5 percent
Winnipeg — 7.5 percent
Arizona — 6.5 percent
Buffalo — 6.0 percent
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Montreal — 5.0 percent
Colorado — 3.5 percent
New Jersey — 3.0 percent
Ottawa — 2.5 percent
Carolina — 2.0 percent
Boston — 1.0 percent
The lottery will be broadcast on NBC Saturday at 8 p.m.
Andy Mahoney of the Globe staff contributed to this report.