Greatest NHL Players of All Time: The Definitive Ranked List

Take away every goal Wayne Gretzky ever scored, leave only his assists, and he’d still sit atop the NHL’s all-time scoring list. No other player’s career survives that thought experiment. That single fact tells you most of what you need to know about how this list gets built, and why the argument for second place is really its own separate debate.

How to Define Greatness in the NHL

Ranking these players means weighing statistical production against Stanley Cups, individual awards, longevity, and how much a player changed the way the game was played. The NHL has shifted through distinct eras, from the six-team Original Six days to today’s salary-cap parity, which makes direct stat comparison messy. A handful of names clear that bar anyway.

The Top Tier: Undisputed Legends

Wayne Gretzky — “The Great One”

Gretzky’s numbers aren’t just bigger than everyone else’s, they exist in a different category. Four Stanley Cups, nine Hart Trophies, and career totals in goals, assists, and points that have stood since the 1990s. Nobody else on this list gets a “clean debate” the way Gretzky does; his case ends the conversation before it starts.

Bobby Orr

Before Orr, defensemen defended. After him, they could carry a game offensively too. He won eight consecutive Norris Trophies, two Stanley Cups with Boston, and two Hart Trophies, while setting scoring records for defensemen that still stand. Chronic knee injuries ended his peak in his mid-20s. What he did before that was enough.

Mario Lemieux

Teammates and opposing coaches said it plainly: on a given night, Lemieux played at Gretzky’s level. He won two Stanley Cups, multiple Hart Trophies, and posted a points-per-game rate that rivals Gretzky’s own. He also missed significant time to back injuries and a cancer diagnosis, which makes what he did accomplish more remarkable, not less.

Gordie Howe — “Mr. Hockey”

Howe played professional hockey across five decades, including a stretch in the WHA in his 40s and 50s. He combined physical toughness with elite scoring for nearly 25 years in the NHL alone. That kind of longevity, paired with genuine dominance rather than just survival, puts him among the top three or four players in any serious ranking.

The Next Tier: All-Time Greats

Bobby Hull

Hull helped bring the slap shot into the mainstream and was one of the most feared scorers of the 1960s and 1970s. His skating speed and shot power changed what teams expected from a left wing.

Maurice “Rocket” Richard

The first player to score 50 goals in 50 games, Richard was the competitive core of the Montreal Canadiens dynasty. His playoff scoring, in an era of rough, low-scoring hockey, built a reputation that outlasted his career.

Steve Yzerman

Yzerman evolved from a pure scorer into a complete, two-way captain, leading the Detroit Red Wings through their 1990s championship run and winning three Stanley Cups. Few players in NHL history reinvented their game as successfully in the middle of a career.

Sidney Crosby

Crosby has been the face of the sport since he entered the league in 2005: multiple Stanley Cups, Hart Trophies, and scoring titles, with a career still active enough that his final place on this list isn’t settled yet. He’s a reasonable pick for the all-time top five.

Greatest NHL Players: Quick Reference

Player	Position	Era	Stanley Cups	Key Award
Wayne Gretzky	C	1979–1999	4	9x Hart Trophy
Bobby Orr	D	1966–1979	2	8x Norris Trophy
Mario Lemieux	C	1984–2006	2	3x Hart Trophy
Gordie Howe	RW	1946–1980	4	6x Hart Trophy
Maurice Richard	RW	1942–1960	8	Hart Trophy
Steve Yzerman	C	1983–2006	3	Conn Smythe
Sidney Crosby	C	2005–present	3	Multiple Hart/Lester B. Pearson

The Modern Era and Future Greats

Crosby, Alexander Ovechkin, and Nicklas Backstrom reshaped the modern NHL together in Washington and Pittsburgh. Ovechkin’s scoring pace has put him within range of Gretzky’s career goals record, a chase that seemed unthinkable a decade ago. Connor McDavid, meanwhile, is the most skilled skater of his generation, and his résumé is still being written.