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Winning important face-offs, leading rushes up the ice, and setting up teammates are the hallmarks of an elite center. NHL Network producers and analysts on Wednesday revealed their list of the top 20 centers in the League right now in the third of a nine-part series. Here is the list:

20. Nico Hischier, New Jersey Devils

Hischier, a Switzerland-born player, holds the record as the highest-drafted player from his country in NHL history, having been picked as No. 1 in the 2017 NHL Draft. As the captain of New Jersey, he has scored 67 points, including 27 goals and 40 assists, in 71 regular-season games. After the 2024 NHL All-Star Game, he managed 39 points, with 14 goals and 25 assists, in 35 games, while spending an average of 20:36 minutes on the ice. The 25-year-old player has an overall record of 353 points, comprising 136 goals and 217 assists, in 452 regular-season games.

19. Mika Zibanejad, New York Rangers

Zibanejad was one of the first six players selected for the Sweden team set to compete against the United States, Canada, and Finland in the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off taking place from February 12-20. He contributed significantly to the Rangers’ advancement to the Eastern Conference Final, with 72 points (26 goals, 46 assists) in 81 games, and 16 points (three goals, 13 assists) in 16 Stanley Cup Playoff games. Despite a six-game loss to the Florida Panthers, the 31-year-old Zibanejad distinguished himself by scoring at least 20 goals in nine out of the past 10 seasons.

18. Robert Thomas, St. Louis Blues

Last season, Thomas achieved career highs in the NHL with 26 goals, 60 assists, 86 points, and 82 games, earning his first recognition as an NHL All-Star. The 25-year-old player has accumulated 315 NHL points, ranking him fourth in his 2017 draft class, trailing Elias Pettersson (412), Hischier (353), and Cale Makar (336).

17. Tim Stutzle, Ottawa Senators

Despite Stutzle’s goal total decreasing from 39 in 2022-23 to 18 last season, and his point total falling from 90 to 70, he managed to achieve a career-high 52 assists in 75 games in the NHL, averaging almost a point per game (0.93). The 22-year-old player also contended with injuries, and had to shoulder increased responsibilities due to injuries to center Josh Norris and Shane Pinto’s absence from the first 41 games due to sports wagering involvement. Stutzle, who was the No. 3 pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, outperforms his draft class with 91 goals, 156 assists, and 247 points.

16. Nick Suzuki, Montreal Canadiens

The captain of the Canadiens reached career highs in the NHL last season with 33 goals, 44 assists, and 77 points in 82 games. He achieved his 100th career goal in the NHL just 17 seconds into an overtime victory of 4-3 against the Nashville Predators at Bridgestone Arena on March 5. The 25-year-old player has accumulated 286 points, including 108 goals and 178 assists in 373 regular-season games.

15. Dylan Larkin, Detroit Red Wings

The captain of the Red Wings scored a career-high of 33 goals in the NHL and made 36 assists in 68 games last season, marking his fourth time to score at least 30 goals. The 28-year-old player, for the first time in his nine-season NHL career, averaged more than one point per game (1.01). He scored his 200th NHL goal on January 27 and achieved his 500th point on April 11.

14. Roope Hintz, Dallas Stars

Since joining the Stars in the 2018-19 season, Hintz has shown consistency. He racked up 65 points (30 goals, 35 assists) in 80 games last season, following scores of 72 and 75 in the two seasons prior. However, his performance was hampered by injuries during the Dallas’ journey to the Western Conference Final, where they faced a six-game defeat to the Edmonton Oilers. During these 15 games, he managed to accumulate only eight points (two goals, six assists).

13. Connor Bedard, Chicago Blackhawks

Despite missing 14 games due to an injury, the winner of the 2024 Calder Trophy, who led or shared the lead among rookies and the Blackhawks in goals (22), assists (39), and points (61), was Bedard. At 19, he became the second youngest player in NHL history (18 years, 276 days) to finish as the outright or joint leader in all three categories, following Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche (18 years, 224 days) in the 2013-14 season.

12. Sebastian Aho, Carolina Hurricanes

Aho was among the first six players selected to represent Finland at the 4 Nations Face-Off. He achieved a career-high in the NHL with 89 points (36 goals, 53 assists) in 78 games last season, topping the Hurricanes in goals, assists, and points for the third time. The 27-year-old scored 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in 11 playoff games, making him the third player in NHL history, after Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux, to at least tie for his team’s scoring lead in his first six postseasons.

11. J.T. Miller, Vancouver Canucks

Miller recently completed his first 100-point season in the NHL, with a tally of 103 points, comprising of 37 goals and 66 assists. This achievement made him the sixth player in the past four decades, and the second one last season after Artemi Panarin, to reach their first 100-point season at the age of 31 or older, joining the ranks of Erik Karlsson (2022-23), Steven Stamkos (2021-22), Martin St. Louis (2006-07) and Daniel Alfredsson (2005-06). With Miller’s contribution, the Canucks managed to secure 50 wins and made it to the playoffs for the second time since the 2014-15 season. In 13 playoff games, he scored 12 points, including three goals and nine assists. Over the past three seasons, Miller has consistently scored at least 32 goals and 82 points.

10. Elias Pettersson, Vancouver Canucks

On March 2, 2024, Pettersson inked an eight-year deal with the Canucks to bypass restricted free agency. He scored 89 points (34 goals, 55 assists) and secured over half of his face-offs (50.8 percent) for the first time in his NHL career. Pettersson’s record 10 game-winning goals equaled Daniel Sedin’s third-highest season record in the Canucks’ history. He also set a personal record with 125 hits, which was more than his total in the previous three seasons. The 25-year-old has consistently scored a minimum of 32 goals in the past three consecutive seasons.

9. Jack Hughes, New Jersey Devils

Despite missing 20 games due to an injury, Hughes scored 74 points (27 goals, 47 assists) and is anticipated to be fit for the upcoming training camp after undergoing shoulder surgery on April 10. As the first pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, he was the leading scorer for the Devils, averaging 1.19 points per game and contributing 31 power-play points. He also led New Jersey forwards in average ice time (20:58). In the 2022-23 season, the 23-year-old set personal records with 43 goals, 56 assists, and 99 points over the course of 78 games.

8. Jack Eichel, Vegas Golden Knights

Eichel was among the initial six players chosen to represent the United States in the 4 Nations Face-Off. He accumulated 68 points (31 goals, 37 assists) in the previous season across 63 games and scored seven points (three goals, four assists) in seven playoff games. At 27, he became a Stanley Cup champion in 2023, leading the playoffs in scoring with 26 points (six goals, 20 assists). This score is the third-highest in NHL history for a player on their first postseason run.

7. Brayden Point, Tampa Bay Lightning

Point had another fruitful season, recording 90 points (46 goals, 44 assists) in 81 games, following a season in which his 51 goals were the highest in Tampa Bay and fifth-highest in the NHL. The 28-year-old has consistently scored 20 or more goals over the last seven seasons, exceeding 40 goals three times. In his 87 playoff games, he has accumulated 87 points (42 goals, 45 assists) and has secured two Cup victories with the Lightning in 2020 and 2021.

6. Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins

The captain of the Penguins, aged 37, has been selected for Canada’s 4 Nations Face-off roster. In his 19th NHL season last year, Crosby was the top performer for Pittsburgh, scoring 94 points (42 goals and 52 assists) in 82 games, including 30 points (10 goals and 20 assists) in the final 18 games. He shares a record with Gretzky, having scored at least one point per game in 19 NHL seasons. Crosby, a three-time Stanley Cup champion (2009, 2016, 2017) and two-time Conn Smythe Trophy recipient (2016, 2017), has also bagged the Art Ross Trophy, Hart Trophy and “Rocket” Richard Trophy twice. He has won the Ted Lindsay Award thrice and was recognized as one of the 100 greatest NHL players at the League’s Centennial celebration in 2017.

5. Aleksander Barkov, Florida Panthers

Barkov, the first Finland-born NHL captain to secure the Stanley Cup, played a crucial role in the Panthers’ 2-1 victory over the Oilers in the 2024 Final’s Game 7. This win marked the Panthers’ first NHL championship in their history. Barkov scored five points, consisting of two goals and three assists in the series, and 22 points – eight goals and 14 assists – in 24 playoff games. The 28-year-old player also accumulated 80 points, including 23 goals and 57 assists, in 73 regular-season games. He was also among the first six players selected for Finland’s team in the 4 Nations Face-Off.

4. Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers

Last season, Draisaitl ranked seventh in the NHL with his 106 points, which include 41 goals and 65 assists from 81 regular-season games. He also had 31 points (10 goals, 21 assists) from 25 playoff games. The 28-year-old, who was the No. 3 pick in the 2014 NHL Draft, has accumulated 850 points (347 goals, 503 assists) in 719 regular-season games and 108 points (41 goals, 67 assists) in 74 playoff games. Since the 2018-19 season, he has scored the second-highest number of goals (254) in the NHL, just behind Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs (272). He is also second in points (726), tying with his teammate Connor McDavid (726).

3. Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs

The 26-year-old player scored an impressive 69 goals last season, making him the first to achieve this since Lemieux’s 69 goals in the 70 games of the 1995-96 season. Matthews, who managed to score 60 goals in the 2021-22 season, has also become the ninth player in NHL history to score at least 60 goals in two seasons. This prestigious group includes Mike Bossy (five), Gretzky (five), Phil Esposito (four), Lemieux (four), Brett Hull (three), Pavel Bure (two), Jari Kurri (two), and Steve Yzerman (two). Since being the top pick in the 2016 NHL Draft, Matthews has been leading in goals and is also part of the United States’ team for the 4 Nations Face-Off.

2. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche

The player who claimed the Hart Trophy as the NHL’s most valuable player last season finished second in the league with 140 points, scoring 51 goals and making 89 assists in 82 games. This player also won the Ted Lindsay Award, which is given to the most outstanding player as voted by the NHL Players’ Association. MacKinnon will represent Canada in the upcoming 4 Nations Face-off. Last season, he achieved a 35-game home point streak, accumulating 77 points with 29 goals and 48 assists, marking the second-longest streak in NHL history, only behind Gretzky’s 40-game streak with the Los Angeles Kings in 1988-89. At the age of 28, he clinched the Stanley Cup with the Avalanche in 2022.

1. Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers

McDavid finished third in Hart voting behind MacKinnon and Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov. The Oilers captain was third in the NHL with 132 points in 76 games last season and finished the 2024 playoffs with 42 points (eight goals, 34 assists) in 25 games; only Gretzky and Lemieux had more in one postseason. He became the sixth player on the losing team of the Final to win the Conn Smythe Trophy, and the first skater since Reggie Leach with the Philadelphia Flyers in 1976. The 27-year-old who was the No. 1 pick in the 2015 NHL Draft leads the League in points (982 in 645 games) since entering the League and was named to Canada’s 4 Nations Face-Off roster.