For whatever reason, Van Halen does not get much credit in whatever is left of music journalism. I think a part of it is that nobody wants to say something nice about David Lee Roth while he's still alive.
Personally, I think Ratt consistently gets more credit than it deserves as a "top" group in the same way Van Halen consistently gets left off these sorts of lists. Some other groups like Quiet Riot, White Lion, Cinderella, Kix, and even Slaughter (they weren't necessarily great, but they were absolutley everywhere for the brief period of time they were popular, which was when the hairband thing was at its crest) should at least get billing alongside Europe and Dokken.
I think Warrant’s “Cherry Pie” was the beginning of the end for hair bands. They didn’t even want to do the song, but the record company pressured them into it.