Connor McDavid. Sidney Crosby. The rest.

That's basically the hierarchy of talent in today's NHL, with those two greats expected to battle it out once again for the Art Ross Trophy as the top point producer.

There's other contenders, however, and it's quite possible that any of the following five players could take the scoring title:

5. Mark Scheifele

With 30 goals and 52 assists for the Winnipeg Jets last season, Mark Scheifele finished with the fifth-highest point total among all NHL players. He reached 82 points while appearing in only 79 games, and despite the fact high-scoring winger Patrik Laine missed nine games due to injury.

One would figure his assist total will be boosted if both he and Laine remain on the ice together over a full season, but his goal production may fall off a bit considering he scored at a 20 percent success rate in 2016-17.

Still, the Jets offense is loaded, and Scheifele will be at the middle of a large part of the action.

4. Patrick Kane

Over the past two seasons, no player has been more productive than Patrick Kane, and it's not even really close.

The Chicago Blackhawks winger registered 80 goals and 115 assists for 195 points in his last 164 regular season games, 21 more points than the second-ranked Crosby.

It remains to be seen whether his numbers were boosted by playing with Artemi Panarin, who's since been traded to Columbus for Brandon Saad. For now, Kane is riding the wave of his career, and should be expected to keep it going.

3. Nikita Kucherov

By the end of last season, Nikita Kucherov had put his name in the Hart Trophy conversation, and would have garnered some votes had the Tampa Bay Lightning made good on a late playoff push.

The Russian winger is a superstar few have yet to give the title, a station earned after registering 40 goals and 45 assists in 74 games last season. And that was without Steven Stamkos in the lineup for the majority of the season.

One gets the sense this 24-year-old is just getting started.

2. Sidney Crosby

He very well may have been supplanted as the best player in the world, but Crosby is second to one.

The Pittsburgh Penguins' all-world center recorded 44 goals and 45 assists in 75 games last season, missing the opening seven contests with a concussion. That 0.59 goals per game average is the second-highest of his career, proving he's aging quite well.

Crosby excelled once again in the playoffs, where he meshed well with young wingers Jake Guentzel and Conor Sheary.

Expect Sid to continue to do what he does best, and that's produce.

1. Connor McDavid

It's hard to imagine any player topping the Edmonton Oilers phenom anytime soon.

McDavid was the only player to reach 100 points last season, topping Crosby and Kane by 11 points in the Art Ross Trophy race. For his career, he's averaging 1.17 points per game, which works out to 96 over an 82-game season.

Only Kane has surpassed that total in any of the past three seasons, recording 106 in 2015-16.

In short, McDavid is the perennial favorite to win the scoring race until further notice.

(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)

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The Detroit Red Wings signed winger David Booth to a one-year contract Monday, the club announced.

According to Craig Custance of The Athletic, Booth's deal is a two-way agreement worth $700,000 (NHL) and $250,000 (AHL). Custance also pointed out that Booth will serve as insurance if current restricted free agent Andreas Athanasiou isn't re-signed in the next couple of days.

The veteran forward hasn't suited up in an NHL game since 2015 when he was a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs. He registered seven goals and six assists across 59 regular-season games that campaign.

Booth was invited to Red Wings camp on a professional tryout, which was the third PTO of his career.

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The NHL season is fast approaching, and theScore's hockey editors are previewing the upcoming campaign from a multitude of angles. Here's everything you need to know before the puck drops on opening night:

Predictions

• Atlantic Division
• Metropolitan Division
• Central Division
• Pacific Division
• Debate: Who will win the Stanley Cup in 2018?

• Predicting the NHL's top 5 scorers
• Predicting the 2018 NHL Awards
• 5 bold predictions for the 2017-18 NHL season (Oct. 4)
• Simulating the season in 'NHL 18'

Positional previews

• 5 teams that will boast lethal offenses this season
• The NHL's top 4 defense corps heading into 2017-18
• 3 goalies who'll be on a short leash

Playoff picks

• 3 teams that will be back in the playoffs this season
• 3 teams that won't make it back to the playoffs in 2018

Production projections

• 3 players likely to regress this season
• 5 young players poised to break out this season
• 5 overpaid players who have to produce
• 5 offseason signings that will prove to be steals

Preseason plotlines

• 4 burning questions as the preseason winds down
• 5 players who have plenty riding on their preseason performances
• 5 rookies turning heads in the preseason
• 3 prospects who can improve their fate with a strong training camp

Offseason overview

• Ranking the NHL offseason's 5 best signings
• 5 questionable offseason NHL signings
• 5 players who will benefit most from their club's offseason moves
• 3 players who are going to look really weird in their new jerseys

Mark your calendars

• 7 games to circle on the 2017-18 NHL schedule
• 5 reasons to look forward to the 2017-18 season

The pressure's on

• The biggest challenge facing every Canadian NHL team
• 3 head coaches on the hot seat entering 2017-18 season
• 5 GMs on the hot seat entering 2017-18 season
• 3 teams facing significant injury trouble to begin the season
• Reality vs. Illusion: Are the Maple Leafs in for a major regression?

Looking on the bright side

• Season in a sentence: 1 positive storyline for every NHL team
• 3 reasons why the Hurricanes will end their 8-year playoff drought
• 3 ways the Blues can recover from Fabbri's season-ending injury
• 10 NHLers likely to rebound in 2018
• 5 reasons the 2016-17 season was one to remember

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The Calgary Flames are having talks with the camp of Jaromir Jagr Sunday night, according to The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun.

LeBrun says there is no certainty that a contract will get signed between the two, but that "it is very possible."

The report comes a day after Jagr tweeted an interesting photo of his cat with a bottle of tequila and a stash of money with the caption: "Look, I just tell my cat, there is a chance to play in NHL this year".

Jagr remains without an NHL contract with the regular season now just three days away. On Friday he told a Czech publication that he would not skate with a Czech league team this weekend as he continues to negotiate a potential NHL contract.

This came after St. Louis Blues general manager Doug Armstrong noted his team had internal discussions about signing Jagr earlier in the week.

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This year's second overall selection, Nolan Patrick, has cracked the Philadelphia Flyers opening night roster, according to general manager Ron Hextall.

The news doesn't come as too much of a surprise given Patrick entered this year's draft as the No. 1 rated prospect by NHL Central Scouting. Nevertheless, the 19-year-old had a fairly underwhelming preseason wherein he tallied just three assists in six games with his biggest highlight coming when he dropped the gloves with Boston Bruins forward David Krejci.

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Tom Wilson isn't getting the message, according to St. Louis Blues head coach Mike Yeo.

Just eight days after the NHL handed the Washington Capitals forward a two-game suspension for interference on Blues forward Robert Thomas, Wilson was back at his old tricks, receiving a five-minute major and a game misconduct for boarding Blues' forward Sam Blais Sunday.

Aafter seeing Wilson's antics twice in just over a week, Yeo was not thrilled and suggested the league should be a little more strict if Wilson is dealt further discipline.

"It's a predatory hit with a guy that apparently didn't learn his lesson from the first suspension," Yeo said, according to NHL.com's Lou Korac. "Maybe coming down on him a little bit harder will make him think a little bit more about it. It's tough going after vulnerable people."

Of course, Wilson will now be considered a repeat offender so any discipline would carry a stiffer penalty.

Blais noted after Sunday's game that he was feeling good and he disapproved of Wilson's hit.

"I didn't see (him), but I think it was not a good hit," said Blais. "I didn't see him coming. For sure if I would have seen him coming, I would have protected myself."

The Capitals next game will be their season opener against the Ottawa Senators Thursday.

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Edmonton Oilers forward Jesse Puljujarvi will not begin the season with the big club.

The 2016 fourth overall pick was assigned to the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League on Sunday to begin the 2017-18 campaign, the team announced.

The 19-year-old failed to make enough of an impression in preseason action by tallying just two goals and three points in five contests. Puljujarvi will now return to the AHL, where he spent the majority of last season, putting up 12 goals and 28 points in 39 games.

The club also placed defenseman Mark Fayne on waivers for the purpose of assigning him to Bakersfield.

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