Who Are NHL's top-five centers, and does New Jersey Devils star Jack Hughes make the list?
Who are the top five centers in the National Hockey League? More importantly, does the list include New Jersey Devils star Jack Hughes?
The National Hockey League slate begins on October 4th, with the New Jersey Devils heading to Prague to take on the Buffalo Sabres. With September rapidly approaching, the season is almost a mere month away. With the players returning to the ice soon, fans are looking forward to seeing those in the center position—the most coveted position in the league currently filled with talent.
Let’s take a look at where Devils’ star and center Jack Hughes stacks up amongst the league-wide talent.
5. Leon Draisaitl — Edmonton Oilers
Not the only Oilers player to be found on this list, Draisaitl drastically belongs in the top five. He is a natural center found on the wing, utilizing both his speed and vision on the ice. Draisaitl has played in every NHL All-Star Game since 2019 and was placed on the NHL Second All-Star Team in 2023. Last season the Germany native scored 41 goals and assisted for 65. He currently sits with 850 career points.
4. Sidney Crosby — Pittsburgh Penguins
The Canada native and captain is one of the greatest players of the modern age. He is a three-time Stanley Cup winner, winning it in 2009, 2016 and 2017. At 37-years-old, Crosby has been playing for the Penguins since 2005. He has experience in the league for almost two decades. Last season he led the Penguins by earning 94 points in 82 games played. His resume, competitive drive and joy for playing the game speak for itself.
3. Auston Matthews — Toronto Maple Leafs
2023 marked Matthews’ fifth consecutive season he has scored at least forty goals. His playing style is known for his agility and thinking at both ends of the ice. Another captain, he had 107 points — including eight game winning goals — and 18 power-play goals. At one point in his career he has also become the ninth player in NHL history with at least two 60-goal seasons, joining NHL legend Wayne Gretzky.
2. Nathan MacKinnon — Colorado Avalanche
Known for his performance through the neutral zone, the Avalanche’s center set NHL career highs across plenty of categories in 2022 when Colorado won the Stanley Cup, including 111 points, 42 goals and 69 assists across 71 games played. Most recently he received the Hart Memorial Trophy for the 2023-24 season after amassing a total of 140 points that year. Going into this year, he needs only to amass 101 points to reach the coveted 1,000 career points milestone.
1. Connor McDavid — Edmonton Oilers
Coming in at No. 1 to what is likely nobody’s surprise, is the five-time Art Ross Trophy winner Connor McDavid. He finished the 2024 playoffs with 42 points in 25 games — only Gretzky and Mario Lemieux have ever earned more in one single postseason. Just last season, he was also third in the NHL with 132 points in 76 games, including 32 goals and 100 assists in the regular season.
So, what about Jack Hughes?
Obviously, Pucks and Pitchforks did not place Hughes in the top five list. But Hughes has potential.
Since joining the NHL, he scored his first NHL hat trick in a 5-1 victory over the Washington Capitals in November of 2022. At the time he was under 22, becoming the eighth-youngest player in Devils/Colorado Rockies/Kansas City Scouts history to earn a hat trick.
Hughes is currently 23 years old. He has played 306 career games and has 114 goals and 167 assists. He helped the Devils advance to the playoffs in 2023 for the first time since 2018. Of course, last season was painful, both emotionally for us Devils fans but also physically for Hughes. He seemed like a lock for a top-five center going into last season, but injuries threw off the timeline.
With his age being brought up, it is time to point out the obvious — Hughes is young. Give Hughes half a season of more experience on NHL ice under his belt, and he’ll easily make the top five. He also has to stay healthy. That's a big part of it. 2024-25 is a huge season for his development, and he could be on this list next season.
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