Watch Carolina Hurricanes Stanley Cup parade celebration
The Carolina Hurricanes brought their Stanley Cup celebration to downtown Raleigh, North Carolina, as fans cheered them on from sidewalks.
EA Sports’ NHL 27 player ratings are out – and there is a member of the 99 Club for the first time.
That belongs to Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid, a three-time Hart Trophy winner who was runner-up for the NHL’s MVP award last season.
McDavid was the highest-rated player in NHL 26, at a 97. He then finished the 2025-26 season with a league-best 90 assists and 138 points, the sixth time he has led the league in scoring.
EA Sports released only forward ratings on Tuesday, Aug. 18. It will unveil defenseman ratings and overall ratings later.
McDavid is followed by Tampa Bay Lightning right wing Nikita Kucherov, the 2025-26 MVP, and Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon at 97 each.
San Jose Sharks center Macklin Celebrini, who’s on the cover and signed a record-setting extension in July, received a 95 rating. So did Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov, who missed all of last season after preseason ACL surgery.
Here is when NHL 27 is available for purchase and this season’s top forward ratings:
When is the NHL 27 release date?
NHL 27 will be released on Sept. 11. A pre-order link can be found here.
NHL 27 top forward ratings
Forwards with ratings of 95 or higher, with overall rankings in parentheses:
- 99 – C Connor McDavid, Edmonton (1)
- 97 – C Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado (2)
- 97 – RW Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay (3)
- 96 – C Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton (4)
- 95 – RW David Pastrnak, Boston (7)
- 95 – C Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh (8)
- 95 – Macklin Celebrini, San Jose (10)
- 95 – Aleksander Barkov, Florida (11)