NHL’s best players under age 25 for 2017: Leon Draisaitl just got paid, and ranks No. 7

Note: This is SB Nation NHL’s top 25 players under age 25 series! We’ll be covering each player from No. 25 to No. 1 over the next few weeks leading up to training camp time. See the complete list and information on how the rankings were compiled.

As if there were any need for further proof about the Oilers’ commitment to Leon Draisaitl, the team gave him an eight-year, $68 million contract on Wednesday that makes him one of the highest-paid players in the league. He’s also one of the highest-ranked players on our Top 25 Under 25 list, coming in at No. 7.

It’s not been easy to peg just how good Draisaitl is given his partnership with Connor McDavid, arguably the best player in the world. The 21-year-old forward put up 29 goals and 77 points in 82 games with the Oilers last season, but he undeniably benefitted from the time he spent cashing in goals on McDavid’s wing.

That didn’t stop the Oilers from paying a premium to lock up Draisaitl as a restricted free agent this week. The team not only gave him the max term of eight years, but also forked up one of the highest average annual values ever for an NHL player on his second contract.

It’s not like the $12.5 million per year territory that McDavid will occupy when his new deal starts in 2018-19, but Draisaitl also isn’t that caliber of player. In fact, it’s probably fair to wonder whether he’s even worth the $8.5 million per year when you consider how much of his new deal covers RFA years, when players typically make less than UFA years.

But ignoring his massive new contract for a moment, it’s clear that Draisaitl is one of the most impressive young talents in the NHL. He finished eighth in point production last season, and McDavid could only account so much for that. Benefitting from a supernatural playmaker doesn’t take away from the fact that Draisaitl is pretty great on his own.

It’s just not totally clear how good he would be without McDavid, and we not get an answer soon unless he shifts full-time to being the No. 2 center.

Still, the big numbers speak for themselves, and they sold our voters on a high place in the rankings (although he beat out Jack Eichel for No. 7 by a mere point).

Draisaitl was selected by the Oilers with the No. 3 pick in the 2014 NHL Draft after Aaron Ekblad and Sam Reinhart. He put up monster numbers (105 points in 64 games) during his draft year in the WHL, then split his first professional season between juniors and the Oilers.

His first full NHL season came in 2015-16, when he recorded 51 points in 72 games. The Oilers didn’t go anywhere with McDavid missing a chunk of the season due to injury, but the pieces were being put into place for Edmonton’s return to relevance.

Then came the 2016-17 season, when everything came together for Draisaitl and the Oilers as they reached the Western Conference semifinals. He put up a team-high 16 points in 13 games during his first playoff run, showing he’d be the kind of guy who wouldn’t wilt under the pressure of postseason hockey.

Draisaitl is also the best player on the German national hockey team, which finished seventh at the 2016 World Championships behind his effort. Winning medals with Germany will be almost impossible given how far it lags behind in overall talent compared to other nations, but he gives them a star player.

Draisaitl should continue putting up big numbers in Edmonton for the next eight years, especially if he plays on McDavid’s wing. However, it seems more likely that the Oilers will push him to become the No. 2 center and anchor his own line, given how lucrative his new deal is.

Ideally, the Oilers would be able to rock McDavid and Draisaitl on separate lines to spread out their star talent. That’s what the Penguins have typically done with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, and the same goes for the Blackhawks with Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews. Having two stars team up can be dangerous, but if they’re good enough, it’s often better to separate them and create a deeper lineup.

It’s unclear exactly what the future holds for Draisaitl in Edmonton, but now we know he’ll be there for a long time. If he’s a star winger who can give them 30 goals and 80 points each season next to McDavid, that’d be great. But it’d be even better if he could put up similar numbers on his own, letting someone else benefit from all of McDavid’s playmaking prowess.

Draisaitl deserves to be this high if he can make the transition to an elite center on his own. It’s harder to justify if he’s merely a high-scoring wing next to Connor McDavid, who could make pretty much anyone look good over the course of 82 games.

The best players in the world typically don’t need the support of a McDavid to get their numbers, and we haven’t seen yet whether Draisaitl can produce at that level without that kind of help. But recording 77 regular season points, plus 16 points in 13 playoff games, at age 21 is nothing to sneeze at.

Highest rank: No. 4
Lowest rank: Not ranked