NHL 23 releases Oct. 14, 2023, for PC and console, and ahead of the sports game’s launch, EA Sports is continuing its yearly tradition of announcing the top player ratings. This time, EA divided the best of the best into several position categories, including centers, goalies, and defense positions, with picks across the board from teams such as the Edmonton Oilers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Vegas Golden Knights, and New York Rangers. We’ve broken them down based on position and listed the top 10 in each category to help you plan ahead and get your dream team in order before you even get your hands on the game.
If you’re in a sporting mood and looking for something to pass the time until NHL 23 launches, check out our picks for the best Madden 23 offensive and defensive playbooks and the definitive Madden 23 MUT guide to build an unstoppable team.
NHL 23 Top 10 Centers
The Edmonton Oilers supply most of the high-ranking centers this year.
1. Connor McDavid – 95 (Edmonton Oilers)
2. Auston Matthews – 94 (Toronto Maple Leafs)
3. Nathan MacKinnon – 94 (Colorado Avalanche)
4. Leon Draisaitl – 93 (Edmonton Oilers)
5. Sidney Crosby – 93 (Pittsburgh Penguins)
6. Aleksander Barkov – 92 (Florida Panthers)
7. Steven Stamkos – 90 (Tampa Bay Lightning)
8. Evgeni Malkin – 90 (Pittsburgh Penguins)
9. Sebastian Aho – 89 (Carolina Hurricanes)
10. Patrice Bergeron – 89 (Boston Bruins)
NHL 23 Top 10 Goalies
2023’s top goalies come from across the board, with representation from the Lightning, Flames, and Ducks.
1. Andrei Vasilevskiy – 94 (Tampa Bay Lightning)
2. Igor Shesterkin – 92 (New York Rangers)
3. Connor Hellebuyck – 90 (Winnipeg Jets)
4. Jacob Markstrom – 90 (Calgary Flames)
5. John Gibson – 90 (Anaheim Ducks)
6. Thatcher Demko – 89 (Vancouver Canucks)
7. Jusse Saros – 89 (Nashville Predators)
8. Frederik Andersen – 89 (Carolina Hurricanes)
9. Ilya Sorokin – 88 (New York Islanders)
10. Sergei Bobrovsky – 88 (Flordia Panthers)
NHL 23 Top 10 Left Defense
The numbers might not seem as impressive for Left Defense as they are for Centers, but there’s no shortage of top talent to choose from nonetheless.
1. Roman Josi – 93 (Nashville Predators)
2. Victor Hedman – 93 (Tampa Bay Lightning)
3. Devon Toews – 93 (Colorado Avalanche)
4. Morgan Rielly – 88 (Toronto Maple Leafs)
5. Miro Heiskanen – 88 (Dallas Stars)
6. Rasmus Dahlin – 88 (Buffalo Sabres)
7. Quinn Hughes – 87 (Vancouver Canucks)
8. Zach Werenski – 87 (Columbus Blue Jackets)
9. Jacob Slavin – 87 (Carolina Hurricanes)
10. Shea Theodore – 87 (Vegas Golden Knights)
NHL 23 Top 10 Right Defense
NHL 23 adds some new names to the top of the charts for right defense, though a few stars from NHL 2022 show up as well.
1. Cale Makar – 94 (Colorado Avalanche)
2. Adam Fox – 90 (New York Rangers)
3. John Carlson – 90 (Washington Capitals)
4. Charlie McAvoy – 89 (Boston Bruins)
5. Alex Piertrangelo – 89 (Vegas Golden Knights)
6. Aaron Ekblad – 89 (Florida Panthers)
7. Drew Doughty – 89 (Los Angeles Kings)
8. Kris Letang – 88 (Pittsburgh Penguins)
9. Dougie Hamilton – 88 (New Jersey Devils)
10. Moritz Seider – 87 (Detroit Red Wings)
NHL 23 Top 10 Left Wing
1. Jonathan Huberdeau – 92 (Calgary Flames)
2. Artemi Panarin – 92 (New York Rangers)
3. Alex Ovechkin – 92 (Washington Capitals)
4. Brad Marchand – 91 (Boston Bruins)
5. Kirill Kaprizov – 91 (Minnesota Wild)
6. Johnny Gaudreau – 90 (Columbus Blue Jackets)
7. Matthew Tkachuk – 90 (Florida Panthers)
8. Kyle Connor – 90 (Winnipeg Jets)
9. Gabriel Landeskog – 89 (Colorado Avalanche)
10. Filip Forsberg – 88 (Nashville Predators)
NHL 23 Top 10 Right Wing
As with the left wings, 2023’s right wings haven’t changed much from 2022.
1. Patrick Kane – 93 (Chicago Blackhawks)
2. Nikita Kucherov – 92 (Tampa Bay Lightning)
3. Mikko Rantanen – 91 (Colorado Avalanche)
4. David Pastrnak – 91 (Boston Bruins)
5. Mitchell Marner – 90 (Toronto Maple Leafs)
6. Alex DeBrincat – 89 (Ottawa Senators)
7. Mark Stone – 89 (Vegas Golden Knights)
8. Andrei Svechnikov – 88 (Carolina Hurricanes)
9. Vladimir Tarasenko – 88 (St. Louis Blues)
10. Jordan Kyrou – 87 (St. Louis Blues)
Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF