Average Height and Weight of Hockey Players (NHL 2023)
I’ve been a collegiate sports performance coach for 20 years. One thing I always felt was effective was showing guys the heights and weights of players at their position in the pros.
It helped give many players the extra motivation needed to gain weight when they were able to compare themselves to guys at the next level.
So, this is essentially the same research I would share with players, but now I’m sharing it with you. I took the active rosters for the 2022-2023 NHL hockey season, over 800 players total and broke them down by position.
For this guide, I took an average of the heights and weights of each position across the league. In addition, just for fun, I listed the tallest, shortest, heaviest and lightest players as well regardless of position. Go ahead and impress someone today with your newfound random hockey knowledge.
Average Height of an NHL Player by Position
| Average NHL Player Height (in inches) | |
| Overall | 73.34 |
| Goalie | 74.68 |
| Defenseman | 73.76 |
| Left Wing | 72.79 |
| Center | 72.99 |
| Right Wing | 72.90 |
Average Weight of an NHL Player by Position
| Average NHL Player Weight (in pounds) | |
| Overall | 199.54 |
| Goalie | 199.89 |
| Defenseman | 202.84 |
| Left Wing | 198.66 |
| Center | 196.90 |
| Right Wing | 198.03 |
Who Are The Tallest Players in the NHL?
There are over 20 players listed at 6’6″, but only 4 players are 6’7″ or taller.
| Tallest Players in the NHL | |||
| Player | Height | Position | Team |
| Tyler Myers | 6’8″ | Defense | Vancouver Canucks |
| Jamie Oleksiak | 6’7″ | Defense | Seattle Kraken |
| Logan Stanley | 6’7″ | Defense | Winnipeg Jets |
| Victor Hedman | 6’7″ | Goalie | Tampa Bay Lightning |
Who are the Shortest Players in the NHL?
There are six players listed at 5’8″ or shorter.
| Shortest Players in the NHL | |||
| Player | Height | Position | Team |
| Cole Caufield | 5’7″ | Right Wing | Montreal Canadiens |
| Tyler Johnson | 5’8″ | Center | Chicago Blackhawks |
| Alex DeBrincat | 5’8″ | Right Wing | Ottawa Senators |
| Cam Atkinson | 5’8″ | Right Wing | Philadelphia Flyers |
| Mats Zuccarello | 5’8″ | Right Wing | Minnesota Wild |
| Kailer Yamamoto | 5’8″ | Right Wing | Edmonton Oilers |
Who are the Heaviest Players in the NHL?
There are 5 players in the NHL that weigh 240 pounds or over.
| Heaviest Players in the NHL | |||
| Player | Weight | Position | Team |
| Jamie Oleksiak | 257 | Defense | Seattle Kraken |
| Nikita Zadorov | 248 | Defense | Calgary Flames |
| Victor Hedman | 244 | Defense | Tampa Bay Lightning |
| Anthony Stolarz | 243 | Goalie | Anaheim Ducks |
| Milan Lucic | 240 | Left Wing | Calgary Flames |
Who are the Lightest Players in the NHL?
There are only 6 guys (out of over 800) who weigh less than 170 pounds.
| Lightest Players in the NHL | |||
| Player | Weight | Position | Team |
| Kailer Yamamoto | 153 | Right Wing | Edmonton Oilers |
| Jakob Pelletier | 160 | Left Wing | Calgary Flames |
| Johnny Gaudreau | 165 | Left Wing | Columbus Blue Jackets |
| Conor Garland | 165 | Right Wing | Vancouver Canucks |
| Noah Cates | 165 | Left Wing | Philadelphia Flyers |
| Jared Spurgeon | 166 | Defense | Minnesota Wild |
Final Thoughts
So, what did I learn?
In some sports, like football and basketball, there is a tremendous difference between the heights and weights of different position groups. Think of the difference between the size of an offensive lineman and a cornerback.
However, in hockey, the difference between a forward and a defenseman or even a forward and a goalie is relatively small. On average, each position is around 6’1″ to 6’3″ and roughly 200 pounds.
That’s not to say that there isn’t a vast difference between players individually though. Looking at the tallest and shortest players above along with the heaviest and lightest illustrates that perfectly.
There are guys playing the same position that are almost an entire foot difference in height and sometimes close to an almost 100 pounds difference in weight! That’s always crazy to me that you can have so many different body types that have all made it to the highest level in their sport.
It truly goes to show that there is so much more to achieving athletic success than simply how tall you are.
Finally, if you’d like to see a further breakdown of each position:
