20 - IVAN DEMIDOV - SEATTLE KRAKEN - Yet another Hab on this list... gross. The future is bright in Montreal. Even brighter than a homemade fireworks show in Rex's backyard. Demidov put up a stellar 62 points last season as a 19-year-old, following up on his explosive 49-point KHL season the year before. There have been people who have compared his puck skills to those of Jack Hughes or Pavel Datsyuk at times, and his vision and playmaking to that of Nikita Kucherov. Those comps might be a little excessive, but they just show how excited people are about this young star. His physicality and defensiveness don't leap out as defining traits, but he's shown flashes that he is no slouch in those areas either.
19 - CUTTER GAUTHIER - CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS - I have not put together any type of "overall" rankings for our 26-27 BRHL rates, but one does not have to look far to see that Gauthier would be one of the best. 41 goals in 76 games is a beautiful stat line for anyone, especially in their early 20's, and especially someone looking for a new contract. His next NHL contract is the talk of the league and would potentially influence my ranking here if already signed. Will he demand Carlsson money or be a bit more reasonable? It'll be fun to find out. I love everything about what he features for Dave and his Hawks, from rates to position eligibility to his contract... for now.
18 - JACOB FOWLER - ANAHEIM DUCKS - What's the price tag on young, franchise goalies? I'm not too sure, but for now, it lands you inside the top 20 on this list of best BRHL assets. He's at or around the top of every goalie prospect list that I've come across, and the eye-test matches the hype. Calm, cool, and collected under pressure, he looked the real part during his stint with the Habs last season. Montreal seems to be bringing him along at just the perfect pace for him to develop and reach his full potential. Fowler's BRHL salary comes in at a cool $825,000, which seems criminal.
17 - SUMIT'S $73,188,852 CASH RESERVE - SAN JOSE SHARKS - Alright, here it is. The nauseatingly high dollar amount that Sumit annually seems to have each July. I'm not sure who all enables him, but they find the returns reasonable enough to send hoards of cash his way each year. The one thing to note about this asset, though, is that even though it returns each year, it's never enough to put the Sharks over the top. Because of course, you can't build a team through free agency alone... but don't tell Sumit that. This season, there are some massive fish (or should we say future Sharks) in the UFA pond/sea. Scheifele has gotten most of the attention, but Miller, Nelson, Wennberg, and Karlsson will probably have plenty of that dough tossed their way. But imagine, just imagine, if he throws us for a loop and finds a way to purchase a couple 1st round picks with the money? Unlikely, but would be a surprising twist.
16 - QUINTON BYFIELD - PITTSBURGH PENGUINS - The former Sudbury Wolf (or Wolve?) himself! Mr. Byfield. Toby, you can just skip this write-up. No use reading it and having blood vessels in your head burst open on ya. Byfield has gone from a super skilled junior player who was in contention to be taken 1st overall in his draft season, to a giant question mark whose attitude and work ethic were being questioned, to one of the most versatile and young 2-way stud forwards in the league. He's averaged about 2/3 of a point over the past couple of years, which isn't spectacular, but that consistency at his age has massive break-through season written all over it. He might be the best blend of size, strength, physicality, and defensiveness of any young forward in the sim.
15 - ILYA SOROKIN - PHILADELPHIA FLYERS - I'm not sure how he recorded 7 shutouts last season in a new NHL that is so hard on goalies, but he found a way to do just that last season. He is my pick for best goalie in the NHL. He did finish 2nd behind Vas in the Vezina voting, but he had a beat-up and inexperienced blue line in front of him. I wasn't sure about rating him this high with only 3 years left on his deal, but that's a lot of time, and it's 3 legit kicks at the can for any BRHL team owning the rights to a top-tier goalie like himself.
14 - TOBY'S 2027 DRAFT CAPITAL - MINNESOTA WILD - Alright, Toby, you can pick back up reading right here. Next June should be a fun time for our 3rd favourite Cordell as his Wild sport an impressive five 1st round selections, three 2nd rounders, and two 3rds. That also means a lot of work scouting dozens of prospects leading up to the big day. Toby has already stockpiled Minny with a plethora of young studs, like Sandis Vilmanis, but he will undoubtedly take things to a whole new level during our annual draft party. Maybe I'll bring some champagne to celebrate, especially if he can unearth a Quinton Byfield-type.
13 - NICK SUZUKI - UTAH MAMMOTH - Joel makes another appearance on this list with the very impressive Nick Suzuki. Joel hasn't made a ton of noise in the standings since I've joined the BRHL, but I'm thinking that may change this season. Suzuki is one of the best young 2-way forwards in our league, but the sim magic doesn't stop there. He has excellent skating and faceoff ratings too. He's also fairly disciplined, can hit a bit, and is locked up for a tidy 7 more seasons. I'm thinking he and Kaprizov are a match made in heaven, and should both be in the Art Ross running if they are kept together.
12 - JAKE SANDERSON - TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING - If value in the sim is numbers-based, and we call those numbers "ratings" and "player age," then Sanderson is definitely someone knocking on the door as a top 10 asset. He is extraordinarily gifted offensively, as evidenced by 54 points in just 67 games, but also boasts a BRHL DF rating of 95 this season. Digging deeper, I see a 99 for his skating, and both puck handling and discipline up into the 90's also. I don't see any holes in his game or in his rates, but I do see a lengthy decade worth of total team control for Eric. If there's a D man to build around in this league, it might be him.
11 - AUSTON MATTHEWS - EDMONTON OILERS - I'm very curious to see what the deal is with Matthews and his BRHL RFA rights/status, but I also enjoy surprises, so we will see what Leon has up his sleeve very, very shortly. The fact that Auston is coming off of a down season, yet his PA-SC-DF line is a whopping 80-90-80, is ridiculous. I imagine there is a sign-and-trade in place with him, so we will likely see exactly what his current value is. Either way, going forward, he should have great real-life linemates to help him bounce back, as I'm sure he calls the shots on whether he gets to have Knies, Willie, McKenna, or someone else suiting up beside him.
BRHL TOP 50 ASSETS RANKING
VEGAS (JOE) - 4
SAN JOSE (SUMIT) - 3
SEATTLE (REX) - 3
WASHINGTON (LARRY) - 3
ANAHEIM (DEV) - 2
BOSTON (GREG) - 2
CALGARY (KEV) - 2
COLUMBUS (JESSE) - 2
JERSEY (KEN) - 2
LOS ANGELES (RUMPY) - 2
NASHVILLE (SHEDS) - 2
PHILLY (TONY) - 2
PITTSBURGH (MATT) - 2
RANGERS (PJ) - 2
TORONTO (GARRETT) - 2
UTAH (JOEL) - 2
WINNIPEG (DOC) - 2
CHICAGO (DAVE)
COLORADO (PAT)
DALLAS (JUNYA)
DETROIT (DAN)
EDMONTON (LEON)
FLORIDA (TYLER)
MINNESOTA (TOBY)
TAMPA (ERIC)