In year of standout Canadian athletes, Gilgeous-Alexander hovered above rest

As we rumble toward the end of the year, Canada can credibly claim the best athlete in three different sports.

It’s not often — if ever — that that’s been the case.

But between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Connor McDavid and Summer McIntosh, it feels nearly indisputable.

Gilgeous-Alexander won MVP, Finals MVP and led the NBA in scoring; McDavid led the Edmonton Oilers back to the Stanley Cup Final and scored the golden goal for Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off; and McIntosh won five medals — including four golds — at the world championships.

Even less disputable, however, is which among those three is most deserving of the Northern Star Award, the annual honour for Canadian athlete of the year that’s voted on by a panel of journalists and will be determined on Tuesday.

Gilgeous-Alexander’s year was undeniable. He asserted himself among not just today’s NBA’s best but authored one of the greatest single seasons of all time, winning just about everything there is to win as his Oklahoma City Thunder took home the Larry O’Brien Trophy.

For perspective, the Hamilton, Ont., product joined a list only occupied by Michael Jordan (twice), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Shaquille O’Neal as players who have completed the MVP-Finals MVP-scoring leader trifecta.

As a follow-up, Gilgeous-Alexander’s Thunder are, oh, just 22-1 (prior to Sunday’s action) this season and threatening to break the 2016 Golden State Warriors’ 73-win record.

Now, he’ll likely become the 10th athlete to win multiple Northern Star Awards with his second after also claiming the honour in 2023. Only Wayne Gretzky and figure skater Barbara Ann Scott have won it more than twice.

Here are some other candidates for the award — in a nod to their greatness, if nothing else:

One win away

Summer McIntosh

The reigning Northern Star winner followed up her 2024 Olympic breakout by showing she’s only getting better. McIntosh went to July’s world championships with the stated goal of matching Michael Phelps’ record of five individual gold medals — then, she nearly went out and did it, winning four events but settling for bronze in what was billed as a showdown with American star Katie Ledecky in the 800-metre freestyle.

The Toronto native, who is still just 19 (!), also broke a startling three world records at June’s national trials.

Even more than SGA, McIntosh might be Canada’s most dominant athlete right now. If she had matched that Phelps mark by dethroning Ledecky in one of her best events, it would have made for a fascinating case against the NBA MVP.

Connor McDavid

As the greatest hockey player of his generation, McDavid will probably be a candidate for this award for as long as his NHL career persists.

In 2025, the Newmarket, Ont., native achieved major senior international success for the first time, leading Canada to gold at the 4 Nations Face-Off and scoring the overtime winner in the final against the U.S. It wasn’t quite Sidney Crosby in 2010, but the 4 Nations reignited the North American rivalry — especially against a tense political backdrop — and McDavid provided the cathartic clincher.

Back in the NHL, his regular season was marred by injury, and he put up just (just) 100 points before leading his Oilers back to the Stanley Cup Final. But, for the second straight year, it wasn’t to be.

McDavid’s post-season run, while still strong with seven goals and 26 points in 22 games, wasn’t quite as transcendental as the season prior when he won the Conn Smythe Trophy in a losing effort.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

Let’s just address this head-on: indeed, the Montreal-born slugger is eligible for this award. In 2021, when he finished second to Shohei Ohtani for AL MVP, Guerrero was among six finalists who lost out to Olympic decathlon champion Damian Warner. So, no, the panel won’t shy away from considering him.

Given that precedent, it’s hard not to consider the Toronto Blue Jays star, who committed to Canada’s only MLB team for 14 years (and $500 million, of course) in April, then came two outs from leading it to its first World Series title in 32 years in October.

Guerrero’s post-season was one for the ages: his eight home runs broke the franchise playoff record (like, all time — not just in a single year), he smashed the Jays’ first-ever playoff grand slam in an ALDS rout of the New York Yankees and he created (with some help from Big Papi) the jingle that defined the Blue Jays’ playoff run: Daaaaaaaa Yankees lose!

For the post-season, Guerrero hit .397 with 14 walks to just seven strikeouts. That’s dominance.

If Guerrero’s team sealed the championship deal, his case — possibly with a World Series MVP, to boot — would have been a strong one. Instead, Miguel Rojas happened. Pain.

Winners at home

Victoria Mboko

The breakout star of the year on the WTA Tour, Mboko’s 2025 peaked at home in July, when she took down Coco Gauff, Elena Rybakina and Naomi Osaka to win the National Bank Open presented by Rogers in Montreal.

Mboko, 19, was born in the U.S. but settled in Burlington, Ont., at just two months old. She became a sensation with her victory at home, but anyone who was paying attention knew it wasn’t all that surprising: the right-hander bookended her NBO win with five lower-level victories in the first three months of the year and a WTA 250 title in Hong Kong in November. At one point, Mboko rattled off a 22-match win streak.

She finished the year with a career-high world ranking of No. 18 — more than 300 spots higher from where she started.

Brooke Henderson

The two-time major champion did not enjoy her best season of results, but one standout performance vaulted her onto this list.

Henderson, the 26-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ont., won her second national title in August at Mississaugua Golf and Country Club, outduelling Australia’s Minjee Lee on Sunday with clutch birdies on the 14 and 16 to capture the prize. It marked the Canadian’s first Tour victory since 2023.

Honourable mentions

Josh Naylor

The burly first baseman was named the Tip O’Neill Award winner as the top Canadian baseball player earlier in December, beating out two-time winner Guerrero.

Naylor, of Mississauga, Ont., became the first Canadian to hit a home run against the Blue Jays in the post-season. In the regular season, he joined Larry Walker as the only Canadians with 20 home runs and 30 steals in a single year.

He capped off a breakout 2025 by signing a five-year, $92.5-million contract to remain in Seattle. Not too shabby.

Sam Bennett

Look away, Leafs fans. Shield your eyes, Flames fans. Walk away now, Oilers fans.

Because Bennett, of Holland Landing, Ont., enjoyed a surprisingly strong resume at your expense.

Bennett scored the late tying goal against the U.S. in the 4 Nations final. Fine, you can manage that. Then, he led the Panthers past the Leafs and Oilers to their second straight title with 15 goals in 23 playoff games, winning the Conn Smythe in the process. Yikes.

Love him or hate him, Bennett’s year was an all-timer.

Rachel Homan

Homan continued her run of curling dominance — she posted a 75-8 record in the 2024-25 Grand Slam season, but that only tells part of the story.

The Ottawa native lost just twice en route to claiming her second straight world title. She didn’t lose at all in capturing the national title at the Scotties. Then, she rolled through the Olympic trials, losing just once to book her ticket to Italy. Her total record at those events? 32-3.

If Homan puts together another tournament like any of those in Cortina, winning gold and snapping Canada’s 12-year Olympic foursome title drought, she’ll vault up this list one year from now.

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