Most valuable NHL players under 23
Age at the start of the season. Value is what his projected play is worth beyond his contract, so a cheap deal and years of growth both count.
Updated November 6, 2026.
| # | Player | Team | Cap hit | Yrs | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lane Hutson D, 22 |  Montreal Canadiens | $8.85M | 8 | $83.3M |
| 2 | Macklin Celebrini C, 20 |  San Jose Sharks | $0.97M | 6 | $70.3M |
| 3 | Matthew Schaefer D, 19 |  New York Islanders | $0.99M | 6 | $70.1M |
| 4 | Gavin McKenna LW, 18 |  Toronto Maple Leafs | $1.07M | 7 | $43.2M |
| 5 | Logan Cooley C, 22 |  Utah Mammoth | $10.00M | 8 | $42.5M |
| 6 | Juraj Slafkovsky LW, 22 | Montreal Canadiens | $7.60M | 7 | $41.9M |
| 7 | Ivan Demidov RW, 20 | Montreal Canadiens | $0.94M | 9 | $41.0M |
| 8 | Beckett Sennecke RW, 20 |  Anaheim Ducks | $0.95M | 6 | $33.8M |
| 9 | Connor Bedard C, 21 |  Chicago Blackhawks | $15.00M | 5 | $33.7M |
| 10 | Will Smith C, 21 | San Jose Sharks | $0.95M | 5 | $32.0M |
| 11 | Jimmy Snuggerud RW, 22 |  St. Louis Blues | $0.95M | 5 | $30.8M |
| 12 | Matvei Michkov RW, 21 |  Philadelphia Flyers | $0.95M | 5 | $30.7M |
| 13 | Ivar Stenberg LW, 19 | San Jose Sharks | $1.07M | 7 | $29.2M |
| 14 | Zach Benson LW, 21 |  Buffalo Sabres | $7.50M | 7 | $28.9M |
| 15 | Cutter Gauthier LW, 22 | Anaheim Ducks | $13.50M | 6 | $25.5M |
| 16 | Ryan Leonard RW, 21 |  Washington Capitals | $0.95M | 9 | $25.1M |
| 17 | Denton Mateychuk D, 22 |  Columbus Blue Jackets | $0.89M | 5 | $24.9M |
| 18 | Fraser Minten C, 22 |  Boston Bruins | $0.88M | 8 | $23.7M |
| 19 | Porter Martone RW, 20 | Philadelphia Flyers | $0.98M | 6 | $23.0M |
| 20 | Easton Cowan RW, 21 | Toronto Maple Leafs | $0.90M | 6 | $22.7M |
| 21 | Michael Misa C, 19 | San Jose Sharks | $0.99M | 6 | $22.0M |
| 22 | Benjamin Kindel C, 19 |  Pittsburgh Penguins | $0.99M | 6 | $21.1M |
| 23 | Noah Ostlund C, 22 | Buffalo Sabres | $0.89M | 9 | $20.2M |
| 24 | Igor Chernyshov LW, 20 | San Jose Sharks | $0.95M | 6 | $20.1M |
| 25 | Emmitt Finnie C, 21 |  Detroit Red Wings | $0.92M | 6 | $19.6M |
| 26 | Cole Hutson D, 20 | Washington Capitals | $0.95M | 6 | $19.4M |
| 27 | Leo Carlsson C, 21 | Anaheim Ducks | $18.00M | 5 | $19.3M |
| 28 | Matvei Gridin LW, 20 |  Calgary Flames | $0.95M | 6 | $17.6M |
| 29 | Gabriel Perreault RW, 21 |  New York Rangers | $0.94M | 5 | $17.4M |
| 30 | Anton Frondell C, 19 | Chicago Blackhawks | $0.99M | 6 | $17.0M |
| 31 | Adam Fantilli C, 22 | Columbus Blue Jackets | $13.75M | 6 | $16.7M |
| 32 | Matthew Savoie C, 22 |  Edmonton Oilers | $0.89M | 5 | $16.6M |
| 33 | James Hagens C, 20 | Boston Bruins | $0.99M | 6 | $16.5M |
| 34 | Matthew Wood RW, 21 |  Seattle Kraken | $0.95M | 5 | $16.3M |
| 35 | Shane Wright C, 22 |  Nashville Predators | $0.89M | 5 | $15.8M |
| 36 | Carter Yakemchuk D, 21 |  Ottawa Senators | $0.94M | 7 | $15.8M |
| 37 | Zayne Parekh D, 20 | Calgary Flames | $0.95M | 6 | $15.7M |
| 38 | Axel Sandin Pellikka D, 21 | Detroit Red Wings | $0.94M | 6 | $15.6M |
| 39 | Victor Eklund RW, 20 | New York Islanders | $0.97M | 7 | $15.6M |
| 40 | Caleb Desnoyers C, 19 | Utah Mammoth | $1.07M | 7 | $15.5M |
| 41 | Dalibor Dvorsky C, 21 | St. Louis Blues | $0.91M | 6 | $15.4M |
| 42 | Jake O'Brien C, 19 | Seattle Kraken | $0.97M | 7 | $15.1M |
| 43 | Tom Willander D, 21 |  Vancouver Canucks | $0.97M | 6 | $14.8M |
| 44 | Jacob Fowler G, 21 | Montreal Canadiens | $0.95M | 6 | $14.6M |
| 45 | Calum Ritchie C, 21 | New York Islanders | $0.94M | 6 | $14.5M |
| 46 | Alberts Smits D, 18 | New York Rangers | $1.07M | 7 | $14.1M |
| 47 | Trevor Connelly LW, 20 |  Vegas Golden Knights | $0.97M | 7 | $14.1M |
| 48 | Brady Martin C, 19 | Nashville Predators | $0.97M | 7 | $14.0M |
| 49 | Tij Iginla C, 20 | Utah Mammoth | $0.94M | 7 | $13.9M |
| 50 | Simon Nemec D, 22 | Calgary Flames | $7.25M | 5 | $13.7M |