# The 54 Greatest NHL Centers of All Time

> Pioneers who starred before the Original Six era share this list with today's highlight-reel playmakers, so expect arguments about eras, faceoffs and what a center is really for.

*By YPB Team · Published November 5, 2026 · https://youpick.best/ranking/the-54-greatest-nhl-centers-of-all-time*

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## Current results (no votes yet)

1. **Wayne Gretzky** — score 1000/1000
   Center who retired with 894 goals and 2,857 points, nine Hart Trophies and four Stanley Cups with Edmonton.
2. **Denis Savard** — score 801/1000
   Chicago center known for the spin-o-rama who scored 1,338 points and entered the Hall of Fame in 2000.
3. **Bobby Clarke** — score 801/1000
   Flyers captain who led Philadelphia to Cups in 1974 and 1975 and won three Hart Trophies.
4. **Sidney Crosby** — score 685/1000
   Penguins captain who won the Art Ross Trophy in 2007 and 2014 and the Conn Smythe in 2016 and 2017.
5. **Phil Esposito** — score 663/1000
   Boston center who became the first NHL player to reach 100 points in 1968-69 and scored 76 goals in 1970-71.
6. **Darryl Sittler** — score 629/1000
   Toronto captain who set the NHL single-game record with 10 points against Boston in February 1976.
7. **Mark Messier** — score 629/1000
   Six-time champion, five times with Edmonton and once as captain of the 1994 Rangers, with two Hart Trophies.
8. **Joe Sakic** — score 591/1000
   Colorado captain who won Cups in 1996 and 2001, the 1996 Conn Smythe and the 2001 Hart Trophy.
9. **Ron Francis** — score 591/1000
   Hartford and Pittsburgh center whose 1,249 assists rank second in NHL history, with Cups in 1991 and 1992.
10. **Pavel Datsyuk** — score 549/1000
   Russian center who won three straight Selke Trophies, four Lady Byngs and Cups in 2002 and 2008.
11. **Gilbert Perreault** — score 549/1000
   Buffalo's first-ever draft pick in 1970, he spent his whole career with the Sabres and scored 512 goals and 1,326 points.
12. **Pat LaFontaine** — score 549/1000
   American center who recorded 148 points for Buffalo in 1992-93 and entered the Hall of Fame in 2003.
13. **Dave Keon** — score 502/1000
   Maple Leafs center who won four Cups, two Lady Byng Trophies and the 1967 Conn Smythe.
14. **Doug Gilmour** — score 502/1000
   Won the 1989 Cup with Calgary and the 1993 Selke Trophy, finishing with 1,414 points.
15. **Peter Šťastný** — score 502/1000
   Slovak-born Quebec Nordiques center whose 1,059 points in the 1980s trailed only Wayne Gretzky.
16. **Marcel Dionne** — score 502/1000
   Los Angeles Kings center who scored 731 goals and 1,771 points and won the 1980 Art Ross Trophy.
17. **Elmer Lach** — score 502/1000
   Center of Montreal's Punch Line who won the 1945 Hart Trophy, the first Art Ross Trophy in 1948 and three Stanley Cups.
18. **Sergei Fedorov** — score 449/1000
   Russian center who won the 1994 Hart, two Selke Trophies and three Stanley Cups with Detroit.
19. **Joe Thornton** — score 449/1000
   Playmaking center who won the 2006 Hart and Art Ross in a season split between Boston and San Jose and collected 1,109 assists.
20. **Eric Lindros** — score 449/1000
   Philadelphia's 'Legion of Doom' center who won the 1995 Hart Trophy and scored 865 points in 760 games.
21. **Anze Kopitar** — score 449/1000
   Two-time Selke winner (2016, 2018) who centered Los Angeles to Stanley Cups in 2012 and 2014.
22. **Max Bentley** — score 449/1000
   Won the 1946 Hart Trophy with Chicago and three Stanley Cups after being traded to Toronto.
23. **Mats Sundin** — score 449/1000
   First European drafted first overall (Quebec, 1989), he became the Maple Leafs' career points leader with 987.
24. **Evgeni Malkin** — score 389/1000
   Pittsburgh center who led the 2009 playoffs with 36 points and won the 2012 Hart Trophy.
25. **Henrik Sedin** — score 389/1000
   Swedish center who holds Vancouver's franchise records for assists and points and won the 2010 Hart Trophy.
26. **Patrice Bergeron** — score 389/1000
   Triple Gold Club member whose six Selke Trophies are the most in the award's history.
27. **Steve Yzerman** — score 389/1000
   Red Wings captain who won three Cups, the 1998 Conn Smythe and the 2000 Selke after reinventing himself as a two-way center.
28. **Jean Béliveau** — score 389/1000
   Montreal captain who won 10 Stanley Cups as a player, two Hart Trophies and the first Conn Smythe Trophy in 1965.
29. **Joe Nieuwendyk** — score 389/1000
   Center who won Stanley Cups with Calgary (1989), Dallas (1999) and New Jersey (2003), took the 1999 Conn Smythe and scored 564 goals.
30. **Syl Apps** — score 389/1000
   Toronto captain who won the first Calder Trophy in 1937 and three Stanley Cups with the Maple Leafs.
31. **Nels Stewart** — score 389/1000
   Montreal Maroons center who won Hart Trophies in 1926 and 1930 and retired as the NHL's career goals leader.
32. **Frank Boucher** — score 389/1000
   Rangers center who won the Lady Byng seven times in eight seasons, after which he was given the original trophy to keep.
33. **Jean Ratelle** — score 321/1000
   Rangers and Bruins center who totaled 1,267 points and won the Lady Byng Trophy in 1972 and 1976.
34. **Milt Schmidt** — score 321/1000
   Center of Boston's Kraut Line who won Cups in 1939 and 1941 and the 1951 Hart Trophy.
35. **Adam Oates** — score 321/1000
   Undrafted playmaker who recorded 1,079 assists, setting up Brett Hull in St. Louis and Cam Neely in Boston.
36. **Joe Malone** — score 321/1000
   Scored 44 goals in 20 games in the NHL's first season, 1917-18, and holds the record of seven goals in one game.
37. **Ted Kennedy** — score 321/1000
   Toronto captain who won five Stanley Cups and the 1955 Hart Trophy.
38. **Stan Mikita** — score 321/1000
   Chicago center who won four Art Ross Trophies and, in both 1967 and 1968, the Hart, Art Ross and Lady Byng in the same season.
39. **Mario Lemieux** — score 321/1000
   Pittsburgh center who won six Art Ross Trophies and three Hart Trophies while averaging 1.88 points per game.
40. **Alex Delvecchio** — score 321/1000
   Spent 24 seasons with Detroit, winning three Stanley Cups in the 1950s and three Lady Byng Trophies.
41. **Dale Hawerchuk** — score 321/1000
   Winnipeg's first overall pick in 1981 who won the 1982 Calder Trophy and finished with 1,409 points.
42. **Bryan Trottier** — score 321/1000
   Islanders center who won the 1979 Hart and Art Ross, the 1980 Conn Smythe and six Stanley Cups in all.
43. **Henri Richard** — score 321/1000
   Montreal center whose 11 Stanley Cup titles are the most ever won by a player.
44. **Connor McDavid** — score 242/1000
   Edmonton captain with three Hart Trophies who posted 153 points in 2022-23 and won the 2024 Conn Smythe.
45. **Norm Ullman** — score 242/1000
   Detroit and Toronto center who scored 490 goals and 1,229 points over 20 NHL seasons.
46. **Mike Modano** — score 242/1000
   Dallas center who won the 1999 Cup and holds the record for most goals by a U.S.-born NHL player (561).
47. **Peter Forsberg** — score 242/1000
   Swedish center who won the Hart and Art Ross in 2003, two Cups with Colorado and Olympic gold in 1994 and 2006.
48. **Jonathan Toews** — score 242/1000
   Chicago center who won the 2010 Conn Smythe, the 2013 Selke and three Stanley Cups.
49. **Howie Morenz** — score 150/1000
   Montreal Canadiens star of the 1920s and 1930s who won three Hart Trophies and three Stanley Cups.
50. **Nathan MacKinnon** — score 150/1000
   Colorado center who won the 2022 Stanley Cup and the 2024 Hart Trophy after a 140-point season.
51. **Leon Draisaitl** — score 150/1000
   German center who won the Hart and Art Ross Trophies in 2020 and has scored 50 goals in multiple seasons for Edmonton.
52. **Steven Stamkos** — score 150/1000
   Scored 60 goals in 2011-12, won two Rocket Richard Trophies and captained Tampa Bay to Cups in 2020 and 2021.
53. **Auston Matthews** — score 0/1000
   Toronto center who won the 2022 Hart Trophy and scored 69 goals in 2023-24.
54. **Frank Nighbor** — score 0/1000
   Ottawa Senators center who received the first Hart Trophy in 1924 and the first Lady Byng Trophy in 1925.

Tags: sports, hockey, players, nhl, centers