McDavid, Makar, Celebrini among NHL Network's top players, 10-1

NHL Network is getting ready for this season by ranking the top 50 players in the League right now. Researchers, producers and on-air personalities compiled their list, and players 40-31 were revealed on Sunday in the sixth of a nine-part series. Here is the list:

10. Jack Eichel, F, Vegas Golden Knights

After a career-high 94 points in 2024-25, Eichel led Vegas with 90 points (27 goals, 63 assists) in 74 games last season. He had 28 power-play points, and his 21:12 of ice time per game led all Vegas forwards. The 29-year-old led the Golden Knights with 3:38 of power-play time per game and his average of 1:21 of short-handed time was second among forwards. He also helped the Golden Knights get to the Stanley Cup Final and was their second-leading scorer in the Stanley Cup Playoffs with 22 (two goals, 20 assists) in 22 games. The 2023 Stanley Cup winner is averaging more than a point per game in his career with 698 (266 goals, 432 assists) in 690 games. Eichel also helped the United States win gold at the Winter Olympics with six points (two goals, four assists) in six games.

9. Quinn Hughes, D, Minnesota Wild

Hughes was fifth among NHL defensemen last season with 76 points (seven goals, 69 assists) while averaging an NHL-best 27:44 in 74 games for the Vancouver Canucks and the Minnesota Wild. It was his fourth straight season of at least 75 points; the only other defensemen to accomplish that are Ray Bourque (1983-88, 1989-94), Paul Coffey (1981-86), Phil Housley (1989-93), Bobby Orr (1969-75) and Denis Potvin (1974-79). His trade from Vancouver to Minnesota on Dec. 12 changed the course of the team: the Wild went 29-15-7 after the trade and were fifth in scoring in the NHL at 3.55 goals per game. The 26-year-old was third among NHL defensemen after the trade with 53 points (five goals, 48 assists) in 48 games. He had 15 points (four goals, 11 assists) while averaging 30:57 in ice time in 11 playoff games to help the Wild reach the Western Conference Second Round for the first time since 2015. At the Winter Olympics, he helped the United States win the gold medal with a team-leading eight points (one goal, seven assists) in six games and was voted the tournament's best defenseman.

8. David Pastrnak, F, Boston Bruins

Pastrnak is 67 points from reaching 1,000 in the NHL. He had his fourth consecutive season of at least 100 points (29 goals, 71 assists in 77 games) in 2025-26, a point total that tied Martin Necas for seventh in the NHL. He played for Team Czechia at the Winter Olympics, where his five points (two goals, three assists) were second on the team, behind Necas' eight. Pastrnak's assist in a 4-2 win at the Red Wings on March 21 was his 500th in the League in his 820th game, making him the fourth-fastest player in Bruins history to reach the milestone, behind Orr (522 games), Phil Esposito (562) and Bourque (655). The 30-year-old right wing also became the sixth Czechia-born player in NHL history to achieve the mark.

7. Aleksander Barkov, C, Florida Panthers

Although Barkov missed the entire 2025-26 season because of injury, he has been one of the best all-around players in the game for a decade. The 31-year-old center scored at least 20 goals and 50 points for 10 straight seasons (2015-25) and has won at least 53 percent of his face-offs for eight straight. Barkov had 71 points (20 goals, 51 assists) in 67 games in 2024-25 to captain the Panthers to their second straight Stanley Cup title; he had 44 points (14 goals, 30 assists) in 47 playoff games during the Panthers' back-to-back runs. Florida's all-time points leader (782), he has also won the Selke Trophy (best defensive forward) three times including each of the past two seasons he has played.

6. Leon Draisaitl, C, Edmonton Oilers

Despite being limited to 65 games because of injury, Draisaitl had 97 points (35 goals, 62 assists) last season, his average of 1.49 points per game was fourth in the NHL and his 42 power-play points were tied for third. He has at least 41 goals and 100 points each of the previous four seasons and is a four-time 50-goal scorer. Since the 2015-16 season, his 1,044 points are second in the NHL behind teammate Connor McDavid (1,220) and his 432 goals are also second, behind Alex Ovechkin (454). His 177 power-play goals rank first. The 30-year-old center is also a playoff performer; his 37 postseason goals since 2022-23 are the most during that stretch.

5. Macklin Celebrini, C, San Jose Sharks

It was an amazing season for the now-20-year-old, who nearly doubled his point total from his rookie season (63) and was fourth in the NHL in points (115), tied for fourth in goals (45) and seventh in assists (70) playing all 82 games. Although the Sharks missed the playoffs for the seventh straight season, Celebrini helped them to 39 wins and 86 points after finishing with NHL lows of 20 wins and 52 points in 2024-25. The Sharks were 26-6-2 when Celebrini scored a goal and 37-18-5 when he had at least one point. He signed a five-year, $94 million contract July 29 to become the League's highest paid player per season ($18.8 million average annual value). Celebrini had 10 points (five goals, five assists) in six games for silver medal-winning Canada at the Olympics and was named to the Olympic All-Star team. At the 2026 IIHF World Championship, he had 14 points (six goals, eight assists) in 10 games where he was captain and named the tournament's best forward. Celebrini was also named the IIHF Male Player of the Year.

4. Cale Makar, D, Colorado Avalanche

Makar was third among NHL defensemen with 79 points (20 goals, 59 assists) in 75 games and had a plus-40 even-strength goal differential that was third among defensemen behind Avalanche teammates Sam Malinski (plus-44) and Josh Manson (plus-41). The 27-year-old finished second in voting for the Norris Trophy, the sixth straight season he's been a finalist, including wins in 2022 and 2025; he joined Orr (seven times) as the only players to be a Norris finalist at least six times in his first seven seasons. Makar also became the 11th defenseman in NHL history to score 20 goals in three straight seasons, the first to do it since Housley (six straight) and Al MacInnis in 1992. Makar had a secondary assist on March 28 against the Winnipeg Jets to become the 12th active defenseman with 500 points. It was his 467th game, the fourth-fewest in NHL history for a defenseman to reach 500 points, after Orr (396), Paul Coffey (422) and Potvin (465).

3. Nikita Kucherov, F, Tampa Bay Lightning

Kucherov enjoyed another season for the ages in 2025-26, when his 130 points were the second most of his NHL career behind 144 set in 2023-24 and his 44 goals tied his career best also set three seasons ago. His plus-43 rating and NHL-best points-per-game average of 1.71 earned him the Hart Trophy as League MVP for the second time (2019), with his margin of victory 10 voting points over runner-up McDavid. Kucherov had two assists in a 4-3 win against the Ducks on Oct. 25, 2025, to reach 1,000 NHL points, and his assist on Gage Goncalves' goal at 7:58 of the second period in a 4-2 win against the Maple Leafs on Feb. 25 made him the second-fastest player born outside of North America (855 games) to reach 700 in the NHL (Peter Stastny, 784). The 33-year-old right wing leads the NHL in assists (270), points (395), and power-play points (136) the past three seasons combined.

2. Nathan MacKinnon, C, Colorado Avalanche

The 31-year-old center had 127 points (53 goals, 74 assists) in 80 games last season and has had at least 111 points each of the past four. He's scored at least 30 goals in eight of the past nine seasons; he had 20 in 48 games of the 56-game 2020-21 season. He has 150 power-play points over the past four seasons, a stretch when he's an NHL-best plus-146. MacKinnon led the NHL last season at plus-57 and won the Rocket Richard Trophy as goals leader. The 2024 Hart Trophy and Ted Lindsay winner has been a top-five Hart finalist in six of the past seven seasons. His 1.30 points per game in the playoffs is fifth in NHL history among players with at least 100 games, trailing Wayne Gretzky (1.84), link-placeholder-1, McDavid (1.53) and Draisaitl (1.48).

1. Connor McDavid, C, Edmonton Oilers

McDavid led the League with 138 points (48 goals, 90 assists) last season and won the Ted Lindsay Award for the fifth time. Gretzky is the only other player to accomplish that feat. McDavid had points in 68 of the 82 games he played, including 43 multipoint games, and seven with at least four points. He had 46 points (19 goals, 27 assists) during a 20-game point streak from Dec. 4-Jan. 13. Since entering the NHL for the 2015-16 season, he leads all players in points (1,220), assists (811) and power-play points (418) and is fifth in goals (409). He has scored at least 100 points in nine of his 11 NHL seasons and has won the Art Ross Trophy six times, the Hart three times, the Rocket Richard once, and the Conn Smythe once. That was awarded to him after he led the playoffs with 42 points in 2024 -- the third highest ever single-season total -- despite the Oilers losing the Stanley Cup Final to the Panthers in seven games. The 29-year-old center also led the Olympics with 13 points (two goals, 11 assists) in six games and was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.