The Conn Smythe Trophy is awared annually to the player judged most valuable to his team during the National Hockey League's Stanley Cup playoffs. The Conn Smythe Trophy has been awarded 43 times to 37 players since the 1964-65 NHL season. Each year, at the conclusion of the final game of the Stanley Cup finals, members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association vote to elect the player deserving of the trophy. The trophy is handed out prior to the presentation of the Stanley Cup by the NHL commissioner.