Ranking each NHL team’s No. 1 center

You’ve heard the old saying: Goaltending is 50% of hockey, unless you don’t have it ... then it’s 100%. The same can be said about centermen. If you don’t have an elite pivot to dictate play, you’re likely to be chasing the puck all night. We’ve taken a look around the league at each team’s top center and ranked them 1–30, based on the success we predict for them in 2016–17. By Allan Muir

Author:
SI Staff
Publish date:
Aug 15, 2016

Ranking each NHL team’s No. 1 center

30. Martin Hanzal, Coyotes: He's coming off a season in which he set new career highs in assists (28) and points (41), two totals that show how ill-suited Hanzal is for the top job. Fortunately for the Yotes, he won't be there long. Top prospect Dylan Strome is being groomed for the job and Hanzal, a free agent at the end of the 2016-17 season, is likely to be dealt by the deadline.

29. Victor Rask, Hurricanes: Another player who is a No. 1 in name only. Rask, second on the team last season with 21 goals and 48 points, is better suited for a supporting role, but until GM Ron Francis trades some of his surplus defenders for an elite pivot, Rask is the best option they've got.

28. Mikko Koivu, Wild: The 34-year-old vet is coming to the end of the line, but even at his best he was never a true, top-flight center. His defensive game, always his strong suit, is waning—that –9 penalty differential hints at how often he was caught out of position.

27. Brandon Dubinsky, Blue Jackets: The grim reality of penciling Dubinsky's name into the lineup as the starting center explains why the Jackets were so desperate to reach for Pierre-Luc Dubois with the third pick in the draft last June. Dubinsky scored just 48 points last season, ranking 46th among all centers.

26. Kyle Turris, Senators: He got off to a nice start last season, scoring 22 points in his first 25 games, but injuries and inconsistency scuttled his ranking. He scored just two goals during his final 35 games and just two assists in his final 21. We think he can be better, but he has to show us something this season.

25. Nazem Kadri, Maple Leafs: Kadri finished last season with just 45 points, the fewest by a Leafs leading scorer since 1957. That's not all on him—he was saddled with Michael Grabner and Leo Komarov most of the season—but he's better suited for the chorus line than a starring role. Fortunately for the Leafs, Auston Matthews is on the way.

24. Derek Stepan, Rangers: With Derick Brassard off to Ottawa, Stepan will get the chance to go from a 1A to the top job. He's coming off a career-high 22 goals, but it's hard to get worked up about the potential of a player who has yet to top 60 points in a season and whose career face-off percentage is below 45%.

23. Henrik Zetterberg, Red Wings: He's had a great career, but Zetterberg is coming to the end of the line. His 13 goals were a career-low for a full season and his –15 was a career-worst—the second straight season the long-time defensive stalwart finished as a minus player. Ideally, Dylan Larkin takes over in the middle, allowing Zetterberg to slide to the wing, but until that happens, the Wings are at a real disadvantage.

22. Ryan O'Reilly, Sabres: There's lots to love about O'Reilly's game. He plays a ton of minutes in every situation and he took 1,790 face-offs, good for fourth in the league. But his offensive game isn't ideally suited for the No. 1 job, as evidenced by his 24-game goalless slump. He'll be a dynamite No. 2 when Jack Eichel graduates to the No. 1 slot.

21. Alex Galchenyuk, Canadiens: He's still learning the position, but his upside is off the charts. Galchenyuk is a dynamic offensive force, scoring 30 goals and breathing new life into his linemates. But he's a mess in the face-off circle and still has to figure out how to play without the puck.

20. Adam Henrique, Devils: He scored a career-high 30 goals last season, tied for ninth among all pivots, and played a solid two-way game, but he still struggles in the circles. Henrique won just 44.7% of his draws, putting his team at a possession disadvantage too often.

19. Paul Stastny, Blues: He’s certainly being paid like a No. 1, but Stastny isn’t a classic fit for the role. He plays an excellent two-way game but is inconsistent as he moves up and down the lineup. He’s not an elite scorer but can spark the offense with his playmaking. If anyone was a better fit for the role in St. Louis, Stastny would be more comfortable as a support player, but he’ll do whatever’s asked of him.

18. Henrik Sedin, Canucks: Age catches up to everyone. Hank is coming off a tough year, both in terms of production (just 11 goals and 55 points) and possession, and while he could rebound slightly in 2016–17, he’s simply not the elite player he was just a few years ago.

17. Ryan Johansen, Predators: He did a good job adjusting to a new system after his midseason trade to the Preds, and the potential is clearly there for Johansen to be a solid, if not quite elite, No. 1. But there’s still a lack of intensity in his game that can be frustrating. If he was racking up points like Jumbo Joe, you might overlook it, but since he’s not, Johansen leaves you wanting more.

16. Matt Duchene, Avalanche: He got off to a terrible start last season but finished strong, scoring 30 goals for the first time in his career and being named as the Avalanche’s lone All-Star representative. Duchene showed the ability at times to take over a game with his speed and creativity. It’ll be interesting to see if he can do that more often now that he’s free of Patrick Roy’s system.

15. Sean Monahan, Flames: It’s not easy being part of a two-man offense, but Monahan rises to the occasion. He scored 27 goals and 63 points last season and showed improvement in almost every aspect of play. He may never be an elite No. 1, but he’s fast developing into a quality two-way center.

14. Claude Giroux, Flyers: We want to believe he can be better than this, but there’s reason for concern. Although he still led his team in scoring with 67 points, the fancystats (possession and zone entries in particular) show a player in decline. Giroux simply doesn’t drive the play like he used to, leaving nothing dominant about his game. He could still bounce back, but it feels like he’s sliding toward a supporting role.

13. Mark Scheifele, Jets: When Bryan Little was sidelined with a neck injury on Feb. 18, Scheifele stepped into the No. 1 spot and never looked back. With his ice time bumped from 17 minutes per game to 20-plus over the final 26 games, he scored a remarkable 17 goals and 34 points (1.30 points per game). He’ll have a hard time sustaining that pace, but he looks like he’s ready for the job full time.

12. Ryan Getzlaf, Ducks: Even at 31, Getzlaf can still put up the numbers. He led Anaheim in points (63), assists (50) and plus/minus (+14), and finished second in power-play goals (6) and points (22) last season. And when the Ducks went on a season-defining 12–1–1 run in February, the captain led the way, scoring 20 points. He can still take charge of a game at will.

11. Aleksander Barkov, Panthers: Barkov set personal bests last season in goals (28), assists (31) and points (59) to help lead the Cats to a surprising division title. If he can improve his possession numbers and his success rate in the circle, he could take that next step in 2016–17.

10. Joe Thornton, Sharks: It’s unfair to expect Thornton to put up another season like 2015–16: 63 assists, tops among centers, and 82 points, second only to Crosby ... but can we really rule it out? At 36, Jumbo played some of the best two-way hockey of his career, keying San Jose’s run to the Cup Final. His cerebral style seems to defy age, setting him up for another monster season.

9. Nicklas Backstrom, Capitals: He might be higher on this list if he didn’t platoon the No. 1 job with the brilliant Evgeni Kuznetsov. Backstrom is one of the game’s elite playmakers, a key contributor to Alex Ovechkin’s seventh 50-goal season and the main reason Washington’s power play was the league’s most lethal last season. He’s also marvelously consistent, only once going more than two games without a point.

8. Steven Stamkos, Lightning: Playing a 1A role to Tyler Johnson’s 1B, Stamkos remains a dangerous attacker—his 36 goals tied him with Crosby for most by a regular center—but he’s not quite the game-breaker he was before breaking his leg a couple years back. Still, he’s a player whose presence on the ice signals the potential for magic at hand.

7. Connor McDavid, Oilers: Too high on the list? If anything, McDavid is too low. The teenage phenom was brilliant in his injury-abbreviated rookie campaign, posting the third-highest points-per-game average (1.07) in the league, trailing only Patrick Kane and Jamie Benn. Healthy, and with a deeper supporting cast in Edmonton, McDavid could challenge for the scoring title ... and maybe even power the Oilers into the playoffs.

6. Tyler Seguin, Stars: One of just five centers last year to average at least a point per game, Seguin is firmly established as one of the game’s most explosive offensive weapons. He’s a threat to win the scoring title—if he can avoid his annual late-season injury—and should continue to improve away from the puck. A run at the Hart Trophy isn’t out of the question.

5. Patrice Bergeron, Bruins: A player’s player, Bergeron simply does everything the right way. He dominates in the circle, is a beast in his own end and drives possession like few can. He may be in tough to top his career-high 32 goals in 2016–17, but he’s sure to wind up in the mix for the Selke as the league’s best all-around forward.

4. John Tavares, Islanders: With so many lineup changes, this feels like a transitional year for the Isles ... and that means the pressure is on Tavares to lead the way. At 25, he’s in his prime, and should enter this season with a determination to avoid the dry spells that plagued him last year. An Art Ross win is within his reach.

3. Jonathan Toews, Blackhawks: Like Anze Kopitar, Toews is the gold standard by which all other centers are measured. He’s effective on the attack (look for an improvement on last year’s 28–30–58 totals) but it’s everything else he does that defines his effectiveness. Toews fuels the Hawks with his work in the circle (a league-best 58.6% faceoff percentage) and his relentless effort without the puck.

2. Anze Kopitar, Kings: Kopitar took more starts in his own zone than any other forward and yet managed to lead the Kings in scoring for the ninth year in a row. No wonder he finally broke through and picked up his first career Selke as the league’s top defensive forward. At 29, his game continues to evolve, setting him up for even greater success in 2016–17.

1. Sidney Crosby, Penguins: Funny the difference a coaching change can make. Just last Christmas we were wondering if Crosby’s struggles hinted at a career in decline. Then Mike Sullivan came in, took the yoke off his back and let Sid be Sid. He closed the season with 58 points in his final 44 games to finish third in the scoring race, then capped it all off with the Conn Smythe after leading the Pens to the Stanley Cup. No one’s questioning the world’s best player anymore.