Top 100 NHL Players In 2026: 11 To 20

Sidney Crosby is 38 years old and still producing at a level most NHLers won't reach.

Despite missing time with an injury after the Olympics, Crosby finished this season with 74 points in 68 games, extending his all-time NHL record to 21 consecutive point-per-game campaigns.

Crosby's early-season heroics helped put the Pittsburgh Penguins in the playoff race, and his place after returning from the injury kept them there.

'Sid the Kid' ranks between 11th and 20th place among the top 100 NHL players right now.

Top 100 NHL Players In 2026: 21 To 30

The Maple Leafs' Auston Matthews, Senators' Brady Tkachuk and Blackhawks' Connor Bedard are listed between 21st and 30th on The Hockey News' top 100 NHL players ranking following the regular season.

Criteria

- The greatest emphasis was put on how they're playing this season, with a smaller emphasis placed on how they played the previous year (2024-25). There was also slight consideration for how they played two or three seasons prior to that. We structured it this way because we didn't want any one-year wonders making the list. Moreover, sometimes star players can have a down year.

- We attempted to construct the top 100 to reflect a 20-man lineup, where 12 players are forwards, six are defensemen and two are goalies. So an evenly distributed top 100 should have 60 forwards, 30 D-men and 10 goalies. We aimed to keep that structure consistent within every group of 10 or 20.

- We don't forecast a young player's bright future. If they were excellent this year, they made the list. If they were just very good but showed exceptional promise for the future, they likely didn't make this year's list.

- At the other end of the age spectrum, we're not concerned if a player is nearing the end of his career. If they were a standout this year, they made the list. See Sidney Crosby.

- We don't consider a player's career achievements for a list about the here and now. Crosby and Alex Ovechkin are top 10 players in the history of the game. But they're not top 10 players this season.

- A player's salary was not taken into account, and we made no attempt to include at least one player from each of the NHL's 32 teams.

We count down the very best the NHL has to offer in our 2026 edition of the top 100 players, available to purchase as a single issue or for free when you subscribe to The Hockey News today.

Also in the issue: we examine the effectiveness of unusual training methods, look back at the Americans' win at the Paralympics, explore the Extreme Ice Hockey League and learn more about inline hockey being played outside of the White House.

Plus, you'll find features on Connor McDavid, Macklin Celebrini, Martin Necas, Thomas Harley, Tim Stutzle, Tom Wilson, Travis Konecny, Nick Schmaltz, Darren Raddysh and much more.

The Hockey News

This story was originally published June 2, 2026 at 3:22 PM.