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Rankings, picks, and predictions for how the season will play out.

Current Sports

Vladimir Tarasenko

The best current NHL players are not just the league-leading skaters and goaltenders in the league right now but also some of the best hockey players in the world. These players are consistently leading their teams in statistical categories and in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

As the NHL&#39;s golden child and <a href="/list/fan-favorite-nhl-players/powerofthepuck" target="_blank">fan favorite NHL player</a>, Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins is seen by many as the best current NHL player. The young star quickly made his mark in the league by leading the Penguins to the Stanley Cup Championship in 2009 at the age of 21, the youngest captain to ever do so. He had a little help though with Evgeni Malkin, who also makes this list, serving as the Conn Smythe Trophy winner as the MVP of the playoffs.

But there are many more great current NHL players in the league besides those playing in Pittsburgh. Steven Stamkos, Alexander Giroux, Alexander Ovechkin, Pavel Datsyuk, Zdeno Chara and Jonathan Toews are all among the elite forwards and defensemen in the NHL right now. In net, Henrik Lundqvist, Jonathan Quick and Jimmy Howard are seen as the top NHL goaltenders right now.

Who do you think are the top NHL players in the league right now? The better question might be will these current hockey players be remembered among the <a href="/crowdranked-list/15-great-nhl-players" target="_blank">best NHL players of all time</a>? Have your say and vote for <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/the-ultimate-favorites-list/stevo200?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">your favorites</a>&nbsp;for the 2018-2019 season, add those not listed or re-rank this list of the best current NHL players!

2017 Sports

Patrick Kane

While there are several individual NHL awards, the Hart Memorial Trophy is awarded to the NHL's&nbsp;Most Valuable Player of that year. In the 2016-2017 NHL season, there are many deserving players, but only one can skate away as the 2017 Hart Memorial Trophy winner. Fans and analysts are already making their NHL MVP predictions, so we gathered the top players&nbsp;most likely to win the Hart Memorial Trophy in 2017.&nbsp;NHL players currently leading the league in points include Edmonton Oilers' center&nbsp;Connor McDavid, Pittsburgh Penguins' center&nbsp;Evgeni&nbsp;Malkin, and San Jose Sharks' defenseman&nbsp;Brent Burns. Several past&nbsp;Hart Memorial Trophy winners, like Washington Capitals' winger Alex Ovechkin and Pittsburgh Penguins' captain&nbsp;Sidney Crosby, are also in contention for the 2017 NHL MVP. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Vote for the player most likely to be NHL's MVP of the 2016-2017 season. Feel free to add your favorite player or any MVP worthy player&nbsp;missing from the list.&nbsp;

Hockey

Detroit Red Wings

Who is <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/best-nhl-teams-of-all-time/sportsyeah">the best team in the NHL</a> right now? Tough question. Just to play in the NHL, teams have to be slick out on the ice, but which hockey team is slickest in the 2019-2020&nbsp;season? Obviously, avid hockey fans can just look at the current NHL standings or simply point to whomever hoists <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/best-championship-trophies/pedro-cerrano">the Stanley Cup</a> over their heads as 2019&nbsp;champions (St. Louis Blues), but where&#39;s the fun in that?

Determining the top NHL teams this season isn&#39;t as straightforward as a math problem. There are circumstances and intangibles to be delicately weighed. After all, a <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/brutal-hockey-injuries/laura-allan">gruesome injury</a> on the ice could ruin a good team and a <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/most-important-hockey-goals/swiperight">crucial goal </a>could invigorate a decent team. Figuring out the greatest current hockey teams is too big a task for any one fan of the most Canadian sport this side of curling. Just as one person can&#39;t be expected to construct a Zamboni all on their own, no single person can puzzle out the answer to such a complex question.

It&#39;s only with the wisdom of the crowd that we can determine which team in the National Hockey League is the best, pound&nbsp;for pound, in the 2019-2020 season. That&#39;s where this list comes in. Vote up the NHL teams you think are the best, taking into account everything from players to coaches to <a href="http://www.ranker.com/crowdranked-list/the-coolest-hockey-team-logos-past-and-present">franchise logos</a>. Vote down the teams you think should be leaving their sticks at home due to lack of skill, hustle, coaching, or whatever else. Fun!

Bobby Ryan

With the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs underway, it's time to look back at the NHL players who failed to meet expectations this season. Many over-hyped NHL players last season saw major drops in their performances, falling on their asses both figuratively and literally on the ice. In a game where <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/hockey-players-missing-teeth/brandon-oliver">one easily loses teeth</a>, you really don't want to lose your edge. This <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/most-brutal-hockey-fight-videos/sportsyeah">is a brutal sport</a>, and its fans are no less savage in their feelings towards disappointing NHL players. Who is the most disappointing NHL player in 2017?&nbsp;Unfortunately, none of these gentlemen below skated&nbsp;strongly enough to be <a href="http://www.ranker.com/crowdranked-list/best-current-nhl-players">considered among the best in the league</a>.In his first season as captain of the Los Angeles Kings&nbsp;centerman&nbsp;Anže Kopitar&nbsp;failed to lead the team in scoring for the first time in nine years. Other underperforming&nbsp;NHL players this season include Boston Bruins&nbsp;Patrice Bergeron, Chicago Blackhawks&nbsp;Jonathan Toews, and Ottawa Senators&nbsp;Bobby Ryan.&nbsp;Vote for the most disappointing hockey players in the 2016-2017 season and feel free to add any other missing NHL players who disappointed you this season. Don't hold back your feelings, because hockey players can take the hits.

Coaches

Barry Trotz

Every season, 30&nbsp;NHL coaches do everything they can to get their team to the Stanley Cup playoffs, but only one can be NHL's Coach of the Year. The annual Jack Adams Award is awarded to the hockey coach who contributed the most to his team's success, so season records and team stats have the most impact. However, coaches have also Coach of the Year for surprise comebacks, like Calgary Flames' Bob Hartley in 2014-2015. Make your NHL Coach of the Year predictions for the 2016-2017 season.Notable candidates for the 2017 NHL Coach of the Year Award include Minnesota Wild's Bruce Boudreau, Chicago Blackhawks' Joel Quenneville, Nashville Predators' Peter Laviolette, and Florida Panthers' Gerard Gallant. Which of these NFL coaches will win the Jack Adams Award in 2017? Or will another coach quickly rise to the top?&nbsp;Vote for the coach you think will win NHL's Coach of the Year for 2016-2017. With so many deserving coaches, it's difficult to predict which NFL coach will win the Jack Adams Award for the 2016-2017 season. You can stick with your favorite team's coach or vote for the person&nbsp;you think most deserves to win the 2017 NHL Coach of the Year award.&nbsp;

The 2016-17 NHL Season

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NHL Coach Of The Year 2017

Who Is The NHL's Coach Of The Year For 2016-17?

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FREEFORM

Mike Babcock

Michael Babcock Jr. (born April 29, 1963) is a Canadian professional ice hockey head coach, currently serving as head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL). He previously spent 10 seasons as head coach of the Detroit Red Wings, winning the Stanley Cup with them in 2008 and helping them to the Stanley Cup Playoffs every year during his tenure. He holds the record as the coach with the most wins in Red Wings history, surpassing that of Jack Adams. He has also served as head coach of the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, whom he helped to the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals.
Babcock was born in Manitouwadge, Ontario and grew up in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. As of August 2019, he is the only coach to gain entry to the Triple Gold Club, having guided the Red Wings to the Stanley Cup in 2008, as well as leading Team Canada to gold at the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championships in 2004, the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver and the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. Babcock is the only coach to win six distinct national or international titles, guiding Canada to gold at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey and the IIHF World Junior Championships in 1997 and the University of Lethbridge to the CIS University Cup in 1994.

Mike Sullivan

Michael Barry Sullivan (born February 27, 1968) is an American ice hockey coach and former  player. He is currently the head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was a fourth round selection, 69th overall, by the New York Rangers at the 1987 NHL Entry Draft and played 11 NHL seasons with the San Jose Sharks, Calgary Flames, Boston Bruins and Phoenix Coyotes. Internationally, he represented the United States twice, including at the 1997 World Championship.
Sullivan turned to coaching upon his retirement in 2002 and served two seasons as the head coach of the Boston Bruins between 2003 and 2005. He was formerly an assistant coach with the Vancouver Canucks, a position he held during the 2013–14 NHL season. After serving as head coach of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, he took over as head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins in December 2015, and led the team to back-to-back Stanley Cup championships.

Peter Laviolette

Peter Philip Laviolette Jr. (born December 7, 1964) is an American professional ice hockey coach and former player. He is the current head coach for the Nashville Predators of the National Hockey League (NHL). He has previously held this position with the New York Islanders, Carolina Hurricanes, and Philadelphia Flyers. He coached the Hurricanes to a Stanley Cup win in 2006, and later coached the Philadelphia Flyers to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2010, and the Nashville Predators in 2017. Laviolette is the fourth coach in NHL history to lead three teams to the Stanley Cup Finals. Despite this, he only played twelve NHL games himself, all with the New York Rangers.

Todd McLellan

Todd Andrew McLellan (born October 3, 1967) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player. He is the current head coach of the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL). He previously served as head coach of the San Jose Sharks (2008–2015) and Edmonton Oilers (2015–2018), and as an assistant coach with the Detroit Red Wings (2005–2008), with whom he won the Stanley Cup in 2008. He was drafted in 1986 by the New York Islanders, but only played five games with the major league club in the 1987–88 season before retiring in the minors the following season due to recurring injury.

John Tortorella

John Robert Tortorella (born June 24, 1958) is an American professional ice hockey coach and former player. He is the head coach for the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). Tortorella was previously the head coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning (2001–2008), the New York Rangers (2009–2013) and the Vancouver Canucks (2013–2014). He led Tampa Bay to the 2004 Stanley Cup championship.

Guy Boucher

Guy Boucher (born August 3, 1971) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach. Boucher is the former head coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning and Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was also the head coach of SC Bern in the 2014–15 season. He previously coached in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). He has coached various Canadian international teams.



Barry Trotz (born July 15, 1962) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach for the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League (NHL). He is also the former head coach of the NHL's Nashville Predators and the Washington Capitals. He was previously the coach of the American Hockey League (AHL)'s Baltimore Skipjacks and Portland Pirates, with whom he won an AHL championship in 1994. That same year, he won the Louis A.R. Pieri Memorial Award, which is awarded to the outstanding coach in the AHL as voted upon by the AHL Broadcasters and Writers. On February 20, 2013, Lindy Ruff was fired by the Buffalo Sabres, making Trotz the longest-tenured head coach in the NHL. He was also the second-longest tenured coach in the four major North American professional leagues, behind only Gregg Popovich of the National Basketball Association's San Antonio Spurs. On April 14, 2014, the Predators announced Trotz would not return for his 16th season as head coach. On May 26, 2014, Trotz was announced as the new head coach of the Capitals. On June 7, 2018, Trotz won his first Stanley Cup as the head coach, with the Capitals defeating the Vegas Golden Knights in five games, in the franchise's first Stanley Cup championship. On June 21, 2018, Trotz was announced as the new head coach of the Islanders.



Jon Cooper

Jon Cooper (born August 23, 1967) is a Canadian-American professional ice hockey head coach for the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Glen Gulutzan

Glen Gulutzan (born August 12, 1971) is a Canadian ice hockey coach and former player. He is currently assistant coach for the Edmonton Oilers.

Bruce Boudreau

Bruce Allan Boudreau (born January 9, 1955) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and coach. He is currently the head coach of the National Hockey League's Minnesota Wild and formerly the head coach of the Washington Capitals and Anaheim Ducks. As a player, Boudreau played professionally for 20 seasons, logging 141 games in the NHL and 30 games in the World Hockey Association (WHA). He played for the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Chicago Black Hawks of the NHL and the Minnesota Fighting Saints of the WHA. Boudreau won the Jack Adams Award for the NHL's most outstanding head coach in the 2007–08 NHL season during his tenure with the Capitals.

Alain Vigneault

Alain Vigneault (born May 14, 1961) is a Canadian professional ice hockey head coach for the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Vigneault has previously coached the Montreal Canadiens, Vancouver Canucks, and the New York Rangers in the NHL, as well as in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). During his career with the Canucks, he won the Jack Adams Award as the NHL's top coach of the year in 2006–07 and has become the team's record holder for wins as a coach. Under Vigneault, Vancouver won back-to-back Presidents' Trophies (2010–11 and 2011–12) and made one Stanley Cup Finals appearance (2011). In his first season with New York, he led the Rangers to their first Stanley Cup Finals appearance (2014) in 20 years.
Prior to his coaching career, Vigneault played professionally as a defenceman for six seasons in the NHL, Central Hockey League and American Hockey League (AHL). In the NHL, he played 42 games over two seasons, 1981–82 and 1982–83, for the St. Louis Blues.

Joel Quenneville

Joel Norman Quenneville (born September 15, 1958) is a Canadian–American professional ice hockey coach. He is the current head coach of the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He has also coached the Colorado Avalanche, St. Louis Blues, and Chicago Blackhawks with whom he won three Stanley Cup titles. On January 14, 2016, he surpassed Al Arbour with his 783rd win as an NHL coach, making Quenneville second only to Scotty Bowman in total wins. He is often referred to by fans and players as "Coach Q" or simply as "Q".

Peter DeBoer

George Peter DeBoer (born June 13, 1968) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player. He is currently the head coach of the San Jose Sharks of the National Hockey League (NHL).  He is also a co-owner of the Oshawa Generals of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL).
A two-time winner of the OHL Coach of the Year award, DeBoer was an OHL head coach for 13 seasons with the Detroit Whalers (1995–1997), Plymouth Whalers (1997–2001) and Kitchener Rangers (2001–08), the latter of which he led to a Memorial Cup victory in 2003. He served as the head coach of the New Jersey Devils from 2011 to 2014 and was also the head coach of the Florida Panthers from June 13, 2008 to April 10, 2011.

Randy Carlyle

Randolph Robert Carlyle (born April 19, 1956) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player. He is the former head coach of the National Hockey League (NHL)'s Toronto Maple Leafs and the Anaheim Ducks. He won the Stanley Cup in 2007 with the Ducks during his first stint with the team. As a player, Carlyle dressed for over 1,000 games between the Maple Leafs, Pittsburgh Penguins and Winnipeg Jets, winning the James Norris Memorial Trophy as the NHL's best defenceman in the 1980–81 season and serving as a captain of both the Penguins and Jets.
Carlyle is partially of Finnish descent, and was raised in Azilda, just northwest of Sudbury, Ontario. 



Claude Julien

Claude Julien (born April 23, 1960) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player. He is currently the head coach of the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL). Prior to his firing by the Boston Bruins in 2017, he was the longest tenured head coach in the NHL. He had previously served as head coach of the New Jersey Devils in the NHL, as well as in the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Hamilton Bulldogs. In 2011 he coached the Bruins to the Stanley Cup Finals, against the Vancouver Canucks, winning in 7 games, guiding Boston to their 6th franchise Stanley Cup title. In 2013, he brought Boston to another Stanley Cup Finals, however they lost the series to the Chicago Blackhawks in 6 games.
Julien was also an assistant coach for Canadian national team at the 2014 Winter Olympics, where he led the team to a gold medal victory.

Lindy Ruff

Lindy Cameron Ruff (born February 17, 1960) is a Canadian assistant coach for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Ruff was previously the head coach of the Dallas Stars of the NHL, and also the head coach of the Buffalo Sabres from 1997 to 2013, with whom he won the Jack Adams Award as Coach of the Year in 2006. During his playing career, Ruff played in the NHL for the Sabres and Rangers, the former of which he captained.
Ruff was an assistant coach for the 2014 Canadian Olympic Hockey Team.

Darryl Sutter

Darryl John Sutter (born August 19, 1958) is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey coach and player. He was most recently head coach of the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL), with whom he won two Stanley Cup titles. He is one of seven Sutter brothers, six of whom made the NHL (Brent, Brian, Darryl, Duane, Rich and Ron); all but Rich and Gary (the seventh Sutter brother) worked alongside Darryl in some capacity during Darryl Sutter's tenure with the Calgary Flames. Sutter has also coached for the San Jose Sharks and the Chicago Blackhawks, the latter of which he spent his entire NHL playing career with, from 1979 to 1987.

Bill Peters

Doug Weight

Douglas Daniel Weight (born January 21, 1971) is an American professional ice hockey coach, executive and former player. He is also the former head coach and assistant general manager for the New York Islanders. During his 19-year National Hockey League career, he played for the New York Rangers, Edmonton Oilers, Carolina Hurricanes, Anaheim Ducks, St. Louis Blues and the New York Islanders.

Dave Tippett

David G. Tippett (born August 25, 1961) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player. He is the current head coach of the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL).
Tippett is also a former left winger who played in the NHL from 1983 to 1994 for the Hartford Whalers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Philadelphia Flyers and Washington Capitals. He has formerly served as head coach of the Dallas Stars from May 21, 2002 until June 10, 2009, and for the Phoenix/Arizona Coyotes from September 24, 2009 until June 22, 2017. As head coach of the Coyotes, Tippett won the Jack Adams Award as NHL Coach of the Year in 2010.

Paul Maurice

Paul Maurice (born January 30, 1967) is a Canadian former ice hockey player and current head coach of the Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League (NHL). At age 43, Maurice became the youngest coach in NHL history to coach 1,000 games, reaching the milestone on November 28, 2010.Originally a defenceman in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), Maurice played four years of junior hockey prior to suffering an eye injury. Maurice formerly coached the Hartford Whalers/Carolina Hurricanes franchise from 1995 to 2003 and the Toronto Maple Leafs from 2006 to 2008. On December 3, 2008, Maurice was re-hired by the Hurricanes after the firing of Peter Laviolette, who had replaced him in 2003. On November 28, 2011, the Carolina Hurricanes announced that he had been fired for a second time, whereupon, after a brief stint coaching Metallurg Magnitogorsk in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), he joined the Winnipeg Jets in January 2014.

John Hynes

John Hynes (born February 10, 1975) is an American professional ice hockey coach. He is the current head coach for the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Michel Therrien

Michel Therrien (born November 4, 1963) is a Canadian professional ice hockey assistant coach for the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Therrien formerly coached the Montreal Canadiens and the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Prior to his coaching career, Therrien played professionally for three years as a defenceman in the American Hockey League (AHL), compiling a total of 86 points in 206 games and winning the Calder Cup in 1985 with the Sherbrooke Canadiens, on the same team as eventual Hockey Hall of Famer Patrick Roy. When his playing career ended, Therrien worked for a time as a lineman for Bell Canada, with a sideline as a bodyguard for Quebec singing star Roch Voisine, with whom he had once played hockey, while working his way into a coaching career.Before coaching in the professional leagues, Therrien was a coach in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), first as an assistant with the Laval Titan and later as head coach for the Granby Prédateurs, with whom the club won the Memorial Cup in 1996, ending a 25-year championship drought in the tournament for a team from Quebec. He is a single parent of two children, Elizabeth and Charles.

Ken Hitchcock

Kenneth S. Hitchcock (born December 17, 1951) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach. Hitchcock coached the Dallas Stars (1996–2002, 2017–2018), Philadelphia Flyers (2002–2006), Columbus Blue Jackets (2006–2010), St. Louis Blues (2011–2017), and Edmonton Oilers (2018–2019) of the National Hockey League (NHL). He also served as an assistant coach for the 2014 Canadian Olympic national team. Hitchcock won a Stanley Cup with the Stars in 1999. He is the third winningest coach in NHL history with a total of 823 victories. He was named a 2019 Order of Hockey in Canada recipient.

Dan Bylsma

Daniel Brian Bylsma (; born September 19, 1970) is an American professional ice hockey coach and former player. He is currently an assistant coach for the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL). He is the former head coach of the Buffalo Sabres. He also is the former head coach of the United States men's national ice hockey team. Prior to coaching the Sabres, Bylsma was the head coach for the Pittsburgh Penguins, whom he led to a Stanley Cup championship in 2009, just four months after being promoted to Pittsburgh's head coaching position.
Prior to coaching the Penguins, he played as a forward in the NHL with the Los Angeles Kings and Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, and coached in the American Hockey League (AHL). He was drafted in the sixth round (109th Overall) of the 1989 NHL Entry Draft, by the Winnipeg Jets.

Every season, 30&nbsp;NHL coaches do everything they can to get their team to the Stanley Cup playoffs, but only one can be NHL's Coach of the Year. The ...