The Hockey News Annual Top 50 Players in the NHL for 2024-2025

[hurdemz]

At this point in their careers it is not even close between Kucherov and Matthews. That is just one name.

Dude i love the leafs too, but kuch just put up like a 144pt season.

 

[hamzarocks]

Hellebuyck has failed to put up .900 in the playoffs twice in 6 playoff runs. He's a career .911 playoff goalie, even after two disastrous playoffs in a row.

You're also talking up Matthews, primarily a goalscorer, who has scored 23 goals in 55 playoff games.

Have to be consistent.

Helleybuck has 3 bad playoffs with .904, .886 and .864

Career .910 goalie vs .917 for career

Matthews doesnt break the top 3 due to being a bad playoff performer for his level of player.

Hellybuck plays the less valuable position than Matthews and has lower competition for top goalies vs top centres in the league.

He may be fringe top 15, in the 13-18 range but Demko has no shot as top 30 player let alone top 15. Hes way to unproven

 

[Kevinsane]

Helleybuck has 3 bad playoffs with .904, .886 and .864

Career .910 goalie vs .917 for career

Matthews doesnt break the top 3 due to being a bad playoff performer for his level of player.

Hellybuck plays the less valuable position than Matthews and has lower competition for top goalies vs top centres in the league.

He may be fringe top 15, in the 13-18 range but Demko has no shot as top 30 player let alone top 15. Hes way to unproven

Was there a sale at the liquor store?
A two time Vezina winner “plays the less valuable position”? lol

 

[StoveTopStauffer]

Matthews close to Draisaitl? Playoff Draisaitl is in a whole other tier.

 

[hamzarocks]

Was there a sale at the liquor store?
A two time Vezina winner “plays the less valuable position”? lol

Goalie is probably the weakest or 2nd weakest position in the NHL now along with LW

The best players now, and in history are centers (Gretzky, Lemieux, Mcdavid, Crosby as Cs in top 8 all time) with only 1 goalie being that level in hasek

Helleybuck if he had been this level 2000s to 2015 period would be another story

Now thete are maybe 4-5 star goalies in the league who are consistently able to be a vezina candidate

 

[Ned Bouhalassa]

Bobby Orr was not a centre.

 

[The Shrike]

I mean yeah, on a list of top current NHL players a guy in the league is going to be higher than a retired player. Good point.

Yes, but in a thread where players evaluations are being determined by playoff scoring, a player who has scored 77 points in the playoffs in their entire career is obviously superior to one who has only scored 45.

 

[Lshap]

Goalie is probably the weakest or 2nd weakest position in the NHL now along with LW

The best players now, and in history are centers (Gretzky, Lemieux, Mcdavid, Crosby as Cs in top 8 all time) with only 1 goalie being that level in hasek

Helleybuck if he had been this level 2000s to 2015 period would be another story

Now thete are maybe 4-5 star goalies in the league who are consistently able to be a vezina candidate

If you're bemoaning the lack of star goalies today, I agree the overall level of goaltending is low. However, if you're saying goalies are historically less important, I disagree. It's true we usually rank skaters over goalies, but that's bias over actual impact. The eye loves centers because they're in motion and generate chances, versus a goalie who remains static and only reacts. The camera follows the skaters, so we remember them more.

But if we're measuring impact on a game, a goalie is at least as valuable as a C. Hasek, Roy, Brodeur tilted the outcome as much as any player. More recently, we've seen great goaltending drag mediocre teams to the SCF (Price, Lundqvist, Rinne). The reverse – a great C dragging mediocre goaltending to the SCF – also happens (Colorado, Chicago in 2010), but I don't remember it happening as often.

Guys like Hellebuyck, Shesterkin, Bobrovsky, Demko (if healthy), and two or three others are the most valuable players on their teams, IMO.

 

[Dingo]

Yeah just like Matthews in the playoffs

he ignores the whole ice in the playoffs.

 

[Nicko999]

Kucherov at 6th and Makar at 4th tells me all I need to know about this list.

 

[Mrb1p]

Goalie is probably the weakest or 2nd weakest position in the NHL now along with LW

The best players now, and in history are centers (Gretzky, Lemieux, Mcdavid, Crosby as Cs in top 8 all time) with only 1 goalie being that level in hasek

Helleybuck if he had been this level 2000s to 2015 period would be another story

Now thete are maybe 4-5 star goalies in the league who are consistently able to be a vezina candidate

Roy, Dryden and Price exist.

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

At this point in their careers it is not even close between Kucherov and Matthews. That is just one name.

He put up 140 points literally last year.


You're absolutely embarrassing yourself at thus point

 

[CanadienShark]

He put up 140 points literally last year.


You're absolutely embarrassing yourself at thus point

@HockeyVirus is consistent at least. Every single thread.

 

[Nineteen67]

At this point in their careers it is not even close between Kucherov and Matthews. That is just one name.

You’re selling Matthews a little short. He’s a really good player and deserves to be in that group.

 

[Weezeric]

Goalie is probably the weakest or 2nd weakest position in the NHL now along with LW

The best players now, and in history are centers (Gretzky, Lemieux, Mcdavid, Crosby as Cs in top 8 all time) with only 1 goalie being that level in hasek

Helleybuck if he had been this level 2000s to 2015 period would be another story

Now thete are maybe 4-5 star goalies in the league who are consistently able to be a vezina candidate

Can you tell your fellow leafs fans that goaltending isn’t important? It’s all they mention when it comes to the leafs failure in the playoffs.

 

[Nineteen67]

Panarin is a great player but he was useless in the playoffs against Florida. Hard to win with him.

 

[Roo]

Not a great list

 

[hamzarocks]

Roy, Dryden and Price exist.

Roy is top 20 but a lof C, D, W are higher ranked then him

Dryden didnt play enough and retired very early

Is Price itop 100 all time?

Can you tell your fellow leafs fans that goaltending isn’t important? It’s all they mention when it comes to the leafs failure in the playoffs.

Goaltending not being as important as a center is not the same as goal tending being not important

Look at most people top 5, 10, 15, 25 etcs, lists, not many goalies on their besides a few exceptional ones

 

[FerrisRox]

Dryden didnt play enough and retired very early

Are you serious?

Ken Dryden played eight seasons and won six Stanley Cups. He won five Vezina's. The guy won the Conn Smythe trophy *before* he won the Calder.

The man is a legend. You can't seriously not have him on the list.

 

[HolyHagelin]

B

I meant that he didn't play half the games dude. And was pulled by the doctors mid game in another one. Still had the primary assist on the only goal they scored in game 7 too playing injured

BEtTer ThaN Ov!

 

[hamzarocks]

Are you serious?

Ken Dryden played eight seasons and won six Stanley Cups. He won five Vezina's. The guy won the Conn Smythe trophy *before* he won the Calder.

The man is a legend. You can't seriously not have him on the list.

He is a hhof and top 10 goalie ever but hes not top 10-15 player all time. No one ranks him ahead of Hasek, Roy, & Brodeur for goalies all time si hes at best 4th there

The only goalie at that level was Hasek

 

[Golden_Jet]

Are you serious?

Ken Dryden played eight seasons and won six Stanley Cups. He won five Vezina's. The guy won the Conn Smythe trophy *before* he won the Calder.

The man is a legend. You can't seriously not have him on the list.

I don’t think anyone puts Dryden in a top 20 all time list of players.

 

[Heldig]

Matthews scores the most goals in 30+ years while being a Selke finalist and is 7th? More click bait hot take crap meant to get people talking

Disagree. I am not sure I would trade any of the 6 above him 1 for 1. It is not Leaf's hate.

 

[D1az]

I don't really have any issues with the list.
I'm just surprised at how emotional some people get by these at times.
A little like someone deliberately crashed their car.

 

[jfhabs]

Give me Pasternak and Crosby over Matthews and Panarin if I'm trying to win a round of playoffs.