Aleksander Barkov is probably “Mr. Underrated” in the NHL. On basically any list you ever see of underrated players, he’ll always be mentioned near the top and it’s probably for good reason.
He’ll probably continue to be that guy for at least one more year, as shown by his NHL 19 rating which comes in at 88. That’s not an especially low number, but it is below players like Auston Matthews and Patrik Laine, who came into the league after him. He was asked if he really worries that much about the rating and he had a simple solution for if he feels like he’s rating too low.
Well, that’s pretty simple.
Obviously there are also updates throughout the year, so it’s possible that he can boost his rating naturally from some stellar play on the ice. If his backyard is any indication, he’s definitely been working hard in the offseason and should be primed for a big year.
