Let the nitpicking begin: The first batch of NHL 12 player ratings are out

Searching for (and then critiquing) the latest player ratings is a time-honored tradition for hockey fans ever since real-life hockey stars first appeared in video games. Normally, that’s something that you would do shortly after opening up the game, but thanks to Operation Sports, you won’t have to wait until the September 13 release date to gripe about Sidney Crosby being the highest rated skater at 94.

The sports gaming Web site revealed NHL 12′s ratings for skaters as well as the full team and legends ratings today. You can pour over every minute (if outdated) detail on those rosters at your leisure, but I thought I’d point out the each teams’ top three skaters – as in forwards and defensemen, not goalies – that were revealed in that post.

Before getting into the list of 30 teams’ highest rated skaters and legends, here are a few reactions.

• Aside from the Blues, Panthers and Coyotes, just about every team has a borderline “star” (87 rating or above) player. That doesn’t always seem fair, but it could make the game more fun since the playing field might be a bit more even.
• Still, I must admit I let out an audible “Wow” when I saw Dustin Byfuglien‘s rating. Some might feel the same way about Phil Kessel, Erik Johnson, Jeff Carter and so on.
• How can a legend be rated an 85?
• Look, I know Marian Gaborik is ultra-talented and that games aren’t required to factor injuries as much as maybe they should but … is he really better than Brad Richards?

OK, now that I have my own knee-jerk reactions out of the way, let’s get cracking.

A couple notes first: These rosters are obviously a bit outdated (example: Alex Frolov is on the Rangers’ roster instead of in the KHL), so it’s quite possible that EA will release an immediate roster update that might change this quite a bit. That being said, player ratings often remain static through frequent updates, only to see drastic changes in certain situations.

There are a few teams with an extra player rating mentioned for your own aggravation/amusement. Legends ratings are listed at the end of this post. Finally, there are some ties for third place, so consult this link for a deeper look at those rosters.

Anaheim

Ryan Getzlaf – 91
Corey Perry – 90
Bobby Ryan – 89

Boston

Zdeno Chara – 91
David Krejci – 87
Milan Lucic – 87

Buffalo

Derek Roy – 88
Thomas vanek – 88
Jason Pominville – 87

(Ville Leino – 82)

Calgary

Jarome Iginla – 90
Alex Tanguay – 85
Jay Bouwmeester  84

Carolina

Eric Staal – 90
Joni Pitkanen – 84
Tomas Kaberle – 84

(Jeff Skinner – 83)

Chicago

Jonathan Toews – 91
Marian Hossa – 89
Patrick Kane – 89

(Duncan Keith – 89)

Colorado

Paul Stastny – 87
Erik Johnson – 87
Matt Duchene – 84

Columbus

Rick Nash – 89
Jeff Carter – 87
Kristian Huselius – 84

Dallas

Loui Eriksson – 87
Brenden Morrow – 87
Alex Goligoski – 85

Detroit

Pavel Datsyuk – 93
Henrik Zetterberg – 91
Nicklas Lidstrom – 88

Edmonton

Ales Hemsky – 87
Ryan Whitney – 85
Shawn Horcoff – 84

Florida

Stephen Weiss – 85
Brian Campbell – 84
David Booth – 84

Los Angeles

Anze Kopitar – 88
Drew Doughty – 88
Mike Richards – 87

Minnesota

Mikko Koivu – 88
Dany Heatley – 88
Devin Setoguchi – 84

Montreal

Michael Cammalleri – 87
Andrei Markov – 87
Tomas Plekanec – 87

Nashville

Shea Weber – 89
Ryan Suter – 87
Sergei Kostitsyn – 83

New Jersey

Ilya Kovalchuk – 91
Zach Parise – 91
Travis Zajac – 85

NY Islanders

Mark Streit – 87
John Tavares – 87
Michael Grabner – 83

NY Rangers

Marian Gaborik – 89
Brad Richards – 88
Marc staal – 85

Ottawa

Jason Spezza – 88
Sergei Gonchar – 85
Daniel Alfredsson – 84

Philadelphia

Chris Pronger – 90
Danny Briere – 87
Claude Giroux – 87

(Jaromir Jagr – 83)

Phoenix

Shane Doan – 85
Keith Yandle – 84
Rostislav Klesla – 83

Pittsburgh

Sidney Crosby – 94
Evgeni Malkin – 91
Kris Letang – 85

San Jose

Joe Thornton – 91
Patrick Marleau – 88
Dan Boyle – 87

St. Louis

David Backes – 85
Barrett Jackman – 84
Andy McDonald – 84

Tampa Bay

Steven Stamkos – 91
Martin St. Louis – 89
Vincent Lecavalier – 88

Toronto

Phil Kessel – 87
Dion Phaneuf – 85
Luke Schenn – 84

Vancouver

Sedin twins – 91
Ryan Kesler – 88

Washington

Alex Ovechkin – 93
Nicklas Backstrom – 87
Alex Semin – 87

(Mike Green – 87)

Winnipeg

Dustin Byfuglien – 87
Andrew Ladd – 85
Nik Antropov – 85

Legends

Mario Lemieux – 97
Wayne Gretzky – 97
Steve Yzerman – 92
Ray Bourque – 91
Gordie Howe – 91
Chris Chelios – 89
Jeremy Roenick – 88
Borje Salming – 85

***

If you ask me, EA made the smart move by giving Lemieux and Gretzky the same rating. Anyway, how do you feel about these initial ratings? Feel free to share your reactions in the comments.

(H/T to On the Forecheck.)