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In this edition of the hotstove, we share our rankings for the top-5 wingers in the Eastern Conference.
Todd Cordell
1. Taylor Hall
Hall possesses elite speed, puck skills, and a non-stop motor.
He finished 2nd to only Connor McDavid in Goals Above Replacement (GAR) last season and is easily the biggest reason the Devils squeezed into the playoffs.
2. Artemi Panarin
Panarin is as dynamic and creative with the puck as anyone and ranks 4th in 5v5 scoring over the last two years. He has silenced any talk he was just a byproduct of Patrick Kane.
3. Nikita Kucherov
Kucherov has averaged 98 points per 82 games played over the last two seasons. He is just as deadly at 5v5 as he is on the power play.
4. Brad Marchand
Marchand has developed into one of the league's best two-way wingers. He is a big-time point producer, and play driver, despite playing against the opposition's best players on a nightly basis.
5. Alex Ovechkin
Just when it looked like he was finally slowing down, Ovechkin roared back with a 49-goal, 87-point campaign. He is still an elite one-shot scorer.
James Tanner
1. Alex Oveckin. He led the NHL in goals (49) and was 2nd in 5v5 goals (to McDavid). He led the NHL in WAR and GAR, per Corsica. He should have won the Hart Trophy that didn't go to McDavid because he didn't make the playoffs.
2. Artemi Panarin. He's only been in the NHL for three years, but he's gotten better each year. Last year he had his best season despite moving away from Patrick Kane. By some measures, he was one of the most effective players in the NHL, and he put up 82 points and a 56% possession rating while playing with a rookie C and Cam Atkinson. He only had an on-ice shooting percentage of 7.5% (Hall was over 10) or he would have had even better numbers.
3. Taylor Hall. Over 90 points and one of the fastest players in the NHL. His Hart Trophy is fraudulent because at least two other players deserved it over him (McDavid and Ovechkin) but he's a great player. 3rd best winger in the East.
4. Nikita Kucherov. Over the last three years according to Ian Tulloch, his average GAR ranks him as the 6th best player in the league over that time. I rank him fourth here, but you could pretty much put Hall, Kucherov, Panarin and Ovechkin in any order and I would not argue it too hard.
5. Mitch Marner. He hasn't earned it yet, but given the players on his team and the potential of his talent, I'm ranking ahead of some currently better but more boring players like Stone and Giroux and Marchand. As one of the most fun players in the NHL to watch, I am over-ranking based on a combination of my personal bias and his potential.
Peter Tessier
1. Taylor Hall- playing with less talent but a far from a tire fire of an organization he wins the Hart and leads the east
2. Nikita Kucherov- yes he has a strong cast around him but he’s a total stud and any team would want him.
3. Artemi Panarin- somehow this guy might get traded? Why would any team make the Taylor Hall mistake?
4. Alex Ovechkin- finally wins a cup and still arguably the greatest goal scorer of all time.
5. Brad Marchand- love him or hate him this is the kind of player every team would want despite the antics- Burrows on steroids.
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