Positional rankings: Projecting the NHL's top 25 left wingers in 2016-17
(Note: These rankings are based on players' projected performances in 2016-17. Players are listed at their official NHL position when the rankings were created.)
Here’s the Yahoo Sports ranking of the top 25 left wingers in the NHL for the 2016-17 season. You can let us know where we went wrong (or right!) in the comments section.
1. Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals: They might call him the greatest goal-scorer in NHL history during his Hall of Fame induction ceremony. But will they also call him a Stanley Cup champion?
2. Jamie Benn, Dallas Stars: The best 129th overall draft pick ever.
3. Taylor Hall, New Jersey Devils: The best first overall draft pick ever traded for Adam Larsson.
4. Johnny Gaudreau, Calgary Flames: He’s much smaller than you are. He’s also much, much better at hockey than you are.
5. Max Pacioretty, Montreal Canadiens: Look for the Habs captain to record his fourth consecutive 30-plus goal season.
6. Brad Marchand, Boston Bruins: Nobody likes him and he really seems to like it like that.
7. Alex Steen, St. Louis Blues: A two-way force with a laser shot.
8. Filip Forsberg, Nashville Predators: Hey, he’s no Martin Erat but he’s alright.
9. Jaden Schwartz, St. Louis Blues: Should be good for 70 points if he can stay healthy.
10. Gabriel Landeskog, Colorado Avalanche: A power forward who gives it his all, we’d like to see an uptick in his offensive production.
11. Zach Parise, Minnesota Wild: A competitor who comes through in the clutch.
12. Rick Nash, New York Rangers: The big horse is slowing down but he can still gallop to the front of the net with the best of them.
13. Artemi Panarin, Chicago Blackhawks: Let’s see if he can carry Patrick Kane as well as he did last season.
14. Ondrej Palat, Tampa Bay Lightning: In hindsight, he probably shouldn’t have been the fourth-last player drafted in 2011 (208th overall).
15. Brandon Saad, Columbus Blue Jackets: It was a wreck of a season in Columbus last year, but the 23-year-old Saad still ended up with 31 goals.
16. Milan Lucic, Edmonton Oilers: The most intimidating 20-goal player in the league.
17. Daniel Sedin, Vancouver Canucks: He needs 58 points to reach 1,000 for his NHL career and you can expect it to happen this season.
18. Jonathan Huberdeau, Florida Panthers: The youth movement is in full effect in South Florida.
19. Andrew Ladd, New York Islanders: Not the fleetest of foot, but the biggest of heart.
20. Jeff Skinner, Carolina Hurricanes: It’s hard to believe that hockey’s Bieber is skating into his seventh NHL campaign.
21. Jamie McGinn, Arizona Coyotes: You don’t hear too much about him and that probably won’t change a whole lot as he moves to the desert. Still, he’s a gamer who deserves a spot on this list.
22. Michael Cammalleri, New Jersey Devils: He scores with regularity when healthy, but he’s had trouble staying in the lineup the past few seasons.
23. Max Domi, Arizona Coyotes: There’s no Tie in hockey -- but there’s a Max and he’s better.
24. James van Riemsdyk, Toronto Maple Leafs: Big body creates space in front of the net, soft hands to roof the puck.
25. Henrik Zetterberg, Detroit Red Wings: How will the soon-to-be 36-year-old fare without longtime running mate Pavel Datsyuk?
(The next five: Marcus Johansson, Washington Capitals; Matt Beleskey, Boston Bruins; Carl Hagelin, Pittsburgh Penguins; Mikkel Boedker, San Jose Sharks; Evander Kane, Buffalo Sabres.)
MORE NHL COVERAGE ON YAHOO SPORTS: