How would you rank the top 5 most valuable assets in the NHL today?

  • We sincerely apologize for the extended downtime. Our hosting provider, XenForo Cloud, encountered a major issue with their backup system, which unfortunately resulted in the loss of some critical data from the past year.

    What This Means for You:

    • If you created an account after March 2024, it no longer exists. You will need to sign up again to access the forum.
    • If you registered before March 2024 but changed your email, username, or password in the past year, those changes were lost. You’ll need to update your account details manually once you're logged in.
    • Threads and posts created within the last year have been restored.

    Our team is working with Xenforo Cloud to recover data using backups, sitemaps, and other available resources. We know this is frustrating, and we deeply regret the impact on our community. We are taking steps with Xenforo Cloud to ensure this never happens again. This is work in progress. Thank you for your patience and support as we work through this.

    In the meantime, feel free to join our Discord Server
I'd build from the defense out

Given how rare quality RD's are #1 has to be Makar


I'd say
#1. Makar, short term on the contract hurts quite a bit. But is a unicorn. Probably the best d-men and an Right shot.
#2. Dria. 2nd best player in the NHL and long term
#3. Hellebuyck. Best goalie. PO struggles are a bit of a concern, but has taken some pretty meh WPG teams to quality seasons.
#4. Has to be an ELC guy Thinking Hutson/Celebrini.
#5. QHughes, Mack, or McDavid. Contract control be damned
 
There are certainly more than 5 assets more valuable than 1 year of McDavid. If he came with an extension that'd be different

I think McDavid's valued is tied to the belief you extend him though

Hypothetically - if Seattle, or Montreal, or Boston - or whoever - trades for McDavid. they don't trade with the mentality of "well, let's see if he re-signs or not". They trade with the mentality that "we'll do everything it takes - up to literally max $$ contract - to re-sign him - and we also will talk to him prior to trade to ensure he wants to play for our city".

Even if it weren't an official "sign and trade", it'd probably be close.

So - I personally wouldn't be too bothered with the 1 year left, because I'd fully expect he'd extend with the team.

I’m taking Gavin McKenna #1, then McDavid/Makar.

It's a year our so we'll have to see how he ends up looking next year (Bedard got a ton of hype too, and so far seems to not be coming close to that).

But mostly - he doesn't count. He's not an asset yet. #1 2026 pick doesn't exist. I cheated by allowing for the 2025 #1 pick - even though that one too is yet to be awarded, but I think 2026 is too far out.

Though I suppose - if you could somehow acquire the 2026 #1 pick as of today - I can see it being a top 5 valuable asset in the league. Still think he'd slot behind Makar/McDavid, so wouldn't be #1, but maybe top 5.

I'm seeing way too many people naming a 37 year old Crosby as one of the most valuable assets :huh:

I agree, it's weird. Not many people are more high on Crosby around here than I am, but he's nowhere near a top 5 asset in hockey today. He's too old, and close to retirement.

No, there isnt a gap. Hughes is at least as good, if not better.

The idea that Nick f****g Suzuki is a more valuable asset than Quinn Hughes is pure lunacy.

I'm a Habs fan and I love Suzuki, but I was surprised to see him here too. I agree, definitely behind Hughes (behind both of them in fact). I think Suzuki due to his age/ability/contract is definitely a top ~20 asset in the league or so, but definitely not top 5, nor even top 10.
 
I'd build from the defense out

Given how rare quality RD's are #1 has to be Makar


I'd say
#1. Makar, short term on the contract hurts quite a bit. But is a unicorn. Probably the best d-men and an Right shot.
#2. Dria. 2nd best player in the NHL and long term
#3. Hellebuyck. Best goalie. PO struggles are a bit of a concern, but has taken some pretty meh WPG teams to quality seasons.
#4. Has to be an ELC guy Thinking Hutson/Celebrini.
#5. QHughes, Mack, or McDavid. Contract control be damned

I assume you're saying this as - if you could pick 5 players to build a team, this is who you'd pick - and not necessarily that these are the top 5 most valuable assets in the league, correct? I suppose it makes sense to pick a goalie if you get 5 picks - but doesn't mean he's a top 5 asset.

Because in terms of being a valuable asset - I probably don't have Helle top 20. Not even sure I'd have him top 30-40:

1. He's going to be 32 going into next season. That's getting old for a goalie.

2. Playoffs. You're right, he's never showed much in the playoffs. I don't even believe that he "sucks" for playoffs - but if he had a few stellar runs where it felt as though he could steal you a cup, I'd have him higher, despite age.

3. Goalies are super inconsistent in the NHL lately, year over year. Top goalies go up and down a lot.

If we were to rank top valuable assets for goalies in the league - I might have him #1 (close if not). I just think there's a ton of forwards and defensemen I'd rank ahead of any goalie.
 
Quintin Hughes is a top 3-5 hockey player on Earth and counts only $7,850,000 against the cap until the end of the 2026-2027 season. Put that where you will on the list.
EK65 won the Norris with 101 points, a -26, and a team that finished 29th in the league. QH43 is closer to that than he is Cale Makar winning the Norris this year on a top 5 team in the league in the hardest division in hockey. QH43's cap hit is meaningless until they offset that defense with actual defense.
 
You're confused.
Numbers dont lie. When QH starts PKing or playing against the other teams top dogs, Ill give in. Its not even that I think he cant, its that the Canucks choose to put him in the best scenarios for offense only vs rolling through anything and letting his play dictate the pace.

He may be an amazing defender, but they dont let him show it. They wait for the bottom lines to put him out in offensive draws only more than his competition. Obviously rolling lines on the fly is situational, but there he avoids the MacKinnons and McDavids of the league as much as possible so he can be deployed against the weaker lines.

And not PKing gets him a solid 2-3 minutes more of ES time per game than Werenski, Makar, etc. Added up over a healthy season is an extra 6 games worth of ES time.
 
I don't think it's difficult to put together a list from a contender's perspective, and it isn't difficult to put together a list from a rebuilding club's perspective.

One list to rule them all is quite tricky. Edmonton and San Jose do not view the world of NHL assets the same way at all. One team is going for it, one is working towards something special in 5+ years' time.
 
No, there isnt a gap. Hughes is at least as good, if not better.

The idea that Nick f****g Suzuki is a more valuable asset than Quinn Hughes is pure lunacy.
Suzuki is signed until he's 30 for under 8M, he's a legit 1C and plays both ends of the ice

So Suzuki signed for 5 more years after this at 7.875

or

Hughes signed for 2 more years after this at 7.85

I'm not saying 1 guy is better than the other, but I genuinely don't know how someone can suggest that Suzuki's contract isn't better value. Having an extra 3 years at that cap hit is massive.

It's all about $/production, Suzukis caphit/production for 5 more years is insanely valuable.
 
Yes I do. Quinn is close offensively, but not in the same stratosphere defensively. There are multiple dmen I would take over Quinn for a complete game playing some actual defense. Quinn is more i nthe Bouchard tier for me being a hybrid PP QB, offensive FO only whenever possible guy.

True. A healthy season would goes a long way, but the AAV and PPG is there.
Tell me you don't watch a single minute of Quinn Hughes play without telling me you don't watch a single minute of Quinn Hughes play.
 
How many players are locks to give you 80-90 points a season. And sell the most merchandise of any player in the league?
How many more PPG seasons do you think Crosby has in him?

Also, Crosby might sell a bunch of jerseys the first year or so, but if you go with young talent like Makar/Q.Hughes/J.Hughes/Bedard/Celebrini or hell, even slightly older players like McDavid/Draisaitl/Kucherov/Mackinnon etc. that will sell jerseys AND strengthen the team for the next 5+ years, picking Crosby just seems like a very short-sighted option.
 
From a business POV, I think youre underestimating 8. I did a case study on Arod's Texas Rangers deal and our results were even if theyre the worst team in the league, it was a smart deal from a ROI POV for the team. Thats where McDavid in TOR or LA or NYC, Tkachuks together, or whoever in the right market can make the most sense.

Do you have a link to this? I believe you 100% but I'd love to read it.
 
Numbers dont lie. When QH starts PKing or playing against the other teams top dogs, Ill give in. Its not even that I think he cant, its that the Canucks choose to put him in the best scenarios for offense only vs rolling through anything and letting his play dictate the pace.

You were saying........................

and newsflash, werenski averages over a minute more 5v5 than Hughes, and yet hughes still beats both of handily scoring at Even strength

Screenshot 2025-03-28 at 11.39.40 AM.png
 
Last edited:
McDavid is the hardest to place here.

If you’re allowed to assume he re-signs, doesn’t matter the cap hit, you take him every single time.

But if you’re under the impression there’s a small change he leaves at UFA, do you risk a Bedard/Makar/Mack/Celebrini/Barkov pick?

Hard to say
 
Jack Hughes is top for me. Dude is a PPG/ 100 point scoring center making chump change for years and he’s still only 23.

When his contract runs out he’ll still only be 28 and depending on Jersey’s competitiveness could ultimately be the priciest TDL acquisition in hockey history.
 
You were saying........................

and newsflash, werenski averages over a minute more 5v5 than Hughes, and yet hughes still beats both of handily scoring at Even strength

View attachment 1001286
Even strength according to NST,

Makar 14 goals, 47 points
Werenski 14 goals, 45 points
Hughes 12 goals, 43 points

5 on 5

Werenski 12 goals, 39 points
Makar 11 goals, 37 points
Hughes 10 goals, 33 points
 
Even strength according to NST,

Makar 14 goals, 47 points
Werenski 14 goals, 45 points
Hughes 12 goals, 43 points

5 on 5

Werenski 12 goals, 39 points
Makar 11 goals, 37 points
Hughes 10 goals, 33 points

Only one defenseman is averaging over 2 esp per/60

Pretty clear who I’m talking about
 
Anyone who doesn't say McDavid needs to turn off their console and come back to real life.

Very true. I would easily value a rental McDavid who'll walk from my team to Edmonton instead of Mackinnon who'll stay for 6 more years. It's just obvious that a rental would be the most valuable asset in the league.
 
Very true. I would easily value a rental McDavid who'll walk from my team to Edmonton instead of Mackinnon who'll stay for 6 more years. It's just obvious that a rental would be the most valuable asset in the league.
How would MacKinnon being more valuable mean that McDavid isn’t top 5?
 
If you're talking about putting a top 5 player on a team then the only thing that really matters is ability, and to a certain extent age like for example disqualifying a Crosby. Like if you're given the choice between a top 5 player like Leon Draisaitl (using him because of the new contract) or a great value contract like Nick Suzuki, you take Draisaitl every time and worry about finding cap efficiency elsewhere.

Also guys like Celebrini or Bedard just because they're really young are a massive risk when you have proven elite top talent like McDavid/MacKinnon/Draisaitl/Makar/Hughes/etc available.

Yea I agree. It’s one thing if you have a top 5 player on a sweetheart deal like MacKinnon’s old contract, but ultimately the best of the best players like Draisaitl, McDavid, MacKinnon, etc are more valuable than a really good player, even if the value per dollar might be better for the really good player. Which is also why I think too much is made of contracts with only a couple years to UFA. The NHL isn’t the NBA and we just don’t see that much player movement among stars. Getting a top tier player even if he has only 2 years left isn’t the detriment it’s made out to be in this thread. Like, I’m worried about Quinn staying, but there’s zero chance I’d consider moving him for a Suzuki.
 
Suzuki is signed until he's 30 for under 8M, he's a legit 1C and plays both ends of the ice

So Suzuki signed for 5 more years after this at 7.875

or

Hughes signed for 2 more years after this at 7.85

I'm not saying 1 guy is better than the other, but I genuinely don't know how someone can suggest that Suzuki's contract isn't better value. Having an extra 3 years at that cap hit is massive.

It's all about $/production, Suzukis caphit/production for 5 more years is insanely valuable.

Because the much, much better player is a bigger boost for a team. I’d rather have Quinn at 12 million than Suzuki at 8, just as I’d rather have Draisaitl at 14.
 

Ad

Ad