Hello everyone and welcome to the latest Top 10! I'm Eli Feldman.

The upcoming NHL season is shaping up to be record breaking in more ways than one. Several players are within striking distance of personal marks that will forever cement their legacies as some of the game's brightest stars.

From long-time veterans inching toward career caps to modern-day superstars redefining scoring paces, these are the Top 10 milestones worth tracking in 2025-2026.

(Statistics courtesy of Frozen Tools and HockeyReference.com)

10.   Nazem Kadri: 1,000 Games Played

At the risk of making you feel old, Nazem Kadri needs just 15 more appearances to reach 1,000 games played in his NHL career. Kadri's hard-nosed style has always raised questions about his durability, yet Naz hasn't missed a game in over three seasons. For fantasy managers, Kadri's milestone underscores his ability to provide steady multi-category value year after year.

9.   Nikita Kucherov and Brad Marchand: 1,000 Career Points

Speaking of 1,000, Nikita Kucherov is just six points away from 1,000 career points and should hit the plateau within the first handful of games this season. Trailing closely behind Kuch is Stanley Cup Champion Brad Marchand, who's just 20 points shy of 1,000 entering 2025-2026. Both players are Hall-of-Fame bound, but the 1,000-point milestone will add extra polish to their legacies.

8.   Nathan MacKinnon: 1,100 Career Points

Nathan MacKinnon needs just 85 points to reach 1,100 for his career, which feels like a virtual certainty provided he stays healthy (he's recorded 85+ points in seven of his past eight seasons). Nate Dogg's explosive skating and elite puck abilities make a fourth consecutive triple-digit campaign entirely possible. For the Avs, every MacKinnon milestone reinforces how integral he is to their team and Stanley Cup ambitions.

7.   Sergei Bobrovsky: 450 Wins and 50 Shutouts

Sergei Bobrovsky enters the 2025-2026 season just 21 wins and one shutout shy of twin goaltending milestones, and the Panthers' rock-solid defensive core will give him every opportunity to clear both. With two Vezinas and two Stanley Cups already, Bob's climb toward rarified win and shutout totals will only further solidify his spot among the greatest goaltenders of the 21st century.

6.   John Tavares and Patrick Kane: 500 Goals

With just six and eight more goals, respectively, John Tavares and Patrick Kane, two of the most consistent scorers of this century – will each reach the half-millennium mark in goals. Tavares has maintained his scoring pace well into his thirties, while Kane continues to dazzle even as his speed wanes. With health on their side, both players project to celebrate their milestones well before New Year's Day.

5.   Steven Stamkos: 600 Goals

With eighteen more tallies, Steven Stamkos will etch himself into the NHL's history book alongside an exclusive group of prolific goal scorers. Despite struggling last season, Stamkos remains a legitimate goalscoring threat thanks to his lethal one-timer. If he stays healthy, the 600-goal milestone is well within reach this season.

4.   Connor McDavid: Third-Fastest to 1,200 Points

Connor McDavid needs 118 points this season to become the third-fastest player to 1,200 for his career. Having already achieved innumerable milestones at all levels of hockey, every additional McDavid milestone feels less like a surprise and more like a continuation of a historic career in progress. While 118 points is a lofty total, we're talking about Connor McJesus here, people.

3.   Joel Quenneville: 1,000 Coaching Wins

Following his four-year hiatus, Joel Quenneville returns to the bench 31 victories away from joining Scotty Bowman as the only coaches ever to reach 1,000 career wins. Q's tactical approach and ability to manage veteran rosters have kept him relevant through decades of league evolution. Watching him chase this benchmark behind the Ducks' bench will be a season-long subplot on the Westcoast.

2.   Sidney Crosby: Passing Mario Lemieux in Points

Sidney Crosby requires 37 points to surpass fellow Penguins legend Mario Lemieux for eighth in NHL history. It's safe to say that the symbolism of Sid – the kid who saved the Penguins after the 2004 lockout, overtaking Mario, the legend who saved the Penguins both on and off the ice, would be striking indeed. Even at 38, Crosby remains an elite producer and playmaker, and passing Lemieux will add another chapter to Pittsburgh's intertwined history of generational talents.

1.   Alex Ovechkin: 900 Goals

Despite surpassing Wayne Gretzky's all-time goals record of 894 late last season, Alex Ovechkin is nearing yet another round milestone to add to his legendary resume. At this point, every additional goal only further cements Ovie as the greatest goal scorer ever and sets a new benchmark for future generations. Merely three goals away entering 2025-2026, it's only a matter of time until the Great 8 nets number 900.

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That's all for this week! Follow me on X @SmoothE27 for more fantasy hockey content and analysis, and feel free to DM me with any questions about your team.

Stay tuned for the next Top 10 on Monday, September 29. Have a great week everyone!