At the 2008 NHL Draft, the Ottawa Senators were eager to find a franchise player to build around. With the 15th overall pick, the Senators selected defenseman Erik Karlsson.
By 2012, every hockey fan knew Karlsson's name with him being the youngest player to win the Norris Trophy at 22 years old. After the 2017-18 season, Karlsson was traded by the Senators to the San Jose Sharks. Today, Karlsson is a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Karlsson was one of the best players in the NHL during the 2010s. However, even with being a top player for many years, Karlsson's game was recently disrespected.
Karlsson left off NHL's Quarter Century Team
Yesterday, NHL Network posted their NHL Quarter Century Team. All players on the team had to have made their NHL debut on or after Jan. 1, 2000. Even with his accomplishments and incredible talent, Karlsson was left off the team among defensemen.
The six defensemen that made the team over Karlsson:
Drew Doughty
Victor Hedman
Duncan Keith
Cale Makar
Alex Pietrangelo
Shea Weber
Introducing the NHL Network's Quarter Century Team! pic.twitter.com/B9Or6GEJVI
— NHL Network (@NHLNetwork) August 15, 2025
The four defensemen that have the right to be named were Doughty, Hedman Keith and Makar with having won at least one Norris Trophy and one Stanley Cup in their respected careers. Hedman, Keith and Makar each have also a Conn Smyth Trophy as well. However, Pietrangelo and Weber both didn't win a Norris Trophy.
Even with four of the six defensemen winning one Norris Trophy, Karlsson has won the award three times, which is more than any of the six defensemen ever did in their careers. Karlsson also won a Norris Trophy when he recorded a 101-point season, which all six of the defenseman never recorded a 100-point season.
In a stat that might sound shocking to some, Karlsson has recorded more career points than all six of the defensemen named to the team. Karlsson has recorded 870 points in his career. For a player that started playing in the 2009-10 season, Karlsson's career point total is impressive for a defenseman.
The big thing that Karlsson hasn't won in his career is a Stanley Cup, which could be a reason why Pietrangelo was named to the team with having two Stanley Cups. However, Karlsson is statically better and has three Norris Trophies to Pietrangelo's zero.
Karlsson also has never played in a Stanley Cup Final, but Weber did once, but lost in 2021 to Hedman and the Tampa Bay Lightning. However, having three Norris Trophies to Weber's zero and having 281 more points might have an edge for Karlsson to be named over Weber.
Karlsson's legacy in Ottawa still remains strong with winning two Norris Trophies and recording 518 points during his Senators tenure. Karlsson's impact in Ottawa was a tremendous one that will never be forgotten.
However, not being named to the Quarter Century Team from NHL Network may have been disrespect for how good Karlsson was from 2009-2025.