Carolina Hurricanes captain Jordan Staal was the clear winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP for his all-around role in helping the team win the Stanley Cup.
Staal was the first choice on 17 of 21 ballots, with Taylor Hall the runner-up and Logan Stankoven third. At 37, Staal is the oldest player to win the Conn Smythe.
“People got to see what I’ve know for forever — what kind of player he is, what kind of leader he is — and here we go, he’s finally rewarded,” coach Rod Brind’Amour said.
Staal won over 56% of his faceoffs and excelled in a shutdown center role during the entire run. He also scored six goals in six games in the final against Vegas.
In the interest of full transparency, the PHWA has once again revealed each individual ballot from all 21 voters:
2026 Conn Smythe Trophy Ballots
| Voter (outlet) | First | Second | Third |
| Chip Alexander (News & Observer) | Jordan Staal | Taylor Hall | Jackson Blake |
| Mark Anderson (Associated Press) | Hall | Staal | Logan Stankoven |
| Jonathan Bernier (Quebecor Media) | Staal | Hall | Stankoven |
| Per Bjurman (Aftonbladet) | Staal | Hall | Mitch Marner |
| Steve Carp (The Sporting Tribune) | Staal | Hall | Brandon Bussi |
| Luke Fox (Sportsnet) | Staal | Hall | Nikolaj Ehlers |
| Elliotte Friedman (Sportsnet) | Staal | Hall | Ehlers |
| Sean Gentille (The Athletic) | Hall | Staal | Stankoven |
| Jesse Granger (The Athletic) | Staal | Hall | Stankoven |
| Ryan Henkel (The Hockey News) | Staal | Hall | Blake |
| Chris Johnston (The Athletic) | Staal | Stankoven | Hall |
| Emily Kaplan (ESPN) | Staal | Stankoven | Marner |
| Cory Lavalette (North State Journal) | Staal | Hall | Stankoven |
| Pierre LeBrun (The Athletic) | Staal | Jaccob Slavin | Hall |
| Justin Pelletier (News & Observer) | Staal | Hall | Stankoven |
| Michael Russo (The Athletic) | Staal | Stankoven | Hall |
| Frank Seravalli (Hockey 24/7) | Staal | Hall | Stankoven |
| Teemu Suvinen (Ilta-Sanomat) | Staal | Hall | Ehlers |
| Danny Webster (Las Vegas Review-Journal) | Staal | Marner | Ehlers |
| Stephen Whyno (Associated Press) | Hall | Staal | Stankoven |
| Greg Wyshynski (ESPN) | Hall | Staal | Marner |
Voting Point Totals
Jordan Staal, Carolina: 97 points
Taylor Hall, Carolina: 59 points
Logan Stankoven, Carolina: 17 points
Mitch Marner, Vegas: 6 points
Nikolaj Ehlers, Carolina: 4 points
Jaccob Slavin, Carolina: 3 points
Jackson Blake, Carolina: 2 points
Brandon Bussi, Carolina, 1 point
Points were awarded on a 5-3-1 basis and the deadline to submit ballots to the NHL occurred with 10 minutes remaining in Game 6.