"He is dynamic, he is a game breaker and has great offensive instincts, great offensive flair, finding the back of the net with regularity," NHL Network analyst Stu Grimson said of Huberdeau. "This guy is just really hard to defend against. Never mind the great shot, he's a really gifted playmaker and has found some fabulous chemistry in the top-six with the Panthers."
A week later, Barkov entered the list at No. 15 when the top 20-11 players were revealed.
In addition to winning the Selke Trophy as the top-defensive forward in the NHL, Florida's captain finished second on the team in scoring with 58 points in 50 games last season. Of those points, a team-leading 26 of them were goals, good enough for ninth-most in the entire league.
The only player in franchise history to register six consecutive 50-point and 20-goal seasons, the 26-year-old center paced the Panthers in even-strength goals (18), even-strength points (38) and face-off win percentage (54.9%), while also dishing out the second-most assists (32).
Despite facing down opposing team's top players on most nights, he also finished with a CF% at or above 50% in 41 of the 50 contests that he competed in, according to NaturalStatTrick.com.
Overall, his career-high 58.90 CF% at 5-on-5 also placed him first among Florida's regulars.
"Selke winner and his best season in this League, had 96 points," NHL Network analyst Mike Rupp said of Barkov, who needs just eight more goal to become the franchise's all-time leader. "When you put those two things together, that's unbelievable. You've got a guy that can completely drive offense for an entire team, but he's also shutting the other team's top player down. … If he can continue to grow, along with Jonathan Huberdeau -- who I think is a world-class player -- this team could be the best team in Florida this year. I really do believe that."
