Oilers' Leon Draisaitl and Jets' Connor Hellebuyck have both just received very special recognition as their elite play this season has been noticed. Leon Draisaitl may not be the NHL's highest-paid player just yet, <a href='https://www.tsn.ca/nhl/edmonton-oilers-leon-draisaitl-vaults-to-no-1-in-tsn-s-top-25-nhl-players-this-season-1.2244627' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>but he is currently the highest in another category.</a> <h3>Draisaitl is ranked the top player in the NHL by TSN experts</h3> That's the big takeaway from TSN's annual Mid-Season Top 25 NHL Player Ranking, determined by a panel of 12 TSN hockey experts based on performances in the 2024-25 season, and <a href='https://www.nhl.com/oilers/player/leon-draisaitl-8477934' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>Draisaitl</a> leads the pact. <div align='center' class='pl20 pr20'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/TSNHockey/status/1885330155842736207'> </a></blockquote></div> Draisaitl jumped to No. 1 after an electric first four months, <a href='https://www.hockeylatest.com/nhl-team/edmonton-oilers/leon-draisaitl-breaks-silence-after-record-breaking-contract-with-the-oilers' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>off the massive eight-year extension worth $14 million per season</a>. That deal will likely make him the league's highest-paid player in 2025-26. To this point, the Edmonton superstar has been dominant, netting 36 goals in 51 games, putting him on pace for 58, the only player projected to reach 50 this season. With 76 points, he sits just behind Nathan MacKinnon, who leads with 78. If you remove empty-net points, though, that's three for Draisaitl, and 12 for MacKinnon, so Draisaitl actually leads with 73 to MacKinnon's 66. MacKinnon, last year's mid-season No. 1, comes in second this year. Connor McDavid, who has struggled through injuries and a suspension, places third with 67 points in 45 games. <h3>Connor Hellebuyck is the top-ranked goalie in the NHL</h3> The more intriguing case might be that McDavid isn't even the best Connor this season. That distinction could very well go to Winnipeg's Connor Hellebuyck, who comes in at No. 4 on TSN's list, and the highest-ranked goaltender in the NHL. <div align='center' style='padding:20px;'><img src='https://i.marqueur.com/habsetlnh/i/photo/523497.webp' width='100%' border='0' alt='image' loading='lazy' defer /></div> Winnipeg's success starts at the back, with their star goaltender. Winnipeg leads in virtually every major goalie stat-starts by 41 (second place, 32), 32 wins, the most wins by double figures, a leading 2.00 goals against average, a top .927 save percentage, and 37 goals saved above expected. With numbers such as these, <a href='https://www.nhl.com/jets/player/connor-hellebuyck-8476945' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>Hellebuyck</a> is quite rightly in talks of the Hart Trophy.