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The NHL continues to get extra expert, and there’s elite expertise all through the league. That makes figuring out the ten finest gamers harder than ever, however we’re right here to tackle that daunting problem.
Final season, it looks as if the NHL’s superstars took it upon themselves to hit fifth gear. After going 33 seasons with out seeing a participant hit 100 assists, Connor McDavid and Nikita Kucheorv did it in 2023-24. Equally, Auston Matthews put up a aim complete not seen since Mario Lemieux was heating up The Igloo in Pittsburgh.
This season, the high-end expertise has solely gotten extra plentiful. Gamers like Quinn Hughes went from being nice to elite, and Nathan MacKinnon discovered one other degree to his already dominant recreation.
For sure, the competitors was fierce, however listed here are your high 10 NHL gamers heading into the 2024-25 season.
All five-on-five information courtesy of Pure Stat Trick.
Honorable mentions: Adam Fox (D, NYR); Matthew Tkachuk (W, FLA); Jack Hughes (C, NJD)
There have been a number of nice choices for this No. 10 spot, however Kaprizov will get the nod as an distinctive offensive expertise who has overcome his surroundings over the past couple seasons. Kaprizov is not flanked by a ton of talent in Minnesota, however he nonetheless manages to supply at an elite price.
Kaprizov can fly below the radar in Minnesota, however he should not. During the last three seasons, Kaprizov is tied for fifth in targets with 133 and ranks twelfth in factors with 279, and he is doing all that with an underwhelming supporting solid on the Wild. On high of that offensive manufacturing, Kaprizov can be comparatively sturdy defensively. With him within the recreation at five-on-five, Minnesota allowed simply 2.23 xGA/60. A few of that was in all probability attributable to taking part in on a line with Joel Eriksson Ek, however Kaprizov held up his finish of the cut price, too.
To ensure that Kaprizov to climb increased subsequent yr, rather a lot will depend upon the event of younger gamers like Matt Boldy and Marco Rossi. If these two can hold trending upward, Kaprizov may have extra assist than he has ever had in Minnesota.
Barkov might not put up flashy offensive numbers like the opposite gamers on this checklist, however he is nonetheless very efficient at that finish of the ice, and he’s now the Selke Trophy king. Barkov is an animal on the defensive finish, and that talent simply performed a large position bringing a Stanley Cup to Dawn, Florida.
Final yr, Barkov put up 23 targets and 57 assists, which is nice however usually not the kind of efficiency that warrants top-10 consideration. The kicker is that Barkov, now a two-time Selke Trophy winner, performs elite protection. With Barkov within the recreation, the Panthers allowed simply 1.98 xGA/60 at five-on-five. That quantity places him forward of even the 2 defensemen on this checklist.
Within the postseason, Barkov received matched up in opposition to the very best gamers on the earth, and he shut them down as a rule. Time to provide Barkov his flowers after a championship effort.
After 4 seasons of being anyplace from good to nice, Quinn Hughes lastly blossomed into an elite defenseman final season. Between placing up factors and driving play, Hughes proved that he belongs on this checklist with a Norris Trophy marketing campaign.
In his first full season below coach Rick Tocchet, Hughes exploded for 17 targets and 75 assists as he took over within the offensive zone. On the subject of his impression at each ends, the Canucks posted a plus-37 aim differential with Hughes on the ice at five-on-five. Hughes’ leap turned Vancouver right into a Stanley Cup risk, and that ought to carry over into this season.
The massive query that continues to be for Hughes is whether or not he can string collectively back-to-back elite seasons. He has the talent set to do it, and it would not be surprising to see him shut the hole on the highest defenseman on this checklist.
The day Nikita Kucherov begins to decelerate might be the day the Lightning’s Stanley Cup window formally closes, however that day appears fairly far off given how Kucherov carried out final season. One in every of two gamers to succeed in 100 assists, Kucherov retains establishing himself as some of the deadly offensive weapons of his technology.
In his age 30 season, Kucherov managed to notch 44 targets and 144 factors, marking the fourth time in his profession that he is topped the century mark. I might nitpick and notice that lots of these factors got here by way of the facility play, however I will not for a few causes. First, these targets go up on the scoreboard the identical as the remainder of them. Secondly, I really feel compelled to level out that Kucherov was third within the NHL with 67 five-on-five factors. That was greater than Auston Matthews, David Pastrnak and Leon Draisaitl.
The one factor stopping Kucherov from being slightly increased is that he does not have the identical degree of defensive acumen as his friends.
Nobody within the NHL can management the sport from the blue line fairly like Cale Makar when he is rolling. On the ripe previous age of 25, Makar has already stuffed up his trophy case, and he’ll in all probability must construct one other one earlier than lengthy.
The offensive numbers are there for Makar, who has been a point-per-game participant since his second season in 2020-21. The subsequent season, Makar triple-dipped with the Norris Trophy, the Conn Smythe Trophy and the Stanley Cup. All he did final yr was set new profession highs in assists (69) and factors (90) whereas serving to the Avalanche management 52.7% of the anticipated targets at five-on-five.
General, Hughes in all probability had a greater particular person season final yr, however Makar’s resume remains to be slightly bit longer. Now squarely within the prime of his profession, I am fascinated to see the place Makar can take his recreation subsequent.
In a world the place some NHL franchises can go a long time with out a true celebrity middle, the Oilers have two on their roster on the similar time. Leon Draisaitl won’t be Connor McDavid, however he does not take a backseat to anybody in terms of his offensive potential.
Within the 2018-19 season, Draisaitl broke out for 50 targets, and hasn’t slowed down since then. During the last six years, Draisaitl has lit the lamp 272 occasions, which is behind solely Auston Matthews in that span. After all, that is to not say Draisaitl is a one-trick pony. His 371 assists are third and simply 4 behind Nathan MacKinnon for second place.
What separates Draisaitl from everybody else on this checklist is that he is utterly reshaped the thought of a harmful shot location, particularly on the facility play. Draisaitl has perfected the artwork of the “dangerous angle” one-timer, and he is tallied 77 energy play targets because the 2021-22 marketing campaign.
If there have been any questions on whether or not Pastrnak might stand on his personal two ft, these had been answered fairly emphatically final season. No Bergeron. No Krejci. No downside for Pastrnak. With out an elite supporting solid round him, Pastrnak turned in 47 targets and 63 assists.
Pastrnak is likely one of the few wingers within the NHL who’s chargeable for driving play within the offensive zone, and he proved that he can shoulder a heavy burden within the 2023-24 season. When Pastrnak was on the ice at five-on-five, the Bruins scored at a price of three.59 GF/60. With Pastrnak on the bench, that quantity plummeted to 2.25 GF/60. Pastrnak is the whole thing of Boston’s offense at occasions.
This summer season, the Bruins introduced in Elias Lindholm to be their new No. 1 middle, and that might present Pastrnak with extra assist on the high of the lineup. If he and Pastrnak click on, that may very well be a fairly devastating duo.
Scoring targets is fairly very important to success within the NHL, and nobody is healthier at that than Auston Matthews. The Maple Leafs star simply narrowly missed 70 targets final season, however his 69 tallies had been nonetheless essentially the most since Mario Lemieux scored that many within the 1995-96 season.
Matthews entered the NHL within the 2016-17 season, and since then, nobody has discovered the again of the web extra typically than him. Over the course of his eight-year profession, Matthews leads the league in targets with 368. That is 40 greater than Alex Ovechkin, who simply occurs to be chasing down Wayne Gretzky for the all-time scoring report. During the last three seasons, Matthews has solely elevated his tempo, scoring 56.3 targets per season.
The one knock on Matthews is similar one which applies to the remainder of the Maple Leafs. He has but to take over within the postseason, however I’ve little question he is able to doing that. Matthews’ potential to attain from everywhere in the ice makes him deadly it doesn’t matter what the matchup seems to be like, and it is solely a matter of time earlier than he will get crimson sizzling within the playoffs.
2. Nathan MacKinnon | C | Colorado Avalanche
MacKinnon has all the time been probably the greatest gamers within the NHL, however his 2023-24 season pushed him slightly nearer to the No. 1 spot. Final yr, MacKinnon posted a career-high 140 factors and gained his first Hart Trophy because the NHL’s MVP. At occasions, he was single-handedly carrying the Avalanche whereas they handled harm points and a scarcity of depth scoring.
Not solely did MacKinnon discover one other gear by way of manufacturing final season, however he did a number of that injury at five-on-five. His 79 five-on-five factors had been essentially the most within the NHL and 7 greater than Connor McDavid. His 36 five-on-five targets had been solely two behind Matthews for the league lead.
MacKinnon additionally has the postseason resume to go together with his gaudy numbers. Simply a few years in the past, MacKinnon led the Avalanche to a Stanley Cup with 13 targets and 11 assists in 20 video games. In his 88 playoff contests, MacKinnon is averaging 1.3 factors per recreation.
1. Connor McDavid | C | Edmonton Oilers
The highest spot was by no means in query. McDavid is in a stratosphere all his personal proper now, and his postseason efficiency solely solidified that. McDavid turned simply the sixth participant in NHL historical past to win the Conn Smythe Trophy with out successful the Stanley Cup, and if I needed to guess, I would say that fuels one other superhuman marketing campaign in 2024-25.
During the last three seasons, McDavid leads the NHL in assists (268), factors (408) and energy play factors (159). He’s fourth in targets (140) and 14th in energy play targets (38). Even these numbers do not do McDavid justice. Final season, the Oilers generated 3.95 xGF/60 with him on the ice at five-on-five, which is a preposterous price and one that’s head and shoulders above even the opposite elite gamers on this checklist.
What’s extra spectacular is that, when the lights are brightest, McDavid nonetheless thrives. In his 74 profession playoff video games, he has 37 targets and 80 assists. The one factor McDavid lacks is a Stanley Cup, and he would possibly test that field this season.
