Face-Off: Who are the best women in the face-off circle in the world?

Being a skilled center is a combination of winning draws, scoring points, and two way play. Here's a look at eleven of the best in the world.

There's many things that make a good center. It's a mix of scoring, winning face-offs, and playing a responsible two-way game.

Looking at statistics from recent competition, we can begin to plot out the players who best balance these attributes. Although the PWHPA did not track face-off statistics this year, we can use recent international competition and NCAA statistics to evaluate those players, while the PHF and NCAA tracked face offs.

Here's a look at eleven of the top women on the planet in the face-off circle. To qualify for this list, a player must have won more than 50% of their face-offs, and scored at least at a 0.75 points per game rate.

Taylor Heise  - Had the most total face-off wins in the NCAA and won an impressive .599 of those draws this season with the University of Minnesota. She totalled 65 points in 38 games for the Golden Gophers. At the World Championships, she stepped up her face-off performance winning 62.37% of her draws, while recording 12 points in seven games. The year prior she not only earned World Championship MVP honors scoring 18 points in seven games, but she won a dominant 71.29% of her draws.

Emma Maltais - Maltais won 60.31% of her draws this season with Ohio State in the NCAA, scoring 48 points in 39 games. Canada didn't play Maltais down the middle in 2023, but at the 2022 Worlds she had a tournament best 72.34% performance.

Abby Roque - When you watch Roque play, there's no doubt she has a physical presence, and that extends to the face-off dot where Roque can out muscle and out leverage opponents. She had the top face-off percentage at the 2023 World Championships winning 66.67% of her draws. It's not a one-off for her either, as the year prior Roque won 69.23 percent of her draws all while scoring 17 points in 14 games across those tournaments.

Marie-Philip Poulin - It seems pretty obvious that Marie-Philip Poulin would be a "best of" list no matter what role she was taking. If MPP became a defender, she'd probably thrive there as well. At the most recent World Championship, Poulin won 64.71% of her draws and was at 58.82% the year prior. The face-off circle often leads to puck possession, which leads to goals, and MPP knows how to score.

Jennifer Wakefield - A long time member of Canada's senior national team, Wakefield has spent the past few years away from Team Canada, playing in the SDHL. Last season, she topped all players with a 69.52% face-off rate, almost 8% higher than the next best. It was the third time in her career in the SDHL she was best in face-offs, and she also led the 2013 World Championships with a wild  76.36%. She uses her six-foot frame to physically dominate play, and has maintained better than a point-per-game pace throughout her career, including 37 points in 28 games last year with MoDo.

Shiann Darkangelo - Took 552 faceoffs for the Isobel Cup champion Toronto Six winning .612 of those. She was the top number one center in the faceoff circle in the PHF last season, and was sixth in PHF scoring 25 points in 24 games. She also topped all players in face-off percentage in 2021-2022 in the PHF winning 57.3%.

Viivi Vainikka - To make any league in the world truly the top, players like Viivi Vainikka need to be there. She's an elite scorer, notching 41 points in 32 SDHL games with Lulea, and 10 points in 7 games for Finland at the World Championships this year. She also led the SDHL in face-offs in 2022 winning 62.63% of her draws and 63.89% at Worlds in 2022. This season she again won more than she lost at the Worlds sitting at 54.05%.

Noora Tulus - The other central pivot for Team Finland, Tulus was third in the SDHL this season winning 61.19% of her draws while scoring 56 points in 32 games. She also won 62.11% at Worlds, while scoring 10 points in 7 games. In 2021-2022, those numbers were 56.65% and 61.54%. Consistency is her calling card.

Sarah Fillier - This year's World Championship MVP  won 55.13% of her draws at the tournament for Canada and won 59.61% of her draws with Princeton in the NCAA. Her scoring prowess is well documented, but some overlook Fillier's ability to control possession and drive play at both ends. It's year over year success in the face off circle as Fillier also had a 62.30% in 2022, both years scoring an identical 11 points at Worlds.

Lina Ljungblom - Offensively, Ljungblom had a coming out party this year at Worlds scoring 7 goals and 11 points in 7 games. She also won 53.85% of her draws, following up a 64.2% performance in 2022. In the SDHL with MoDo, 59.50% in 2021-2022 and 57.26% in 2022-2023. 

Brianne Jenner - Her year over year performance at the Worlds has been dominant. Jenner won 64.86% in 2023 and 70.21% in 2022. It will be interesting to see how her percentages transfer over more attempts in the new league.

Other top centers - Sarah Bujold, Jesse Compher, Alina Muller, Gabrielle David, Jillian Dempsey, Alena Mills, Petra Nieminen, Susanna Tapani.