Besides the overall NHL 24 video game reveal, the most exciting news to take away from sports video games are the player ratings. That is the time we get to know who the best players will be in the game. Some of the best players stay the top players from year to year. However, there are some years when the previous best players are dethroned by new up-and-coming players. EA Sports is handling player ratings in NHL 24 a little bit differently this year and they need your help on deciding a couple of players’ overall.
EA Sports released a statement on Twitter asking, “which players in NHL 24 should have the highest overall rating? We are asking you the community to choose who will be the #1 player in each position in NHL 24.”
If you are interested to vote for who you believe should be the number one rated player at every position, you can vote via the following link: VOTE NOW. However, I will break down my picks as to who I believe will earn the honor at every position in NHL 24. Every position has five players to choose from that you can vote for except the Right Wings and Centers. Right Wing players only have four options to choose from. Centers have six options to choose from.
With this voting system in place, it means that not anyone can become the highest rated player at every position. It just means that one of the available voting options will be chosen. There is not a write in option. So, without further ado, let’s get started.
Highest Rated Left Wing in NHL 24
- Alex Ovechkin (WSH)
- Artemi Panarin (NYR)
- Brad Marchand (BOS)
- Matthew Tkachuk (FLA)
- Jason Robertson (DAL)
Last year in NHL 23, the number one rated Left wing was Jonathan Huberdeau. He was tied in overall with Artemi Panarin and Alex Ovechkin at a 92 overall. This year, Huberdeau isn’t even an option. He had a big letdown year and there are players who stood out this past season above the rest that really deserve the honor this year.
Alex Ovechkin is always one of the highest rated Left Wings and players in NHL video games. He is a future Hall of Famer and one of the greatest players to ever play in the NHL. However, his time being a top three Left Wing is coming to an end. There are a ton of up-and-coming young Left Wingers and I think it is time for Jason Robertson to get some spotlight as the highest rated Left Wing in NHL 24.
Jason Robertson had a breakout season for Dallas last year with 109 points. He accumulated 46 goals and 63 assists. The four years he has been in the NHL he has seen a 30-point production increase per season, including having back-to-back 40+ goal seasons. Jason Robertson is young and we are finally getting to see his full potential. The Dallas Stars will once again be contenders and I think Jason Robertson may have an even better year this year than he did last year. He is going to cause havoc in the Central Division for years to come. Alex Ovechkin and Brad Marchand will get a ton of votes as well, but I think Jason Robertson deserves the honor this year.
Pick: Jason Robertson (DAL)
Highest Rated Center in NHL 24
- Connor McDavid (EDM)
- Nathan MacKinnon (COL)
- Leon Draisaitl (EDM)
- Sidney Crosby (PIT)
- Auston Matthews (TOR)
- Tage Thompson (BUF)
This may be the easiest choice of them all. The number one Center in the NHL is Connor McDavid, and it really can’t be argued. Connor McDavid is basically guaranteed to get 100 point every season. He has reached at least 100 points in 6 of the 8 seasons that he has played in. The two seasons he didn’t reach 100 points was his rookie season where he was injured, but on pace for 100. The other season he got 97 points and only played in 64 games. Had he played two more games he probably would have gotten it.
Last year McDavid also achieved 153-point season. The first player to achieve at least 150 points in a season since Mario Lemieux did it in 1996. Connor McDavid is also a 6x All-Star, a 5x Art Ross winner, a 4x Ted Lindsay winner, a 3x Hart Trophy winner, and a newly Rocket Richard winner for his 64-goal performance last year. The list goes on and on when it comes to Connor McDavid. He is one of the greatest players to ever play in the NHL and we are witnessing something special every time McDavid steps onto the ice. Connor McDavid has been the highest rated NHL player in the video game since NHL 18 and I don’t see that trend stopping anytime soon.
Pick: Connor McDavid (EDM)
Highest Rated Right Wing in NHL 24
- David Pastrnak (BOS)
- Nikita Kucherov (TBL)
- Mikko Rantanen (COL)
- Mitchel Marner (TOR)
This is the category with the least number of choices to choose from. All four of these candidates are very deserving, but there is one that sticks out able the rest for me. Last year in NHL 23, Patrick Kane was the highest rated Right Winger in the game with a 93 overall. Patrick Kane’s performance has dipped slightly, and he won’t return to the top of the rankings this year. I have no doubt in my mind that Patrick Kane still has the skill to be a top Right Wing in the NHL, but there will be a new leader at Right Wing this year.
Nikita Kucherov of the Tampa Bay Lightning is the name that really sticks out to me on this list. Nikita Kucherov was second for Right Wingers last year with a 92 overall. Kucherov is also coming off of a 113-point season last year (30 goals, 83 assists). With a performance like that, it seems near impossible for his overall to decrease from one year to the next. Not to mention that Kucherov is a 2x Stanley Cup winner, a 4x All-Star, a Ted Lindsay winner, a Hart Trophy winner, and an Art Ross winner. The Tampa Bay Lightning are always a threat when they take the ice, and they are even more of a threat when Nikita Kucherov is healthy and playing in their games.
Pick: Nikita Kucherov (TBL)
Highest Rated Left Defenseman in NHL 24
- Roman Josi (NSH)
- Victor Hedman (TBL)
- Rasmus Dahlin (BUF)
- Quinn Hughes (VAN)
- Miro Heiskanen (DAL)
When you take a look at the five candidates for Left Defensemen, there are a few names that stick out. Roman Josi, Victor Hedman, and Miro Heiskanen are the favorite to earn the honor of number one this year. All three of these athletes play their position at an elite level and the highest overall rating for a Left Defenseman can go to either of them. Last year Roman Josi (#1) and Victor Hedman (#2) were to two highest overalls with a 93 overall. The next highest was Devon Toews (#3) at an 88 overall. The drop between #2 and #3 was five points. This year I think the drop off from number 2 to number 3 will only be a point or two.
Victor Hedman is my choice. Roman Josi is a great defender who was coming off a career high 96-point season the year previous. That is why his overall was so inflated. Don’t get me wrong, Roman Josi is one of the best defenders in the NHL. However, he took a big statistical decline where I see his overall dropping a bit.
On the other hand, you got Miro Heiskanen. Miro Heiskanen is one of the best scoring defensemen on this list and should see a massive increase in overall in NHL 24. Miro Heiskanen was the fifth highest rated Left Defenseman in NHL with an 88 overall. Anything less than a 90 overall this year would come as a bit of a surprise figuring that he had the best season of his NHL career so far last year.
Victor Hedman is not a shoe in to be the best Left Defensemen every year, but at least for this year it makes sense. If Miro Heiskanen can keep up the upward trajectory that we have seen in his young career so far, he will eventually make his way to number 1. However, I still think Victor Hedman is one of the most complete Defensemen on this list and has two Stanley Cup Championships, a Conn Smythe Trophy, and a Norris Trophy to back him up.
Pick: Victor Hedman (TBL)
Highest Rated Goalie in NHL 24
- Andrei Vasilevskiy (TBL)
- Igor Shesterkin (NYR)
- Connor Hellebuyck (WPG)
- Ilya Sorokin (NYI)
- Linus Ullmark (BOS)
Goaltenders are the backbone of nearly every team in the NHL. The list above is a very interesting one. All of these goaltenders are great. Linus Ullmark was part of history last year. Ullmark was the starter for the majority of Boston Bruins game during the best regular season an NHL team has ever had. His stats were unbelievable and he ultimately ended up winning the Vezina Trophy as the best goalie in the league last year. However, I don’t think one great season is enough to merit being the highest rated goalie in NHL 24.
Shesterkin, Hellebuyck and Sorokin are all top five goaltenders in the league, but once again I am leaning towards a Tampa Lightning player. Andrei Vasilevskiy is no doubt going to make it into the Hall of Fame. His playoff stats are unbelievable, and he is a Vezina Trophy winner, a Conn Smythe winner, and a 2x Stanley Cup winner.
If you can draft any goalie in the NHL to your team and you need to get a clutch win, you are going with Andrei Vasilevskiy. His numbers are insane in elimination games in the playoffs, and he turns on a switch when games are most meaningful. He has one of the best brains for goalies in the NHL. He can track down and locate the puck through traffic better than anyone. His hand eye coordination is tremendous. There is just not a lot of bad things you can say about Andrei Vasilevskiy. Andrei Vasilevskiy was a 94 overall in NHL 23 and I would not be surprised if he reached that mark once again or was even higher. Not only was he the best goalie in NHL 23 last year, but he was a top five player overall for any position. This just seems like he may be getting the most votes this year, but you never know how the voting will tally up.
Pick: Andrei Vasilevskiy (TBL)
Highest Rated Right Defenseman in NHL 24
- Cale Makar (COL)
- Adam Fox (NYR)
- Erik Karlsson (PIT)
- John Carlson (WSH)
- Charlie McAvoy (BOS)
Congrats on Erik Karlsson reaching 100-points last season. That is a milestone that doesn’t come too often for Defensemen. Erik Karlsson became only the sixth defensemen ever to reach that mark. It was a good accomplishment, but I don’t think this late in Karlsson’s career he should be the number one overall Right Defenseman. At 33 years old, his speed is not what it once was, and it is going to be hard to put up those type of numbers again.
Adam Fox, John Carlson, and Charlie McAvoy are all great defensemen as well, but can we really go against Cale Makar in this situation? I don’t think so. In my opinion, Cale Makar is the best defenseman in the NHL. He is one of the best skaters in the NHL, maybe even second behind McDavid. His hands are silky smooth, he makes playing defense look like a piece of cake, and he is only 24 years old. Cale Makar still hasn’t reached his prime of his career yet, which is actually really scary to think about what is still yet to come.
Cale Makar is also the NHL 24 Cover Athlete. This shouldn’t make a difference in terms of his overall, but it proves to how big he has become. Getting the Cover Athlete honor isn’t easy to do, and EA chooses players who are young, electric, and exciting to watch. Cale Makar and the Colorado Avalanche has a large fan base behind them and because of that, Makar is going to get a lot of well-deserved votes.
Voting on the top players at every position is an exciting twist EA Sports is throwing our way. It truly means that if a player has a strong enough backing, they can become the number one rated player this year. It should be interesting to see how the vote falls. If you want your voice heard, make sure you get your votes in now! Every vote matters! EA Sports is also doing the same thing for the women athletes in NHL 24. You can vote for the women at each position, just like you can the men. Once the votes are revealed, we will officially know who the highest rated player at every position in NHL 24 is.
Pick: Cale Makar (COL)