Cole Caufield has become one of the NHL's top players before the 2026-27 season. After having the best season of his career with the Montreal Canadiens, NHL Network ranked him ninth in its latest Top 20 winger rankings. This ranking puts him among the league's biggest stars.

This recognition came after an outstanding season. Caufield reached new career highs and helped bring back the Canadiens' reputation for having one of the NHL's most dangerous goal scorers.

The 25-year-old used the disappointment of missing Team USA's Olympic roster as motivation. Even though he had scored 37 goals and recorded 33 assists in the previous season, Team USA did not select him despite his growing reputation.

Caufield answered in the best way possible with his play. A Winning Habit, in a report by Brandon Croce, said that he finished the regular season with 51 goals and 37 assists.

He also won the Lady Byng Trophy and became the first Canadiens player since Stephane Richer in 1989-90 to score 50 goals in a season. Caufield finished only one goal behind the NHL's top goal scorer. He also came close to becoming the first Canadiens player to win the Rocket Richard Trophy.

NHL Network ranked him behind stars like Nikita Kucherov, Kirill Kaprizov, Matt Boldy, Mikko Rantanen, and Jason Robertson. This ranking shows how highly the league now rates his offensive skills before another important season.

Playoff production remains the final hurdle for Canadiens star

A Winning Habit, in a report by Brandon Croce, also said that Caufield played very well during the regular season, but he still has room to improve in the playoffs. He finished the playoffs with 13 points, but he could not make the same offensive impact that he made during the regular season.

His shooting percentage dropped to 14 percent. That was more than five percentage points lower than his regular-season mark. He also averaged only 2.26 shots per game in the playoffs, compared to 3.18 shots per game during the regular season.

These numbers show that opposing teams did a better job of limiting his scoring chances in the playoffs. For Montreal, Caufield needs to play better in the playoffs. That could help the team make a deeper playoff run and fight for the Stanley Cup.

He has already become one of the NHL's best wingers, and another great regular season would make his place among the league's top players even stronger. Now, he needs to play at the same level in the playoffs. If he does, he could move into NHL Network's Top Five rankings next year. 

What do you think? Can Cole Caufield turn individual brilliance into the postseason success Montreal has been waiting for? Let us know in the comments. 

Read more at the NHL Fan Central.

Written by

Kapil Manghnani

Kapil Manghnani brings over 4.5 years of experience in sports journalism, covering a wide range of sports, including Soccer, NHL, Tennis, Gymnastics, NASCAR, Swimming, and more. He has written for leading sports platforms, producing everything from breaking news and features to in-depth analysis, opinion pieces, long-form stories, and short-form content. Beyond articles, he has also scripted long-form storytelling videos for YouTube channels. His work focuses on delivering well-researched, engaging, and reader-first sports content across multiple formats.

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Edited by

Kaamna Dwivedi