Stars forward Joe Pavelski named league’s most effective net-front player in NHLPA survey

Joe Pavelski is dangerous in the crease.

It’s been a part of the Dallas Stars veteran’s game for a long time, and everyone around the NHL has had to pay attention to Captain America’s potential tip-in goals throughout his career.

On Wednesday, his skill set became officially appreciated in the 2022-23 NHLPA Player Poll.

This season, 626 NHL players were surveyed on 14 hockey-related questions. Players weighed in on a variety of topics, including questions on the league’s most complete player, best passer, best shoe game, and more.

For Pavelski, he locked up the top spot on the question: “Who affects the game most around the net (forward or defenseman)?”

The Stars forward took home 21.4% of the total vote with Chris Kreider of the New York Rangers (14.6%) and Matthew Tkachuk of the Florida Panthers (8.8%) rounding out the top three.

Pavelski is fourth on the Stars this season with 20 goals. Jason Robertson leads the team with 41.

Additionally, Dallas – the city or any of its players – did not make an appearance on the leaderboard for any of the other 13 questions.

See the full survey here.

Find more Stars coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.