While it’s not getting a whole brand makeover like FIFA 24, EA Sports’ NHL 24 is said to come with some significant new gameplay elements to enhance it as an ice hockey simulation game.
We’ll have to see how much these tweaks actually change the gameplay, but the one element that always has an impact is the annual changes to player ratings.
Below, you will read:
- The top eight overall predicted players of NHL 24
- Why each player deserves their NHL 24 ratings based on 2022-2023 performance
1. Connor McDavid – 96 OVR (Edmonton Oilers)
Connor McDavid entered NHL 23 as the best player with a 95 OVR rating following a 44 goal, 123 point regular season and 33 points in 16 playoff games. In the 2022-23 campaign, the Edmonton Oilers captain led the league with 64 goals and 153 points, and added another 20 points in 12 postseason games.
While 95 OVR probably should be the cap for players in the game before they outright break the experience, the 26-year-old is fully deserving of even the slightest of bumps to 96 OVR. If the superstar center once again puts in a career-best stat line in 2023-24 and wins the Stanley Cup, EA Sports may even have to consider having a 99 OVR player from launch for NHL 25.
2. Leon Draisaitl – 95 OVR (Edmonton Oilers)
NHL 24 ratings do need to consider team balance so that simulations can try to reflect how real games would end up, and this could be used to argue why Leon Draisaitl tends to be set a couple of points back from McDavid. As the league’s second-highest point scorer (128), fourth-highest goalscorer (52), and with as many game-winning goals as his captain, surely it’s time for the German forward to be brought to within a point of McDavid.
Draisaitl also got the better of McDavid in the faceoff win percentage column (54.9% from 1470 duels) and power play goals (32). Now, it may break the game a little, and giving the Oilers a power play would essentially be the same as conceding a goal, but Draisaitl should get a hefty NHL 24 rating of 95 OVR.
3. Cale Makar – 94 OVR (Colorado Avalanche)
Arguably the best right-shot defenseman in the NHL right now, it’s scary to think that Cale Makar is only 24-years-old. Injuries stopped his stat lines from improving on his 2021-22 outing of 86 points in 77 games, but 66 points in 60 games with a +16 rating on an injury-ravaged team was a solid return.
Now the cover star of NHL 24, Makar should be able to uphold his place as the best defenseman in the new game. He might just get an increase to 95 OVR, but 94 OVR seems more likely given that the Colorado Avalanche won’t be getting that bit of extra favouritism that came from being the reigning Stanley Cup champions last year.
4. Nathan MacKinnon – 94 OVR (Colorado Avalanche)
He missed ten games, but Nathan MacKinnon still managed to put up 42 goals and 111 points to finish fifth in the league and only two points back of third. The Avs were plagued by injuries for much of the early campaign, but MacKinnon still managed to have a career year, besting his 99-point, 82-game season of 2018-19.
Based on this, MacKinnon should probably get an overall ratings bump in NHL 24, but he already entered the last game with a very hefty 94 OVR to stand as the second-best playmaker. The Canadian will almost certainly uphold this rating in the new game, but if he gets a 95 OVR, it wouldn’t be much of a surprise.
5. Nikita Kucherov – 93 OVR (Tampa Bay Lightning)
The Tampa Bay Lightning may not be the Eastern Conference frontrunners that they were just a couple of seasons ago, but that hasn’t slowed down Nikita Kucherov one bit. In 82 games, the Russian wing put up 30 goals and 113 points, which is his best tally since his last full regular season back in 2018-19.
Still superbly quick and skilful, the 30-year-old is in his physical prime and should probably expect to see his NHL 24 rating come in at 93 OVR. He started the last game as the second-based right wing, only behind Patrick Kane, and fifth-best sniper, but in the new game, Kucherov should be the top or joint-top in the position.
6. David Pastrnak – 93 OVR (Boston Bruins)
The Boston Bruins enjoyed a superb regular season in 2022-23, smashing records en route to an unassailable lead atop the standings of 65 wins, 12 losses, and five overtime losses. A big part of that effort was David Pastrnak, who put away 61 goals and set up 52 more to finish only behind the Oilers duo with 113 points.
With a league-leading 13 game-winning goals, it’s clear that the Czech wing was integral to that Bruins run, and in the seven playoff games, he scored another five goals. A strong bump from his starting NHL 23 rating of 91 OVR to an NHL 24 rating of 93 OVR seems fair.
7. Roman Josi – 93 OVR (Nashville Predators)
The Swiss defenseman missed a good chunk of the season, but Roman Josi’s 18 goals, 59 points, 269 shots on goal, five game-winning goals, 146 blocked shots, and 51 hits reaffirm him as one of the best two-way defensemen in the league.
The influence of Nashville’s captain on the ice goes beyond raw stats and he’ll help to carry the Predators again next season. Josi had a 93 OVR rating in NHL 23, and he seemingly did enough last season to uphold that rating for NHL 24 – even with him now being 33-years-old.
8. Ilya Sorokin – 93 OVR (New York Islanders)
He didn’t do enough to beat the imperious effort of Linus Ullmark for the Vezina Trophy, but Ilya Sorokin did enough to convince 70 votes (Ullmark got 127 votes) that his 31-win and 2.34 GAA piped the 40 wins and 1.89 GAA of the Boston Bruins goalie. Sorokin was the difference-maker for a much weaker team that just made it to the playoffs.
The 31 wins came from 60 starts for the Russian netminder and even with such a hefty workload for a 28-year-old in only his second NHL season as a full starter, Sorokin upheld a .924 save percentage and kept six shutouts. It would mark a huge jump for his NHL 24 rating, but Sorokin proved himself to be one of the best goalies in the league and should see his 88 OVR from the start of NHL 23 improve to 93 OVR, if not close to that mark.
We’ll have to wait for EA’s early ratings reveals closer to launch, but given the season he just had, it seems likely that McDavid will be made into even more of a cheat code with his NHL 24 rating.
