We are at the doorstep of finally seeing NHL players participate in the Olympic Games once again. The best facing the best. Long have we waited.
But of course, there are snubs, injuries and countries not participating that bolsters debate about the tournament.
The theme of this week’s Power Rankings is, for any reason, who is the “top” player from each NHL team that isn’t on an Olympic roster going to Milan.
How we rank: A panel of ESPN hockey commentators, analysts, reporters and editors sends in a 1-32 poll based on the games through Wednesday.
Note: Previous ranking for each team refers to the previous edition, published Jan. 29. Points percentages are through Thursday’s games.
Previous ranking: 1
Points percentage: 75.5%
Valeri Nichushkin: The Avs have a healthy contingent of players heading to Milan. It’s quite possible that Nichushkin would have also been boarding a plane overseas. He has 34 points and 12 goals this season.
Previous ranking: 2
Points percentage: 70.9%
Nikita Kucherov: Kucherov would have been a pick to be one of the standout players in the tournament. He has been on a tear lately, recently passing Macklin Celebrini for third in the NHL in points with 90.
Previous ranking: 4
Points percentage: 67.2%
Kirill Kaprizov: The highest-paid player in the NHL currently, Kaprizov has 70 points (32 goals and 38 assists) in 58 games. Would he have been on a top line with Nikita Kucherov and Evgeni Malkin?
Previous ranking: 3
Points percentage: 68.4%
Brandon Bussi: Seth Jarvis (Canada snub) and Andrei Svechnikov (Russia not at the Olympics) could have been picks here, but I wanted to throw flowers to the Bus Stop, who has had an incredible rookie year so far: 22-3-1 in 26 games, 2.24 goals against and a .905 save percentage. The only reason he isn’t eligible for the Calder Trophy is because he’s 27 years old.
Previous ranking: 5
Points percentage: 67.5%
Jason Robertson: If Team USA struggles to put up goals in Italy, how much of the narrative will be “Jason Robertson should have been among those invited”? Also a 4 Nations Face-Off snub, Robertson has 66 points and 32 goals (tied with fellow USA snub Cole Caufield) in 57 games.
Previous ranking: 6
Points percentage: 61.4%
Alex Tuch: The Syracuse native has 22 goals and 26 assists, good for 48 points, which is second on the Sabres behind U.S. Olympian Tage Thompson.
Previous ranking: 7
Points percentage: 62.1%
Patrick Kane: The best player not on an Olympic roster would be Alex DeBrincat, but I can’t help but think of Kane, the greatest U.S.-born player of all time, in what could have been his final Olympics for Team USA. Kane recently set the NHL record for most points by a U.S.-born player, surpassing Mike Modano with his 1,375th point.
Previous ranking: 8
Points percentage: 62.5%
Evgeni Malkin: “Geno” has 13 goals and 30 assists so far this season, a big part of the Penguins refusing to live up to the pundits’ preseason “Penguins will be bad” predictions.
Previous ranking: 9
Points percentage: 63.2%
Cole Caufield: This was a tough one, because Lane Hutson has one more point than Caufield and has proved to be a world-class defenseman, but “Goal” Caufield has 32 goals and 57 points.
Previous ranking: 11
Points percentage: 60.5%
Morgan Geekie: The teammate that David Pastrnak said is a 50-goal guy leads the Spoked B with 32 goals. Geekie is tied for third in goals in the NHL.
Previous ranking: 14
Points percentage: 59.5%
Matthew Schaefer: This one is purely because of age. The 18-year-old Calder favorite has 16 goals and 23 assists in 57 games. If his output, combined with his swagger, confidence and hockey IQ, were placed into any veteran player in the NHL, that player would have probably made Team Canada.
Previous ranking: 10
Points percentage: 59.6%
Pavel Dorofeyev: The Russian winger has 42 points (25 goals and 17 assists) so far this season and will likely set a new career high in points (currently 52).
Previous ranking: 12
Points percentage: 56.1%
Dylan Guenther: The Edmonton native leads the Mammoth with 25 goals and is third in points with 47. You get the sense that international play is in his future. He won gold for Canada at the World Juniors in 2023.
Previous ranking: 13
Points percentage: 55.2%
Evan Bouchard: Another name high on the “snub” list, Bouchard is third in scoring on Edmonton behind Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Bouchard is first in the NHL in points among defensemen with 63.
Previous ranking: 22
Points percentage: 58%
Kirill Marchenko: The other “Kirill the Thrill” has 19 goals and 46 points in 50 games this season, first among Columbus Blue Jackets forwards. He is the kind of player that would have been exciting to watch in a best-on-best tournament.
Previous ranking: 16
Points percentage: 56.3%
Leo Carlsson: Though initially named to Team Sweden at the Olympics, injury will prevent him from participating. The 21-year-old from Karlstad recently underwent a procedure to treat a left thigh injury and was replaced on Sweden’s roster.
Previous ranking: 19
Points percentage: 56.3%
Matty Beniers: The 2021 No. 2 overall pick has been turning it on lately for the Kraken, recently going on a five-game point streak that included a three-game goal-scoring streak. Beniers is second on the team with 37 points.
Previous ranking: 23
Points percentage: 55.1%
Alex Ovechkin: If Russia participated in the Olympics, this likely would have been Ovi’s last time captaining Team Russia. Imagine that final faceoff between him and Sid on the international stage.
Previous ranking: 24
Points percentage: 55.3%
John Tavares: While Islanders captain, Tavares won a gold medal with Canada in 2014 in Sochi. He’s currently third on the Leafs with 47 points (20 goals and 27 assists).
Previous ranking: 17
Points percentage: 53.6%
Artemi Panarin: The Breadman had 57 points in 52 games for the Rangers before being traded to the Los Angeles on Wednesday. Panarin would have certainly made Team Russia.
Previous ranking: 21
Points percentage: 55.3%
Drake Batherson: The U.S.-born, Canada-raised forward is second on the Senators with 49 points and 19 goals and was consistently averaging a point per game prior to the Canadian Olympic roster announcement.
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Previous ranking: 20
Points percentage: 54.5%
Travis Konecny: Konecny leads the Flyers with 22 goals and 32 assists. But despite being on Team Canada’s 4 Nations roster, he was left off the Olympic squad.
Previous ranking: 15
Points percentage: 53.5%
Aleksander Barkov: One of the best 200-foot players in the game would have certainly been on Team Finland if not for injury. The Panthers captain has yet to play a game this season but put up 22 points in 23 games in the Cup-winning playoff effort last postseason.
Previous ranking: 18
Points percentage: 52.7%
Will Smith: There is a large gap between Macklin Celebrini and the rest of the team, but Smith sits second with 39 points and 17 goals. The Boston native shares a line with Celebrini and Quinnipiac alum Collin Graf.
Previous ranking: 26
Points percentage: 51.8%
Ryan O’Reilly: The Preds forward captained the Blues to a Stanley Cup in 2019 and won gold with Team Canada at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. He leads the Preds this season with 56 points.
Previous ranking: 25
Points percentage: 50.9%
Luke Hughes: The youngest Hughes brother has 26 points (five goals and 21 assists) so far this season, on pace to set career highs in both categories. Could we see a day where all three Hughes brothers play on Team USA together?
Previous ranking: 28
Points percentage: 46.5%
Connor Bedard: One of the biggest names in the “Olympic Snub” conversation, Bedard has 23 goals and 30 assists in 44 games so far this season. There was one short period of time earlier this season where he and Macklin Celebrini were tops in points in the NHL, which was a nice glimpse into the future of the league. Bedard will certainly make Team Canada rosters in the future.
Previous ranking: 27
Points percentage: 46.4%
Mark Scheifele: The Kitchener, Ontario, native leads the Jets in points (68) and goals (27) but was left off both the 4 Nations and Olympic rosters for Team Canada.
Previous ranking: 30
Points percentage: 46.4%
Nazem Kadri: Kadri leads the Flames in points (39) and assists (29). You have to wonder how many teams have inquired about his services for a playoff push with the Flames near the bottom of the West.
Previous ranking: 29
Points percentage: 43.9%
Igor Shesterkin: He would be part of a very crowded goalie room for a Team Russia squad that would include Ilya Sorokin, Andrei Vasilevskiy and Sergei Bobrovsky. He has posted a .913 save percentage in 34 games this season.
Previous ranking: 31
Points percentage: 43%
Robert Thomas: Though he was named to Team Canada’s orientation camp over the summer, Thomas is not on Team Canada’s roster. He is second on the Blues with 33 points (11 goals and 22 assists).
Previous ranking: 32
Points percentage: 36.8%
Thatcher Demko: Team USA has the most depth in goal in its hockey history, and a healthy Demko would have been a contender for one of the three spots in many other eras. The San Diego native will miss the remainder of the season because of hip surgery.
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