Welcome to The Athletic’s 2025-26 edition of the NHL Pipeline Rankings, where we look at the future of the NHL team by team.
Every team has a ranking, a write-up and tool grades of the best young players in its organization, with a projection of what is expected of each player. Those core groups are then ranked from 1 to 32 to show how each compares to the rest of the league.
Player eligibility is determined by age. A player is eligible if he is 22 years old or younger as of Sept. 15, 2025. This encompasses almost every prospect selected between the 2021 and 2025 NHL Drafts. This is done to include a team’s top prospects without aggressively graduating players who have a lot of prime development years ahead of them, even if they are already in the NHL. This does have the effect of, at times, including star NHL players while leaving off players who are still in the minors and have a chance to make the league. There is no perfect way to create player eligibility for a prospect ranking. This method has become my preference after trying all the other options; your method may vary.
This story will be updated.
(Illustration: Will Tullos / The Athletic. Photos: Sean M. Haffey, Minas Panagiotakis, Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)
Aug 25, 2025
Connections: Sports Edition
Spot the pattern. Connect the terms
Find the hidden link between sports terms
Play today’s puzzle