The Calder Trophy Race is a tight one. The trophy rewards the top rookie of the year. Three big names are floating around, they are; Johnny Gaudreau, Filip Forsberg and Aaron Ekblad. 

Gaudreau has been just the spark the flames have needed this season, and they currently find themselves fighting for a playoff position, a lot of that has to do with Johnny Gaudreau's stellar play. He leads all rookies in points with 58 in 73 games.

Nicknamed "Johnny Hockey", Gaudreau will be a very popular choice amongst voters for the coveted Calder Trophy.

Filip Forsberg is close behind Gaudreau in the points race with 56 in 75 games. Even if he ends up with less points than Johnny.

He should still be up for consideration as he is on one of the best teams in the league, the Nashville Predators. Forsberg has been a big part of leading his team to 4th overall in the NHL standings.

Aaron Ekblad has flown under the radar in Florida but he has been one of the key members of a team fighting to make the playoffs.

Ekblad can become the first defenseman to win the Calder Trophy in five years and the first teenage defenseman to win it in 18 years. Defense is without a doubt the hardest position to come into in the NHL and Ekblad is playing like a veteran at only 19 years of age.

His impact on the Florida Panthers has been huge, he's tallied 35 points in 73 games.

Prediction: Aaron Ekblad.

Dark Horse: John Klingberg.

Klingberg has gone unnoticed in the NHL this season and is unlikely to win the trophy, however he makes just as good a case as the rest of the top rookies. Klingberg is a defenseman with more points than Aaron Ekblad in less games.

He has 37 points in 57 games. The only thing going against him is that the Dallas Stars are unlikely to make the playoffs and that the amount of games he's played isn't a good overall projection.

Some other names floating around include; Mark Stone, Mike Hoffman and Anders Lee.