NHL 19 Reveals the Top 50 Players
Jan Ole Peek
Each year the updated player ratings in the NHL series are revealed, and every fan wants to see their favorites at the top of the list. EA has just released the top 50 highest rated players in NHL 19, and we’ll have a quick look at some of the standouts before we start arguing with our friends over their accuracy.
The Top Highest Rated NHL 19 Players
Not surprisingly, Connor McDavid tops the list of NHL 19 players with an overall rating of 94. He’s followed immediately by Sydney Crosby with a score of 93. We then encounter several players with an overall rating of 92, including Stanley Cup champion Alex Ovechkin and the highest rated goalie in NHL 19, Carey Price.
Arguably the strongest team in the league based on players in the top 10 would be the Tampa Bay Lightning with three representatives; Nikita Kucherov, Victor Hedman, and Steven Stamkos. The remainder of the top 10 highest rated NHL 19 players is rounded out by Drew Doughty, the highest rated defenseman, Patrick Kane, and Evgeni Malkin.
How Are the Ratings Chosen?
While it’s hard to argue with the top ten choices made by EA, I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s some serious discussion about the remainder of the top 50, especially among friends with allegiances to different teams. Is Freddie Andersen better than Jonathan Toews, and where is Brock Boeser? I know, I know, I’m exaggerating for effect here, but it should be fun to have these discussions with your rivals.
The question of how EA chooses these ratings crops up every year and I have seen speculations as wild as EA asking team’s season ticket holders for their input. I recently had the chance to chat with William Ho, Creative Director of NHL 19 at EA Vancouver, and asked him this very question. I was told that the ratings are determined and updated each year based on input from hockey analysts and professional pro scouts whose job it is to evaluate actual NHL players’ skills on a regular basis.
So while you may not agree with a particular rating of your favorite player, rest assured that EA is putting in some serious effort to get it right. In the end, a lot of it comes down to your ability to accurately control your skater on the ice anyway, something that EA has improved a great deal in NHL 19.
Keep an eye out for upcoming previews of the new in-depth customization features in NHL 19 as well as some more details of the new One’s mode.
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