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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

Chosen as the No. 1 pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, Hischier holds the record for the highest-drafted player born in Switzerland in NHL history. As the captain of New Jersey, he achieved 67 points, including 27 goals and 40 assists, in 71 regular-season games, and 39 points, including 14 goals and 25 assists, in 35 games after the 2024 NHL All-Star Game, with an average ice time of 20:36. The 25-year-old player has accumulated 353 points, with 136 goals and 217 assists, in 452 regular-season games.

19. Mika Zibanejad, New York Rangers

Zibanejad is one of the first six players chosen to represent Sweden in the 2025 4 Nations Face-Off from Feb. 12-20, where they will compete against the United States, Canada, and Finland. In his contribution to the Rangers reaching the Eastern Conference Final, Zibanejad scored 72 points (26 goals, 46 assists) in 81 games and 16 points (three goals, 13 assists) in 16 Stanley Cup Playoff games. However, they lost in a six-game series to the Florida Panthers. The 31-year-old player has managed to score a minimum of 20 goals in nine out of the past ten seasons.

18. Robert Thomas, St. Louis Blues

Last season, Thomas set NHL career highs in goals (26), assists (60), points (86) and games (82), earning him his first NHL All-Star title. The 25-year-old currently holds 315 NHL points, ranking him fourth in his 2017 draft class, behind Elias Pettersson (412), Hischier (353), and Cale Makar (336).

17. Tim Stutzle, Ottawa Senators

Despite Stutzle’s goal total declining from 39 in 2022-23 to 18 last season and his point total dipping from 90 to 70, he achieved a career-high of 52 assists in 75 games in the NHL, averaging nearly a point per game (0.93). The 22-year-old encountered injuries and took on more responsibilities due to injuries to center Josh Norris and Shane Pinto’s absence from the first 41 games because of sports betting-related activities. Stutzle, who was the No. 3 pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, is leading his draft class with 91 goals, 156 assists, and 247 points.

16. Nick Suzuki, Montreal Canadiens

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

15. Dylan Larkin, Detroit Red Wings

The captain of the Red Wings hit a new NHL career record with 33 goals and 36 assists in 68 games last season. This marks the fourth time in his career that he has scored a minimum of 30 goals. Averaging over a point per game (1.01) for the first time in his nine-season NHL career, the 28-year-old player 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 consistent performance. Last season, he achieved 65 points (30 goals, 35 assists) in 80 games, following scores of 72 and 75 in the two prior seasons. However, his production was hampered by injuries during Dallas’ journey to the Western Conference Final, where they lost to the Edmonton Oilers in six games. Despite this, Hintz managed to score eight points (two goals, six assists) in 15 games.

13. Connor Bedard, Chicago Blackhawks

Despite missing 14 games due to an injury, the winner of the 2024 Calder Trophy, Bedard, led or tied with the Blackhawks’ rookies in scoring goals (22), assists (39), and points (61). At 19 years old, he became the second-youngest player in NHL history to either tie or lead outright in all three categories, following Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche who achieved this at 18 years and 224 days old in the 2013-14 season. Bedard achieved this at 18 years and 276 days old.

12. Sebastian Aho, Carolina Hurricanes

Aho was among the first six players selected to represent Finland in the 4 Nations Face-Off. He had a career-best season in the NHL, scoring 89 points (36 goals, 53 assists) in 78 games, leading the Hurricanes in goals, assists, and total points for the third time. The 27-year-old also gathered 12 points (four goals and eight assists) in 11 playoff games. This achievement placed him alongside Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux as the third player in NHL history to at least equal 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 (103; 37 goals, 66 assists). He became the sixth player in four decades and the second in the previous season (following Artemi Panarin) to achieve his first 100-point season at 31 years old or older. The other players who achieved this include Erik Karlsson (2022-23), Steven Stamkos (2021-22), Martin St. Louis (2006-07), and Daniel Alfredsson (2005-06). Miller’s contributions were instrumental in the Canucks’ 50-game winning streak and their advancement to the playoffs for the second time since 2014-15. He accumulated 12 points (three goals, nine assists) in 13 postseason games. For the past three seasons, he 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 had a successful season, clocking in 89 points with 34 goals and 55 assists and winning 50.8 percent of his face-offs for the first time in his NHL career. Pettersson led the Canucks and matched Daniel Sedin’s record for the third-highest number of game-winning goals in a season with 10, a career-best. His 125 hits also marked a new personal record, surpassing the total from his past three seasons combined. The 25-year-old has consistently scored at least 32 goals for three consecutive seasons.

9. Jack Hughes, New Jersey Devils

Despite being sidelined for 20 games due to an injury, Hughes managed to score 74 points, comprising 27 goals and 47 assists. Following his shoulder surgery on April 10, he is anticipated to be fit for the upcoming training camp. As the top pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, Hughes led the Devils in scoring with an average of 1.19 points per game and contributed to 31 power-play points. He also had the highest average ice time (20:58) among the New Jersey forwards. The 23-year-old player reached new career milestones in the 2022-23 season, scoring 43 goals, making 56 assists, and accruing a total of 99 points in 78 games.

8. Jack Eichel, Vegas Golden Knights

Eichel was among the initial six players selected to represent the USA at the 4 Nations Face-Off. He accumulated 68 points, comprising 31 goals and 37 assists, in 63 games the previous season, and seven points, which included three goals and four assists, in seven playoff games. The 27-year-old won the Stanley Cup in 2023, topping the playoff scoring charts with 26 points, made up of six goals and 20 assists. This was the third greatest score in NHL history by a player on his first postseason trip.

7. Brayden Point, Tampa Bay Lightning

Point had another fruitful season, scoring 90 points (46 goals, 44 assists) in 81 games, following a season where his 51 goals were the highest in Tampa Bay and fifth highest in the NHL. The 28-year-old has a consistent record, having scored 20 or more goals in seven consecutive seasons, with a tally of more than 40 goals three times. His playoff performance is impressive too, with 87 points (42 goals, 45 assists) in 87 games. He has twice been part of the Lightning’s Stanley Cup-winning team in 2020 and 2021.

6. Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins

The captain of the Penguins, who is 37 years old, has been selected for Canada’s 4 Nations Face-off team. Crosby, in his 19th season in the NHL, was the leading scorer for Pittsburgh last season with a total of 94 points (42 goals, 52 assists) from 82 games. This includes 30 points (10 goals, 20 assists) scored in the last 18 games. He shares the record with Gretzky for having at least one point per game in the most seasons (19) in NHL history. A three-time Stanley Cup champion (2009, 2016, 2017) and a two-time winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy (2016, 2017), Crosby has also won the Art Ross Trophy, Hart Trophy, and “Rocket” Richard Trophy twice each. He has won the Ted Lindsay Award three times and was named as one of the 100 greatest players in NHL history during the League’s Centennial celebration in 2017.

5. Aleksander Barkov, Florida Panthers

After playing a crucial role in the Panthers’ 2-1 victory over the Oilers in the seventh game of the 2024 Final, Barkov became the first-ever Finnish-born NHL captain to win the Stanley Cup. This victory earned the Panthers their maiden NHL championship. Barkov contributed five points, including two goals and three assists, in this series and amassed 22 points, comprising eight goals and 14 assists, in all of the 24 playoff games. The 28-year-old player had a remarkable performance in the regular season as well, scoring 80 points – 23 goals and 57 assists – in just 73 games. He was also among the first six players chosen for Finland’s team in the 4 Nations Face-Off.

4. Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers

Last season, Draisaitl scored 106 points (41 goals, 65 assists) in 81 regular-season games, putting him in the seventh spot in the NHL rankings. He also had 31 points (10 goals, 21 assists) in 25 playoff games. The third overall pick in the 2014 NHL Draft, Draisaitl 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, the 28-year-old has scored the second-highest number of goals in the NHL (254), just behind Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs (272). He is also second in total points (726), tied with his teammate Connor McDavid.

3. Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs

Last season, the 26-year-old player scored 69 goals, making him the first player to score this many in one season since Lemieux’s 69 goals in 70 games during the 1995-96 season. Matthews, who scored 60 goals in the 2021-22 season, is also the ninth player in NHL history to have at least two 60-goal seasons. This list includes Mike Bossy (five), Gretzky (five), Phil Esposito (four), Lemieux (four), Brett Hull (three), Pavel Bure (two), Jari Kurri (two), and Steve Yzerman (two). Matthews, the No. 1 pick in the 2016 NHL Draft, has scored the most goals in the NHL since his draft. He is also listed on the United States’ roster for the 4 Nations Face-Off.

2. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche

The player who won the Hart Trophy as the NHL’s most valuable player last season, finished second in the league with 140 points (51 goals, 89 assists) in 82 games and also took home the Ted Lindsay Award, given to the most outstanding player as per the NHL Players’ Association. This player, MacKinnon, will represent Canada at the 4 Nations Face-off. Last season, he had a home point streak of 35 games (77 points; 29 goals, 48 assists), which is the second-longest in NHL history, only surpassed by Gretzky’s 40 with the Los Angeles Kings in 1988-89. At 28 years old, MacKinnon won 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.