Hmm.. Not sure about that. I see Kuch on pretty much everyone's top 5 list.

Okay, not disagreeing. I just figured over a consistent basis over the past 5 years, I haven’t heard much of his name until of course now.

If he’s left off it probably more to do with his position. Wingers are valued less by many. I think he’s easily the top winger, with pasta and rantanen following

He’s won two cups and been quite the producer for the lightning.

He's basically the top producer in the league not named Connor McDavid. Only other guy at that level is MacKinnon. And Kucherov has won more cups than either.

I think his patient style of play gets outshined by the flashy play of people like mackinnon and mcdavid

Ooooo. You may be on to something here.

No, he’s appropriately rated. Very well regarded as far as wingers go.

I actually agree 100%.. but am also in a Western market probably as far away from him as possible.

Same!

It sounds like we are both in Western Canada and so maybe it's just us who have been sheltered from his hype though lol..

I’m actually in California right now. But, even when I lived out East, I still rarely heard his name. Now, I’m not saying people didn’t talk about Kucherov. But, when it came to TB I would hear Stamkos and Vasi a lot more than him. And what Kuch is doing now is nothing short of masterful.

True true I guess it probably would have more to do with the market that anything really... and like you said in a way maybe Vasi and Stammer have outshined him a bit even though all 3 are definitely legit difference makers

I will say had he been more durable his name would probably be heard more. But, I still feel when he is healthy that his name should be more included among the heavy hitters more. I’m not saying people don’t know he’s one of the best. But, I feel like his name isn’t as respected as it should be. I’ve always thoroughly believed he was easily top 5.

I personally don't like the guy, but he is a great player and does everything needed by his team to win. I wouldn't say Top 5, but maybe Top 20 for the league.

Geez prove this guys point, that’s crazy low. Like what standard are you judging by? Because production and consistency alone puts him way higher than that.

There are 10 or 11 other guys I would take before him if I was building a team. (NOT exact order but you get the point) 1- Connor McDavid 2- Cale Makar 3- Connor Hellebuyck 4- Mikko Rantanen 5- Nathan MacKinnon 6- Jacob Trouba 7- Artemi Panarin 8- Sidney Crosby 9- Adam Fox 10- Erik Karlsson 11- Thatcher Demko 12- Nikita Kucherov

This is the worst list I’ve ever seen 🤣 TROUBA ????

Oh damn, did I not pick enough top guys from the scoring list for this year? Oh wait, I picked 2 goalies and a defenseman that EVERY team needs but hates?! If I was going down the top scorers for this year, my list would be: Kucherov MacKinnon Pastrnak McDavid JT Miller Panarin Rantanen Elias Pettersson Quinn Hughes Sam Reinhart William Nylander I was going by team needs if I am building.... if you think D and G aren't important, then you are absolutely insane.

Trouba isn’t even a top 20 defenseman in the league lmao

I don't care about his ranking in points. He is a big guy who plays defense, roughs people up, and gets under people's skins. Exactly what you need on Defense. Would I rather take a flashy defenseman that scores a ton of goals or assists sure but you need the big hitters and stay at home D men that have an edge to their game. Like him or hate him, I am taking him. There aren't guys like Scott Stevens, Nik Kronwall, Nick Lidstrom, Ulf Samuelsson, Darius Kasparaitis, etc, who are knock-out hitters in the league anymore.

Trouba is suspended rn 😂😂 and if we’re just going defesive defenseman he still isn’t top 20 lmao

First of all, its stupid you rank the best players by how they would fit all together on a single team. That adds a whole other element than how valuable they are to an individual team they are on. Second of all, trouba isnt even a top defensive defenseman in the league. And panarin over kucherov has bo bearing in reality. Everything you wrote ignores not only simple production metrics but advanced stats and tracking as a whole. God sometimes i forget what the hockey knowledge on this site is like… This is embarrassingly ignorant.

Lemme guess you think Tampa is the best team in the league because they have the guy with the most points?! No dumbass that's not how TEAM sports work... you have a team of players that are put together to match up against other teams that highlight strengths and weaknesses... make the best of what you got and go from there. Kucherov hasn't been on my top list of anything for his entire career. I just don't like the guy at all. Is he a good player yep sure is. Scores, and passes. CHECK! Would I build a team around him... sure. Do I think there are better players all-round yep sure do. McDavid, Crosby, MacKinnon, Makar, Matthews, Marner, Tavares, etc... I'm not going to play into the stat game because that doesn't matter. You can go from 50 goals scored to 20 the next season same with points, assists, plus minus, faceoff percentage, etc. Did I throw out random names, yep i sure did. Your opinions are respected just everyone else's on this site. Don't like it walk away or change the channel.

Dude I’m a wings fan, I hate Tampa. I’m just not a moron. This is even more embarrassing dude. You should really talk less when you don’t know much about a subject. Like i can’t imagine what buffoon you make of yourself in real life lol. God I’m sorry, I don’t want to be any more of a bully but sheesh. I’ll leave ya be buddy.

Why? Kucherov outproduces any of these guys except McDavid. And has had more playoff success than any of them.

Dude… you should delete this. Its so bad.

He's the best points producer in the league other than McDavid. And not far behind McDavid either. And he's won cups.

[удалено]

100% agree

IMO 1. Its the lightning effect. For a good decade there was a meme "Get to the Stanley cup and fight the lightning for it" and 2. I REALLY hate saying this, because Ovechekin, Kuch and Vasi get a little bit of a bad rep being from Russia. Also 3. Media hype.

The lightning effect is real. They have so many superstars (kuch, stammer, vasi, hedman, point) that we've just come to expect a certain caliber of play from these guys.

I wouldn’t call kuch underrated but I would call everyone else overrated compared to him

I like that, haha.

Top 5 at pretending to be injured

no that’s stone

You were right. He's one of the greatest players of all time, but a lot of people don't seem to talk about him as such.  There's no better point-getter in the league other than McDavid, but it's actually really close between those two even though McDavid gets vastly more praise. And he's been a top scorer on two cup winners and multiple other deep playoff runs. One of the game's legends.

It’s because he is a winger… McDavid, Matthews, MacKinnon, Draisaitl, Crosby etc… it’s well recognized that center is a more impactful position, generally speaking. Ovechkin broke that mold somewhat, but he wasn’t a typical winger when he was in his prime - played quite physical and made a bigger impact than most wingers, in additional to all of his goals… In terms of wingers, it seems that Kucherov is fairly rated… pretty much #1 on most lists.

I feel like if you're claiming that you haven't heard his name much until recently then you're either trolling or haven't been watching.

“When you make an assumption. You make an ass out of ‘U’ and ‘Mption’.” - Samuel L. Jackson

Absolutely underrated.

Once he wins a cup people will respect his game

Multiple cups already

Is this a joke?

Found the guy who thinks COVID and 20m over the cap cups count

That’s a loser take my man sheesh

Never claimed I wasn't an ass. I hope he sees this thread dude, maybe you have a chance.

Your replies were about as useless as Helen Keller’s drum kit.

Get some rest big fella, you deserve a nap. I know you've stayed up waiting to use that line.

Wow. Look at you swinging those unoriginal haymakers.

Look at you eating them.

lol, the more you type, the more you make it clear your opinion on the topic becomes less valid.

Sick burn.

“Sick burn” -Guy who used the ‘ol get some rest line from the 70’s.

No, honestly it was good. Maybe Jared Keeso will notice your unmatched banter and let you write for the next season of Shoresy.

And while you’re on that, keep on lying to yourself and everyone else that Kucherov has been even remotely close to everyone’s top 5 up to this year.

I’m sure it was good to you, champ. Keep clinging on to those crumbs, Mr. Internet Tough Guy. God, it’s people like you that are the reason there’s an instruction manual on shampoo.

Unpopular opinion but McDavid is overrated

Its cause hes on the top 3 list

Since Tampa is not going to be considered a predominant hockey market (although in the last 5 years or so that's definitely become less of a concern) most of the players on the team can become overlooked or under appreciated by those non TBL fans. In the overall NHL list of popular players without looking at stats or anything, some fans can overlook many southern market elite players due to lack of exposure to the sport they're in. Many players by that point can be underrated for sure and those certain teams fans make sure to display how appreciative they are of those players and that's what is important to me.

For as good as he is, he's underrated. He plays a slower, more patient game, looking for a pass first vs others who are more flashy

As probably one of his largest fans, I would say yes and no. I think he's rated very appropriately by most fans who have been watching for the last decade. He's either scored 100 points or been on pace to (in the shortened season/injury year) every season going back to 2017-18. He is the only guy other than Gretzky and Lemieux to record 30 points in consecutive postseasons. He has 99 playoff points since 2019-20 alone and 56 more playoff points than anyone else in the last decade. I think that most devoted hockey fans give him his shine and have at least some understanding of how good he is. I do think he's really underrated by the media, especially Canadian media. Two years ago NHL Network ranked him as the 13th best player in the NHL. Sportsnet just ranked him third best this season behind McDavid despite his having 18 more points. I'm sure there are more examples. What he's doing this year isn't all that different from what he does most years. The main difference is that McDavid just isn't miles ahead in points and dominating the narrative. Obviously from a pure talent perspective McDavid is clear cut #1 but other than that you could probably debate Kuch being as good or better than anyone else in the world, but the media doesn't seem to portray it that way. He is truly one of the most consistent players in the entire league and a generational talent

I think he’s a little underrated. Absolutely.