Not a fan of Beniers while I have nothing against Maccelli either (as a fellow Finn) but if two rookies end up at the same performance numbers but player A was way stronger in the first half of the season and then plateaud while player B had a rough start but finally found his stride in the second half, player A should be the clear choice for Calder -- even if at season's end player B would likely be considered the better player going forward because of the drastic difference in trajectories.
Why? Because that's that Calder is about: the most outstanding new player (with certain restrictions regarding age and gp), the one who's the best equipped from the get go (I know the official definition acknowledges the whole season). That's also why I think the age limit should be reduced way more, too. Maybe to something like 23 years (currently 26 old by Sept. 15 of their rookie season).
There is a clear drawback to this view, however: high draft picks will be in favored positions as they are more likely given playing time early on, roster depth also plays a big role. Players like rookie Stamkos also get shafted if the coach just likes to put young players into the dog house just for the heck of it.
