Avalanche have three of top-seven players on ESPN’s “NHL Rank”

It’s no secret the Colorado Avalanche have three of the best hockey players on the planet.

But in a league with 32 teams, this is just silly good.

ESPN’s “NHL Rank” came out on Tuesday morning, and the Avs have three of the top-seven guys. Superstar defenseman Cale Makar is No. 2, All-Star center Nathan MacKinnon is No. 3 and under-appreciated winger Mikko Rantanen is No. 7.

The list, which ranks the top-100 players in the league, was voted on by “an ESPN panel of more than 50 broadcasters, analysts, reporters and editors.” A season ago, Makar was also second, MacKinnon was fourth and Rantanen was 24th.

The only other Avalanche player to make this season’s list was defenseman Devon Toews. He just got a handsome new deal, and checked in at No. 75 in the NHL. It’s a minor disappointment to not see the likes of Valeri Nichushkin, Alexandar Georgiev or Artturi Lehkonen, but this is a competitive honor to earn.

To no one’s surprise, Oilers center Connor McDavid is No. 1 on the list while his teammate Leon Draisaitl comes in at No. 6. Edmonton is the only other team to have two players in the top-10, but then again, the Avalanche have three of them.

Colorado is off to a fast 2-0 start this season, looking to make another deep playoff run and capture their second Stanley Cup in three years.

They certainly have the stars to do it, as evidenced by these rankings — they’ll just need the depth guys to help along the way.

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