NHL Player Power Rankings: Gaudreau outshines Lightning stars
In the second running of theScore's NHL Player Power Rankings, editors Sean O'Leary, Craig Hagerman, and Ian McLaren order the top players from around the league this season - with extra consideration given to their performances this month - and there are plenty of new faces this time around.
10. Auston Matthews
Previously 5th
| GP | G | A | P | P/PG | 5-on-5 CF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | 12 | 11 | 23 | 1.10 | 53.12 |
An unknown upper-body injury sidelined Matthews for four games this month, but the Toronto Maple Leafs star made his presence felt immediately upon his return, burying two goals in his first game back.
Despite missing action for the first time in his young career, Matthews remains highly productive as the heartbeat of one of the league's most exciting teams. -O'Leary
9. Taylor Hall
Previously unranked
| GP | G | A | P | P/PG | 5-on-5 CF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | 8 | 18 | 26 | 1.13 | 49.69 |
The New Jersey Devils are still in the thick of the Metropolitan Division race, and Hall is a huge reason why.
The 26-year-old is on pace for the best campaign of his career, and has developed nice chemistry with rookie Nico Hischier on the Devils' top line. It's refreshing to see Hall healthy and playing up to his full potential again. -O'Leary
8. Phil Kessel
Previously unranked
(Photo Courtesy: Getty Images)
| GP | G | A | P | P/PG | 5-on-5 CF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | 11 | 20 | 31 | 1.24 | 50 |
It's almost crazy to say, but where would the Pittsburgh Penguins be without Kessel right now?
With Sidney Crosby playing well below his usual standards and Evgeni Malkin injured, Kessel has easily been the best player for the back-to-back champs this season. He sits nine points clear of the captain for the team lead in scoring, and is fifth overall in the league. Phil forever. - O'Leary
7. Connor McDavid
Previously 4th
| GP | G | A | P | P/PG | 5-on-5 CF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 | 10 | 20 | 30 | 1.25 | 55.53 |
Poor Connor - the NHL's most exciting player is on pace for another 100-point season, but all anyone can talk about is how awful the rest of his team is.
In fairness, the Oilers have been pretty terrible, but McDavid can't do it all by himself, and his talent shouldn't be discredited by a failing supporting cast. - O'Leary
6. Sergei Bobrovsky
Previously 10th
| GP | SV% | GAA | W | SO | SA | SV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 | .936 | 1.86 | 14 | 3 | 574 | 537 |
Bobrovsky continues to make a strong case for his second straight Vezina Trophy.
He's gone 7-2-1 during the month of November and has helped the Columbus Blue Jackets move to within a point of the Devils for top spot in the Metropolitan Division.
Plus, he's made some downright unbelievable stops along the way. - Hagerman
5. William Karlsson
Previously unranked
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
| GP | G | A | P | P/PG | 5-on-5 CF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 | 13 | 9 | 22 | 1.00 | 52.27 |
No one has scored more goals this month than Karlsson.
Through his team's 11 games, he found the back of the net 10 times and chipped in with another five helpers. He's currently riding a five-game goal-scoring streak that's seen him light the lamp seven times.
Karlsson's success on the Vegas strip likely also has the Blue Jackets' front office kicking itself right about now. - Hagerman
4. Brayden Schenn
Previously unranked
| GP | G | A | P | P/PG | 5-on-5 CF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 | 10 | 20 | 30 | 1.25 | 57.08 |
Next to the red-hot trio in Tampa Bay, the threesome of Schenn, Vladimir Tarasenko, and Jaden Schwartz in St. Louis has been the league's most lethal.
Leading the pack has surprisingly been Schenn, who's paced the group with 30 points early in his first season with the Blues. His 19 points in November are tied for the most in the league, while the 26-year-old is already more than halfway to matching his career high of 59 points. -Hagerman
3. Nikita Kucherov
Previously 1st
| GP | G | A | P | P/PG | 5-on-5 CF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | 17 | 17 | 34 | 1.48 | 52.46 |
Passed in the goals race by Alex Ovechkin, Kucherov has recorded just a lone assist over his past four games, thereby allowing the field to catch up in the overall scoring race, too.
He still remains in a tie for second in scoring, but with five players now within five points, Kucherov has lost a touch of the luster garnered during his dominant start to his season. - McLaren
2. Steven Stamkos
Previously 2nd
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
| GP | G | A | P | P/PG | 5-on-5 CF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | 10 | 26 | 36 | 1.57 | 54.06 |
It's hard to knock the NHL's leading scorer, but just like Kucherov, Stamkos has begun falling back to earth after a truly out-of-this-world start to the season.
He's also recorded only a single assist over his past four games, and while Stamkos' performance to date coming off a major leg injury has been downright inspiring, a plucky underdog has eclipsed him in our rankings, at least for the time being. - McLaren
1. Johnny Gaudreau
Previously unranked
| GP | G | A | P | P/PG | 5-on-5 CF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | 11 | 23 | 34 | 1.48 | 54.63 |
Since the beginning of November, no player has recorded more points than Calgary's Gaudreau, whose eight goals and 11 assists have him level with Schenn for the month.
Over that stretch, he's jumped into a tie for second in NHL scoring with Kucherov, and is just two points back of Stamkos for the lead.
On pace for 121 points, Gaudreau is well on his way to bouncing back from a down 2016-17 season and smashing the career-high 78 points he recorded in 2015-16. As it stands, he's put himself in the running for both the Art Ross and Hart trophies. - McLaren
(Advanced stats courtesy: Corsica)