Fantasy hockey’s most consistent point and goal scorers

Success is impressive, continuity in success is remarkable. I remember Jonathan Cheechoo’s impressive 93 point 2005-06 season where he scored 56 goals. It was even more impressive as he was coming off a 28 goal, 47 point season in 2004-05. The issue was, as many clamored to draft him the next season, he would let many of them down with a solid but reduced 37 goal 69 point 2006-07 season. Likewise, many remember Corey Perry when he put up 50 goals and 98 points in the 2010-11 season—winning the Rocket Richard trophy—only to regress to a 37 goal 60 point season in 2011-12.

Taking a look at consistency, I decided to chart the top 5 players in the NHL in terms of points and goals over the last five years. This is a way to see what names have been reoccurring and what names where one hit wonders.

Top 5 in Points

Looking over the last five seasons, there are 15 different players who have ended the respective seasons in the top five in points, but there is one player who has landed in the top five in four of the last five seasons. The reason he is not five for five was an injury which limited him to playing about half the games in his inaugural year (2015-2016). Beyond that, two players did it for three of the last five years and three did it in two of the last three years:

• 4 seasons: Connor McDavid (2016-2020)
• 3 seasons: Nikita Kucherov (2016-2019)
• 3 seasons: Patrick Kane (2015-2017; 2018-2019)
• 2 seasons: Nathan MacKinnon (2017-2018; 2019-2020)
• 2 seasons: Leon Draisaitl (2018-2020)
• 2 seasons: Sidney Crosby (2015-2017)

I highlight this as you can see a changing of the guard with the Crosby’s, Malkin, Giroux and Kanes dwindling while McDavid, MacKinnon, Draisaitl and Pastrnak are on the rise.

Top 5 in Goals

Unlike Points, this field of 18 total players who have landed in the top five in goals over the last five years has one name emerge as the clear leader above the rest. This player now has 4 seasons of being in the top five (winning the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy each of those years) while four others that have landed in the top 5 in 2 seasons.

• 4 seasons. Alexander Ovechkin (2015-2016; 2017-2020)
• 2 seasons. Patrick Kane (2015-2016; 2018-2019)
• 2 seasons. Leon Draisaitl (2018-2020)
• 2 seasons. Vladimir Tarasenko (2015-2017)
• 2 seasons. Auston Matthews (2016-2017; 2019-2020)

The Age X-Factor

When you look at points as a whole the average age among the players who finished in the top 5 in points over the last five years is 29.2, while for goals the average age is 28.7. The average age of the “multi” season total points players was 26.6, in goals it’s 27.7 largely carried by a 34 year old. Points sees a overall older age but among those who can do it repeatedly age and experience gives a nod to goals.

Some of this is rather obvious, we have seen what the talented young players have done over the last few seasons but there is one other very interesting facet to this. The top 5 players in points scored 444 points during the 2015-2016 season, it modestly increased to 449 the next season, then 505, 559 and currently they are at 490 before the 2019-20 season was halted. Likewise, in goals, 2016-17 saw 215 goals among the top five players, it dropped to 202 the next season then 220 in 2017-18, 237 in 2018-19 and they were at 227 until the season halted abruptly this year.