NHL Top Players: Nos. 50-41

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 50-41 were revealed on Sunday in the fifth of a nine-part series. Here is the list:

50. Alex Ovechkin, F, Washington Capitals

Ovechkin scored his 895th goal to pass Wayne Gretzky for the all-time record April 6. His record now stands at 897 after he finished tied for third in the NHL last season with 44 goals. It was the 14th time the left wing, who will turn 40 on Sept. 17, scored at least 40, the most all-time. He scored his 20th goal on Jan. 11, making him the second player ever with 20 straight 20-goal seasons (Gordie Howe, 22). Ovechkin's goal that tied Gretzky at 894 on April 4 was his 136th game-winning goal, passing Jaromir Jagr for most all-time. He had 73 points last season to give him 1,623, 11th all-time, and is 18 points from passing Joe Sakic (1,641) for 10th. Ovechkin is nine games from becoming the 23rd player to play 1,500.

49. Jason Robertson, F, Dallas Stars

Robertson led the Stars with 35 goals in 2024-25 and was second with 45 assists and 80 points while playing all 82 games for the third straight season. It's the third time in four seasons he has scored at least 35 goals, and his 151 goals during that span are 14th in the NHL. The 26-year-old left wing also is the youngest of the 12 NHL players with three straight 80-point seasons.

48. Clayton Keller, F, Utah Mammoth

Keller, who was named the Mammoth's first captain in its inaugural season in Utah, set an NHL career best with 90 points, and led the Mammoth with 30 goals, 60 assists and 218 shots on goal last season. The 27-year-old, who found chemistry at left wing alongside center Logan Cooley on Utah's top line, reached 500 points in the NHL on April 5. He is one of 17 players to score at least 30 goals each of the past three seasons.

47. Brady Tkachuk, F, Ottawa Senators

Tkachuk led the Senators with 29 goals in 72 games last season and was fourth with 55 points. He also led the Senators with an NHL career-high 14 power-play goals. His play was a big reason the Senators reached the playoffs for the first time in eight seasons, and he led Ottawa with four goals and seven points in its six-game loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Eastern Conference First Round. The left wing, who will turn 26 on Sept. 16, has scored at least 20 goals six times in his seven NHL seasons, with three seasons of at least 30. Tkachuk tied for the United States lead with three goals in four games at the 4 Nations Face-Off and was one of the first six players named to the U.S. preliminary roster for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026.

46. Brandon Hagel, F, Tampa Bay Lightning

Hagel set career NHL bests last season in goals (35), assists (55), points (90), plus/minus (plus-33) and shots on goal (228). The 27-year-old left wing also set an NHL record for most goals in a season without scoring a power-play goal, and his 32 even-strength goals were the most in a season for a Lightning player since Steven Stamkos set the Tampa Bay record with 48 in 2011-12. Hagel also has been a reliable penalty-killer, ranking among the top four in short-handed ice time per game among Tampa Bay forwards each of the past three seasons as the Lightning have posted the sixth-best penalty-kill percentage during that span (81.5 percent).

45. Jesper Bratt, F, New Jersey Devils

Bratt led the Devils with an NHL career-high 88 points in 81 games last season. His 67 assists set a Devils single-season record, surpassing the 60 Scott Stevens had in 1993-94, and he scored 21 goals, his fourth straight with at least 20. The 27-year-old left wing had 83 points (27 goals, 56 assists) in 82 games in 2023-24; he's one of five players in the NHL with at least 20 goals, 50 assists, 80 points and 80 games played each of the past two seasons, along with Sidney Crosby, Artemi Panarin, David Pastrnak and Mikko Rantanen.

44. Jake Guentzel, F, Tampa Bay Lightning

In the first year of a seven-year, $63 million contract he signed on July 1, 2024, Guentzel led the NHL with 17 power-play goals, and tied for seventh in the League with 41 goals, each personal NHL bests. He also had 80 points in 80 games, the second-highest total of his career (84 points, 2021-22). The 30-year-old, who found a spot at left wing on a line with Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov, has scored at least 30 goals four straight seasons; his 147 goals during that span are 16th among all players. He led the Lightning during the playoffs with six points (three goals, three assists) in a five-game loss to the Florida Panthers in the first round.

43. Jake Sanderson, D, Ottawa Senators

The 23-year-old defenseman had career highs in goals (11), assists (46) and points (57) playing in 80 games last season. He also led Ottawa in ice time per game (24:27) and blocked shots (163). Sanderson was also one of only three players in the NHL with at least 3:00 of power-play ice time per game (3:26) and 2:30 of short-handed time per game (2:36), along with Mikhail Sergachev of the Utah Mammoth and John Carlson of the Washington Capitals. His four game-winning goals tied for third among NHL defensemen.

42. Tim Stutzle, C, Ottawa Senators

The No. 3 pick in the 2020 NHL Draft made his Stanley Cup Playoff debut with five points (two goals, three assists) in a six-game loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round. Stutzle's 55 assists led the Senators in the regular season, which included an 11-game assist streak from Jan. 26 to March 3 that broke the team record of 10 shared by Mark Stone (Feb. 17 to March 8, 2018) and Sergei Gonchar (March 3-23, 2013). The 23-year-old center had 79 points in 82 games in 2024-25 and has three straight seasons with at least 50 assists. Stutzle was named as one of the first six players to Team Germany's preliminary roster for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026.

41. Dylan Larkin, C, Detroit Red Wings

The Red Wings captain is the ninth player in team history with four consecutive 30-goal seasons and the first to do it since Henrik Zetterberg from 2005-09. Last season, Larkin played all 82 games for the second time, finishing with 40 assists and 70 points, and had a goal and an assist in four games at the 4 Nations Face-Off to help the United States reach the championship game, a 3-2 overtime loss to Canada. The 29-year-old center has also had at least 13 power-play goals in each of the past three seasons.