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Draisaitl 4th-best in EA Sports rankings, Bouchard sixth among defencemen

Photo credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images
Aug 19, 2026, 13:00 EDTUpdated: Aug 19, 2026, 13:19 EDT
After the equal parts deserving and headlining announcement that Connor McDavid is the first member of the “99 Club,” EA Sports released more of the Edmonton Oilers players’ ratings.
Leon Draisaitl is the fourth-highest-ranked player in the game at 96 overall, behind only Nathan MacKinnon and Nikita Kucherov. That’s the same ranking he had in NHL 26. Draisaitl has consistently ranked among the game’s best players, not dropping below 95 overall since NHL 23.
Evan Bouchard was ranked the 29th-highest in the game with a 91 overall. That’s the sixth-best rating among defencemen. Cale Makar, Zach Werenski, and Quinn Hughes are all 95 overall. Rasmus Dahlin and Miro Heiskanen are both listed at 93 overall. The game seems to have a higher opinion than the NHL.com ranking, which put Bouchard as the tenth-best rearguard in the game.
In the last two seasons, he’s been ranked 88 overall and 89 overall, respectively.
The Oilers have a total of eight players ranked in the Top 300 of the game’s rating, which is set for release in September. The Florida Panthers have the most with nine players.
Some have commented on the controversy with McDavid being 99 overall, referencing multiple instances in NHL video game history where a player has received those rankings.
Other Edmonton Oilers ranked in EA’s Top 300
- 133rd highest-ranked player: Zach Hyman (87)
- 175th highest-ranked player: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (86)
- 178th highest-ranked player: Mattias Ekholm (86)
- 203rd highest-ranked player: Jake Walman (85)
- 258th highest-ranked player: Connor Murphy (85)
Michael Menzies is an Oilersnation columnist and co-host of PreGaming and Oilersnation After Dark. He’s also been the play-by-play voice of the Bonnyville Pontiacs in the AJHL since 2019. With seven years of news experience as the Editor-at-Large of Lakeland Connect in Bonnyville, Menzies collects vinyl, books, and stomach issues. Follow him on X at Menzies_4.
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