Time for my favorite players of the Metropolitan Division
Carolina - Jordan Staal
Obviously my fondness for this player goes back quite a ways. To this day nobody has surpassed the center depth the Penguins had when they were able to run out Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Jordan Staal in the cap era. While Staal hasn't approached his rookie goal total of 29 he also hasn't had the opportunity to cash in on his quality of teammate since then. Staal is one of the absolute best defensive forwards in the league and he deserves more attention than he gets. I don't think he would be an offensive dynamo, but if he wasn't playing against the NHL's best players with a rotating cast of top nine tweeners his offensive numbers would surely be better.
His shorthanded goal against the Detroit Red Wings in 2009 is one of the best Penguins goals of all-time. It was a must have and opened the door for Pittsburgh to stay with Detroit and ultimately win the Stanley Cup
Yeah that was the best defensive pairing in the NHL he split (Lidstrom and Rafalski)
Columbus - Artemi Panarin
While I'm not sure I agree with giving the Calder Trophy to somebody who has already played in the KHL I know I don't really care enough to let it stop me from enjoying this tremendous player. This guy went undrafted? He is straight up one of the best players in the league. He benefited from playing with Patrick Kane in Chicago, but when he was traded from Chicago to Columbus he proved that he wasn't a passenger along for the ride. The hardest thing to do in NHL hockey is to create time and space because of the way it is coached now. Panarin makes it look so easy.
New Jersey - Taylor Hall
I hate when talented players in hockey are expected to drag up management's idiotic decisions and when they can't (because hockey isn't basketball) they get labeled a loser. Taylor Hall is not a loser. He's the MVP of the league and the beginning of his career was wasted in Edmonton much like how Connor McDavid's younger years are going to be wasted. Hall is so lethal in transition as his ability to gain the zone with control and open up lanes is among the best in the league. He scraped everything out of his talent to get the Devils into the playoffs this year and that is quite the feat considering where that franchise has been in recent years. He got to escape one hockey man in order to prop up the disaster the other hockey man left behind.
New York Islander - Matt Barzal
There isn't much on the Island right now other than overpriced bottom six forwards. Barzal had an awesome rookie season (Calder Trophy) and will quickly become one of the better forwards in the entire NHL. How much help is he going to get moving forward? That's going to lower his ceiling and it won't be his fault. Luckily for Barzal he also has the ability to create for himself and others. He is a line driver and does not ultimately need others to do the hard work, although it would be nice.
New York Rangers - Mats Zuccarello
I have an affinity for crafty players and Zuccarello is certainly that. He's such a smart player and is able to thrive in the NHL despite being considered a small player. He had a horrible head injury which left his career in doubt, but has been able to continue producing for the New York Rangers. His underlying passing data is excellent which is a credit to both his hockey IQ and his soft hands.
Philadelphia - Claude Giroux
He may still be searching for a baton that was never passed to him, but he's been an superb player for the Philadelphia Flyers over the years. I wrote him off as a declining player because his even-strength scoring dried up the past two years, but he roared back in 2017-18 and garnered some Hart Trophy buzz. He's been good enough to make Team Canada despite them looking the other way. His work on the power play is flat out great. He sees the ice so well and draws attention to the left half circle. His passing skills expose the penalty killers and allows the other four to make easier plays. After some down years it appears the Flyers are on the upswing again and a big part of that is Giroux's play as of late
Pittsburgh - Evgeni Malkin
He's not the best player on the team. That honor still belongs to Sidney Crosby. Malkin is the most fun player on the Penguins. Whether it is his style on the ice, his interviews, or his off the ice adventures Malkin is one of the very best superstars in hockey to follow. His on-ice ability speaks for itself. His elegance and grace he plays at with the size he possesses makes him one of the most unique players in hockey. He plays on the edge and at times goes over it. When he finds the perfect balance it has been said that no player has a higher ceiling than Evgeni Malkin, even Sidney Crosby.
Malkin is comfortably in the 90th percentile in all the underlying stats that document a player's ability to pass and create for others. He's a one man band that that doesn't forget about using his teammates. The Penguins may have lost out on Alexander Ovechkin, but I wouldn't have it any other way.
Washington Capitals - Alexander Ovechkin
What a player. People can finally stop making that idiotic White Russian joke after this past spring. He is the best goal scorer of all-time. You read that correctly. When you talk about the current level of goaltending and the amount of goals that teams score in his era it's almost laughable to look back at the eighties. Ovechkin plays like a bull and also happens to be one of the most durable players in the league. He wears his emotions on his sleeve. He's a modern legend and we are lucky to have him
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