After taking a look at the third-quarter grades for all 30 teams Wednesday, it's time to look ahead. With only a quarter of the season remaining, the race for the various NHL awards should be as tight as those for the postseason.This year has been fairly wide open for a number of the NHL's big awards. That's mostly true now, but it has become more and more apparent that Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price is having one of those seasons that could go down as a historic one. The Habs netminder's second half has been even better than the first, which was pretty good. He's starting to build a lead in the races for both the Hart Trophy and the Vezina with how well he has played and just how much Montreal has been leaning on him.NHL Report Card That's not to say that he can't be supplanted. There's another really good goalie out there this season in Nashville Predators netminder Pekka Rinne and Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin has come on particularly strongly in the second half as well, scoring in bushels like always.The most intriguing race of them all could be the Calder Trophy. The decision on that race is made all the more difficult by the difference in positions between front-runners Filip Forsberg and Aaron Ekblad, as well as the age of the two competitors. Forsberg is 20 years old with years of pro experience under his belt from playing in both the Swedish Hockey League and the American Hockey League before starring for the Predators this season. Meanwhile, Ekblad is fresh out of junior and having a historic season for a teenage defenseman. It's a really interesting debate and one that leaves me feeling like they're tied heading into this last quarter. So let's check out some awards candidates with a quarter of the season remaining.2014-15 First Half AwardsHartVezinaAt this point, the Hart is Price's to lose. As of today, Price leads the NHL in save percentage (.935), goals-against average (1.92) and wins (36). The could conceivably have a nice record without Price. They could not po sibly hope to have the East's best record without him, though. Montreal is in the lower-third of the league when it comes to po se sion and goals for per game. He's the biggest difference-maker in the league, hands down. Carey PricePerhaps the most remarkable thing about Price's season is that he is getting better as it goes on. Over 20 appearances through January and February, Price registered a .949 save percentage. He is beyond ridiculous this season in terms of consistency and putting the Habs on his back. Seeing as he appears to be the front-runner for the Hart Trophy, there's no way he won't also take home the Vezina despite a very deserving year for as well.Currently tied for the league lead with 67 points, Ovechkin continues to prove he is among the game's elite offensive talents. His 43 goals are tops in the NHL and he's on pace to register his sixth 50-goal season. The have bounced back rather nicely from a down season and it's Ovechkin leading the charge while playing great all-around hockey. He could push Price as Ovechkin seeks his fourth Hart. Pekka RinneRinne's injury might have knocked him off the pace just enough to seal the Vezina for Price. Even though the big Finn has come back strong from a sprained knee, Price has been a constant. He's second in a lot of categories to the Vezina front-runner. That said, a lot of folks wondered if Rinne's best days were behind him. He has responded with what could end up as a career year for the . Pekka RinneIn a lot of years, the season Rinne has had would put him right at the top of the list for Hart and Vezina, but that's how freakish Price's season is. Rinne has backstopped a potential President's Trophy winner. He is second in save percentage (.928), second in goals-against average (2.10) and second in wins (35).No goaltender in the NHL has played more than Holtby this season. Despite the heavy workload, he is turning in a phenomenal campaign. His seven shutouts are second most in the league, while his .925 save percentage ranks sixth in the league. The workload he has faced, while ensuring the Capitals remain a playoff team has been remarkable.Currently third in the league with 65 points, Tavares has a shot at the scoring title. He also has Diego Cartaya Jersey proven once again to be the knight in shining armor for the people of Long Island. The captain has 30 goals this season in leading the to respectability and probably home ice to start the playoffs. As much as the Islanders have improved, everything runs through Tavares. This magical season simply wouldn't happen without him.Devan Dubnyk has helped turn the season around and they've been riding him. In 21 appearances with the Wild, he has a .937 save percentage and 1.65 goals-against average. He also has 16 wins and five shutouts over that span. Combine that all with his time spent in Arizona as a backup and he has the fifth-best save percentage in the NHL at .926. Even if he joined the party late, he definitely deserves votes for what he's accomplishing in Minnesota.After shouldering the brunt of the criticism as the fell just short in the Stanley Cup Final last year, Nash has had a remarkable 2014-15 season. He is second in the NHL with 38 goals and could net his first 50-goal season. He's an all-situations player for the Rangers and a scores-in-all-situations player, too. Nash has never looked better and he's the key offensive player on one of the best teams in the East this season.Fleury has had a fascinating season. His eight shutouts set a single-seasonfranchise record. He's also playing behind a defense that has dealt with a ton of injuries this season. His .923 save percentage is respectable, if not overwhelming, as is his 2.21 goals-against average. Both rank eighth in the league. No one will be supplanting Price or Rinne as the winner, but Fleury is enjoying the best season of his career.2014-15 First Half AwardsNorrisCalderLetang is in the best season of his career. He's tied for the league lead among defensemen with 49 points. His 39 a sists rank 10th among all skaters. He's also driving po se sion at an incredible rate with a 14.9 relative Corsi, showing just how much more dominant the Penguinsare in po se sion with him on the ice. To think that Letang suffered a stroke last season and he's doing this is just mind boggling.There is probably not a tighter race than the Calder this year. As far as I'm concerned, Forsberg and are tied heading into the final quarter of the season. Forsberg is the leading center on one of the league's best teams at 20 years old. He leads all rookies with 52 points and ranks 26th overall in the league. His 21 goals pace a revitalized offensive attack. Would the Predatorsbe winning like they are without him? Probably not.Widely considered one of the best all-around defensemen in the league, the analytics don't really love Weber. His underlying numbers have never been great, but as the top defenseman on one of the best teams in the league, he has a shot at finally winning the Norris. Weber is tied for fourth in goals (15) among blueliners and is the fifth most utilized defender in the NHL this season. Voters are going to give him a lot of dap this season. Aaron EkbladEkblad is having a historic season. His 34 points are third most by a defenseman as an 18-year-old. He has a chance to pa s Bobby Orr on that list. Seriously. Ekblad is also helping key a late-season push by the to make the playoffs. He's tied for 12th among all NHL defensemen with 11 goals and ranks 22nd in points. He's also playing a top-four role and excelling as a positive po se sion player with a 52.9 Corsi for percentage. His age makes it all the more impre sive.The NHL's busiest defenseman has a real shot at winning his first Norris. Averaging nearly 30 minutes a night for the , Doughty continues to prove he is one of the very best true two-way defensemen in the league. Despite his heavy usage on a team that has struggled some this season, Doughty's po se sion numbers are strong with a 56.8 Corsi for percentage. He also has 38 points. This wide-open race may open the door for him to get his due.It sure looks like a two-horse race for the Calder, but Johnny Hockey could make it interesting with a late-season push for the . Gaudreau is second in rookie scoring with 45 points. At age 21, he's playing a top-six role on a playoff team and could even end up leading the club in scoring when all is said and done. His incredible stickhandling and vision have made him one of the more exciting players to watch this season.Already with one Norris Trophy under his belt, Subban is having another sensational season. Despite the Canadiens being in the lower-third in po se sion as a team, Subban has been driving it. Behindthenet.ca has Subban with a 16 percent relative Corsi, which is tops among all defensemen with at least 50 games played. He also is third among all blueliners with 48 points. As one of the game's most electrifying talents, everything that Subban does jumps out. Will it be enough for Norris No. 2?Hoffman leads all rookies with 23 goals. As one of the older guys in the group at 25 years old, perhaps that should be expected. But he has played an integral role on a squad looking to make a late push to get into the playoffs. He leads Ottawa in goals and ranks fourth in total points with 40. It's unlikely he will win, but he could sneak into a finalist spot with a strong finish. Mark GiordanoHe's done for the year, which is so unfortunate. Giordano was deserving of Hart Trophy votes with the way he was playing and helping carry the Flames. He is still tied for third in the NHL with 48 points, was playing 25-plus minutes a game and leading one of the worst po se sion teams in the league with a relative Corsi of 14 percent. This was Giordano's year, most likely. Until it wasn't. Hopefully he can recover from surgery quickly and come back strong next season.After helping to bring some stability to the net, Hutchinson should get a long look for the Calder. He has a .918 save percentage and 19 wins this season as Winnipeg remains in playoff position. Also 25, Hutchinson has been patiently waiting his turn. He's really taking advantage of it this season. His candidacy is on the decline, however. An .898 save percentage in the month of February knocked some of the shine off, but he's still very much in the race. Danny Duffy Jersey