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As we eagerly await the beginning of the 2024-25 NHL season, let’s take a look at the top players in the league at each age along with some honorable mentions. For simplicity, I’ll use how old each player is when the season starts on Oct. 8 to determine their age. What does that list look like?
18 Years Old: Macklin Celebrini, Forward
The only selection from the 2024 NHL Draft who seems poised to debut in the league at 18 years of age is the first pick of that class, Macklin Celebrini. While playing for the rebuilding San Jose Sharks, there’s a path to a successful season here.
As a freshman, Celebrini won the Hobey Baker Award for the top player in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), beating top prospects such as Cutter Gauthier, Gabe Perreault, and Ryan Leonard in points per game. Responsible in his own zone, we could be looking at one of the best two-way forwards in the league someday. How he immediately translates to NHL hockey could be telling for what’s to come.
19 Years Old: Connor Bedard, Forward
The Chicago Blackhawks had one of the worst records in recent memory in 2023-24, but Connor Bedard brought some excitement nonetheless. His dynamic offensive talent showed itself as he put up 61 points in 68 games en route to a Calder Trophy victory.
Related: 2024-25 NHL Season Preview
The biggest thing Bedard needs to address is his defensive play. Allowing 83 goals at even strength, that part wasn’t great. However, being a first-line center on a rebuilding team as a teenager is not the best situation, so some defensive hiccups are assumed. He should take his game to the next level in 2024-25.
Honorable Mentions: Matvei Michkov, Leo Carlsson
20 Years Old: Juraj Slafkovsky, Forward
Juraj Slafkovsky stepped up in a big way for the Montreal Canadiens in 2023-24. The former first-overall pick scored 50 points in 82 games, putting up 35 of them in the second half of his season.
Slafkovsky started to emerge as an unstoppable offensive specimen later in his sophomore campaign, using his size to create a plethora of scoring chances in many instances. Following an underwhelming debut season in 2022-23, he has only improved with time. A true breakout should be coming, and it might not be long before he joins the conversation of the NHL’s best.
Honorable Mentions: Simon Nemec, Pavel Mintyukov
21 Years Old: Wyatt Johnston, Forward
Wyatt Johnston was quietly one of the best young players in the NHL last season, scoring 65 points in 82 games at the age of 20. He started to catch people’s eyes in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, scoring 10 goals and 16 points in 19 contests—his excellence put him on the radar.
Johnston is a gifted forward who excelled with somewhat modest ice time given his capabilities. In 2024-25, he could burst onto the scene if his Dallas Stars put more faith in him. They started to do that in the playoffs, which is a good sign of things to come.
Honorable Mentions: Owen Power, Matty Beniers
22 Years Old: Tim Stützle, Forward
While it wasn’t his best showing, Tim Stützle of the Ottawa Senators is still the best 22-year-old in the NHL. When 70 points in 75 games is considered a letdown at that age, we’re talking about a special player.
Stützle has dynamic talent that could one day allow him to be a superstar. He didn’t seem to be himself last season but his health likely had something to do with that. Whatever it was, there appears to be a 100-point upside here someday—he hit 90 at the age of 21.
Honorable Mentions: Jake Sanderson, Lucas Raymond
23 Years Old: Jack Hughes, Forward
Already on our fourth first-overall pick, Jack Hughes is another dynamic center who dazzles on a nightly basis. He had a rough go injury-wise last season playing just 62 games, but he had 74 points nonetheless.
After finishing with the NHL’s third-best record in 2022-23, the New Jersey Devils missed the playoffs partially because of the injury bug to their top player. The next step in his career is to go on a deep playoff run—his team certainly has the means to do so.
Honorable Mentions: Thomas Harley, Alex Vlasic
24 Years Old: Quinn Hughes, Defenseman
Quinn Hughes, Jack’s older brother, took his game to new heights in 2023-24 by winning the Norris Trophy. The former is one of the league’s most dynamic defensemen, able to patrol the offensive blue line and create copious amounts of offense. With some solid defensive numbers to boot, last season might be the new norm.
The Vancouver Canucks’ captain was also impressive in the playoffs. However, he’s in the same stage as his brother where a deep run will be needed to advance his legacy.
Honorable Mentions: Evan Bouchard, Rasmus Dahlin
25 Years Old: Cale Makar, Defenseman
Cale Makar is the NHL’s most talented player with the puck and is more sound on defense than he gets credit for. A Norris Trophy finalist in four consecutive seasons and the winner of the award in 2021-22, this 25-year-old has a Hall of Fame trajectory.
Having won a Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe in 2022 with the Colorado Avalanche, there isn’t much else for Makar to do despite being so young. Established as one of the best defenders of this generation, it’ll be fun to see what marks he can reach when all is said and done.
Honorable Mentions: Miro Heiskanen, Jeremy Swayman
26 Years Old: Adam Fox, Defenseman
Adam Fox may not be as gifted athletically as the elder Hughes or Makar, but he has smarts that arguably haven’t been seen out of a defenseman since Nicklas Lidstrom. Processing the game at the highest level, this is unquestionably one of the best defenders in the sport.
Fox is probably the NHL’s most well-rounded defenseman—the New York Rangers wouldn’t be complete without him. He won the Norris Trophy in 2020-21 and has consistently been in the conversation since then.
Honorable Mentions: Matthew Tkachuk, Charlie McAvoy
27 Years Old: Connor McDavid, Forward
The Edmonton Oilers’ Connor McDavid has done everything there is to do in this league aside from winning a Stanley Cup. He has been the winner of the Art Ross Trophy five times, the Ted Lindsay Award four times, the Hart Trophy three times, the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy once, and the Conn Smythe Trophy once. Nobody has touched his numbers in the 21st century.
While McDavid is already one of the best players in history with accolades rivaled by almost no one, he won’t be put in the same conversation as the defining faces of hockey like Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux until he wins a Stanley Cup. He came one win away from doing so last season.
Honorable Mentions: Auston Matthews, Mikko Rantanen
28 Years Old: Igor Shesterkin, Goaltender
Igor Shesterkin’s three-season reign of terror between the pipes since 2021-22 puts him above his 28-year-old competition. Following the All-Star Break, there was no better netminder in the sport—he had a .929 save percentage (SV%) and 2.20 goals-against average (GAA).
While Shesterkin had a terrific playoff run, the Rangers ultimately came up short for him in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final in a 2-1 defeat. He has played like a Stanley Cup-caliber goaltender, he just needs the team around him to put it all together.
Honorable Mentions: Leon Draisaitl, David Pastrnak
29 Years Old: Nathan MacKinnon, Forward
Nathan MacKinnon won his first Hart Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award last season for his world-class performance. Notching 140 points and a 35-game home-ice point streak with the Avalanche, his 2023-24 campaign was one to remember.
MacKinnon is one of the best athletes we have ever seen in the NHL, possessing some of the best speed in the sport but also size and strength that makes him impossible to knock off of the puck. When he gets going, there is no player who can stop him.
Honorable Mentions: Aleksander Barkov, Juuse Saros
30 Years Old: Andrei Vasilevskiy, Goaltender
Andrei Vasilevskiy had his worst statistical season in 2023-24 following back surgery, but that won’t hurt his ranking. The two-time Stanley Cup champion and four-time Vezina Trophy finalist is a generational talent.
Simply put, Vasilevskiy can do things that almost no goaltender can. He’s poised for a return to form for the Tampa Bay Lightning after an injury-riddled .900 SV% and 2.90 GAA.
Honorable Mentions: Devon Toews, Filip Forsberg
31 Years Old: Nikita Kucherov, Forward
Don’t let McDavid’s historic 153-point showing in 2022-23 take away from what Nikita Kucherov did last season. Becoming the first winger to reach 100 assists in a single campaign, he is only getting better with age.
Kucherov made a rather unimpressive Lightning team look like contenders for a bit. They were ousted in five games by the Florida Panthers in the opening round of the postseason, but it was by no fault of the 144-point man. He is the first winger to win multiple Art Ross Trophies in a career since Martin St. Louis (2003-04 and 2012-13), both doing so in Tampa Bay.
Honorable Mentions: Connor Hellebuyck, J.T. Miller
32 Years Old: Artemi Panarin, Forward
Much like Kucherov, Artemi Panarin’s hockey IQ is off the charts. With 120 points in 2023-24, he joined Gretzky (130), Phil Esposito (127), Marcel Dionne (126), and Jaromir Jagr (123) as the only players with at least 120 single-season points at the age of 32 or older. We’re watching defiance of the aging curve.
Panarin is one of the NHL’s most exceptional passers, but he unlocked his scoring talent with 49 goals. If that sticks, it should be key in allowing him to win the first Stanley Cup of his career and the Rangers’ first since 1994.
Honorable Mentions: Zach Hyman, Mark Stone
33 Years Old: Victor Hedman, Defenseman
The Lightning seem to have the early 30s age range down, seeing as this is their third player from 30-33. Scoring 76 points in 78 games last season, Hedman is one of the most dangerous defensemen in the NHL when he has the puck.
Hedman’s defensive numbers have gone from elite to subpar in recent years, but don’t let that distract you from his excellence. The six-time Norris Trophy finalist is already a Hall of Fame player.
Honorable Mentions: Ryan O’Reilly, Chris Kreider
34 Years Old: Roman Josi, Defenseman
Since turning 30 years old, Roman Josi has won a Norris Trophy and finished second in voting twice. The Nashville Predators went all-in during the 2024 offseason by adding Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, and Brady Skjei primarily because of how good the 34-year-old defender is.
Josi had 85 points in 82 games last season, proving he is still one of the premier offensive defensemen in the league. He is eyeing his first Stanley Cup.
Honorable Mentions: Erik Karlsson, Drew Doughty
35 Years Old: Patrick Kane, Forward
Historically, hip resurfacing surgery is devastating for a player, especially when they’re only given a few months to recover like in Patrick Kane’s case. Not only did he defy the odds by playing well, he had one of his best seasons in a long time.
With 47 points in 50 games with the Detroit Red Wings on 18:23 of average ice time, he had elite efficiency with his lowest minutes since he was a rookie. Kane is still one of the most talented players in the NHL.
Honorable Mentions: Ryan McDonagh, Frederik Andersen
36 Years Old: Sergei Bobrovsky, Goaltender
It seemed almost guaranteed even before last season, but Sergei Bobrovsky’s 2024 Stanley Cup victory most certainly makes him a Hall of Fame netminder. With two Vezina Trophies and high-end play well into his 30s, he should be the first NHL goaltender to represent Russia in hockey’s version of immortality.
Only Martin Brodeur, Tim Thomas, and Bobrovsky have won both the Vezina Trophy more than once and a Stanley Cup in the 21st century. Even if he’s making $10 million per season, the Panthers got themselves one of the greats.
Honorable Mentions: Brad Marchand, Claude Giroux
37 Years Old: Sidney Crosby, Forward
Sidney Crosby still being one of the best players in the NHL at 37 years old isn’t all that surprising. His hockey IQ is Gretzky-esque, and that’s not exaggerating.
Crosby’s 94 points in 82 games last season weren’t enough to help his Pittsburgh Penguins clinch the playoffs, signaling the official end of their dynasty now with back-to-back misses. They’re still a threat to make the postseason in 2024-25, but probably not to go very far. Look forward to Crosby’s individual career milestones, which include 1,300 games played (needs 28), 600 goals (needs eight), and 1,600 points (needs four).
Honorable Mentions: Anže Kopitar, Kris Letang
38 Years Old: Evgeni Malkin, Forward
Malkin’s prime often gets overlooked because of how good Crosby was, but the former was one of the best players in the world at his best. While he’s not at that level anymore, the Penguins are still looking at a valuable top-six contributor.
Malkin had 67 points in 82 games last season. It was only his fourth time not missing any action, so his durability doesn’t seem to be an issue. The three-time Stanley Cup champion, two-time Art Ross Trophy winner, and one-time winner of the Hart Trophy, Ted Lindsay Award, and Conn Smythe Trophy is one of the best Russian players in hockey history.
Honorable Mentions: Jonathan Quick, Blake Wheeler
39 Years Old: Alexander Ovechkin, Forward
Alexander Ovechkin enters 2024-25 just 42 goals away from breaking Gretzky’s all-time record of 894. Ovechkin had 31 last season, so he might have to wait a bit to achieve this mark, but it seems likely that he does.
The Washington Capitals aren’t a threat to win the Stanley Cup like they were during Ovechkin’s prime but they should be in the mix for the playoffs. The 39-year-old will be key for that to happen.
Honorable Mentions: Brent Burns, Ryan Suter
41 Years Old: Mark Giordano, Defenseman
Due to the retirement of players like Joe Pavelski and Zach Parise, there are no 40-year-old players in the NHL. Skipping to 41, Mark Giordano is still the oldest player in the league, not yet choosing to retire. He scored nine points in 46 games with the Toronto Maple Leafs last season.
Though he was restricted to third-pairing minutes, Giordano is one of the best bottom-pairing defenders in the league despite his age. The 18-year veteran has a Norris Trophy to his name but his first Stanley Cup would probably be just as special.
First-overall picks and undrafted players make up 12 of the 23 names here. The vast difference in background with not much in between is certainly interesting. Perhaps that’s a trend that will fade in the future.