NHL Names David Poile, Doug Armstong, Dale Tallon General Manager Of The Year Award Finalists

The National Hockey League announced on Tuesday that David Poile of the Nashville Predators, Doug Armstrong of the St. Louis Blues and Dale Tallon of the Florida Panthers are the three finalists for the 2012 General Manager of the Year award, which will be given out at the NHL Awards in Las Vegas on June 20.

Unlike most other major awards, which are awarded by the Professional Hockey Writers Association, the GM Award is decided by the 30 league general managers and a panel of other league executives and media.

Armstrong's Blues club shocked the league by winning its first Central Division title since 2000. He's compiled a bevy of young talent over the last several seasons, and finding goaltender Brian Elliott in free agency could go down as one of his best moves.

Poile has been a nominee for this award three straight years but has yet to win. It's been a whirlwind year for Poile as he's held on to players like Pekka Rinne, Ryan Suter and Shea Weber while acquiring pieces to bolster his already very strong team. Adding the Alexander Radulov reunion to the mix only makes his candidacy stronger.

Tallon took over a Florida Panthers club that won its division for the first time in team history. His hire of head coach Kevin Dineen turned out to be a deft move, and the results the team has seen given Tallon's complete overhaul of the club last summer qualify him for this award.