Why This Matters
Every season, NHL fans want to know who the best scorers are. This page looks at the top 20 point producers from the 2024-2025 season. By examining goals, assists, and other statistics, we can see what makes some players more valuable than others.
Connor McDavid - #1 Point Leader with 95 Points
Questions We're Exploring:
- Which players scored the most points?
- Do some excel at goals while others create assists?
- How do the top teams perform with multiple elite scorers?
- What's the difference between goal-scorers and playmakers?
Top 20 Point Leaders
Figure 1: 2024-2025 NHL Top 20 Scorers
| Rank | Player | Team | Pos | GP | G | A | P | +/- | SOG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Connor McDavid | Edmonton Oilers | C | 76 | 32 | 63 | 95 | +8 | 285 |
| 2 | Auston Matthews | Toronto Maple Leafs | C | 69 | 41 | 51 | 92 | +12 | 304 |
| 3 | Artemi Panarin | New York Rangers | LW | 73 | 29 | 60 | 89 | +15 | 267 |
| 4 | David Pastrnak | Boston Bruins | RW | 68 | 47 | 40 | 87 | +18 | 298 |
| 5 | Nathan MacKinnon | Colorado Avalanche | C | 74 | 28 | 58 | 86 | +16 | 279 |
| 6 | Alex Ovechkin | Washington Capitals | LW | 70 | 43 | 42 | 85 | +6 | 316 |
| 7 | Leon Draisaitl | Edmonton Oilers | LW | 75 | 36 | 48 | 84 | +10 | 288 |
| 8 | Tage Thompson | Buffalo Sabres | RW | 72 | 35 | 48 | 83 | -5 | 276 |
| 9 | Jack Eichel | Vegas Golden Knights | C | 71 | 31 | 51 | 82 | +14 | 282 |
| 10 | Nikita Kucherov | Tampa Bay Lightning | RW | 69 | 27 | 54 | 81 | +11 | 251 |
| 11 | Connor Bedard | Chicago Blackhawks | C | 63 | 24 | 33 | 57 | -18 | 198 |
| 12 | Mark Scheifele | Winnipeg Jets | C | 74 | 29 | 51 | 80 | +22 | 268 |
| 13 | Brent Burns | Vegas Golden Knights | D | 76 | 12 | 67 | 79 | +19 | 294 |
| 14 | Mitch Marner | Toronto Maple Leafs | RW | 71 | 22 | 56 | 78 | +13 | 224 |
| 15 | Jason Spezza | Toronto Maple Leafs | C | 68 | 16 | 38 | 54 | +8 | 143 |
| 16 | Jason Robertson | Dallas Stars | LW | 75 | 28 | 50 | 78 | +17 | 287 |
| 17 | Steven Stamkos | Nashville Predators | RW | 73 | 32 | 44 | 76 | +9 | 269 |
| 18 | Jonathan Marchessault | Vegas Golden Knights | LW | 70 | 30 | 45 | 75 | +16 | 258 |
| 19 | Aleksander Barkov | Florida Panthers | C | 62 | 23 | 50 | 73 | +14 | 241 |
| 20 | Cale Makar | Colorado Avalanche | D | 71 | 17 | 56 | 73 | +20 | 256 |
Source: NHL.com Statistics
What the Data Shows
Different Ways to Score
Looking at the table, you can see that players score in different ways. Some focus on actually putting the puck in the net (goals), while others are better at setting up their teammates (assists). David Pastrnak scored 47 goals, which is the most on the list. He takes a lot of shots (298) and converts them into goals. Meanwhile, Connor McDavid has 63 assists, meaning he helps his teammates score a lot. He still has 95 total points because goals and assists count equally.
Games Played Matters
Some players have played fewer games than others because of injuries. Auston Matthews only played 69 games but has 92 points. That's 1.33 points per game. Meanwhile, Connor McDavid played 76 games with 95 points, which is 1.25 points per game. So Matthews was actually more efficient even though he has fewer total points.
Comparing Goals vs Assists
Figure 2: Top 5 Players - Scoring Styles
| Player | Points | Goals | Assists | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connor McDavid | 95 | 32 | 63 | 1.25 |
| Auston Matthews | 92 | 41 | 51 | 1.33 |
| Artemi Panarin | 89 | 29 | 60 | 1.22 |
| David Pastrnak | 87 | 47 | 40 | 1.28 |
| Nathan MacKinnon | 86 | 28 | 58 | 1.16 |
You can see that the top players balance goals and assists differently. Pastrnak is a pure goal scorer (47 G, 40 A), while McDavid and Panarin are more playmakers (60+ assists). Both styles work to get to the top of the scoring list.
Team Depth
Some teams have multiple players in the top 20, which gives them a competitive advantage:
- Edmonton Oilers: McDavid (#1), Draisaitl (#7)
- Toronto Maple Leafs: Matthews (#2), Marner (#14), Spezza (#15)
- Vegas Golden Knights: Eichel (#9), Burns (#13), Marchessault (#18)
- Colorado Avalanche: MacKinnon (#5), Makar (#20)
Teams with multiple top scorers are usually stronger because they have scoring depth. When one player is injured, another can step up. This gives them more flexibility in how they win games.
Understanding the Statistics
Here are the key terms used in hockey statistics:
Scoring Categories
- Goals (G) - When a player shoots the puck into the opponent's net, it counts as one goal. Each goal gives the player 1 point.
- Assists (A) - An assist is given to a player who passes the puck to a teammate right before they score a goal. Up to two players can get an assist per goal. Each assist is worth 1 point, the same as a goal.
- Points (P) - Points are calculated by adding up goals and assists. This is the main way to rank scorers. A player with 30 goals and 40 assists has 70 points total.
Performance Metrics
- Games Played (GP) - How many games a player has participated in during the season. The NHL regular season is 82 games. Some players might have played fewer games if they were injured.
- Plus/Minus (+/-) - A measure of whether the team is winning or losing when that player is on the ice. The player gets "+1" when their team scores a goal while they're playing, and "-1" when the other team scores. This shows if a player's team does well overall.
- Shots on Goal (SOG) - The number of times a player shoots the puck at the opponent's goalie. This shows how active a player is in trying to score. Better scorers usually take 3-4 shots per game.
Positional Information
- Position (Pos) - The player's role on the team:
- C = Center (plays in the middle)
- LW = Left Wing (plays on the left)
- RW = Right Wing (plays on the right)
- D = Defenseman (plays defense)
Where the Data Comes From
All the statistics on this page come from official NHL sources. If you want to learn more about any player or look up current stats, here are some good websites:
Official Resources
- NHL.com Statistics - The official NHL website. You can find any player's stats here and filter by position, team, or season.
- ESPN NHL Statistics - ESPN's database of hockey stats. You can compare players here side-by-side.
- Hockey-Reference.com - Good for looking at a player's career over many years and comparing historical data.
Tips for Exploring the Data
On NHL.com, go to the Stats section and pick the 2024-2025 season. You can then sort the list by Points to see the top scorers, or sort by Goals to see the goal leaders.
ESPN's site lets you pick two players and compare them side-by-side. This is very useful if you want to see how similar players stack up against each other in detail.
Data Source: NHL.com - 2024-2025 Season
Created for educational purposes