Each week, I will take a trip around the league and dig into the numbers to find insights that can help you make better fantasy hockey decisions.
This week, Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby are battling Father Time, while Joel Farabee, Matvei Gridin, Berkly Catton, and James Hagens are among younger players emerging in offensive roles and much more!
#1 When Alex Ovechkin agreed to return to the Washington Capitals this season, it was reasonable to expect that it would be in a reduced role. After all, he is 41 years old and his role has naturally been decreasing in recent years. In each of the past two seasons, though, Ovechkin had topped 30 goals and was still playing more than 17 minutes per game. This season, he is averaging 13:33 of ice time per game and has just four points (1 G, 3 A) in 13 games. Obviously, Ovechkin is not likely to keep scoring on 5.3 percent of his shots on goal, considering his career mark is 13.0 percent, but he has 19 shots on goal in 12 games and that is not the shot volume that has been a hallmark of Ovi’s illustrious career. For fantasy managers, he is probably only appealing to those in the deepest leagues.
#2 It is not entirely the same story in Pittsburgh, but it’s worth keeping an eye on Sidney Crosby, too. While Crosby’s ice time per game is slightly up from last season, averaging 19:17 per game, he has just seven points (3 G, 4 A) through 12 games. The more troubling part is that he is getting buried in the possession game, with a 47.0 CF% and a -7.2 CFRel% standing as easily the worst marks of his in the advanced stats era. Crosby has scored at better than a point-per-game pace every year that he has been in the NHL, and he could very well make up this early deficit, but it’s always worth watching when a 39-year-old player shows signs of slipping, even when it’s an all-time great.
#3 Expectations are not particularly high for the Calgary Flames this season, and they started slowly just to drive that point home, but it also seems to have freed them up and they are starting to get some better results. In the past seven games, which brought the Flames five wins, winger Joel Farabee put up 11 points (4 G, 7 A) with 15 shots on goal. He has played 20:48 per game over that stretch and any forward that is getting that kind of ice time is going to warrant a look for fantasy managers. Farabee has only surpassed 40 points one in his career, but that’s in the cards for him this season.
#4 Staying in Calgary, sophomore winger Matvei Gridin is giving the Flames reason to be optimistic for the future. The 20-year-old sniper has nine points (5 G, 4 A) in his past seven games and his ice time has jumped, too. In the first six games of the season, he had 15:33 ATOI, but in six games since, it’s up to 17:46 per game, and when increased ice time meets increased production, the coaching staff has incentive to keep giving him that ice time.
#5 The eighth pick in the 2024 Draft, Seattle Kraken center Berkly Catton is providing sorely needed offense. He has seven points (2 G, 5 A) with 11 shots on goal during a six-game point streak. Catton is centering a line with Kaapo Kakko and Shane Wright on the wings. Among players to play at least 100 5-on-5 minutes, Catton ranks 17th with 3.28 points per 60 minutes. The Kraken are reportedly on the hunt for more offensively skilled players, as they should be, but Catton is showing that he can be part of the solution to Seattle’s scoring problems.
#6 Selected by the Boston Bruins with the seventh pick in the 2025 Draft, James Hagens has started his NHL career in fine form. Hagens has six points (3 G, 3 A) and 14 shots on goal in he past seven games, giving the Bruins quality secondary scoring. He is playing 13 minutes per game over that span, so Hagens is making the most of his limited opportunities. Skating on right wing of a line with Casey Mittelstadt and Elias Lindholm, Hagens isn’t being pressured to live up to lofty expectations so early in his career, but he’s showing that he could be ready for more responsibility.
#7 Washington Capitals centre Dylan Strome has seen his ice time drop by nearly a minute per game compared to last season, yet he has 12 points (3 G, 9 A) in 12 games. He’s skating between Alex Tuch and Jordan Kyrou, two of Washington’s big offseason additions. For a playmaker like Strome, having two wingers who can put the puck in the net is a great fit. Something to keep in mind with Strome is that he might be a fit in a package to acquire Dylan Larkin from the Red Wings if the Capitals are so inclined to do that. Strome doesn’t have no-trade protection, and his production is such that the Red Wings would meet their objective of getting immediate help rather than seeking future assets.
#8 Speaking of Jordan Kyrou, he started the season slowly after arriving from St. Louis, with two points (1 G, 1 A) with six shots on goal in six games, but he has turned it around. In his past six games, Kyrou has put up nine points (3 G, 6 A) and 16 shots on goal. Playing with Dylan Strome and Alex Tuch is a great opportunity with players who can help to sustain his offensive output.
#9 Signed as a free agent in the summer by the Anaheim Ducks, A.J. Greer is building on his breakthrough season in Florida last year. In his past six games, Greer has five points (4 G, 1 A) along with 18 hits and 22 penalty minutes. He doesn’t get prime ice time, but Greer’s improving offensive contributions coupled with his banger league stats does warrant putting him on the radar for those managers in deeper leagues.
#10 A first-round pick of the Vancouver Canucks in 2022, Jonathan Lekkerimaki had not produced much in the NHL before this season, managing nine points (5 G, 4 A) in 37 career games. The rebuilding Canucks are in position to give the 22-year-old winger more opportunities, and he is making the most of them. Lekkerimaki has seven points (4 G, 3 A) and 11 shots on goal while averaging nearly 17 minutes of ice time per game in his past six games.
#11 Following a breakout performance in last year’s playoffs, Buffalo Sabres winger Zach Benson has stepped into a bigger role in his fourth NHL season. In his past eight games, Benson has contributed 10 points (2 G, 8 A) while putting 20 shots on goal and averaging 20:53 of ice time per game. Benson is skating alongside Tage Thompson and Peyton Krebs on the Sabres’ top line, and he is producing so it’s fair to expect him to keep that spot.
#12 With the Kings looking for answers down the middle of the ice, they have turned to Alex Laferriere, who primarily played on the wing through his first three NHL seasons, though he did get some time at centre last season. Laferriere has moved between Artemi Panarin and Adrian Kempe on the Kings’ top line and in his past seven games he has six points (1 G, 5 A) and 21 shots on goal. Add 16 hits and six blocked shots and Laferriere fills out the stat sheet rather nicely. He’s also won 51.1 percent of his faceoffs this season, so he could very well stick at centre given the Kings’ needs.
#13 Despite all the turmoil in Detroit this season, veteran winger Viktor Arvidsson has been a very productive addition to the Red Wings lineup. In his past six games, Arvidsson has 10 points (5 G, 5 A) and 19 shots on goal while playing 19:34 per game. Half of his eight goals this season have come on the power play and at least until the Dylan Larkin situation gets resolved, there is every reason to suspect that Arvidsson will remain on the Red Wings’ top power play unit.
#14 Florida Panthers winger Carter Veghaeghe is heating up, producing 10 points (7 G, 3 A) with 21 shots on goal in his past eight games. He is playing more than 18 minutes per game this season, which is higher than his average time on ice in any other season of his career. Verhaeghe is skating on a line with Sam Reinhart and Sandis Vilmanis at even strength and taking a spot on Florida’s No. 1 power play unit.
#15 Even as the Canucks continue to struggle, veteran right winger Brock Boeser finds ways to get on the score sheet. In his past eight games, Boeser has eight points (3 G, 5 A) with 14 shots on goal while playing more than 19 minutes per game. He’s riding shotgun with Elias Pettersson and Jake DeBrusk on Vancouver’s top line, and while it’s fair to be skeptical about Canucks players, it’s reasonable to expect Boeser to have some success if Pettersson is on his game.
#16 Although he tends to take the heat for his defensive miscues, Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Morgan Rielly has six assists and nine blocked shots in his past five games. He has 10 assists on the season, with nine of them coming at even strength. Rielly is averaging 19:43 of ice time per game, the first time since his rookie season that he has averaged fewer than 20 minutes per game, and it seems to be working in his favour. He’s productive and while his defensive game still has room for improvement, it should be noted that it’s been better than it was last season.
#17 After a miserable 22-point season in 2025-2026, Columbus Blue Jackets winger Kent Johnson was an intriguing candidate for a bounce-back season. He’s a skilled forward who has the offensive upside to deliver so much more and he does appear to be on the right track this season. In 11 games, he has 11 points (7 G, 4 A) and 24 shots on goal, playing 17:31 per game, which is an increase of more than four minutes per game since last season. He is skating on the top line with Adam Fantilli and Valeri Nichushkin, and even if he’s not going to keep scoring on 29.2 percent of his shots on goal, the opportunity he is getting is enough reason to be optimistic about Johnson’s production.
#18 Just as it looked like Devin Cooley was taking over the starting goaltender job in Calgary, he suffered a lower-body injury that has him out of the lineup on a week-to-week basis. That gives Dustin Wolf more security in the Flames net, but that’s a risky situation. He has a .847 save percentage in seven starts, allowing six goals against in three different games, which is a real problem, but he is going to get a chance to get back on his game.
#19 Los Angeles Kings captain Drew Doughty had done very little early in the season, failing to record a point through his first nine games. He has since put up back-to-back three-point games. With Brandt Clarke potentially injured after a boarding incident that resulted in the suspension of Ottawa Senators winger Hayden Hodgson, Doughty might have an opportunity to recapture some offensive opportunities. Doughty has been such a valuable player for so long, but his declining production naturally led fantasy managers to abandon him. Under the current circumstances, he might still have some appeal, at least in the short term.
#20 Even if the Tampa Bay Lightning are insisting that they will not trade Nikita Kucherov following his trade request, that situation is going to bear watching for fantasy managers. Since the 2022-2023 season, Kucherov has 523 points, including 191 points on the power play, both ranking second in the league behind Connor McDavid. If Kucherov does get traded, that will almost assuredly have a negative impact on forwards like Jake Guentzel, Brayden Point, and Brandon Hagel as well as defenseman Charle-Edouard D’Astous, who make up the rest of Tampa Bay’s top power play unit.