[Kovaz]

The last three years Johnny Gaudreau has been clearly our best forward, largely on the back of his offensive production. He's lead the team in scoring by an average of 13 points per season, and more than any other player on the roster he's got fans on the edge of their seat. Up until recently, it was also clear that Monahan was #2 with another clear gap in offensive production before the next guy. You could argue Tkachuk in that spot as well, especially with his goal-scoring taking a major step forward last year, but for the most part it hasn't been difficult to rank our top forwards.

This year, with Tkachuk taking another step offensively and adding Lindholm to the mix, I've never been less sure of how to rank them. Looking at their stats through 20 games there's next to nothing separating them:

• Elias Lindholm: 11 Goals, 10 Assists, 21 Points
• Sean Monahan: 10 Goals, 11 Assists, 21 Points
• Matthew Tkachuk: 9 Goals, 12 Assists, 21 Points
• Johnny Gaudreau: 6 Goals, 14 Assists, 20 Points

So how do you rank them? Do you value Gaudreau's offensive creativity and playmaking? Lindholm's all-around solidity in every facet of the game? Tkachuk's rare combo of grit, skill, and hockey IQ? Or Monahan's sixth sense and ability to find the right place at the right time? Likewise, which flaws matter more to you? Gaudreau's size? Tkachuk's skating? Monahan's puck handling? (I actually can't think of a significant flaw for Lindholm)

Some other random stats:
Lindholm has the most powerplay points (9) and fewest 5v5 (8)
Monahan has the fewest PP points (6) and most 5v5 (12)
Tkachuk has 7 on the PP, 10 5v5
Gaudreau has 7 on the PP, 11 5v5

At 5v5 Tkachuk has points on 90% of his line's goals (Monahan 75%, Gaudreau 73%, Lindholm 57%)

I'd probably rank them like this:

1. Tkachuk: The fact that he can keep up offensively with the other 3 while playing a shutdown role with less talented linemates is amazing. Factor in how many clutch goals he scores and his leadership and that puts him at the top for me.
2. Gaudreau: Even though the other 3 are keeping up offensively, he's still the engine that powers our offense. No one else on this roster can rush the puck close to as well as he can with as little help. I fully expect him to lead the team in scoring by a decent margin by the end of the year.
3. Lindholm: At times I think he might be our best overall forward, but I just need to see a bigger sample size of the same to bump him up. He seems to touch every dimension of our team in a positive way. His defensive play lets Monahan cheat offensively a bit more, he's an excellent PKer, a huge part of our powerplay. His chemistry with Gaudreau has been every bit as good as Monahan as well.
4. Monahan: Feels weird having him 4th, but someone had to be here. Of the four, I think his flaws as a player are the most noticeable. He definitely leans on Gaudreau in transition more than I'd like, and he doesn't create as much as the other 3 with the puck on his stick. But he's practically clairvoyant when it comes to getting open where the puck's going to be and nobody finishes those chances better.

I've gone back and forth on the order a million times, and the gaps between them are tiny. Obviously when you can't decide which of your 4 point-per-game players is best, that's a great problem to have. Curious what the rest of you think.