EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsThe 2026-27 NHL season is 10 days old, but what a wild campaign it's been so far.There have been exciting debuts by a number of rookies, a goalie goal by Igor Shesterkin, and an incredible scoring display by Oilers stars Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Evan Bouchard.This week also included the release of ESPN's annual NHL Rank, which listed the top 100 players for the coming season as voted on by a panel of broadcasters, reporters and analysts.Along with an updated 1-32 poll here, let's take a look at who from each team was represented in that Top 100 for 2026-27.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. Those ballots are combined to come up with the rankings you see below.Note: Previous ranking for each team refers to the preseason preview, which published on Sept. 28. Points percentages are through Thursday's games.1. Colorado AvalanchePrevious ranking: 2Points percentage: 75%As one of the top teams in the league, it's not surprising that the Avs landed five players on the list: Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Martin Necas, Mackenzie Blackwood and Devon Toews.Next seven days: vs. TOR (Oct. 10), @ DAL (Oct. 13), vs. DAL (Oct. 14)2. Utah MammothPrevious ranking: 11Points percentage: 60%Off to perhaps a surprisingly hot start, the Mammoth have four Top 100 players this year: Clayton Keller, Dylan Guenther, Logan Cooley and Mikhail Sergachev.Next seven days: @ BUF (Oct. 10), vs. TOR (Oct. 13), @ EDM (Oct. 15)3. Vegas Golden KnightsPrevious ranking: 5Points percentage: 80%Despite an appearance in the 2026 Stanley Cup Final, just four Golden Knights cracked the Top 100: Jack Eichel, Mitch Marner, Mark Stone and Shea Theodore.Next seven days: vs. LA (Oct. 10), @ MIN (Oct. 12), @ NSH (Oct. 13), vs. CGY (Oct. 15)4. Minnesota WildPrevious ranking: 6Points percentage: 62.5%The Wild landed two players in the top 10 (Quinn Hughes and Kirill Kaprizov), another in the top 20 (Matt Boldy) and one further down the charts -- the currently injured Brock Faber, at No. 72.Next seven days: @ FLA (Oct. 10), vs. VGK (Oct. 12), @ WPG (Oct. 13), vs. STL (Oct. 15)5. New York RangersPrevious ranking: 25Points percentage: 80%Given the Blueshirts' start, perhaps our NHL Rank voters underestimated the talent on the roster, with just two making the list: Igor Shesterkin and Adam Fox.Next seven days: @ WSH (Oct. 9), vs. VAN (Oct. 11), vs. TB (Oct. 13), @ NJ (Oct. 15)6. Edmonton OilersPrevious ranking: 9Points percentage: 87.5%Those three superstars mentioned in the intro? That's it for the Oilers on the Top 100, although McDavid and Draisaitl were among the top six.Next seven days: @ SJ (Oct. 10), @ LA (Oct. 13), vs. UTA (Oct. 15)7. Florida PanthersPrevious ranking: 4Points percentage: 75%Poised for another serious run at the Stanley Cup, the Panthers will do so with four top-50 players: Matthew Tkachuk, Aleksander Barkov, Sam Reinhart and Brady Tkachuk.Next seven days: vs. MIN (Oct. 10), @ BUF (Oct. 12), @ CBJ (Oct. 13), vs. VAN (Oct. 15)8. Carolina HurricanesPrevious ranking: 1Points percentage: 70%The Cup champs have found success in recent seasons with a "superstar-free" approach, sending waves upon waves at opponents. Five Canes made the Top 100 this year: Sebastian Aho, Jaccob Slavin, Seth Jarvis, Andrei Svechnikov and Nikolaj Ehlers.Next seven days: @ CHI (Oct. 10), @ PHI (Oct. 11), vs. WSH (Oct. 13)9. Anaheim DucksPrevious ranking: 14Points percentage: 66.7%The Ducks have an exciting (and now quite wealthy) young core group, and three members of it made the list: Leo Carlsson, Jackson LaCombe and Cutter Gauthier.Next seven days: @ WPG (Oct. 9), @ CGY (Oct. 10), vs. CGY (Oct. 13)10. Tampa Bay LightningPrevious ranking: 8Points percentage: 75%Our voters clearly still believe that Tampa Bay's contention window is wide open, with six Lightning players in the Top 100: Nikita Kucherov, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Jake Guentzel, Brandon Hagel, Brayden Point and Victor Hedman.Next seven days: @ NYI (Oct. 10), @ NYR (Oct. 13), vs. SEA (Oct. 15)11. Pittsburgh PenguinsPrevious ranking: 20Points percentage: 50%Just three Penguins made the list this year, and you can probably envision them before reading this list: Sidney Crosby, Erik Karlsson and Evgeni Malkin.Next seven days: @ CBJ (Oct. 9), vs. DAL (Oct. 10), @ CHI (Oct. 13)12. Winnipeg JetsPrevious ranking: 28Points percentage: 87.5%Yes, Connor Hellebuyck made the list -- so clearly our voters believe he'll be suiting up for someone at some point this season. In addition to the netminder, Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor and Josh Morrissey made the cut.Next seven days: vs. ANA (Oct. 9), vs. MIN (Oct. 13), @ CHI (Oct. 15)13. Ottawa SenatorsPrevious ranking: 19Points percentage: 75%With Brady Tkachuk now on the Panthers, the Sens have come out of the gates strong. However, our voters didn't give them much love, with just two players landing in the Top 100: Jake Sanderson and Tim Stutzle.Next seven days: vs. NSH (Oct. 10), @ NJ (Oct. 12), vs. STL (Oct. 13), vs. NYI (Oct. 15)14. Buffalo SabresPrevious ranking: 10Points percentage: 50%Is Western New York prepared for another playoff run? The Sabres' two reps on the Rank list -- Rasmus Dahlin and Tage Thompson -- will keep pushing them toward that goal.Next seven days: vs. UTA (Oct. 10), vs. FLA (Oct. 12), @ MTL (Oct. 13), @ TOR (Oct. 15)15. Washington CapitalsPrevious ranking: 12Points percentage: 66.7%It's Alex Ovechkin's final NHL season, and yes, he made his final NHL Rank list as well. He is joined by teammates Logan Thompson, Jakob Chychrun and Tom Wilson.Next seven days: vs. NYR (Oct. 9), vs. SEA (Oct. 11), @ CAR (Oct. 13), vs. MTL (Oct. 14)16. Seattle KrakenPrevious ranking: 30Points percentage: 50%Well, when you have 32 teams in the league and only 100 spots on a rankings list, there are bound to be teams that don't land anyone there. Such is the case for the Kraken (and two other clubs) this season.Next seven days: @ DET (Oct. 9), @ WSH (Oct. 11), @ PHI (Oct. 13), @ TB (Oct. 15)17. Dallas StarsPrevious ranking: 3Points percentage: 50%Much like the Lightning, ESPN's voters believe the veteran-laden Stars are also firmly in a contention window. Like Tampa Bay, Dallas landed six players on the list: Mikko Rantanen, Jason Robertson, Wyatt Johnston, Miro Heiskanen, Jake Oettinger and Thomas Harley.Next seven days: @ PIT (Oct. 10), vs. COL (Oct. 13), @ COL (Oct. 14)18. San Jose SharksPrevious ranking: 13Points percentage: 75%One of the surprises of the poll was Macklin Celebrini landing at No. 4 overall in his third NHL season. Just one other Shark made the cut this year: Will Smith.Next seven days: vs. EDM (Oct. 10), vs. BOS (Oct. 13), @ NSH (Oct. 15)19. Boston BruinsPrevious ranking: 17Points percentage: 60%The Bruins have been a bit up and down this season, but the skill level of their "Big 3" is not in question; our voters agreed, electing David Pastrnak, Charlie McAvoy and Jeremy Swayman to the list.Next seven days: vs. PHI (Oct. 10), @ SJ (Oct. 13)20. Montreal CanadiensPrevious ranking: 7Points percentage: 37.5%One of the other surprises -- to some -- is the fact that six Canadiens made the Top 100, tying the Stars and Lightning for the most by a team. But who can argue against Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Lane Hutson, Juraj Slafkovsky, Noah Dobson or Ivan Demidov?Next seven days: vs. DET (Oct. 10), vs. BUF (Oct. 13), @ WSH (Oct. 14)21. Toronto Maple LeafsPrevious ranking: 18Points percentage: 50%For years, the Leafs were led by the "Core Four." Perhaps they have a new one, centered around Auston Matthews, William Nylander, Kirill Marchenko and Darren Raddysh?Next seven days: @ COL (Oct. 10), @ UTA (Oct. 13), vs. BUF (Oct. 15)22. Columbus Blue JacketsPrevious ranking: 23Points percentage: 50%It's no shock that Zach Werenski made the list (and landed in the top 10). But a pleasant surprise for Jackets fans is that youngsters Adam Fantilli and Matthew Knies join him in the Top 100.Next seven days: vs. PIT (Oct. 9), @ STL (Oct. 10), vs. FLA (Oct. 13)23. New York IslandersPrevious ranking: 22Points percentage: 50%Like Celebrini at No. 4, Matthew Schaefer landing at No. 16 raised some eyebrows among analysts and league insiders this week. The reigning Calder Trophy winner is joined by teammates Ilya Sorokin, Bo Horvat and Mathew Barzal.Next seven days: vs. TB (Oct. 10), vs. VAN (Oct. 13), @ OTT (Oct. 15)24. Nashville PredatorsPrevious ranking: 26Points percentage: 62.5%A trio of veterans made the cut this year, all in the 51-100 range after prior appearances in much higher slots: Filip Forsberg, Roman Josi and Steven Stamkos.Next seven days: @ OTT (Oct. 10), vs. VGK (Oct. 13), vs. SJ (Oct. 15)25. Vancouver CanucksPrevious ranking: 32Points percentage: 40%It shouldn't be too shocking to learn that last season's basement dwellers landed zero players in the Top 100. But given how hot some of them have started on the score sheet, perhaps it'll be quite a different story in the spring.Next seven days: @ NJ (Oct. 10), @ NYR (Oct. 11), @ NYI (Oct. 13), @ FLA (Oct. 15)26. Detroit Red WingsPrevious ranking: 27Points percentage: 33.3%It was a rough offseason for the Red Wings, with trade requests and contract holdouts and still no permanent general manager. But there's hope, with four Wings in the Top 100: Moritz Seider, Alex DeBrincat, Lucas Raymond and Dylan Larkin (who may be wearing a different sweater before season's end).Next seven days: vs. SEA (Oct. 9), @ MTL (Oct. 10), vs. NJ (Oct. 13), vs. PHI (Oct. 15)27. New Jersey DevilsPrevious ranking: 15Points percentage: 33.3%Should we start saying that the Devils have a Big 3 as well? That's the group that made the Top 100, including Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier and Jesper Bratt.Next seven days: vs. VAN (Oct. 10), vs. OTT (Oct. 12), @ DET (Oct. 13), vs. NYR (Oct. 15)28. St. Louis BluesPrevious ranking: 24Points percentage: 37.5%For a team that narrowly missed the 2026 playoffs, one would think the Blues would land more players in the Top 100. Alas, it's just Robert Thomas and Dylan Holloway.Next seven days: vs. CBJ (Oct. 10), @ OTT (Oct. 13), @ MIN (Oct. 15)29. Los Angeles KingsPrevious ranking: 21Points percentage: 16.7%As the Kings begin the post-Anze Kopitar era, they do so with three Top 100 players: Artemi Panarin, Adrian Kempe and Brandt Clarke.Next seven days: @ VGK (Oct. 10), vs. EDM (Oct. 13)30. Chicago BlackhawksPrevious ranking: 29Points percentage: 20%Just one Blackhawk makes the list, and you can probably guess which one it was: Connor Bedard, who landed at No. 43 overall.Next seven days: vs. CAR (Oct. 10), vs. PIT (Oct. 13), vs. WPG (Oct. 15)31. Philadelphia FlyersPrevious ranking: 16Points percentage: 20%Perhaps surprisingly, only one Flyer made the list, too -- and it might not be the one you're picturing. Trevor Zegras is Philly's lone rep in the Top 100.Next seven days: @ BOS (Oct. 10), vs. CAR (Oct. 11), vs. SEA (Oct. 13), @ DET (Oct. 15)32. Calgary FlamesPrevious ranking: 31Points percentage: 0%Amid an acknowledged period of rebuilding, contention appears distant for the Flames. And so it follows that they did not place any players in the Top 100 this season.Next seven days: vs. ANA (Oct. 10), @ ANA (Oct. 13), @ VGK (Oct. 15)
