The NHL Network recently ranked the top-20 wingers in the NHL and Johnny Gaudreau comfortably made the list.
And the Top 20 Wings Right Now are…#NHLTopPlayers pic.twitter.com/JDQEV17bmd
— NHL Network (@NHLNetwork) August 14, 2017
Gaudreau ranked as the 15th best *forward* last summer so it's no surprise to see him slotted in the top half for wingers.
I think the ranking is pretty accurate, too. Gaudreau didn't have his best season but he was still very effective (61 points in 72 games is a pretty good 'down' year) and deserves recognition as one of the league's best.
You could nitpick and argue Gaudreau should be ahead of a couple guys inside the top-10 -- I had Gaudreau higher than Patrik Laine when ranking the top wingers in the Western Conference-- but, for the most part, the top-10 is very reasonable and the guys slotted ahead are probably better; at least right now.
What do you think of the list? Should Gaudreau rank higher or lower? Did anything else surprise you?
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