Super 16: McDavid, Makar lead power rankings of top playoff performers

The first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs was so epic with offense, overtime games, Game 7s and comeback wins that it required one last look back with a special NHL.com Super 16 power rankings.

Following the format of the Super 16 in the regular season, Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid received the most voting points for the top players in the best-of-7 first round, regardless if their team advanced.
McDavid was ranked first by 10 of the 14 staff members. Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar was ranked first by two, and Dallas Stars goalie Jake Oettinger and Florida Panthers forward Carter Verhaeghe each got one vote for No. 1.
Makar, Verhaeghe and Oettinger finished second, third and fourth, respectively.
A total of 37 players were ranked at least one time by one of the staff members.
To create the NHL.com power rankings, each of the 14 participating staff members puts together his or her version of what they think the Super 16 should look like. Those are submitted and a point total assigned to each.
The player selected first is given 16 points, second gets 15, third 14, fourth 13 and so on down to No. 16, who gets one point.
Here is the Super 16 for players in the first round:

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1. Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers

Total points: 216
The Oilers captain led all playoff scorers with 14 points (four goals, 10 assists) in seven games against the Los Angeles Kings. McDavid factored in each goal in a 2-0 win in Game 7, scoring one and getting an assist on defenseman Cody Ceci's goal. He also had a goal and two assists in a 4-2 win in Game 6.

2. Cale Makar, Colorado Avalanche

Total points: 200
Makar led the Avalanche with 10 points (three goals, seven assists), had 20 shots on goal and averaged 25:26 of ice time in a four-game sweep of the Nashville Predators. He had 12 shots on goal and another 11 attempts that were blocked in Game 2.

3. Carter Verhaeghe, Florida Panthers

Total points: 159
Verhaeghe led Florida with 12 points (six goals, six assists) in a six-game win against the Washington Capitals, scoring the game-winning goal in Games 4, 5 and 6. He had nine points (five goals, four assists) in the final three games, scoring in overtime in Games 4 and 6 to help the Panthers rebound after falling behind 2-1 in the series.

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4. Jake Oettinger, Dallas Stars

Total points: 152
Oettinger faced the most shots (285) and had the most saves (272) of any goalie in the first round. He faced an average of 40.7 shots per game in seven games against the Calgary Flames and finished with a 1.81 goals-against average and .954 save percentage. The 23-year-old goalie made 64 saves in Game 7, a 3-2 overtime loss.

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5. Jacob Markstrom, Calgary Flames

Total points: 120
Markstrom had to be on his game in the first round considering what Oettinger was doing, and he was. He led all goalies with a 1.53 GAA and was second behind Oettinger with a .943 save percentage (minimum four games). He allowed 11 goals on 181 shots and gave up two goals or fewer in five of the seven games, including Game 7.

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6. Mika Zibanejad, New York Rangers

Total points: 97
The center had a quiet first five games against the Pittsburgh Penguins, but made up for it with seven points (three goals, four assists) between Games 6 and 7 to help the Rangers rally to win the series after falling behind 3-1. Zibanejad had four points (two goals, two assists) in Game 6 and three points (one goal, two assists), including the game-tying goal with 5:45 remaining in the third period, in Game 7.

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7. Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning

Total points: 96
Hedman's consistency was a big reason why the Lightning defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs in seven games. He had seven points (two goals, five assists) and led all defensemen with 27 shots on goal, playing 25:42 per game.

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8. Jake Guentzel, Pittsburgh Penguins

Total points: 95
The forward led the NHL with eight goals, scoring in every game against the Rangers except Game 6, and scored two goals each in Games 1 and 5. He had 39 shots on goal, tied for most in the first round with Boston Bruins forward David Pastrnak. Guentzel played 22:28 per game, fifth among forwards.

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9. Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins

Total points: 94
Crosby's importance was felt when he was on the ice and when he was unavailable because of an upper-body injury. He was the Penguins' best player on the ice with 10 points (two goals, eight assists), a driving force behind Guentzel's eight goals. But when Crosby left in the second period of Game 5, the Rangers responded by scoring three goals in a span of 2:42 to take a 3-2 lead. Crosby didn't play Game 6, a 5-3 Pittsburgh loss. He had an assist in 19:54 of ice time in a 4-3 overtime loss in Game 7.

10. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche

Total points: 71
The center was a big reason why the Avalanche made quick work of the Predators. MacKinnon scored five goals, at least one in every game, and had an assist. He had two goals and an assist in Colorado's 7-2 win in Game 1.

11. Brad Marchand, Boston Bruins

Total points: 70
Marchand's 11 points (four goals, seven assists) was tied with Zibanejad for third among first-round scorers. He had 10 points (four goals, six assists) in three wins (Games 3, 4 and 6). He was on the ice for each of Boston's two goals in Game 7 and on the bench when Carolina scored its three goals. He was plus-6 in the last six games after he was minus-3 in Game 1.

12. Ryan O'Reilly, St. Louis Blues

Total points: 69
O'Reilly had eight points (five goals, three assists) in a six-game victory against the Minnesota Wild. The center scored in every game except Game 2, led Blues forwards with 20:37 of ice time per game and won 57.1 percent of his face-offs, 72.4 percent on the penalty kill (21 of 29). St. Louis won 59.5 percent of its face-offs on the penalty kill, most among playoff teams.

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13. Kirill Kaprizov, Minnesota Wild

Total points: 58
The forward scored seven goals in six games against the Blues. He had a hat trick in Game 2, a 6-2 win. He also scored each of the Wild's goals in Game 5, a 5-2 loss. He had 27 shots on goal in the series.

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14. Evander Kane, Edmonton Oilers

Total points: 56
The forward provided the secondary scoring the Oilers need behind McDavid and forward Leon Draisaitl with nine points, including seven goals, against the Kings. He scored two goals in a 6-0 win in Game 2 and had a hat trick in an 8-2 win in Game 3. Kane also scored two goals in Game 6, including an empty-net goal to seal a 4-2 victory.

15. Jaccob Slavin, Carolina Hurricanes

Total points: 54
The defenseman had eight points (two goals, six assists) in the first round to tie for the Hurricanes lead in points with fellow defenseman Tony DeAngelo. He had two assists, four takeaways and two blocks in 24:03 of ice time in Game 7 against the Bruins and was plus-10 while playing 23:02 per game. His only penalty was a delay of game for sending the puck over the glass in Game 6.

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16. Adam Fox, New York Rangers

Total points: 53
Fox tied Makar for the most points among defensemen with 10 (three goals, seven assists) in seven games. He had at least one point in all seven, becoming the first Rangers skater and fourth defenseman in NHL history to do that, joining Miro Heiskanen (Dallas, 2020, second round), Larry Murphy (Pittsburgh, 1995, conference quarterfinals) and Paul Reinhart (Calgary, 1984, Smythe Division Final). He had four assists in Game 6, a 5-3 win.

Others receiving points:Johnny Gaudreau, Calgary Flames, 51; Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs, 33; Jordan Binnington, St. Louis Blues, 31; Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers, 26; Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay Lightning, 19; David Perron, St. Louis Blues, 13; Mike Smith, Edmonton Oilers, 12; Antti Raanta, Carolina Hurricanes, 9; Rasmus Andersson, Calgary Flames, 9; Igor Shesterkin, New York Rangers, 8; Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay Lightning, 7; Tony DeAngelo, Carolina Hurricanes, 5; Claude Giroux, Florida Panthers, 4; T.J. Oshie, Washington Capitals, 4; Aaron Ekblad, Florida Panthers, 4; Jonathan Quick, Los Angeles Kings, 4; Gabriel Landeskog, Colorado Avalanche, 4; Artemi Panarin, New York Rangers, 3; Morgan Rielly, Toronto Maple Leafs, 2; Vladimir Tarasenko, St. Louis Blues, 2; Aleksander Barkov, Florida Panthers, 2

HERE'S HOW WE RANKED 'EM

AMALIE BENJAMIN
1. Carter Verhaeghe; 2. Sidney Crosby; 3. Connor McDavid; 4. Cale Makar; 5. Jacob Markstrom; 6. Victor Hedman; 7. Jaccob Slavin; 8. Brad Marchand; 9. Adam Fox; 10. Jake Guentzel; 11. Jake Oettinger; 12. Ryan O'Reilly; 13. Claude Giroux; 14. Kirill Kaprizov; 15. Mika Zibanejad; 16. Jordan Binnington
TIM CAMPBELL
1. Jake Oettinger; 2. Jacob Markstrom; 3. Connor McDavid; 4. Cale Makar; 5. Evander Kane; 6. Ryan O'Reilly; 7. Johnny Gaudreau; 8. Rasmus Andersson; 9. Victor Hedman; 10. Andrei Vasilevskiy; 11. Carter Verhaeghe; 12. Jake Guentzel; 13. David Perron; 14. Mike Smith; 15. Sidney Crosby; 16. Mika Zibanejad
BRIAN COMPTON
1. Cale Makar; 2. Connor McDavid; 3. Victor Hedman; 4. Carter Verhaeghe; 5. Sidney Crosby; 6. Jake Oettinger; 7. Brad Marchand; 8. Evander Kane; 9. Kirill Kaprizov; 10. Jordan Binnington; 11. Jake Guentzel; 12. Mika Zibanejad; 13. Leon Draisaitl; 14. David Perron; 15. Jaccob Slavin; 16. Adam Fox
NICHOLAS J. COTSONIKA
1. Cale Makar; 2. Connor McDavid; 3. Victor Hedman; 4. Carter Verhaeghe; 5. Jake Oettinger; 6. Jacob Markstrom; 7. Sidney Crosby; 8. Jake Guentzel; 9. Evander Kane; 10. Mika Zibanejad; 11. Brad Marchand; 12. Nathan MacKinnon; 13. Gabriel Landeskog; 14. Ryan O'Reilly; 15. Kirill Kaprizov; 16. Adam Fox
TOM GULITTI
1. Connor McDavid; 2. Cale Makar; 3. Carter Verhaeghe; 4. Jake Oettinger; 5. Jakob Markstrom; 6. Victor Hedman; 7. Ryan O'Reilly; 8. Sidney Crosby; 9. Mika Zibanejad; 10. Johnny Gaudreau; 11. Jake Guentzel; 12. Jaccob Slavin; 13. Evander Kane; 14. Kirill Kaprizov; 15. Jordan Binnington; 16. Mike Smith.
ADAM KIMELMAN
1. Connor McDavid; 2. Cale Makar; 3. Jake Oettinger; 4. Sidney Crosby; 5. Mika Zibanejad; 6. Carter Verhaeghe; 7. Nathan MacKinnon; 8. Evander Kane; 9. Jacob Markstrom; 10. Johnny Gaudreau; 11. Jaccob Slavin; 12. Brad Marchand; 13. Jake Guentzel; 14. Antti Raanta; 15. Kirill Kaprizov; 16. Ryan O'Reilly
ROBERT LAFLAMME
1. Connor McDavid; 2. Jake Oettinger; 3. Cale Makar; 4. Carter Verhaeghe; 5. Jacob Markstrom; 6. Jake Guentzel; 7. Auston Matthews; 8. Kirill Kaprizov; 9. Ryan O'Reilly; 10. Sidney Crosby; 11. Mika Zibanejad; 12. Adam Fox; 13. Johnny Gaudreau; 14. Brad Marchand; 15. Jaccob Slavin; 16. Evander Kane
MIKE G. MORREALE
1. Connor McDavid; 2. Cale Makar; 3. Ryan O'Reilly; 4. Kirill Kaprizov; 5. Nathan MacKinnon; 6. Jaccob Slavin; 7. Jordan Binnington; 8. Mika Zibanejad; 9. Adam Fox; 10. Jake Guentzel; 11. Auston Matthews; 12. Victor Hedman; 13. Brad Marchand; 14. Jacob Markstrom; 15. Carter Verhaeghe; 16. Jake Oettinger
TRACEY MYERS
1. Connor McDavid; 2. Carter Verhaeghe; 3. Jacob Markstrom; 4. Jake Oettinger; 5. Mika Zibanejad; 6. Cale Makar; 7. Jordan Binnington; 8. Brad Marchand; 9. Mike Smith; 10. Adam Fox; 11. Jake Guentzel; 12. Leon Draisaitl; 13. Antti Raanta; 14. David Perron; 15. Auston Matthews; 16. Sidney Crosby
SHAWN P. ROARKE
1. Connor McDavid; 2. Cale Makar; 3. Victor Hedman; 4. Nathan MacKinnon; 5. Nikita Kucherov; 6. Jake Oettinger; 7. Carter Verhaeghe; 8. Ryan O'Reilly; 9. Leon Draisaitl; 10. Johnny Gaudreau; 11. Jaccob Slavin; 12. Adam Fox; 13. Aaron Ekblad; 14. Mika Zibanejad; 15. Aleksander Barkov; 16. Jacob Markstrom
DAN ROSEN
1. Connor McDavid; 2. Jake Oettinger; 3. Cale Makar; 4. Victor Hedman; 5. Carter Verhaeghe; 6. Sidney Crosby; 7. Mika Zibanejad; 8. Jaccob Slavin; 9. Ryan O'Reilly; 10. Nathan MacKinnon; 11. Kirill Kaprizov; 12. Jake Guentzel; 13. Brad Marchand; 14. Jacob Markstrom; 15. David Perron; 16. Evander Kane
DAVID SATRIANO
1. Connor McDavid; 2. Cale Makar; 3. Nathan MacKinnon; 4. Johnny Gaudreau; 5. Carter Verhaeghe; 6. Jake Guentzel; 7. Jacob Markstrom; 8. Auston Matthews; 9. Igor Shesterkin; 10. Nikita Kucherov; 11. Jake Oettinger; 12. Kirill Kaprizov; 13. Leon Draisaitl; 14. Jaccob Slavin; 15. Vladimir Tarasenko; 16. Jordan Binnington
PAUL STRIZHEVSKY
1. Connor McDavid; 2. Cale Makar; 3. Sidney Crosby; 4. Brad Marchand; 5. Mika Zibanejad; 6. Jacob Markstrom; 7. Adam Fox; 8. Jake Guentzel; 9. Carter Verhaeghe; 10. Kirill Kaprizov; 11. Auston Matthews; 12. Leon Draisaitl; 13. Jake Oettinger; 14. Artemi Panarin; 15. Antti Raanta; 16. David Perron
MIKE ZEISBERGER
1. Connor McDavid; 2. Jake Oettinger; 3. Carter Verhaeghe; 4. Cale Makar; 5. Evander Kane; 6. Jacob Markstrom; 7. Mika Zibanejad; 8. Jake Guentzel; 9. Adam Fox; 10. Brad Marchand; 11. Victor Hedman; 12. Tony DeAngelo; 13. Jonathan Quick; 14. Johnny Gaudreau; 15. Morgan Rielly; 16. Nathan MacKinnon
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