NHL 20 Franchise Mode: Best Young Players

There comes a time in the cycle of every franchise when you need to stack your roster with some young talents to bring into the NHL lines immediately or in the near future.

Your top-six center may be running out of contract and looking for a huge salary, or your starting goaltender may be showing signs of age, but either way, you’ll want to bring in a young talent to ensure that you’re ready for when a change is needed.

On the other hand, you may just be starting a new Franchise Mode on NHL 20, and fancy the challenge of taking a team entirely comprised of young talents to glory.

Here, you’ll find all of the best young players – skaters and goaltenders – in NHL 20’s Franchise Mode. There’s a full slate of the best young players in the game at the foot of the article: those with the highest overall ratings feature in the main body of the article.

Choosing NHL 20 Franchise Mode’s best young players

The most important aspect considered when picking the best young players in NHL 20 Franchise Mode is their starting overall rating.

Skaters that feature in the body of the article have the highest overall rating, with the others listed in the table at the foot of the article having an overall rating of at least 80. The article also features the best young goaltender in NHL 20 Franchise Mode, with those in the table having an overall rating of at least 74.

All of the best young skaters in this article are 22-years-old or younger, with the best young goaltenders being 24-years-old or younger at the beginning of Franchise Mode.

For this simulation, the 10 October Roster was used to collect the data on NHL 20’s best young players.

Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers (94 OVR)

Potential: Franchise med
Position: Center
Type: Playmaker
Drafted: 1^st Round, 1^st Overall (2015)
Nationality: Canadian
Best Stats: 97 Offensive Awareness, 97 Acceleration, 97 Agility

Connor McDavid is doing what Connor McDavid does best: dazzle the crowd and put up an inordinate amount of points. Just 55 games into the season, McDavid placed second in the Art Ross Trophy race with 30 goals and 81 points, only trailing teammate Leon Draisaitl by four points.

Still only 23-years-old, the star of the show in Edmonton has already notched 453 points in 342 NHL games, with a further nine points in 13 postseason matches following the Oilers’ only trip to the playoffs since 2015.

In NHL 20, McDavid is as good as they come: his attribute ratings are perfectly gauged to make him the most potent player in Franchise Mode.

With a combined speed score of 96.7, McDavid is the fastest skater in NHL 20 Franchise Mode, boasting 97 acceleration, 97 agility, and 96 speed.

Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs (90 OVR)

Potential: Elite high
Position: Center
Type: Sniper
Drafted: 1^st Round, 1^st Overall (2016)
Nationality: American
Best Stats: 95 Poise, 93 Puck Control, 92 Wrist Shot Accuracy, 92 Deking, 92 Passing

Auston Matthews has become the face of the young Toronto Maple Leafs in the short time since being the undisputed number one selection of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft.

The American, who spent his draft year in Switzerland with the ZSC Lions, has struggled to last for a whole season since his rookie campaign, but he has still managed to put together 151 goals and 273 points through 268 games for the Buds.

Matthews is only 21-years-old old at the start of Franchise Mode on NHL 20, and yet he is already rated 90 overall with a mighty Elite high potential.

His attribute ratings of 91 slap shot accuracy, 90 slap shot power, 92 wrist shot accuracy, and 90 wrist shot power make the Toronto center one of the best snipers in the game.

Mikko Rantanen, Colorado Avalanche (90 OVR)

Potential: Elite med
Position: Right Wing
Type: Sniper
Drafted: 1^st Round, 10^th Overall (2015)
Nationality: Finland
Best Stats: 93 Puck Control, 93 Offensive Awareness, 92 Deking, 92 Hand-Eye, 92 Passing, 92 Wrist Shot Accuracy

Mikko Rantanen has been a scoring machine for the Colorado Avalanche since being brought into the NHL lines in the 2016/17 campaign – scoring at least 20 goals per season.

This season, the Finnish sharpshooter has been hampered by injury, but he’s still managed to score just under a point-per-game with 17 goals and 37 points in 38 games.

Starting out on NHL 20 Franchise Mode, not only is Rantanen one of the best young players, but he’s also one of the highest-rated snipers, toting a 91 for slap shot accuracy, 92 for wrist shot accuracy, 91 for slap shot power, and a 90 for his wrist shot power.

Mitchell Marner, Toronto Maple Leafs (89 OVR)

Potential: Elite med
Position: Right Wing
Type: Playmaker
Drafted: 1^st Round, 4^th Overall (2015)
Nationality: Canadian
Best Stats: 94 Passing, 94 Puck Control, 93 Deking, 93 Offensive Awareness

Toronto Maple Leafs fans treasure mitch Marner due to the shifty winger’s incredible work rate, eye for a fancy pass, and relentless points production.

Marner has continued to increase his points tally year-on-year, going from 61 in 2016/17 to 69 in 2017/18, and reaching an almighty haul of 26 goals and 94 points last season. So far in this campaign, the Canadian has 57 points in 45 games having missed 11 games through November.

The Maple Leafs right winger’s 94 passing, 94 puck control, 93 deking, 93 offensive awareness, 92 agility, 91 slap shot accuracy, and 91 wrist shot accuracy speak for themselves.

Despite still only being 22-years-old, Marner is one of the premier playmakers on either wing in NHL 20’s Franchise Mode.

Jack Eichel, Buffalo Sabres (88 OVR)

Potential: Elite high
Position: Center
Type: Playmaker
Drafted: 1^st Round, 2^nd Overall (2015)
Nationality: American
Best Stats: 92 Deking, 92 Hand-Eye, 91 Wrist Shot Accuracy, 91 Offensive Awareness, 91 Agility

In the running to the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, there was a bit of a debate between pundits as to if Jack Eichel could beat Connor McDavid to the first overall selection. This was after McDavid broke his hand in a fight and was forced to miss six weeks.

Of course, the debates were mostly for the sake of making a talking point, but Eichel has certainly proven himself to be the leader and point scorer that the Buffalo Sabres wanted when they took him second overall.

Following on from a 28-goal and 82-point campaign in 2018/19, Eichel is well on pace to reel in his best points tally to date, already exceeding his career-best goal-scoring season with 31 goals and 69 points in 55 games.

Eichel is a great all-rounder in NHL 20, with his 85 strength, 75 faceoffs, 85 poise, 90 slap shot accuracy, 91 wrist shot accuracy, 90 passing, 92 hand-eye, 88 defensive awareness, 91 offensive awareness, and decent speed ratings making him a solid top-line center.

Carter Hart, Philadelphia Flyers (84 OVR)

Potential: Elite med
Position: Goaltender
Type: Hybrid
Drafted: 2^nd Round, 48^th Overall (2016)
Nationality: Canadian
Best Stats: 90 Speed, 89 Agility, 88 Stick Low, 88 Glove Low, 88 Angles

At a time of crisis for the Flyers’ goaltending corps last season, Philadelphia called upon top prospect Carter Hart, and he didn’t disappoint.

Hart sealed a win on his debut, went on to secure a .917 save percentage and 2.83 goals against average over 31 games. The young shot-stopper then started this season with a shutout to become the youngest goaltender in Flyers history to achieve such a feat.

With an 84 overall rating from the start of NHL 20’s Franchise Mode, Hart is a viable starter. If you play him as your main goaltender, the 21-year-old will quickly develop into one of the highest-rated goalies in the game. The Flyers netminder is easily the best young goaltender in NHL 20.

Hart’s best attributes from the get-go are his 88 stick low, 88 glove low, 88 angles, 87 stick high, 87 glove high, 87 rebound control, 87 recover, 89 agility, and 90 speed.

All the Best Young Players in NHL 20

Here’s a complete list of all of the best young skaters and goaltenders in NHL 20 Franchise Mode.

Name	Position	Team	Potential	Overall	Age
Connor McDavid	Center	Edmonton Oilers	Franchise med	94	22
Auston Matthews	Center	Toronto Maple Leafs	Elite high	90	21
Mikko Rantanen	Right Wing	Colorado Avalanche	Elite med	90	22
Mitchell Marner	Right Wing	Toronto Maple Leafs	Elite med	89	22
Jack Eichel	Center	Buffalo Sabres	Elite high	88	22
Sebastian Aho	Center	Carolina Hurricanes	Elite med	88	22
Patrik Laine	Right Wing	Winnipeg Jets	Elite med	87	21
Elias Pettersson	Center	Vancouver Canucks	Elite high	87	20
Thomas Chabot	Defenseman	Ottawa Senators	Elite med	86	22
Zach Werenski	Defenseman	Columbus Blue Jackets	Elite med	86	22
Mathew Barzal	Center	New York Islanders	Elite med	86	22
Alex DeBrincat	Center	Chicago Blackhawks	Elite med	86	21
Charlie McAvoy	Defenseman	Boston Bruins	Elite med	86	21
Rasmus Dahlin	Defenseman	Buffalo Sabres	Elite high	85	19
Brock Boeser	Right Wing	Vancouver Canucks	Elite med	85	22
Kyle Connor	Left Wing	Winnipeg Jets	Elite med	85	22
Matthew Tkachuk	Left Wing	Calgary Flames	Elite med	85	21
Pierre-Luc Dubois	Center	Columbus Blue Jackets	Elite med	85	21
Timo Meier	Right Wing	San Jose Sharks	Top 6 med	85	22
Nico Hischier	Center	New Jersey Devils	Elite med	84	20
Ivan Provorov	Defenseman	Philadelphia Flyers	Elite med	84	22
Noah Hanifin	Defenseman	Calgary Flames	Elite med	84	22
Clayton Keller	Left Wing	Arizona Coyotes	Elite med	84	21
Mikhail Sergachev	Defenseman	Tampa Bay Lightning	Elite med	84	21
Miro Heiskanen	Defenseman	Dallas Stars	Elite med	83	20
Dylan Strome	Center	Chicago Blackhawks	Elite med	83	22
Jake DeBrusk	Left Wing	Boston Bruins	Top 6 med	83	22
Andrei Svechnikov	Right Wing	Carolina Hurricanes	Elite med	83	19
Travis Konecny	Center	Philadelphia Flyers	Top 6 med	82	22
Jack Hughes	Center	New Jersey Devils	Elite high	82	18
Jesperi Kotkaniemi	Center	Montreal Canadiens	Elite med	82	19
Brady Tkachuk	Left Wing	Ottawa Senators	Elite med	82	19
Jakob Chychrun	Defenseman	Arizona Coyotes	Elite med	82	21
Nolan Patrick	Center	Philadelphia Flyers	Elite med	81	20
Cale Makar	Defenseman	Colorado Avalanche	Elite med	81	20
Kaapo Kakko	Right Wing	New York Rangers	Elite med	81	18
Colin White	Center	Ottawa Senators	Top 6 high	81	22
Henri Jokiharju	Defenseman	Buffalo Sabres	Top 4 med	81	20
Tyson Jost	Center	Colorado Avalanche	Top 6 med	81	21
Travis Dermott	Defenseman	Toronto Maple Leafs	Top 4 med	81	22
Brandon Carlo	Defenseman	Boston Bruins	Top 4 med	81	22
Adam Fox	Defenseman	New York Rangers	Top 4 med	81	21
Jesper Bratt	Left Wing	New Jersey Devils	Top 6 low	81	21
Anthony Beauvillier	Center	New York Islanders	Top 6 low	80	22
Filip Hronek	Defenseman	Detroit Red Wings	Top 4 med	80	21
Samuel Girard	Defenseman	Colorado Avalanche	Top 4 med	80	21
Cody Glass	Center	Vegas Golden Knights	Top 6 high	80	20
Rasmus Andersson	Defenseman	Calgary Flames	Top 4 med	80	22
Dennis Cholowski	Defenseman	Detroit Red Wings	Top 4 med	80	21
Dante Fabbro	Defenseman	Nashville Predators	Elite med	80	21
Christian Fischer	Right Wing	Arizona Coyotes	Top 6 med	80	22
Martin Necas	Center	Carolina Hurricanes	Elite med	80	20
Quinn Hughes	Defenseman	Vancouver Canucks	Elite med	80	19
Roope Hintz	Center	Dallas Stars	Top 6 med	80	22
Robert Thomas	Center	St. Louis Blues	Top 6 med	80	20
Filip Chytil	Center	New York Rangers	Top 6 med	80	20
Carter Hart	Goaltender	Philadelphia Flyers	Elite med	84	21
Juuse Saros	Goaltender	Nashville Predators	Starter med	81	24
Thatcher Demko	Goaltender	Vancouver Canucks	Elite med	80	23
Eric Comrie	Goaltender	Arizona Coyotes	Starter med	80	24
Tristan Jarry	Goaltender	Pittsburgh Penguins	Starter med	79	24
Mackenzie Blackwood	Goaltender	New Jersey Devils	Starter med	79	22
Ilya Samsonov	Goaltender	Washington Capitals	Elite med	78	22
Alex Nedeljkovic	Goaltender	Carolina Hurricanes	Starter med	74	23
Ville Husso	Goaltender	St. Louis Blues	Starter high	74	24