NHL 14: Overrated Players Who Don't Deserve High Rating

EA Sports NHL 14 is due for release on Tuesday, September 10th, and the excitement surrounding the game has only been amped up as the player ratings have been revealed.

While the ratings are typically right on the money, there are a few players in this year’s edition of the game that are overrated.

These are the stars who will fall in the ratings as the dynamic updates take effect.

For the top 50 players in NHL 14, visit EA Sport’s website.

Logan Couture, San Jose Sharks, 89 Rating

The most shocking rating of the top 50 was 25th ranked Logan Couture of the San Jose Sharks. There is no denying the raw talent of the young player, but being listed one point below teammate Joe Thornton and on the same level as New York’s John Tavares and Chicago’s Marian Hossa is the definition of overrated.

Couture has developed into a great shooter with a knack for putting the puck in the net, but that’s not all there is to playing hockey. The 24-year-old is still learning to use his size to his advantage and can be bullied at times.

Add in the vast amount of talent that the Sharks have, and it’s easy to get hung up on Couture as a top-rated player. Instead of deserving an 89, the young forward should have been closer to an 85 until he can prove he is the all-around player worthy of that rating.

If San Jose fails to live up to the hype around this year’s squad, expect Couture’s offensive production and NHL 14 rating to drop drastically.

Jeff Carter, Los Angeles Kings, 88 Rating

The Los Angeles Kings are a perennial Stanley Cup contender, but the rating of forward Jeff Carter as an 88 is way overboard. When teammate and superior all-around player Anze Kopitar is rated only one point better at 89, there is something fundamentally wrong.

There is no denying the sniper abilities of Carter. He amassed 26 goals in 48 games last year and has scored 25-plus goals in five of his last six seasons. But he adds little else to the team. While his versatility allows him to play either of the wings or at center, it doesn’t make up for his lack of defensive prowess.

Carter deserves to be rated closer to 84. The offensive skills will make him a vital addition to a team in the game, but his lack of accountability in his own zone should’ve been reflected in his overall rating.

If Los Angeles starts the season slow and the inconsistent Carter struggles, the Kings forward’s ratings will drop accordingly.

Shea Weber, Nashville Predators, 92 Rating

There was no question coming into last season that Nashville Predators' Shea Weber was the second-best defensemen in the NHL behind Boston’s Zdeno Chara, but a lackluster year has resulted in serious questions about his 92 rating.

Weber is rated at the same level of former teammate Ryan Suter and rated two points higher than Chicago’s Duncan Keith and St. Louis’ Alex Pietrangelo. While the Nashville defender deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as those players, the 92 rating is too high.

Without Suter playing alongside him, Weber failed to make the same kind of impact as the year before. The veteran was able to keep his defensive play at a high level (his plus/minus suffered because of the lack of talent around him), but focus on being more of an offensive threat hindered his all-around abilities.

Weber deserved to earn a 90 rating, but nothing more. Expect the number to drop this season with the Predators possibly forcing Weber into a mentor role with first-round pick Seth Jones, per Josh Cooper of the USA Today.

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