After recording 72 points last season, Mika Zibanejad of the New York Rangers made the list on the annual NHL Network rankings of top centers in the League. The top-20 rankings, revealed Wednesday, listed Zibanejad 19th ahead of the 2024-25 season. Last year, the 31-year-old landed at 12 on the annual list.
The Rangers are off to a good start in NHL Network’s annual positional rankings. Two weeks ago, Igor Shesterkin was named the No. 1 goalie in the NHL. While last week, Artemi Panarin was named the fifth-best winger in the NHL.
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Though Zibanejad had a down year last season, he still recorded 72 points (23 goals and 46 assists) in 81 games. The prior year, he recorded 91 points. His 12 power-play goals last season were second on the team. Only behind Chris Kreider’s 18.
In the last couple of seasons, the Rangers have utilized Zibanejad on the first power-play unit in the one-timer position, which has increased his power-play points and goals. Not to mention, his 35 slapshot goals are the most among centers in the NHL.
Lots have been made of his playoff performance. However, he still had 16 points (three goals and a team-leading 13 assists) in 16 games, which is still at a point-per-game pace. Would they have liked more production in the Eastern Conference Final? Sure, but the Panthers smothered every opposing offense.
It was still a good season for the Ranger’s number-one center. Zibanejad was acquired from the Ottawa Senators in July 2016, for Derick Brassard and their 7th-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft. He immediately slotted into the number-one center role.
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Zibanejad is in year three of an eight-year deal worth $68 million, which he signed in July 2021. The deal has a salary cap hit of $8.5 million. He has been worth every penny playing alongside Kreider. Expect him to rise in the list heading into next season as the Rangers look to build off last season’s success.
The top five centers in NHL Network’s latest rankings were Connor McDavid (No. 1), Hart Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award winner Nathan MacKinnon (No.2), Austin Matthews (No. 3), Leon Draisatil (No. 4), and Aleksander Barkov (No. 5).