The Hockey News' Top 80 Players In The NHL: 50-41

This year marks The Hockey News' 80th year as the sport's pre-eminent publication, and as part of the celebrations, our digital editors and writers have assembled a ranking of the top 80 NHL players at the beginning of the 2026-27 regular season.

We're releasing our rankings in groups of 10, in reverse order, from 80th place to first place. 

The unveiling process for this ranking began with players 80 through 71. After that, we moved on to players 70 through 61. Then, we focused on players 60 through 51. Let's take a look at who begins to crack our top 50 players.

The 30-year-old Point has done just about everything a player would want to do: he's a two-time Stanley Cup champion and also won with Team Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off.

But his individual numbers also stand out. After a sophomore season in which he posted 32 goals and 66 points for the Lightning in 2017-18, Point has reached the 90-point plateau three times. He's virtually a point-per-game player in the regular season and the playoffs. That consistency is a large reason why he's a top-50 NHLer.

McAvoy isn't ranked this high because of his offensive skills — although he did post a career-best 61 points in 69 games last season — but rather, for his ferocious efforts to limit opponents' effectiveness in the Bruins' defensive zone.

The 28-year-old was a key component on Team USA's gold medal roster at the 2026 Olympics, and he's on a very short list of the top blueliners in the game today. Any success Boston has will be in part because McAvoy is holding down the fort in his own zone. 

After being picked seventh overall in 2016, Keller has been a fixture with the Arizona Coyotes and now the Utah Mammoth, recording at least 30 goals and 80 points in three of the last four seasons.

The 28-year-old is one of the Mammoth's core components, and Keller did what he could in the playoffs last year, generating four assists and five points in six post-season games last spring. Utah needs more from him, but Keller is entering his prime, and his next challenge is to lead the Mammoth on a deep playoff run. 

Like the rest of his Rangers teammates, Fox's 2025-26 season was sub-par, posting only 52 points – his lowest total since 2020-21. But in both of those seasons, the 28-year-old appeared in only 55 games.

He'll have every opportunity to bounce back on the Rangers' re-jigged roster, and Fox’s consistency prior to last season – he had three straight years of at least 56 assists and 72 points from 2021-2024 – should inspire confidence he’ll get his groove back.

Reinhart burst on the NHL scene in 2015-16, and he's been a model of consistency ever since, posting at least 22 goals in 10 of 11 seasons, and generating at least 50 points in eight of 11 seasons.

The 30-year-old's 57-goal, 94-point season in 2023-24 was an anomaly, but his fierce determination and finishing ability helped lead the Panthers to back-to-back championships.

Reinhart was also a key cog for Team Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off and 2026 Olympics. All that action may catch up to him, but Reinhart's all-around game is what makes him so dangerous.

Few NHL wingers have been more productive than Guentzel. He won a Cup with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2017, but in 681 career regular-season games coming into this season, Guentzel was nearly a point-per-game player, with 659 points in that span.

In the past two seasons with the Lightning, Guentzel produced a combined 79 goals and 168 points. And he's a point-per-game player in the playoffs, with 81 points in 81 games. It doesn't get much more reliable than that, and Guentzel is showing no signs of slowing down.

Despite playing on a mid-tier Islanders team for the past six seasons, Sorokin has posted individual numbers well above-average. His save percentage has never been lower than .906, and his GAA has been higher than 2.69 just once.

If he can steer the Islanders to a deep playoff run, he's going to earn a beloved place in the hearts of Isles fans, if he hasn’t already. At 31, Sorokin is at his peak, and as the rebuilding Islanders improve, his impact will be all the more impressive.

He's a bit hidden out in Winnipeg, but since 2022-23, Morrissey has blossomed into one of the NHL's most offensively-dominant defensemen. Prior to the Jets' disastrous 2025-26 season, the 31-year-old produced 207 points in 239 games over the previous three seasons.

The Jets can't win unless Morrissey plays a major role for them. He likely won't win any individual awards, but he's been the best D-man in franchise history, and that counts for a lot.

Slavin will never wow you with his offense — he's never had more than 42 points in a single season — but in 11 NHL seasons, he's developed into one of the game's top defensive players. He underscored his value last season by winning an Olympic gold medal with Team USA. and a Cup with the Hurricanes.

Not for nothing, but Slavin also plays the game the right way, as his two Lady Byng Trophies indicate. There are few better defensemen alive today than Slavin, and the 32-year-old has lots of great hockey left in him.

If you didn't know any better, you'd look at Aho's offensive totals with the Hurricanes and think someone copied and pasted them year-in and year-out in his decade-long NHL career. After his rookie season, the 29-year-old has never had fewer than 27 goals and 65 points in a full season.

Aho has been equally consistent in the playoffs, posting 97 points in 108 career post-season games, including 12 in 19 last year en route to his first Cup win. Aho's all-around game is what makes him special, and the best from him could still be to come.

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