- Sidney Crosby lands 12th on NHL Network’s Top 50 Players Right Now at 39 years old
- Auston Matthews checks in at 15, and Norris winner Zach Werenski tops the group at 11
- Read below for the full 20-11 rundown and what’s left of the countdown
Sidney Crosby is 39 years old and still the 12th best player in hockey, at least according to NHL Network.
NHL Network released numbers 20 through 11 of its Top 50 Players Right Now list on Monday. Crosby slotted in at 12. Auston Matthews came in three spots behind him at 15, and Zach Werenski topped the group at 11.
Crosby’s case is the one he has been making for two decades. He put up 74 points (29 goals, 45 assists) in 68 games last season, the 21st straight year he managed at least a point per game. He also led Pittsburgh with five points in its first playoff trip in four seasons.
Check out NHL Network’s breakdown on the Penguins captain:
Matthews at 15 comes off the quietest season of his career. His 27 goals and 53 points were both career lows after he missed 22 games with injury, though he did become the Maple Leafs’ all-time goal leader along the way.
Werenski is the highest-ranked defenseman revealed so far. The Blue Jackets blueliner won the Norris Trophy last season with 81 points (22 goals, 59 assists) in 75 games, second among all defensemen.
Connor Hellebuyck landed at 18 despite a rough year by his standards, going 23-23-11 with a .895 save percentage in 57 games. His standoff with the Jets is still unresolved.
Dallas got two players into this batch. Mikko Rantanen sits 19th after leading the Stars with 55 assists and 77 points in 64 games. Miro Heiskanen is 20th and was the only player in the league last season to average more than three minutes per game on both the power play and the penalty kill.
Here is the rest of the group:
- 13. Andrei Vasilevskiy, Lightning: Vezina winner, led the NHL with 39 wins
- 14. Kirill Kaprizov, Wild: 45 goals, first year of an eight-year, $136 million deal
- 16. Mitch Marner, Golden Knights: 80 points in year one with Vegas, plus the fastest hat trick in Cup Final history
- 17. Rasmus Dahlin, Sabres: 74 points, the most by a Buffalo defenseman since Phil Housley in 1989-90
One week earlier the countdown covered 30 through 21, headlined by Nick Suzuki at 21, Igor Shesterkin at 22 and Matthew Schaefer at 28.
Only NHL Network’s top 10 is left.
