The NHL Network released their annual Top 20 lists for each position. There’s been a lot of debate about the lists and the omissions/inclusions, so we* figured we’d join in the fun.

*-SalMerc emailed us and mentioned these lists and gave us the idea to write about it. So “we” is a bit of a stretch, but Sal has been here since very close to Day One, so he’s a “we”.

Before we even get to the lists, I think it’s fair to mention that these lists are driven by some old school thought processes. However the biggest influencer here is recency bias. With that, let’s get to it.

First up is the wingers. I don’t know how Taylor Hall, the Hart winner, isn’t number one on the list. Or Alex Ovechkin. Nikita Kucherov, who is elite in his own right, owns that spot apparently. But Brad Marchand ahead of Patrik Laine? Come on.

Notice no Rangers. Shocker…

And on to the defensemen. Yet again Erik Karlsson gets disrespected, but mostly because Drew Doughty is second, and not Karlsson. Aside from that, I’m actually good with most of this list (Charlie McAvoy?). I know, weird right?

Note no Rangers…

And now to the centers. This one, at least to me, is somewhat fine. William Karlsson stands out to me, but again recency bias. He had a great season, but I don’t think he’s better than Couturier, Getzlaf, or Draisaitl.

Oh hey, no Rangers. I guess that shouldn’t be a shocker.

The Top 20 goalies list either isn’t released, or I can’t find it. Henrik Lundqvist is likely to make that list, and be the only Ranger to appear on any of these lists. I guess this shouldn’t surprise any of us. The Rangers are either good middle of the road players or possibly elite prospects.

What do you guys think of the lists?

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