Whenever you make a list ranking players it will cause controversy and ESPN’s top 25 NHL players of the 21st Century list is no different.
I’ve already touched on Anze Kopitar’s ranking at 21 and why that’s too low, but Kopitar at least made the list.
The same can’t be said for teammate Drew Doughty, who was left off the list entirely.
Like with Kopitar, I will compare Doughty to players on the list who play the same position and see if Doughty should be over any of them.
Nicklas Lidstrom:
Even the biggest Los Angeles Kings homer couldn’t argue for Doughty over Nicklas Lidstrom. He’s got seven(!) Norris Trophies and is the best defenseman of this century and one of the best to ever play.
Zdeno Chara:
I was a little surprised to see Zdeno Chara so high on this list at first, sitting at number 11, but it’s probably fair.
At his peak, Chara was one of the most difficult defensemen to play against, won a Norris in 2009 and captained the Boston Bruins to a Stanley Cup in 2011.
Just one Norris trophy and one Stanley Cup is the argument against him, but his longevity outweighs that.
He played 24 NHL seasons, 1680 regular season games (7th most all-time) and was a good defenseman in the league for about 22 of those 24 seasons.
With unmatched longevity and an impressive prime, Chara deserves to be in over Doughty.
Erik Karlsson:
This one is going to anger Kings fans, with Erik Karlsson sitting at 16 on the list and Doughty not featured.
However, that is correct, I’m sorry Kings fans, but Karlsson does deserve this.
Right off the jump, it’s hard to argue with three Norris Trophies, in the last 30 years he’s the only player not named Lidstrom to win more than two.
I don’t care that you disagree with how the Norris is handed out, that’s impressive.
The knock on Karlsson is his defensive play, but again, I’m not interested in that as a legitimate reason for him to fall. I’m more concerned with the end product than how it gets done. And the end product with Karlsson is the best offensive defenseman of this generation and a player who consistently helped his team win.
The other argue Kings fans in particular levy at Karlsson when saying Doughty is better is the two Cups. Let’s look at the teams they played on in their respective primes.
Doughty played on a team with a core of himself, Kopitar, Jonathan Quick, Dustin Brown and Jeff Carter, all in their primes.
The core of Karlsson’s Ottawa Senator team consisted of, a young Mark Stone, Bobby Ryan, Mike Hoffman, Craig Anderson and 1C Kyle Turris.
You could argue the worst player in that core for Doughty is better than the best for Karlsson. The Cup argument really doesn’t hold water when you consider the teams they played for.
Karlsson had to drag his team to the Eastern Conference finals the one time he made it. Doughty was a superstar and a massive reason the Kings won, but that team was brilliant outside of Doughty too.
You don’t have to like offensive defensemen, you can argue that being good defensively is more valuable, but none of it matters, Karlsson is the best at what he does and is the best at it in a long time. Sixteen is fair for him and he deserves to be above Doughty.
Duncan Keith:
Another multi-time Norris Trophy winner, Duncan Keith was on the other side of the Chicago Blackhawks-Kings grudge matches at the beginning of the 2010’s. It was some of the best hockey you’ll ever watch and Doughty and Keith are a big reason behind it.
This is a close one and I think it could go either way. The extra Norris for Keith and the extra Cup help Keith’s case.
Maybe the biggest argument for Keith though is the 2014-15 playoff run. He averaged an absurd 31:07 of TOI en route to a third Stanley Cup, cementing himself as one of the best defensemen of his generation.
When you’re talking about players that are this close to each other, things like an extra Norris, an extra Cup and a ridiculous playoff run can make the difference.
This could have gone either way but I get why they chose Keith over Doughty.
Viktor Hedman:
This was probably the biggest, “Doughty could have easily been over this guy” argument on the list.
Their achievements are pretty similar, both have one Norris and two Cups, although Hedman does have a Conn Smythe to his name.
At his peak, Hedman was a dominant a two-way defender as we’ve seen in the league, using elite skating, size and puck skills to dominate across 200 feet. However, it’s easy to forget it took Hedman a while to get going.
That’s only a criticism when comparing him against someone like Doughty who, since the minute he entered the league, was an excellent defenseman.
Hedman’s also showing signs of declining on the defensive side of the puck at 33.
It’s fair to say Hedman at his best was better than Doughty, but I think Doughty was better for longer and that should count for something.
I get why Hedman’s above Doughty, but I do think there’s some recency bias in that pick and I’d probably have Doughty over Hedman here.
Should Doughty be on the List?
I do think Doughty could be in over Hedman here and there’s an argument he should be right there with Keith.
Three consecutive just okay seasons in what should have been his prime from 2018-2021, his 29-32 years, does hurt his case, but he was dominant in the first half of the 2010s and is having a late-career resurgence.
I think recency bias and the memory of those three tough seasons, and a complete lack of team success in the last decade, have hurt Doughty here.
He probably should be in, but I don’t think it’s egregious that he isn’t.
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