Just to focus on this part. As a Penguins fan, I've argued this as well. I felt Geno and Kessel were robbed of theirs, I still stand by that.
Malkin's 2017 playoff claim to fame is putting up 11 points in the 1st round against a clearly overmatched opponent. Six of those points were secondary assists. The narrative after that series was despite Malkin getting 11 points, he certainly did not stand out as the clear offensive catalyst in that series that his point total would indicate.
After that series, Crosby was the catalyst in getting the Pens up 2 to 0 against the Caps, a series that eventually went 7 games. The Ottawa series was pretty even but it was Crosby who set up the Game 7 OT series winner.
Crosby was the clear best player in the SCF.
Noone was "robbed" on any Smythes. Kessel was as deserving a winner as Crosby was which was reflected in the voting results. There was no underlying media push to give it to Crosby. Any media person who felt that way would not have put Kessel second on their ballot because that would have risked Crosby not getting it.
There really isn't a great case to put Malkin over Crosby in 2017, and this was clear in the voting.
