For the second year in a row, my first poll after the start of the new season is one where I ask you to pick the three Calder Trophy finalists. In last season's poll, your top vote getter Moritz Seider did in fact win the Calder; and you also included another finalist – Trevor Zegras – among your top three. But a mere two voters out of 109 chose "One or More Rookies not Named" in order to cover the third finalist – Michael Bunting – who was not a listed choice. How will you fare this time around? Time to find out!

Remember that you're voting on the three Calder finalists, which doesn't necessarily equate to the three best rookies in terms of fantasy value. Also, when casting your votes you should choose exactly three of the 19 choices, as, of course, there will be that many Calder finalists. That is unless you believe one or more of the 19 won't be a finalist, in which case you should select "One or More Rookies not Listed" either as your lone vote (i.e., if you think none of the 19 listed players will be a Calder finalist), or as one of your two votes (i.e., if you think only one of the 19 listed players will be a Calder finalist, and two won't) or as one of your three votes (i.e., if you think only two of the 19 listed players will be Calder finalists, and one won't).

With that out of the way, here are the 19 choices, listed in alphabetical order. The link to cast your votes will be at the end of the column.

Calen Addison – I touted Addison in my 17 Fearless Forecasts column not just because he's talented, as was amply shown by his AHL success last season, but perhaps even more so because his path to success for 2022-23 was much clearer than most rookies. After all, the Wild lack a prototypical PP1 QB and were – and still are – too cap constrained to go out and land one. Enter Addison, who already looks to be providing the kind of offense we saw from last year's Calder winner Seider.

Matty Beniers – Top draft pick? Check! Impressive first taste of the NHL? Check! Improved group of surrounding forwards? Check! All seems to be in place for Berniers to shine, although one never knows whether sustained success will occur for such a young player amidst the grind of a full 82 game season with the spotlight shining squarely on him.

Alexander Holtz – It seems like from the moment Holtz was drafted there were visions of him potting dozens of goals off feeds from Jack Hughes. And sure enough it looks like Holtz is with the Devils for the long haul this season. The questions are whether he has the maturity to excel right from the get go, and if he gets top tier deployment.

Kent Johnson – Still only 19, this season it's more likely, given how he's played and with whom, that Johnson is with the Blue Jackets for the long haul. And although there's no shortage of centers who could get the coveted gig alongside Johnny Gaudreau, Johnson might have the most offensive talent. It's just a question as to whether the team deems him ready, making him perhaps a feast or famine own for this season.

Wyatt Johnston – It seems like Dallas is trying to roll with three scoring lines, leading to Johnston being flanked by talented wingers. Being that he's a teen though, the question is whether the Stars are willing to burn a year of his ELC to have him stick with the club. Time will tell, as it always does; but if he stays, he could make some noise, particularly if he continues to get man advantage minutes.

Andrei Kuzmenko – The Russian winger has been used alongside Elias Pettersson this season as well as on the top power-play unit. With his maturity, not to mention his stellar performance in the KHL last season, one has to think Vancouver will make room for him on a scoring line throughout the season. The question is will his success overseas translate to the NHL, or will he become another older non-US player who was here then gone before you knew it. NOTE: Kuzmenko is ineligible for the Calder Trophy because of his age (26), so please do not vote for him. He cannot be deleted from the poll, so we will keep him in the article as well.

Nils Lundkvist – Dished to the Stars this offseason, Lundqvist went from third in the pecking order for New York among right-handed defensemen, to arguably the top of the list in that area for Dallas. What's more, despite all the accompanying hype, there's no telling whether Miro Heiskanen will be ready to shine as a PP QB, in which case Lundqvist likely would have the red carpet rolled out for him. And even if that doesn't occur, he still should get the opportunity to make noise.

Mason McTavish – After a jaw-dropping performance at the WJC, poolies became excited that McTavish would be ready for prime time in 2022-23. Sure enough he made the team and he might be able to carve out a spot in the top six, although amidst the additions of Ryan Strome and Frank Vatrano, landing a starring role for the Ducks definitely will be more difficult this season than it had been in recent campaigns.

Cole Perfetti – We already saw Perfetti get looks in the top six at the end of 2021-22 and he most certainly did not seem at all out of place. So to no one's surprise he's back with the club for this season and ready to resume where he left off. And with a new coach behind the bench, chances are Perfetti will get an opportunity to prove he belongs, in which case he could rack up points playing alongside the likes of Mark Scheifele, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Nikolaj Ehlers, and/or Blake Wheeler.

John-Jason Peterka – Thus far Peterka is shining even with limited minutes and zero PP usage. Usually that means one of two things will happen, namely that his strong play continues and he forces Buffalo's hand, or he is unable to translate his meager ice time into results, writing his ticket to the press box or even back to the AHL.

Shane Pinto – After missing most of last season due to injury, Pinto impressed in preseason to an extent that he might turn the Sens into a three-line threat. That's if he doesn't get promoted to the top six to replace Josh Norris, who could be out long term.

Owen Power – The former first overall pick is in an odd spot in that the Sabres have another top pick in Rasmus Dahlin on their blueline. If last season was any indication, Power will play his fair share of minutes, albeit perhaps not on PP1. Still, he's definitely talented enough to perhaps force the issue, and even to be a success despite not commanding ample PP time.

Jack Quinn – With the sudden surplus of forward talent on the Sabres, Quinn, who many had tagged as a surefire Calder candidate, is being shuffled in and out of the lineup; and when he does play, he's being used in the bottom six for the most part. Still, he's 21 and last season showed he was too talented for the AHL, so chances are he sticks in Buffalo and might be able to catch a break, whether due to injuries or otherwise.

Nick Robertson – It's taken a while, but it looks like Robertson might be in Toronto to stay. And as we saw with both Michael Bunting and Alexander Kerfoot last season, there are prime spots in the top six up for grabs on the Leafs; so if Robertson can lock one of those down, he could set himself up for big numbers.

Marco Rossi – First it was long COVID, then it was toiling in the AHL to save a season on his ELC. But the wait for Rossi to be a full time member of the Wild is seemingly over. He dazzled in the preseason, yet that hasn't translated – at least as yet – to the regular season, plus it's been over a decade since any centers as short as him – think Derek Roy and Daniel Briere – had significant fantasy impact.

Jake Sanderson – Still just 20, Sanderson is commanding major minutes. And while no one is envisioning Sanderson stealing the #1 d-man role from Thomas Chabot any time soon, Chabot hasn't been a huge PP force, and neither has once highly touted Erik Brannstrom, perhaps leaving the door open at least a crack for Sanderson to seize the job.

Juraj Slafkovsky – This season's top pick showed up to camp with an NHL-ready physique and a desire to make an impact. And if there's a team where that's needed, it's the Habs, who, even after the arrival of Martin St. Louis, were basically a one-line team.

Logan Thompson – The lone netminder on this list, Thompson, who can be safely sent down without clearing waivers, was likely earmarked for the AHL. But an injury to Robin Lehner, and the team only having Adin Hill and Laurent Brossoit as other options, has positioned Thompson to be the best bet to be the starter for the Knights. Will he be up to the task? We'll find out.

Shane Wright – The good news is he's playing, but the bad news is he's yet to take the ice for even 10:00 in any single game. Is there any chance he stays past nine games, and, if so, that he makes an impact? When talking about a player with the resume of Wright, never say never.

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Are the three Calder finalists on the list? You tell me! To repeat, your task is not to vote for the three rookies who will have the most fantasy value this season, but instead to predict the three players of these 19 who you believe will represent the three Calder finalists for 2022-23. Or, as noted above, you can choose "One or More Rookies not Listed" option in place of one, two, or all three of your votes, depending on whether you believe one, two, or all three Calder finalists will be rookies other than the 19 specific choices. They key is you're not to vote for more than three rookies, as there will be only three Calder finalists. To cast your vote, click here.

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Scheduling Note and Questions for Mailbag Column

My monthly mailbag column is next week and I'm still looking for questions. To get yours to me, either private message “rizzeedizzee” via the DobberHockey Forums or, instead, send an email to [email protected] with “Roos Mailbag” as the subject line.