NHL’s best players under age 25 for 2017: Aleksander Barkov ranks No. 15

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.

The young players who typically stand out most in the NHL are the big-time scorers who fill up the stat sheet. Aleksander Barkov can do that, too, but it’s his stellar two-way game that earns him the No. 15 spot on our ranking of the NHL’s best players under 25.

Barkov, the No. 2 overall pick from the 2013 NHL draft, has established himself as the No. 1 center on the Florida Panthers. He’s had some issues with durability that have kept him off the ice for stretches over the past few seasons, but when he’s been healthy, he’s been extremely good.

After cutting his teeth with a couple of solid seasons as a teenager, Barkov broke out in his third year with the Panthers by scoring 28 goals and 59 points in 66 games. He was so good that he finished sixth in Selke Trophy voting as one of the league’s premier defensive forwards. The names ahead of him were a who’s who of two-way stars: Anze Kopitar, Patrice Bergeron, Ryan Kesler, Jonathan Toews, and Joe Thornton.

That’s the kind of company Barkov already finds himself in, as long as he can stay healthy. Part of the forward’s problem is that he’s missed at least 11 games in each of his first three full seasons. In 2016-17, he played just 61 games. The injuries aren’t a source of long-term concern, like a serious back or knee issue, but it’ll be hard for Barkov to reach his full potential if he’s stuck playing 60-65 games per year due to nagging problems.

On the ice, Barkov is already one of the best centers in the NHL. He’s a high-level playmaker who can eat minutes in all situations, including the penalty kill, and give you 25-30 goals per season. Don’t be surprised if he’s a regular near the top of the Selke Trophy voting for years to come.

For someone who doesn’t turn 22 until early September, Barkov has already accomplished a lot as a hockey player. He was a top-three NHL pick, posted back-to-back 50-point seasons, and finished runner-up for the 2016 Lady Byng Trophy.

Barkov is also in the NHL record books as one of the youngest goal scorers in league history. He scored his first career goal with the Panthers on Oct. 4, 2013, at 18 years, 31 days old.

That’s the youngest age for an NHL goalscorer since the expansion era started in 1967. The last time someone younger than Barkov scored in the NHL was Don Raleigh for the New York Rangers against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Nov. 21, 1943, according to Elias Sports Bureau.

Since then, Barkov has proven that score was no fluke. He’s recorded 73 goals in 252 games, which comes out to a pace of 24 goals per 82 games.

On the international side, Barkov should be one of Finland’s key players for the foreseeable future. He played on the Finnish junior teams at the 2012 and 2013 World Junior Championships before making his debut with the senior national team at the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, where he won a bronze medal.

Barkov also won a silver medal with Finland at the 2016 World Championships, where he put up nine points in nine games. At the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, on the other hand, the forward was held without a point in three games as Finland finished eighth.

Barkov may be stepping into a different situation next season with the Panthers’ aggressive changes over the summer. The team got rid of key forwards in Jaromir Jagr, Jonathan Marchessault, Reilly Smith, and Jussi Jokinen after Dale Tallon took back the reigns to the front office coming off a disappointing season.

Two of Barkov’s top three linemates last season were Jagr and Marchessault, so there will be some adjustments to be made this fall. The other was Jonathan Huberdeau, and you can expect that he’ll be the left winger on the Panthers’ top line next to Barkov next season. Barkov struggled badly in his minutes away from Huberdeau and Jagr last season, so it’ll be interesting to see how Florida’s new mix comes together.

Most likely, the right winger next to Barkov and Huberdeau will be ex-KHL star Evgeny Dadonov, who came back over from Russia this offseason on a three-year, $12 million contract. He put up 66 points in 53 games with SKA St. Petersburg last season, and could be a big addition like Alexander Radulov was for the Canadiens a year ago.

If the Huberdeau-Barkov-Dadonov line comes together as planned, the Panthers should have an impressive top trio to roll out next season. And with both Barkov and Huberdeau locked up through 2022 and 2023, respectively, at identical $5.9 million cap hits, Florida should have great flexibility to continue building around its two cornerstone forwards.

This is an example of a ranking that could look way, way too low soon. Barkov isn’t far from being one of the very best two-way centers in the NHL, which would make him one of the league’s best players overall.

Part of what’s prevented Barkov from getting to that level so far is all those missed games. He’s sat out 37 games over the past two seasons due to injuries. If he was playing all 82 and pushing toward 70 points each year, which is the pace he’s set, then he’d probably start getting a lot more hype around the hockey world.

This seems like the low end of where you could possibly rank Barkov at this point given his two-way impact and scoring ability. The Panthers got a real keeper here.

Highest rank: No. 4
Lowest rank: Not ranked