kyle palmieri – McKeen's Hockey

NHL: CULLEN – TOP 20 FANTASY POINTS – A Capitals rookie finding his form, the Avalanche captain back on track, Luke Evangelista, Matvei Michkov, Vladislav Gavrikov, and so much more!

Scott Cullen — Fri, 05 Dec 2025 19:43:55 +0000

Each week, I dig into the stats to find information that can help you make better fantasy hockey decisions. This week, a Capitals rookie finding his form, the Avalanche captain back on track, Luke Evangelista, Matvei Michkov, Vladislav Gavrikov, and so much more!

#1 After scoring 49 points (30 G, 19 A) in 37 games for Boston College as a sophomore last season, Ryan Leonard was signed and joined the Capitals late in the season but managed just one goal in nine regular-season games before contributing one assist in eight playoff contests. Nevertheless, the eighth pick in the 2023 Draft was considered a possible Calder Trophy candidate entering the season. He opened the season with eight points (3 G, 5 A) and 37 shots on goal while averaging 13:54 of ice time in 19 games, which was not going to keep him in the Calder Trophy race. He has picked up the pace more recently, however, tallying 10 points (4 G, 6 A) with 23 shots on goal while playing 15:20 per game in his past nine games. He is getting first unit power play time, which certainly raises his offensive ceiling.

#2 When Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog returned to action during last season’s playoffs, it was a feel-good story since it was his first NHL action since 2022, but it was also fair to wonder how much he could contribute this season as he is now 33 and coming back from a serious injury. He started this season slowly, with zero goals, four assists, and 22 shots on goal through 16 games. He has found his footing since then, though, putting up 10 points (5 G, 5 A) with 26 shots on goal in his past 11 games. He is skating with Brock Nelson and Ross Colton on Colorado’s second line and is getting top power play time, so Landeskog may be a good bet to produce at a high level for the rest of the season.

#3 As the Nashville Predators look for reasons to be optimistic, right winger Luke Evangelista is starting to become a factor offensively. In his past six games, Evangelista has eight points (2 G, 6 A) and a dozen shots on goal while averaging 17:39 of ice time per game. He had a career-high 39 points (16 G, 23 A) in 2023-2024, but with 18 points (4 G, 14 A) in 26 games this season, he’s on pace to soar past that total. Evangelista is skating on Nashville’s top line, with veterans Ryan O’Reilly and Steven Stamkos.

#4 After scoring 63 points (26 G, 37 A) in 80 games and finishing fourth in Calder Trophy voting last season, Philadelphia Flyers winger Matvei Michkov entered his second season with lofty expectations. It didn’t start out very well, as head coach Rick Tocchet acknowledged Michkov’s poor physical conditioning early in the season when he had just three points (1 G, 2 A) and 17 shots on goal in his first nine games. The tide may be turning for him, though, as Michkov has six points (3 G, 3 A) and 15 shots on goal in his past five games.

#5 A big free agent addition in the offseason for the New York Rangers, defenceman Vladislav Gavrikov is not necessarily known as a big point producer, with 33 points in 2021-2022, when he played for Columbus, counting as his career high, but he has been cooking lately. In his past seven games, Gavrikov has seven points (4 G, 3 A), seven shots on goal, and is averaging 25:35 of ice time per game. With Adam Fox injured, the Blueshirts will need Gavrikov to fill a big role at the top of their defensive depth chart.

#6 Buffalo Sabres winger Josh Doan put up 19 points (7 G, 12 A) with 88 shots on goal in 51 games as a rookie for Utah last season but has taken on a more substantial role with the Sabres in 2025-2026. In his past seven games, Doan has seven points (3 G, 4 A) and 20 shots on goal and while, like many Sabres wingers, he moves around the lineup, he is getting time on PP1. Six of Doan’s 19 points (8 G, 11 A) in 27 games this season have come via the man advantage.

#7 In his prime, Dallas Stars captain Jamie Benn was a fantasy hockey star, producing points and hits like few others. He’s now 36 and plays a supporting role in Dallas, but he’s been awfully effective even with limited ice time. Benn suffered a collapsed lung in the preseason, so he was not ready to play at the start of this season, but in nine games, he has eight points (3 G, 5 A) with 11 shots on goal while playing just 12:50 per game. That ice time is starting to tick up – 15:40 per game in the past three – and with Tyler Seguin out with a torn ACL, there may be a greater need for Benn to fill a role in Dallas’ top six, at least until Matt Duchene is healthy.

#8 With the Nashville Predators showing signs of life, maybe centre Ryan O’Reilly won’t hear his name in trade rumours quite so often. The 34-year-old pivot is a valuable player and one that contenders seek out, but he has been doing his part to help the Preds. In his past five games, O’Reilly has eight points (3 G, 5 A) and six shots on goal. That shot rate is obviously too low, but O‘Reilly is averaging more than 20 minutes of ice time per game in that stretch.

#9 Centre Elias Lindholm may not be exactly what the Boston Bruins hoped he would be when they signed him as a free agent in the summer of 2024, but he has also picked up seven assists in his past four games, giving him 16 points (4 G, 12 A) in 19 games this season. It’s not all gold for Lindholm right now, though, as he’s rocking a 44.0 percent Corsi percentage and, for a player with a strong two-way reputation, that’s not good enough.

#10 A solid secondary scoring option for the Toronto Maple Leafs, left winger Bobby McMann has delivered six points (3 G, 3 A) with seven shots on goal in his past three games. McMann scored 20 goal and 34 points last season and, with eight goals and 14 points in 27 games this season, he’s on pace for more. He does move around the lineup and there is a ceiling on his offensive production because he doesn’t always have a reliable power play role.

#11 Former Maple Leafs prospect Alex Steeves is starting to make his mark for the Boston Bruins. Steeves, a 25-year-old rookie, started the season in the AHL with has earned chance with the Bruins and is making the most of it. In his past five games, Steeves has six points (5 G, 1 A) with 10 shots on goal while averaging 15:36 of ice time per game. With David Pastrnak injured, Steeves is skating on Boston’s top line with Lindholm and Morgan Geekie and getting second unit power play time.

#12 Florida Panthers left winger A.J. Greer contributed 17 points (6 G, 11 A) in 81 games last season, skating on the Panthers’ fourth line. He also had a career-high 130 penalty minutes, which fit with his style of play. While his style has not changed, injuries in Florida have provided Greer with more opportunities and he is starting to take advantage of them. In his past five games, Greer has averaged 15:47 of ice time per game while producing five points (2 G, 3 A) with 15 shots on goal. He has been skating on a line with Sam Bennett and Carter Verhaeghe and is showing that he may be able to legitimately fit in the top nine.

#13 Toronto Maple Leafs veteran Max Domi had a miserable start to this season, with six points (3 G, 3 A) and 36 shots on goal in his first 23 games. He has, however, picked up five assists in the past three games and is skating at right wing on the top line with Auston Matthews and Matthew Knies. So long as he’s in that spot, there is a chance for Domi to salvage this campaign.

#14 Tampa Bay Lightning defenceman Darren Raddysh has turned into an offensive force on the blueline since injuries thrust him into a big role, including as the quarterback on PP1. In his past 10 games, Raddysh has averaged more than 24 minutes per game, putting up 15 points (2 G, 13 A) with 25 shots on goal. Not bad for a guy who couldn’t count on a regular spot in the lineup before injuries decimated the Tampa Bay blueline.

#15 Vancouver Canucks superstar defenceman Quinn Hughes has slumped recently, with a modest two points (1 G, 1 A) in his past six games, a stretch in which the Canucks have managed just one win. Hughes had 13 assists in the previous six games, so there is some regression in real time happening here, and there is no reason to move Hughes unless there is a long-term reason that his production should stay down. As of now, it’s probably wise to stay invested in one of four defencemen in the league scoring at least a point per game. (Cale Makar, Shayne Gostisbehere, and Zach Werenski are the others.)

#16 Having won back-to-back Vezina Trophies as the league’s top goaltender, an injury to Winnipeg Jets netminder Connor Hellebuyck is naturally a big deal. Even if his numbers aren’t quite as strong this season, it’s not like a .913 save percentage in 14 starts was a problem for the Jets, but now Hellebuyck is out for four-to-six weeks after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery. That leaves journeyman Eric Comrie to fill the starter’s role in Hellebuyck’s absence, and Comrie has a .897 save percentage in 11 starts.

#17 The Anaheim Ducks are in a tough goaltending spot, as Lukas Dostal is out with an upper-body injury for two-to-three weeks, and Petr Mrazek is facing a similar timeline with a lower-body injury, leaving Ville Husso as the de facto starter for the Ducks. Husso has appeared in four games this season, posting a .859 save percentage, which is obviously not good enough, but he does have a .901 save percentage for his career, so there is some reason to hope that he can be an adequate option for the next few weeks.

#18 Veteran New York Islanders right winger Kyle Palmieri suffered a torn ACL, ending his season. On the play that it occurred, Palmieri even managed to get an assist, stealing the puck from Flyers defenceman Emil Andrae on his way to the bench, giving it to Jonathan Drouin, who set up Emil Heineman for a goal. Palmieri finished his season with 18 points (6 G, 12 A) in 25 games and with Palmieri out, rookie Max Shabanov moves up to the Islanders’ top line. Shabanov has nine points (3 G, 6 A) and 24 shots on goal through his first 16 NHL games.

#19 Philadelphia Flyers left winger Tyson Foerster will be out for two to three months with an upper-body injury, halting his rising momentum. In his last seven games before he was injured, Foerster scored six goals and had 15 shots on goal. His absence does create more room in the Flyers’ top six for winger Owen Tippett, who is heating up with 12 points (4 G, 8 A) and 24 shots on goal in his past 10 games.

#20 St. Louis Blues rookie right winger Jimmy Snuggerud is going to be re-evaluated in six weeks after suffering a broken wrist. Prior to injury, he had been slumping, managing zero points and nine shots on goal in his last seven games. Aleksanteri Kaskimaki, a third-round pick in 2022, has been called up to the Blues and is getting a shot in their top nine after he managed seven points (3 G, 4 A) in 16 AHL games.

NHL: 20 FANTASY POINTS – A big opportunity in Edmonton, Corey Perry keeps getting it done, Pierre-Luc Dubois is out, Troy Terry is surging, and much more!

Scott Cullen — Fri, 07 Nov 2025 21:57:33 +0000

OTTAWA, ON - OCTOBER 21: Jack Roslovic #28 of the Edmonton Oilers prepares for a face-off against the Ottawa Senators on October 21, 2025, at Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, ON, Canada. (Photo by Richard A. Whittaker/Icon Sportswire)

Each week, I dig into the stats to find information that can help you make better fantasy hockey decisions. This week, a big opportunity in Edmonton, Corey Perry keeps getting it done, Pierre-Luc Dubois is out, Troy Terry is surging, and much more!

#1 When the free agency carousel stopped spinning this summer, Jack Roslovic was still looking for a spot and ultimately ended up signing with the Edmonton Oilers. Roslovic tied his career high with 22 goals last season, finishing with 39 points, but there may be more upside awaiting him in Edmonton, where there is room for him to play in a scoring role. After a slow start to the season, Roslovic has hit his stride, with seven points (3 G, 4 A) and 17 shots on goal in the past six games. He is skating on a line with Vasily Podkolzin and Leon Draisaitl at even strength and is on the first power play unit, averaging more than 19 minutes of ice time per game in the past six games.

#2 Part of the reason that the Oilers had an opening on right wing is that they did not bring back Corey Perry, The 40-year-old right winger has enjoyed a brilliant start to his time with the Los Angeles Kings, putting up nine points (6 G, 3 A) and 24 shots on goal in his first nine games. Perry has tended to play fourth line minutes in the latter stages of his career, but he can move up the depth chart, and he is getting first-unit power play time with the Kings right now.

#3 The Anaheim Ducks are starting to make noise, averaging a league-leading 4.15 goals per game, and veteran right winger Troy Terry is one of the Ducks players off to an excellent start. Through 13 games, he has 17 points (5 G, 12 A) and 32 shots on goal. He’s skating on a line with emerging star centre Leo Carlsson and veteran winger Chris Kreider and all three are on the Ducks’ top power play unit.

#4 Washington Capitals centre Pierre-Luc Dubois will be out for an extended period of time after suffering a lower-body injury. Dubois had a career-high 66 points (20 G, 46 A) last season but failed to record a point in six games this season. His absence will thrust Connor McMichael into the second-line centre role for Washington, skating between Aliaksei Protas and Tom Wilson. McMichael is off to a slow start this season, too, but this could be a big opportunity for him to get going.

#5 Second year San Jose Sharks right winger Will Smith is continuing to make progress, riding shotgun with Macklin Celebrini on the Sharks’ top line. In his past eight games, Smith has nine points (5 G, 4 A) and 15 shots on goal. That shot rate is a touch low to sustain his production, but Smith’s deployment is plenty of reason to be optimistic, as he skates on San Jose’s first line and has a spot on the Sharks’ top power play unit.

#6 After a relatively slow start in Vancouver, it’s looking like Evander Kane is starting to find his footing with the Canucks. In his past six games, Kane has five points (3 G, 2 A) with 21 shots on goal, including 10 shots on goal in Wednesday’s loss to Chicago. It was his most shots on goal since a game in Vegas on March 28, 2023. Kane is skating on the Canucks’ top line with Elias Pettersson and Conor Garland, who recently returned to the lineup.

#7 The Chicago Blackhawks have rotated through a variety of wingers, trying to find the right fit for Connor Bedard on the top line. It looks like veteran winger Andre Burakovsky is a good fit. He has six points (3 G, 3 A) in his past five games, though with only eight shots on goal, so the goal-scoring may not sustain itself, but if Burakovsky can maintain his position on Bedard’s line, that’s as good an opportunity that he has had in years, probably since 2021-2022 when he tallied a career-high 61 points (22 G, 39 A) for the Colorado Avalanche.

#8 Although he doesn’t get the same kind of ice time that he did earlier in his career, Avalanche winger Victor Olofsson has found a niche as a power-play specialist and he’s making the most of his time in Colorado early in this season. In his past five games, Olofsson has eight points (5 G, 3 A) with 18 shots on goal. Five of his 12 points this season have come via the power play, and he is averaging 3.0 shots on goal per game, which is quite encouraging. In addition to his role on the No. 1 power play unit, Olofsson skates on a line with Jack Drury and Gabriel Landeskog at even strength.

#9 In a constant battle to secure regular playing time with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Nicholas Robertson has five points (2 G, 3 A) and nine shots on goal in his past four games, and that kind of production has helped him to find a spot alongside John Tavares on the Leafs’ second line. If history is any kind of indicator, Robertson’s place in that spot is precarious, but it is worth noting that he is among the most productive Maple Leafs forwards. Since the start of the 2023-2024 season, Robertson has scored 1.18 goals per 60 minutes of five-on-five play. On the Maple Leafs, that ranks second in that time, behind Auston Matthews (1.42) and ahead of William Nylander (1.17).

#10 After some decline in the past few seasons, Anaheim Ducks defenceman Jacob Trouba is once again a significant contributor for fantasy managers. The key for Trouba is point production because he accumulated hits and blocked shots like few others. After managing just 14 points (1 G, 13 A) in 77 games last season, Trouba also has eight points (3 G, 5 A) with 21 shots on goal in 13 games this season. The Ducks are also outscoring opponents 18-6 at evens with Trouba on the ice. That’s fueled by percentages, as he has 109.5 PDO, but these Ducks are a much more competitive squad than they have been in recent seasons and Trouba is still playing nearly 22 minutes a game, giving him ample opportunity to contribute.

#11 New York Islanders veteran Kyle Palmieri is a classic guy who gets overlooked because he’s been around for a while but he’s steady. In his past eight games, he has seven points (3 G, 4 A) and 24 shots on goal. In addition to first unit power play time, he is skating on a line with Jonathan Drouin on the left side and rookie Calum Ritchie down the middle. Ritchie, who was acquired from the Colorado Avalanche as part of the Brock Nelson trade, had three points (1 G, 2 A) in three AHL games to start the season but has zero points and one shot on goal in three games for the Islanders.

#12 In 2023-2024, Philipp Kurashev busted out with 54 points (19 G, 35 A) for the Chicago Blackhawks, a career high while playing more than 19 minutes per game for the lowly Chicago squad. Last season, his ice time plummeted to 13:43 per game and he put up a paltry 14 points (7 G, 7 A) in 51 games. He signed a one-year deal with San Jose in the offseason, a chance to make good, and he’s starting to fit in with the Sharks. In his past six games, Kurashev has eight points (4 G, 4 A) and 18 shots on goal, while averaging 19:24 of ice time per game.

#13 When the Buffalo Sabres traded J.J. Peterka to the Utah Mammoth in the offseason, it seemed that defenceman Michael Kesselring as the priority for the Sabres, and right winger Josh Doan was maybe more than a throw-in, but not necessarily a focal point. Doan has quickly shown that he can be a contributor for the Sabres and in the past 11 games he has nine points (4 G, 5 A) with 32 shots on goal. With injuries to Josh Norris, Zach Benson, Jason Zucker, and Jiri Kulich, the Sabres need forwards to step up and Doan is making the most of his opportunity, even getting first unit power play time.

#14 In 2023-2024, Minnesota Wild defenceman Brock Faber was runner-up for the Calder Trophy after producing 47 points (8 G, 39 A) while playing 24:58 per game. His production dropped to 29 points last season, his power play points dipping from 16 to 10, but his ice time went up to 25:32 per game. This season, Faber is playing less – 23:36 per game – but has been effective on the power play with half of his eight points coming with the man advantage. What’s intriguing is that Faber has recorded 36 shots on goal in 15 games, his average of 2.4 shots on goal per game is well above his previous high of 1.7 shots on goal per game set during his rookie campaign.

#15 When the rebuilding Sharks brought in veteran blueliner Dmitry Orlov in the summer, he was considered an adult in the room, a proven professional defenceman who had played more than 800 NHL games. He has been that and is playing 22:33 per game, which includes power play time and four of his 10 assists this season have come via the man advantage. For a player who has never had more than eight power play points in a season, this is opening doors for offensive production if he can merely remain in a regular role with the Sharks. If John Klingberg continues to struggle at five-on-five, there might be more power play opportunities awaiting Orlov, too.

#16 Although he managed just 27 points (15 G, 12 A) in 67 games for the Edmonton Oilers last season, Viktor Arvidsson is starting to hit his stride with the Boston Bruins. In his past nine games, he has contributed six points (4 G, 2 A) with 25 shots on goal and he’s playing nearly 16 minutes per game in that span, up from 13:30 per game before that. Arvidsson is a five-time 20-goal scorer and, currently skating on a line with Pavel Zacha and Casey Mittelstadt, he could his that mark again.

#17 Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Jake McCabe isn’t necessarily known for his offensive output, in part because he doesn’t get regular power play time. Nevertheless, he does have six points (1 G, 5 A) in his past six games, and for a player who records more than two blocked shots per game that might be enough to warrant the interest of fantasy managers in deeper leagues.

#18 After suffering an injury in the preseason, Calgary Flames left winger Jonathan Huberdeau wasn’t ready to start the season and then managed one point in his first four games. Since then, though, he has put up seven points (3 G, 4 A) during a six-game point streak. He’s skating on a line with Morgan Frost and Matt Coronato, in addition to first-unit power play time, so Huberdeau remains a useful performer for fantasy managers, even if he is a long way from his peak production seasons in Florida.

#19 The Pittsburgh Penguins have been an early season surprise, but they are starting to get hit by injuries and it will be interesting to see how they can overcome the losses. Forwards Rickard Rakell, Justin Brazeau, Filip Hallander, and Noel Acciari are all out of the lineup right now and goaltender Tristan Jarry is out for at least three weeks with a lower-body injury. Jarry has been excellent, with a .911 save percentage in seven starts, but now Arturs Silovs is likely to see more action in the Penguins net. Silovs has a .912 save percentage, so he has been strong, too, but this will be a good test to see if Silovs can handle the workload of a starting goaltender, even over a short period of time. The Penguins called up 21-year-old goaltender Sergei Murashov from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League, where he had a .931 save percentage in seven games, so he could get a taste of NHL action in Jarry’s absence.

#20 With winger Jake Neighbours out for at least five weeks with a leg injury, the St. Louis Blues have moved captain Brayden Schenn to right wing on their second line, with Pius Suter and Dylan Holloway, while rookie Dalibor Dvorsky has stepped into the third-line centre role. Schenn has six points (2 G, 4 A) in 15 games this season and had failed to record a shot on goal in three straight games before generating three shots in his last game. Consider him a buy-low candidate given this modest productivity.

*Advanced stats via Natural Stat Trick

MCKEEN’S 2025-26 NHL YEARBOOK – NEW YORK ISLANDERS – Team Preview/Player Profiles/Predictions

Fri, 03 Oct 2025 19:43:46 +0000

PITTSBURGH, PA - DECEMBER 29: New York Islanders center Mathew Barzal (13) warms up before the NHL game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the New York Islanders on December 29, 2024, at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA. (Photo by Jeanine Leech/Icon Sportswire)

With Patrick Roy behind the Islanders bench, the team managed a .500 points percentage, finishing with 82 points (35-35-12) in 82 games. The Islanders were a mid-range puck possession squad, ranking 18th in Corsi percentage (49.6) and 14th in expected goals percentage (50.6). Special teams was a large part of the Islanders’ undoing last season, ranking 31st with 4.14 goals per 60 minutes of five-on-four play and ranking 30th with 9.59 goals against per 60 minutes of four-on-five play. A mediocre possession team can’t overcome such terrible special teams, even with Ilya Sorokin as the starting goaltender. Semyon Varlamov was injured for much of the season, so Marcus Hogberg had the second-most appearances among Islanders goaltenders and that didn’t help matters.

What’s Changed?

The Islanders hired Mathieu Darche to be their new General Manager, taking over for Lou Lamoriello and he was relatively busy in the offseason, starting with the selection of defenceman Matthew Schaefer with the first pick in the 2025 Draft. The Isles signed left winger Jonathan Drouin from the Colorado Avalanche and plucked Maxim Shabanov from the KHL, where he had 67 points (23 G, 44 A) in 65 games for Traktor Chelyabinsk. More dramatically, the Islanders traded defenceman Noah Dobson to Montreal, acquiring forward Emil Heineman from the Canadiens as part of the return. The Islanders added David Rittich from the Los Angeles Kings to stabilize their goaltending, and enforcer Matt Martin skated off the ice and into the Isles’ front office.

What would success look like?

For a team with as many veterans as the islanders, the playoffs must be the objective. They don’t appear to have the high-end talent to compete with the very best teams in the league, though they made some deep playoff runs in 2020 and 2021 when it didn’t look like they had that kind of talent, either. The other priority should be to make sure that No. 1 pick Schaefer develops as much as possible. Shelter him if he needs sheltering, but make sure that he is going to be a fixture on this blueline for 15 years.

What could go wrong?

The Islanders have been dependent on excellent goaltending from Ilya Sorokin and that always presents a risk, that if the goaltending falls off that the rest of the team is not equipped to handle it. On one hand, it’s hard to imagine that the Islanders could duplicate such an awful special teams performance, but if they did, that would once again prevent them from reaching the playoffs. Just as success would be making the playoffs and developing Schaefer properly, the opposite end of the spectrum would be to miss the playoffs, but not by much so they don’t get a great shot at the lottery, and they botch the development of their No. 1 overall draft pick.

Top Breakout Candidate

As exciting as it would be to have a rookie defenceman like Schaefer take the league by storm, he is just 18 years old and that’s asking a lot. On the other hand, Russian forward Maxim Shabanov is 24 and coming off an outstanding season in the KHL, finishing third in league scoring. There’s no guarantee that the undersized Shabanov will make the transition to North America and fill the net, but the Islanders should be motivated to give him the chance, and he might even be able to help their pathetic power play.

FORWARDS

Mathew Barzal

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
65	16	40	56	0.86

A brilliant skater who adds an electrifying element to the Islanders attack, Barzal missed 52 games with injuries last season, finishing with just 20 points (6 G, 14 A) in 30 games. The scoring totals were somewhat deceptive because underlying numbers suggest that Barzal was as dangerous as ever. He had career-best rates for on-ice Corsi For and on-ice Expected Goals For during five-on-five play. He also had his individual highest rate of shot attempts per 60 minutes but scored on just 5.1 percent of his shots at five-on-five, a far cry from 10 percent or better, like he did in six of the previous seven seasons. All of these stats suggest that Barzal is still a difference-maker, and he is consistently the most dangerous forward on the Islanders roster, so if he is healthy this season, he will be expected to produce. He has shifted to playing the wing more often, in part because he’s terrible on faceoffs, winning 42.3 percent for his career, but given the Isles’ personnel after trading Brock Nelson last season, Barzal may need to spend more time down the middle of the ice in 2025-2026. He does have some injury history, so that creates a range on his possible outcomes. Expecting him to miss at least 15 games is probably fair, and if that’s the case, then 50-55 points is a reasonable expectation. If he’s healthy, maybe 65-70 is more on target.

Bo Horvat

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
82	31	31	62	0.76

One of the features that made Horvat appealing to the Islanders when they acquired him from Vancouver was that he was reliably productive. In the past two seasons, he has scored 61 goals and the Islanders have outshot and outscored opponents consistently with him on the ice. He’s doing his part and, last season, it came with a variety of linemates. Anders Lee was his most common winger but with Barzal injured, Kyle Palmieri, Simon Holmstrom, Anthony Duclair and Jean-Gabriel Pageau each played more than 200 five-on-five minutes with Horvat. A physically strong player, Horvat wins puck battles and handled more than 20 minutes of ice time per game last season. One reason to be optimistic about his chances for the 2025-2026 season is that the Islanders power play was abysmal last season and Horvat’s production suffered. There were 136 players that played at least 150 minutes during five-on-four play last season and 132 of them had more points per 60 minutes than Horvat’s 1.65 per 60. He had scored 71 power play goals in the previous seven seasons, so he ought to bounce back. He is as reliable as anyone on the Isles’ roster and has missed a total of five games over the past three seasons, so Horvat should be able to contribute 30 goals and 60-plus points this season.

Jonathan Drouin

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
62	13	30	43	0.69

A very talented player who has had an up-and-down career, Drouin had a good thing going in Colorado over the past two seasons, tallying 93 points (30 G, 63 A) in 122 games. Of course, one of the reasons that Drouin has had ups-and-downs in his career is that he has had difficulty staying healthy, and he played just 43 games for Colorado in 2024-2025. No matter who Drouin skates with on the Islanders roster in 2025-2026, it will be a downgrade from riding shotgun with Nathan MacKinnon in Colorado. Drouin scored on a career high 19.6 percent of his shots last season, so that is a number that is likely to regress, but Drouin is a creative offensive player and effective puck distributor and as much as he is a finesse player, he turned in better defensive results in his two seasons with Colorado and that would certainly enhance his value if he could bring a more reliable two-way game to the Islanders. The good news for Drouin is that, if he's healthy, he should play a big role for the Isles. Given his injury history, it’s entirely fair to expect Drouin to miss 15-20 games and, if that’s the case, he could still find a way to contribute 40 points.

Anders Lee

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
80	25	23	48	0.60

Going into last season, it was possible that the Islanders were ready to prepare their captain for a decreased role. He had played 15:34 per game on his way to contributing 37 points (20 G, 17 A) in 81 games in 2023-2024, the kind of numbers that suggested he was moving down the depth chart. Then, last season, Lee went out and earned his place in the lineup, finishing with 29 goals and 54 points, his highest totals in those categories since the 2017-2018 season. To get that kind of bounce back from a 34-year-old winger was unexpected, but Lee is an imposing physical presence and that doesn’t go away with age. He can still plant himself in front of the other team’s net and he generated 233 shots on goal last season, the high-water mark for his career! Lee has scored at least 20 goals in eight consecutive seasons, not counting the shortened 2020-2021 season, during which he was also injured but still delivered 12 goals in 27 games. The Islanders have outscored opponents with Lee on the ice during five-on-five play in six of the past seven seasons and last season the Isles outscored opponents 60-43 in those situations, the second-best differential of his career. Even if he’s in a complementary role, Lee still figures to get power play time and should be capable of scoring 25 goals and 45 points.

Simon Holmstrom

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
80	20	23	43	0.54

Drafted with the 19th pick in the 2019 Draft, Holmstrom took a while to reach the NHL and he has started to make positive contributions in the past couple of seasons, scoring 35 goals and 70 points in 150 games. Last season, he was shuffled around the lineup – his three most common linemates were centers Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Casey Cizikas, and Bo Horvat – and had a serious hot streak from November 1 through December 21, during which he recorded 19 points (9 G, 10 A) in 24 games. Holmstrom had just 34 shots on goal over that stretch, which was a good indication that his scoring surge was unsustainable, and it was. While Holmstrom appears to be more accomplished defensively, where he is closer to average, he has scored on 20.8 percent of his shots in the past two seasons, and that’s incredibly high, but he does contribute quite a bit in transition, where the percentages tend to be higher, and he does have a dangerous shot when given room to let it go. There is uncertainty over his role going into 2025-2026 because he was all over the lineup in 2024-2025, so consider 15 goals and 35 points a baseline for him, with room to move up if he ends up skating with more accomplished offensive players.

Kyle Palmieri

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
82	21	23	44	0.54

There were a few lean years on the back of Palmieri’s hockey card, from the end of his New Jersey tenure through his first couple of seasons with the Islanders, but he has sniped 54 goals in the past two seasons, so the 34-year-old winger has some life left in his game. He did tone down his physical play last season, recording just 54 hits in 82 games, his fewest hits in a season since he had 48 hits in 42 games as a rookie in 2012-2013. Even so, Palmieri has a nose for the net and will put his body in harm’s way if it means getting a chance to score. While he has returned to being an offensive threat, Palmieri’s defensive game has slipped in the past couple of seasons, with the Islanders surrendering more shots, goals, and expected goals against with Palmieri on the ice. Palmieri’s most common linemates last season were Brock Nelson, before he was traded, Maxim Tsyplakov, and Bo Horvat. There will be competition for quality ice time among the Islanders wingers and Palmieri isn’t assured of winning those battles, but 20-25 goals and 45 points is a reasonable expectation.

Jean-Gabriel Pageau

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
81	12	26	38	0.47

Although he does not have imposing size, Pageau plays with an edge to his game and is a rare center who hits consistently. He has recorded at least 140 hits in four straight seasons, Those aren’t empty hits, either, as Pageau’s battles helped push the puck the right way when he was on the ice. It also helped that he spent some time on right wing on the top line when Barzal was injured because Pageau then ended up with more offensive zone starts and, ultimately, finished with a 52 percent Corsi, the best mark of his career. His 42 points (14 G, 28 A) tied for the second most of his career, and he won a career-high 59.6 percent of his faceoffs, so by all accounts the 2024-2025 season was a strong one for the veteran pivot. He is expected to fill the third-line center role this season, but it’s possible that he might see some time in the second center spot, especially if the Islanders use Barzal on the wing. In any case, Pageau could reasonably be expected to contribute a dozen goals and 35-40 points, with 140-plus hits in 2025-2026.

Maxim Tsyplakov

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
78	12	26	38	0.49

Arriving in the NHL last season as a 26-year-old rookie out of Russia, Tsyplakov scored 31 goals in 65 games during his last season in the KHL, so that might have prompted his jump to the Islanders, but goal-scoring was not really his forte, either. The 6-foot-3 winger plays a hard physical game and recorded 140 hits in his first NHL season. While he is good at protecting and passing the puck, he did not show great finishing ability in his first season with the Islanders. At the same time, Tsyplakov was reliable defensively and not shy about using his size to create turnovers on the forecheck and then going hard to the front of the opponents’ net. There were 197 forwards to play at least 100 minutes at five-on-four last season and Tsyplakov ranked 190th with 1.53 points per 60 minutes with the man advantage. That may not fall entirely on him, as the Isles’ power play was awful, but he didn’t help. Like several Islanders forwards, Tsyplakov has the ability to move around the lineup. He plays with the grind of a checking forward but does have enough skill to his game that he can at least fit in a more offensive role, too. His most likely fit is somewhere in the middle six and, in his second season, it would seem fair to expect maybe a dozen goals and 35-40 points.

Anthony Duclair

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
55	14	12	26	0.47

There was real hope that having some security and re-uniting with Patrick Roy, who had coached him in junior hockey, would bring out the best in Duclair and that most definitely did not happen in 2024-2025. In fact, before the season was over, he had been sent away from the team for some personal time. It was an undeniably disastrous season, as he finished with a mere 11 points (7 G, 4 A) in 44 games and, even worse, his defensive play was a mess with the islanders out-scored 27-17 during five-on-five play with Duclair on the ice. His defensive impacts have been consistently poor and that’s the kind of thing that can cost a player his spot in the lineup. The Islanders are Duclair’s ninth team, so there have obviously been peaks and valleys to the man’s NHL career. He is a four-time 20-goal scorer, who uses his speed to create chances and is excellent at using dekes to finish on breakaways. The Islanders should be seriously motivated to get Duclair back on his game this season and he may be able to contribute 15 goals and 30 points, but his status is unreliable at this point, so it’s probably best to wait and see how it goes early in the season before looking to add Duclair to a fantasy roster.

DEFENCE

Tony DeAngelo

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
64	6	30	36	0.56

With the Islanders trading Noah Dobson to the Montreal Canadiens, that leaves a huge opening for DeAngelo to be the top offensive defenceman on the roster since that is the one proven positive dimension to his game. His previous stops in the NHL have been tumultuous so he did not land an NHL contract at the start of last season and went to the KHL, where he was thriving on ice with 32 points (6 G, 26 A) in 34 games for SKA St. Petersburg, but he rankled teammates and coaching staff on the way to getting released. He signed with the Islanders, cleared waivers, and returned to the NHL in late January, getting an incredible 23:21 of ice time per game for the Islanders. It was the highest average time on ice of his career, and he contributed 19 points (4 G, 15 A) in 35 games. Eight of those 19 points came on the power play and that is, not surprisingly, where DeAngelo is most effective. He is a confident puck-handler who is ready to shoot and move the puck in the offensive zone. In the defensive zone, however, he is a clear liability. Of the 256 defencemen to play at least 200 five-on-five minutes last season, DeAngelo ranked 244th with 3.00 expected goals against per 60 minutes and the Islanders were outscored 30-27 with him on the ice. Whatever shortcomings he might have defensively, he is clearly the No. 1 offensive option on the Islanders blueline. Perhaps No. 1 overall pick Matthew Schaefer will be ready to take on a big role during his rookie season, but that would be asking a lot of an 18-year-old, so that likely means a big role for DeAngelo. He has never played more than 70 games in an NHL season, so he is likely to miss some time, but if he plays 65-plus games, then DeAngelo should be able to contribute 35 points. There is a world in which it goes even better than that, as he has three seasons to his credit with more than 40 points, but the downside risk needs to be taken into account, too.

Alexander Romanov

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
77	5	18	23	0.30

The Islanders leaned heavily on Romanov during the 2024-2025 season, as he averaged a career-high 22:18 of ice time per game. He finished with 20 points (4 G, 16 A) in 64 games, and while that is not earth-shattering offensive output, it was the third straight season in which he had recorded at least 20 points. Where Romanov does stand out is blocked shots (165) and hits (147) and those numbers make him a viable fantasy contributor in banger leagues or even deep leagues that include those peripheral stats. Looking ahead, Romanov will face a challenge of dealing with a new defence partner because his most common partner last season was Noah Dobson, who was traded to Montreal. With Dobson and Romanov on the ice, the Islanders controlled 54.7 percent of shot attempts and 53.2 percent of expected goals during five-on-five play. When Romanov played with other partners, the Islanders controlled 45.5 percent of shot attempts and expected goals, so that is going to be an issue to keep an eye on. There is still little reason to believe that Romanov is going to put up big point totals, so he will probably fall between 20 and 25 points. However, he should also be able to produce 160 hits and 160 blocked shots, which makes him surprisingly valuable for fantasy managers.

Ryan Pulock

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
77	5	16	21	0.27

When Pulock arrived in the NHL, his heavy shot from the point was his calling card and that has not disappeared, but it is no longer the main feature of his game. Prior to last season, he had turned into a reliable defender, capable of handling difficult top four minutes. Last season was different, though, as Pulock was on the wrong end of possession numbers, falling just below 46 percent Corsi and recording a career-low 46.2 percent expected goals percentage. Whether he was effective or not, Pulock still logged more than 21 minutes per game and finished the season with 23 points (5 G, 18 A), 100 hits and 155 blocked shots. None of those numbers really put him into the mix for fantasy managers, but he is worth tracking during the season because, depending on who else is available, he may get time on the power play. He only had a couple of points with the man advantage last season, so it’s hardly a big draw but, at best, he’s an in-season consideration in most leagues anyway. At this stage of his career, Pulock is likely to land between 20-25 points with maybe 120 hits and 140 blocked shots.

Adam Pelech

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
61	3	18	21	0.34

The Islanders’ best defenceman is not a significant offensive threat, and has battled injuries, but he is a terminally underrated shutdown defender and that makes his spot in the lineup as secure as anyone. Pelech has averaged at least 20 minutes of ice time per game for six straight seasons and that is without hardly any power play role. The unfortunate part is that Pelech has missed 67 games over the past three seasons, so it’s difficult to trust that he is going to suddenly play a full season now. He does have skills that should apply on the offensive end because he’s nimble on his blades and a confident puck-handler who generated a career-best 1.82 shots on goal per game last season. At this stage of his career, though, it’s unlikely that there is going to be a sudden offensive breakthrough. Taking into account that, based on recent precedent, Pelech is likely to miss 15-20 games, he can still be expected to chip in 20 points and might be able to push 100 blocked shots. That’s not terribly appealing from a fantasy perspective, but in real hockey terms, Pelech is a fantastic option on the Islanders’ blueline.

Goal

Ilya Sorokin

Predicted Stats
GP	W	L	OT	SO	SV%	GAA
60	21	29	7	3	.906	2.95

It's a frustrating time to be a New York Islanders fan. While Ilya Sorokin isn't struggling as much as some of the league's other goaltenders thrust into sub-optimal workloads, the Russian-born starter lost his mentor in Semyon Varlamov to a knee injury midway through last season - and Marcus Hogberg, who was next up to bat when Varlamov went down, failed to fill in well enough to help the Islanders get over the hump and into the postseason when all was said and done. Varlamov is expected to be ready for the upcoming season, but at 37-years old with a lengthy injury history, it's hard to tell just how much he'll be able to contribute over the year. That leaves Sorokin with a new potential backup at his side; former Calgary Flames number two David Rittich, who struggled to replicate his strong results from the 2022-23 season last year in his second season with the Los Angeles Kings, will hope to bounce back and return to form in the instance that he's needed for a heavier workload. The Islanders aren't currently sitting in the prime of their window, so there's not as much of a sense of urgency to get their tandem right as there could be, but Sorokin runs the risk of playing his best hockey on a Wild Card team more and more with every passing year. The team will likely hope that Varlamov and Rittich can string together enough games to help the team out without leaving Sorokin to shoulder the entire workload himself once again.

NHL: CULLEN – 20 FANTASY POINTS – Werenski pushing Norris Trophy candidacy, Stamkos heating up, Cirelli more than a checking centre, Dorofeyev is a finisher, Kakko making most of fresh start, and much more!

Scott Cullen — Fri, 17 Jan 2025 19:51:37 +0000

VANCOUVER, BC - JANUARY 27: Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Werenski (8) skates with the puck during an NHL game between the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday, January 27, 2024 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, B.C. (Photo by Ethan Cairns/Icon Sportswire)

Each week, I dig into the stats to find information that can help you make better fantasy hockey decisions. This week, Blue Jackets defenceman Zach Werenski is pushing his Norris Trophy candidacy, Steven Stamkos is heating up, Anthony Cirelli is more than a checking centre, Pavel Dorofeyev is a finisher, Kaapo Kakko is making the most of his fresh start, and much more!

Here is this week’s edition of 20 Fantasy Points:

#1 Many of the players that get addressed in 20 Fantasy Points are players that are available in most leagues, but sometimes players who are rostered are doing noteworthy things. Enter Blue Jackets defenceman Zach Werenski, who had a career-high 57 points last season, but has taken his game to a new level in 2024-2025. Werenski had an assist in Thursday’s 4-1 win over San Jose, giving him 51 points (15 G, 36 A) in 45 games to lead NHL defencemen in scoring. Since 2021-2022, Werenski has 40 goals in 196 games, his 0.20 goals per game ranking third among defencemen, behind only Cale Makar and Roman Josi. Werenski has always been a strong shot generator, but this season he has taken it to a new level, leading all defencemen with 3.96 shots on goal per game. He has 19 points on the power play, one behind Makar who leads all defencemen. All of this is to say that 27-year-old Werenski is performing at the peak of his abilities, and he probably warrants Norris Trophy consideration. He may not be easy to acquire in fantasy leagues, but if you have him, understand that his underlying numbers suggest that his production isn’t likely to go away, so he is a sell-high commodity, if he is going to be sold at all.

#2 After a shockingly slow start to the season, the Nashville Predators have started to turn the corner, though it may be too late to salvage the season. Nevertheless, Steven Stamkos has started to find his range and after scoring a goal against Chicago on Thursday, he has 16 points (8 G, 8 A) in his past 16 games. Only three of those 16 points have come via the power play, so Stamkos is making hay at even strength, centering a line with Filip Forsberg and Jonathan Marchessault on his wings.

#3 A former teammate of Stamkos, Tampa Bay’s Anthony Cirelli is enjoying his best offensive season. He scored his 18th goal of the season Thursday, which puts him only two behind the career-high 20 goals that he scored in 79 games last season. Cirelli is skating with Brandon Hagel and Nick Paul on his wings and getting power play time, leading to Cirelli playing a career-high 18:41 per game.

#4 Vegas Golden Knights winger Pavel Dorofeyev has sniped five goals in his past two games, vaulting into the team lead with 19 goals. Since the holiday break, Dorofeyev has scored seven goals on 32 shots while averaging more than 16 minutes of ice time per game in 10 games. He may not continue at the same goal-scoring rate, but if he can continue to produce at least three shots per game and hold down his spot on the Vegas power play, Dorofeyev should continue to be a legitimate offensive threat.

#5 Getting a fresh start in Seattle, right winger Kaapo Kakko is thriving with the Kraken, even while the team has been delivering uneven performances. In his past nine games, Kakko has nine points (3 G, 6 A) and is averaging 17:22 of ice time per game. Sometimes all it takes is an opportunity and Kakko was playing 13:17 per game with the Rangers this season so getting a boost in ice time while skating on a line with Matty Beniers and Jaden Schwartz seems to be working for him.

#6 Detroit Red Wings rookie winger Marco Kasper picked up a goal and an assist in Thursday’s win at Florida, giving him six points (3 G, 3 A) in his past four games. He had seven points in 35 games before this scoring surge and he’s making the most of his opportunity to play on Detroit’s top line, alongside Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond. It might be too soon to give a strong recommendation for Kasper, but if he is going to keep playing on the first line, he might offer some short-term value for as long as that continues.

#7 Chicago Blackhawks winger Teuvo Teravainen had a slow start to the season, producing 13 points (6 G, 7 A) in 30 games, but he has taken on more offensive responsibility since then, contributing 18 points (4 G, 14 A) in 15 games. His shot rates are low, so he is more dependent on assists to maintain his production, but he is also on the Blackhawks’ top power play unit, so chances are there for him to make the most of his playmaking ability.

#8 San Jose Sharks left winger William Eklund saw his production slow down in December, but he has bounced back recently. He has eight points (4 G, 4 A) and 19 shots on goal in his past seven games. Eklund is in a quality situation with the Sharks, playing on a line with sensational rookie Macklin Celebrini and veteran right winger Tyler Toffoli.

#9 Minnesota Wild winger Mats Zuccarello obviously benefits from playing on a line with Kirill Kaprizov, but with Kaprizov injured, Zuccarello has continued to produce. In 10 games since Kaprizov was injured, Zuccarello has 13 points (4 G, 9 A) with 23 shots on goal, playing nearly 21 minutes per game. Skating with Matt Boldy and Marco Rossi is still a pretty good place to be, it seems. Zuccarello’s Wild teammate Ryan Hartman has emerged from a long offensive slump to deliver seven points (3 G, 4 A) in his past eight games. That followed a stretch of 18 games without a point, which pretty much eliminated his fantasy appeal, so maybe he is rediscovering some value.

#10 Healthy and scoring, veteran Pittsburgh Penguins winger Bryan Rust has tallied 26 points (12 G, 14 A) in his past 23 games, adding 66 shots on goal while playing more than 20 minutes per game. While the Penguins continue to stumble along, Rust’s production is still high level and since he and Rickard Rakell are holding the wing positions on Sidney Crosby’s line, Rust is likely to continue his high level of productivity.

#11 He seems to move in and out of the doghouse in Philadelphia, but Flyers centre Morgan Frost is cooking lately. He is riding a five-game point streak, during which he has six points (2 G, 4 A) with 18 shots on goal. There is no question that Frost is skilled enough to be a productive scorer in the NHL, but he is constantly in a battle to prove his all-around game to head coach John Tortorella. With his current spot skating between Owen Tippett and Travis Konecny, Frost is being put in a position to succeed and seems to be making the most of it.

#12 Injuries have taken their toll on Edmonton Oilers winger Viktor Arvidsson, making it difficult for him to transition to his new team this season, but he does seem to be finding his spot now. In his past dozen games, Arvidsson has 10 points (4 G, 6 A) with 31 shots on goal. He is only averaging 14:24 of ice time in that span, but he is getting reps with Leon Draisaitl and Vasily Podkolzin at even strength, so there is good opportunity for Arvidsson to score like he has in the past as a five-time 20-goal scorer.

#13 There have been so many positive stories out of Columbus when it comes to player production. Even veteran winger James van Riemsdyk is providing secondary scoring. Across his past seven games, van Riemsdyk has contributed eight points (4 G, 4 A) and the 35-year-old with soft hands and a big frame is fitting nicely alongside Cole Sillinger and Kent Johnson. At the other end of the experience spectrum for the Blue Jackets, they have called up Luca Del Bel Belluz, a second-round pick from 2022 and he has chipped in three points (1 G, 2 A) in his four NHL games this season after scoring in his NHL debut last season. Del Bel Belluz had 37 points (17 G, 20 A) in 34 AHL games to earn his promotion and it looks like he has no intention of going back.

#14 As the Ottawa Senators try to remain in the playoff hunt while starting goaltender Linus Ullmark is injured, the bulk of the goaltending responsibility has fallen to 22-year-old netminder Leevi Merilainen. He was a third-round pick in 2020 and played for the Kingston Frontenacs of the OHL in 2021-2022 before returning to Finland. He split last season between the AHL and ECHL and had a .901 save percentage in 13 games for Belleville of the AHL. That might not seem like a player ready to solve the goaltending problems of an NHL club, but Merilainen has been stellar since getting called up, going 5-2-1 with a .930 save percentage in eight games for Ottawa.

#15 Since the holiday break, Detroit Red Wings centre Dylan Larkin is the leader in individual expected goals in all-situations, with 8.00. What makes that even more impressive is how much better it is than the rest of the league. The rest of the top ten is: Zach Hyman (6.15), Mikko Rantanen (6.01), Dmitri Voronkov (5.51), Brandon Hagel (5.44), Nico Hischier (5.28), Tom Wilson (5.16), Alex Ovechkin (5.14), Leon Draisaitl (5.11), and Tomas Hertl (4.93).

#16 New York Islanders captain Anders Lee has moved back up the depth chart and is producing at a high level once again. Last season, he had 37 points (20 G, 17 A) in 81 games for the Isles, but he has 36 points (20 G, 16 A) through 44 games this season. The 34-year-old left winger is still difficult to contain in front of the net and in his past 11 games, Lee has 11 points (7 G, 4 A) and 31 shots on goal. He is playing with Brock Nelson and Mathew Barzal, which is a good combination for Lee, who is not going to carry the puck a lot, but he’s good at getting body position in the offensive zone.

#17 Not everything is working for the Islanders, however. Veteran right winger Kyle Palmieri has two assists and just eight shots on goal in his past eight games, which is not nearly enough for a player who is averaging 17:28 of ice time per game. Palmieri is currently on a line with Bo Horvat and Maxim Tsyplakov, but they need to get more from a player who tied his career high with 30 goals last season and surely can be expected to generate more than a single shot per game.

#18 Veteran St. Louis Blues centre Brayden Schenn did not have a great start to this season, but he has been picking up the pace under new head coach Jim Montgomery. Schenn managed just nine points (3 G, 6 A) in 22 games before the Blues fired head coach Drew Bannister, but has produced 18 points (7 G, 11 A) in 24 games under Montgomery. Centering a line with Dylan Holloway and Jordan Kyrou, Schenn is productive once again and could challenge for the ninth 20-goal season of his career.

#19 Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk tends to have an impact on the game whether he is scoring or not, thanks to his physical style of play. That doesn’t mean that the Sens are cool with him not providing offensive contributions and he has failed to register a point in five straight games. Tkachuk has 15 shots on goal and 15 hits in those five games, so it’s not like he is invisible out there, but this is the first stretch of the season that he has gone longer than two games without a point. That probably means that he will find the scoresheet again soon.

#20 Although he continues to be a dominant possession player, with a Corsi better than 55 percent, Vegas Golden Knights centre William Karlsson has hit an offensive slump. In his past nine games, Karlsson has no goals, one assist, and 15 shots on goal. For a player averaging more than 17 minutes of ice time per game over that time. At even strength, Karlsson is skating between Brett Howden and Alexander Holtz, which could play a part in his lack of recent production.

*Advanced stats via Natural Stat Trick

NHL: DADOUN – FANTASY WEEK AHEAD – Washington powers on with Ovechkin, Chicago looks for change – Teams and players to target this week

Ryan Dadoun — Sat, 07 Dec 2024 16:07:18 +0000

NEWARK, NJ - NOVEMBER 30: Washington Capitals defenseman Jakob Chychrun (6) scores a goal during a NHL game between the Washington Capitals and New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center on November 30, 2024 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Andrew Mordzynski/Icon Sportswire)

Washington had an incredible 13-4-1 record through Nov. 18 thanks in large part to its league-leading 4.33 goals per game. However, that offensive success was built around Alex Ovechkin, who had 15 goals and 25 points through 18 appearances, so when he suffered a fractured left fibula, it was reasonable to wonder how much his absence would impact the Capitals. Going into Friday’s action, Washington seemed to largely be managing the injury well, posting a 4-2-1 record in its first seven games without Ovechkin.

The Capitals offense has certainly taken a hit, but they’ve still managed an impressive 3.43 goals per game since Ovechkin was sidelined. Tom Wilson (three goals, six points), Dylan Strome (two goals, six points) and Connor McMichael (two goals, five points) have been of particular importance over that seven-game stretch.

However, none of those forwards are actually the Capitals’ scoring leader over the stretch without Ovechkin. That honor belongs to Jakob Chychrun, who has three goals and seven points across his past seven outings. Chychrun, who was acquired from Ottawa over the summer, has been a fantastic addition, collecting eight goals and 15 points through 20 appearances. Keep in mind, though, that his 19.0 shooting percentage is far ahead of his career average of 7.2, so we’ll probably eventually see a drop off.

Still, this stretch has shown that Washington is a team with some decent depth and might prove to be a serious contender come playoff time.

One team that almost certainly won’t be playing come the postseason is Chicago. There’s still plenty of hockey left, of course, but with an 8-16-2 record, the Blackhawks seem set to miss the playoffs for the fifth straight year.

Connor Bedard has been fine with five goals and 19 points in 26 outings, but for a player who has as much promise as him, even more is hoped for. Still, it would help if he had more support. Ryan Donato is the only other Chicago player with at least 15 points (10 goals, five assists). To put that into context, 160 players at reached the 15-point mark through Thursday’s action, so an average team should have five players who have reached that milestone.

Goaltender Petr Mrazek has been alright, but he’s not getting much support on offense or defense, which has left him with a 7-11-1 record, 2.86 GAA and .905 save percentage across 19 outings. Chicago fired head coach Luke Richardson after Chicago suffered its fourth straight loss Wednesday and appointed Anders Sorensen as the interim bench boss. Richardson finished his Blackhawks tenure with a 57-118-15 record, so by that measure his departure isn’t surprising, but given that Chicago has been in the midst of a rebuild, it’s hard to be too critical of him.

Still, perhaps Sorensen, who spent the previous seven campaigns coaching for AHL Rockford, including three years as the head coach going into 2024-25, can help accelerate the rebuild somewhat by guiding the team’s young players. He already has familiarity with many of the club’s prospects thanks to his previous role. A fresh perspective might also be good for Bedard, who is naturally critical to Chicago’s long-term goals.

It will be a while before we know if the change to Sorensen was the right move, and success, at least in the short term, won’t necessarily be measured in wins and losses, but the Blackhawks will be an interesting team to monitor.

Buffalo Sabres (Mon vs DET, Wed vs NYR, Sat @ WAS, Sun @ TOR)

The Sabres have hit a rough patch, dropping their last five games to fall to 11-12-3 on the campaign. To be fair, most of those games were against tough opponents (Minnesota, Vancouver, Colorado and Winnipeg handed out four of the five defeats), but Buffalo has more difficult matchups on the horizon. The Sabres will host the Red Wings and the Rangers on Monday and Wednesday, respectively, before taking to the road to face Washington on Saturday and Toronto on Sunday.

Rasmus Dahlin left Tuesday’s 5-4 loss to Colorado because of back spasms and missed Thursday’s 3-2 overtime defeat to the Jets because of the issue. Coach Lindy Ruff described the situation like this via Buffalo’s Twitter account, “It should be short-term, but you never know.” In other words, Dahlin might be fine to play in all four of next week’s games.

He’s a vital part of the Sabres’ blue line, so no one defenseman can fill in for him when he’s not available. That said, Henri Jokiharju should see an increase in even-strength ice time -- Jokiharju logged 20:23 of ice time Thursday, his most since Oct. 16 -- and Owen Power should serve on the first power play unit for however long Dahlin’s out.

Jokiharju doesn’t have much fantasy value regardless, but Power has three goals and 15 points in 26 appearances in 2024-25 despite recording no points with the man advantage, so if he’s given an opportunity to play on the top power-play unit for any extended stretch, that’d be rather interesting.

Regardless of which defensemen dress, Buffalo needs them to help make life easier on the goaltenders. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen could certainly have done more recently -- he posted a record of 0-2-2 with a 3.20 GAA and an .895 save percentage across his past four starts -- but he also faced at least 30 shots in three of those four games, including 41 shots in Tuesday’s tilt.

James Reimer has been used sparingly, posting a 1-1-0 record, 2.05 GAA and .923 save percentage in two starts since being claimed by Buffalo off waivers Nov. 13, but the Sabres’ busy schedule means that he should play in at least one game next week.

Carolina Hurricanes ( Tue vs SJS, Fri vs OTT, Sun vs CBJ)

The Hurricanes are playing in just three games next week, but I still wanted to feature them because those matchups are favorable. All three of the matches will be in Carolina. The Hurricanes will host San Jose on Tuesday, Ottawa on Friday and Columbus on Sunday.

None of those opponents are good defensively -- Ottawa ranks 25th in goals allowed per game (3.20), which is the best of the three -- so this should be a good stretch for the Blue Jackets’ scorers. Perhaps Martin Necas can build some breathing room in the Art Ross Trophy fight. At the time of writing, he’s in first place with 41 points (14 goals), narrowly edging out Nathan MacKinnon (40 points), Kirill Kaprizov (39), Jack Eichel (38) and Sam Reinhart (37).

Necas was held off the scoresheet in back-to-back games from Nov. 29-30 for the first time this season, but he’s responded by scoring two goals and four points across his past two outings.

One lower profile Hurricanes who’s hot is Eric Robinson. The 29-year-old has never recorded more than 27 points in a single season, but he’s well on his way to shattering that record after recording eight goals and 17 points across 26 appearances. Exercise some caution here: His shooting percentage is an unreasonably high 25.0, and he’s still averaging just 12:15 of ice time with no power-play role, so it’s hard to imagine him keeping up this pace. Still, he’s hot at the moment with three goals and four points across his past five appearances, and when coupled with the Blue Jackets’ upcoming scheduled, there’s reason to hope that the good times aren’t over yet.

We should also see continued production out of defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere. He’s fitting in nicely with Carolina, scoring five goals and 21 points in 26 outings, including a goal and seven points over his past six games. Gostisbehere’s success is largely tethered to the power play, which accounts for 15 of his points.

His presence has corresponded with Brent Burns shifting to the second power-play unit this year, which has led to Burns recording no points with the man advantage so far in 2024-25. Burns has a goal and seven points in 26 outings overall, which puts him on track to finish below the 40-point mark for just the second time in 12 seasons (the last time was the shortened 2020-21 campaign).

Columbus Blue Jackets (Tue vs PHI, Thu vs WAS, Sat vs ANA, Sun @ CAR)

The Blue Jackets are 11-11-3, which isn’t great, but they have done better than many projected going into the campaign. Columbus will see if it can maintain that level next week when it hosts Philadelphia, Washington and Anaheim on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, respectively. The Blue Jackets will then travel to Carolina for a game Sunday.

Kirill Marchenko has played a big role in Columbus’ better than expected results. The 24-year-old has 10 goals and 24 points in 25 games this season, putting him well on his way to shattering his mark of 42 points in 2023-24. You’ll usually see him sharing the ice with Sean Monahan, who has fit in nicely with Columbus, providing eight goals and 22 points through 25 appearances.

For the last few weeks, Dmitri Voronkov has typically been the third member of that line. He missed the start of the campaign with an upper-body injury and registered just one point (a goal) across his first six games of 2024-25, but the 24-year-old sophomore has hit his stride, supplying five goals and 10 points over his past 10 outings. He’s still on just 17 percent of Yahoo rosters, so he might be a nice pickup if he’s still available in your league.

On the blue line, Zach Werenski has been a standout performer for the Blue Jackets with eight goals and 27 points through 25 appearances. He’s one of the hottest defensemen in the entire league, recording five goals and 17 points across his past 10 outings.

Minnesota Wild (Tue vs UTA, Thu vs EDM, Sat vs PHI, Sun vs VGK)

The Wild have won their past four games to improve to 17-4-4. Minnesota will try to keep the good times rolling next week, which will begin with a road game against Utah on Tuesday. After that match, Minnesota will spend the rest of the week at home, playing against Edmonton, Philadelphia and Vegas on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, respectively.

Joel Eriksson Ek sustained an injury Tuesday and is week-to-week, and there’s no indication that Mats Zuccarello is close to returning from the lower-body issue that’s kept him out of the lineup since Nov. 14.

If Zuccarello were healthy, he’d almost certainly be playing alongside Kirill Kaprizov and Marco Rossi. His absence led to the lines being shaken up, and Eriksson Ek did skate on the top line with Kaprizov on Tuesday before he got hurt. With Zuccarello and Eriksson Ek both out, Matt Boldy will likely play regularly alongside Kaprizov and Rossi. Boldy has 11 goals and 24 points in 25 appearances, so that’s a strong trio. The forward corps after that, though, looks thin due to the injuries.

Marcus Johansson, Ryan Hartman and Marcus Foligno currently comprise the second line, but none of them have even reached double digits in points. The third unit is Devin Shore, Frederick Gaudreau and Yakov Trenin, which has a combined 15 points this season -- 14 of them from Gaudreau.

Fortunately for the Wild, Filip Gustavsson hasn’t needed much offensive help this year. He’s 12-4-3 with a 2.04 GAA and a .929 save percentage in 19 appearances.

New York Islanders (Tue vs LAK, Thu vs CHI, Sun @ CHI)

The Islanders have three games on the schedule, but two of them are against the lowly Blackhawks -- New York will host them Thursday and play in Chicago on Sunday -- so the Islanders are in a good position there. New York will also host the Kings on Tuesday.

We just discussed how Minnesota’s offense looks thin due to injuries, and the Islanders are in a similar boat without Anthony Duclair (lower body) and Mathew Barzal (upper body), who have logged just five and 10 games, respective. Due to their absences, the Islanders have just two players with at least 20 points, and even then, just barely -- Anders Lee has 21 while Kyle Palmieri has 20. The result is no Islanders player is within the top 50 of the Art Ross Trophy race.

Andrew Gross of Newsday reported Friday that Duclair and Barzal are skating on their own, which is better than not skating at all, but there are several steps between that and playing, so I wouldn’t count on them returning during the upcoming week.

Lee has been one of the few recent bright spots, providing four goals and eight points across his past six games. He’s on a four-game scoring streak through Thursday’s action. Simon Holmstrom appears to have cooled, though. He had back-to-back multi-goal games from Nov. 29-30, but he hasn’t found the back of the net since. Holmstrom has done fine with seven goals and 15 points in 27 outings, but he’s not worth employing in most fantasy leagues except when he’s hot.

New York Rangers (Mon vs CHI, Wed @ BUF, Sat vs LAK, Sun @ STL)

New York is set to host Chicago on Monday, play in Buffalo on Wednesday, have a home game against the Kings on Saturday and conclude the week by playing in St. Louis on Sunday. Let’s not dwell on the schedule, though, the Rangers had an eventful Friday, and I want to dive right into it.

New York traded Jacob Trouba to Anaheim in exchange for a fourth-round pick and Urho Vaakanainen. Importantly, the Rangers didn’t retain any salary, so Trouba’s $8 million cap hit through 2025-26 is now off their books. New York then signed Igor Shesterkin to an eight-year, $92 million contract that will begin in 2025-26 after his current four-year, $22.67 million deal expires.

Let’s start with the defensive changes. Trouba had a fantastic eight goals and 50 points in 82 games with Winnipeg in 2018-19 and was then dealt to the Rangers in the summer of 2019 in exchange for a 2019 first-round selection (Ville Heinola) and Neal Pionk. The Rangers promptly signed Trouba to his current eight-year, $56 million contract.

Unfortunately for New York, the Rangers inked Trouba at the height of his offensive contributions. Over his five campaigns with the Rangers going into 2024-25, Trouba reached the 30-point mark twice, but never hit 40. To be fair, Trouba is a big body, plays a physical game and blocks a ton of shots, so he brings things to the table outside of offense. He also served as the team captain from 2022 until he was traded, highlighting his importance in the locker room. Still, his cap hit was too high for what he brought.

It's telling that the Rangers got very little in return for him, and even with that, some questioned if they won this trade simply by virtue of clearing that cap space. But what did they receive outside of that draft pick? Vaakanainen was taken with the No. 18 overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, but he never developed as hoped. Instead, he should be regarded as a depth defenseman who will likely bounce between the third pairing and the press box. He is also on the injured reserve list due to an upper-body injury, so it might be a bit before he makes his Rangers debut.

Rather than Vaakanainen playing regularly, we might see the Rangers utilize Victor Mancini more with Trouba out. The 22-year-old Mancini has a goal, four points, seven hits and 12 blocks in 10 appearances with New York in 2024-25, and he’s also provided two goals and five points in six AHL outings. Don’t get too excited over Mancini’s offensive numbers, though. He wasn’t much of a producer in the NCAA, recording just four goals and 10 points across 40 outings with the University of Nebraska-Omaha as a Junior in 2023-24.

As for locking up Shesterkin, the cap hit is substantial, but not surprising. He’s proven himself to be a top-tier goaltender, and we’re in a period where the cap seems to be steadily climbing, so there’s logic behind the number. Shesterkin has struggled recently with a 2-7-0 record, 3.93 GAA and .882 save percentage across nine appearances, but he should rebound.

St. Louis Blues (Tue @ VAN, Thu vs SJS, Sat @ DAL, Sun vs NYR)

St. Louis has won four of its past five games, improving to 13-12-2 this season. That still puts the Blues outside of a playoff spot, but at least they’re trending in the right direction. The Blues will play in Vancouver on Tuesday, host the Sharks on Thursday, visit Dallas on Saturday and play at home Sunday versus the Rangers.

Dylan Holloway has been a major part of the Blues’ recent success, contributing four goals and eight points across his past five outings. That brings him up to eight goals and 16 points in 27 appearances this year, but he’s been inconsistent, so enjoy the good times while they last, but be prepared for the other shoe to eventually drop if you grab the 23-year-old during his hot streak.

Jordan Binnington is another extremely inconsistent play, but he has been more hit than miss lately, providing a 4-2-1 record, 2.10 GAA and .925 save percentage across his past seven appearances. He’s 8-9-2 with a 2.87 GAA and .900 save percentage in 20 outings overall and will probably average out as a low-to-mid tier starter this season.

Robert Thomas might still have a great campaign, though. He did miss 12 games from Oct. 24-Nov. 17 because of a fractured ankle, but with that injury now well behind him, Thomas seems to be heating up, providing three goals and six points across his past four games. This might just be the beginning of a longer hot streak for Thomas, who set a career high in 2023-24 with 86 points.

Toronto Maple Leafs (Tue @ NJD, Thu vs ANA, Sat @ DET, Sun vs BUF)

Toronto is having a fantastic campaign with a 16-7-2 record, and the Maple Leafs have won seven of their past eight games. They’ll look to maintain that momentum next week, starting with a road contest against New Jersey. The Maple Leafs will then host Anaheim on Thursday, play in Detroit on Saturday and return home to play against the Sabres on Sunday.

Auston Matthews and Matthew Knies returned from injury Nov. 30, adding to Toronto’s success. Matthews has been especially good since returning, supplying three goals and five points across three appearances, bringing him up to eight goals and 16 points through 16 outings. Matthews tends to score goals in bunches, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see him continue to tickle the twine over the upcoming week.

Max Domi (lower body) and Max Pacioretty (lower body) have also been skating with the Maple Leafs recently, so they might be nearing a return too. Once they do, we might see Nicholas Robertson fall out of the lineup. Robertson has been the main disappointment in what has otherwise been a great campaign for Toronto. He has just two points (both goals) in 22 outings in 2024-25. Robertson did find the back of the net Nov. 30, but he was held off the scoresheet in two games since, so that marker didn’t seem to help spark him.

In net, Joseph Woll and Anthony Stolarz will probably each start in two games next week. Stolarz is 8-4-2 with a 2.23 GAA and .924 save percentage in 14 outings, while Woll is 7-2-0 with a 2.11 GAA and a .922 save percentage in nine appearances, so the Maple Leafs can happily treat them as a 1A-1B tandem.

NHL: DADOUN – FANTASY WEEK AHEAD – Nashville has a steep climb, Boston makes a coaching change, Winnipeg’s scoring slows down plus much, much more

Ryan Dadoun — Sun, 01 Dec 2024 16:46:42 +0000

We’re a little over a quarter of the way through the season, so we’re at the point where teams that have been doing poorly should be nervous and nowhere is that truer than Nashville. The Predators made a big push over the summer with the additions of forwards Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault, but the Predators are still just 7-12-6 and are tied for last offensively with 2.32 goals per game.

SUNRISE, FL - NOVEMBER 07: Nashville Predators Steven Stamkos (91) looks on during the game between the Nashville Predators and the Florida Panthers on Thursday November 07, 2024 at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Fla.(Photo by Chris Arjoon/Icon Sportswire)

At this point, the question isn’t if the situation is bad, it’s just how bad it is. The 2018-19 St. Louis Blues are the gold standard for hope. At their worst, they looked like a lottery team, but in the end, they won the Stanley Cup. So how was St. Louis after 25 games? 9-13-3, which amounts to nearly the same record from a points perspective.

So maybe there’s still hope for the Predators, but there’s also a reason why the Blues are such a memorable story: For every 18-19 Blues, there are countless teams that performed poorly over the first two months and simply continued to be bad for the rest of the campaign. Plus, it’s not just about rebounding, it’s the magnitude of the task ahead of Nashville.

In 2023-24, it took 98 points to get a playoff spot in the Western Conference. Let’s say for the sake of argument, 93 points will end up being good enough this year. That would amount to a 36-20-1 record the rest of the way. In terms of points percentage, that’s .640, which is a pace currently exceeded by only six teams. So doable, but it needs to start soon because the longer Nashville is even mediocre, let alone bad, the task only gets harder.

Stamkos spoke about the problem after Friday’s 3-2 overtime loss to Tampa Bay on Friday, arguing that the Predators have too many players who aren’t working hard enough to create offense.

"It's OK to be frustrated because we're not scoring. But you counter that by work ethic and getting into the game in different ways," Stamkos said, per The Tennessean. "If you're not scoring, what else are you doing out there? What else can you do to help your team win? I've just felt like, for whatever reason, in these stretches, we tend to go the other way."

Rather than use that as motivation, the Predators then suffered a 3-2 overtime loss to Minnesota on Saturday. To be fair, the Wild are a great team, it was a close game, and the Predators were playing for the third time in four days. Those are all factors to make the loss more understandable. The trouble is, Nashville isn’t in a position to be content with understandable losses.

Boston Bruins (Tue vs DET, Wed @ CHI. Sat vs PHI)

Replacing head coach Jim Montgomery with Joe Sacco hasn’t helped the Bruins so far. They’re an okay, but not great 3-2-0 with their new bench boss, giving them an 11-11-3 record overall. That might change next week, though, thanks to a favorable schedule. Boston will host the Red Wings on Tuesday, play in Chicago on Wednesday and then return home to face the Flyers on Saturday.

Whenever there’s a new coach, it’s always a good idea to look for which players have benefited from the change. In the case of the Bruins, though, it’s a bit hard to find offensive winners because the team has continued the offensive struggles that were present under Montgomery. Boston averaged just 2.40 goals per game with Montgomery, and that’s dropped to a mere 2.00 goals per game under Sacco.

Elias Lindholm does have four points across the Bruins’ past five games, which is a step up from his nine points in 20 outings before the Montgomery firing, but take that with a grain of salt because his recent success is propped up by a three-assist showing against the Islanders on Wednesday. Lindholm has also been held off the scoresheet in three of the last five contests, which isn’t exactly confidence inspiring.

Tyler Johnson has recorded his first two assists of the 2024-25 campaign under Sacco, which is interesting, but Sacco also made Johnson a healthy scratch twice across the past five games. Still, I think Johnson is worth keeping an eye on because Boston desperately needs secondary scoring, and that’s a role he can fill.

If there’s a silver lining, it’s that Boston seems to have at least tightened its game defensively under Sacco, allowing just 1.60 goals per game with the new bench boss compared to 3.45 with Montgomery.

Jeremy Swayman has had a rough campaign with a 6-9-2 record, 3.09 GAA and .892 save percentage in 17 appearances in 2024-25, but he may have turned a corner, stopping 66 of 70 shots (.943 save percentage) across his past three starts. He still won only one of those outings due to a lack of offensive support, but if he can continue to play like he has been recently, then the Bruins will be in a far better position.

Calgary Flames (Tue vs CBJ, Thu @ STL, Sun @ DAL)

The Flames have a respectable 12-9-4 record, but they’ve dropped their last four games, putting them in danger of ruining their relatively positive start to the campaign. The Flames will try to right the ship in home games against the Blue Jackets on Tuesday and the Blues on Thursday. Calgary will conclude the week with a challenging road tilt against the Stars.

Calgary’s recent losing skid has come on the road, which seems to be a theme for the Flames this year. They’re 9-3-0 at home and 3-6-4 outside of the Saddledome. It’s like looking at two different teams. In Calgary, the Flames have averaged 2.83 goals per game and have allowed 2.25 goals per game, but on the road that changes to 2.23 goals per game and 3.54 goals allowed per game.

Jonathan Huberdeau is one of the starkest examples of that home/road split. He leads the team offensively in Calgary with nine points (five goals) in 12 appearances and has just five points (three goals) in 13 road outings. Mikael Backlund is another forward who has fallen into that trap, supplying seven points (three goals) in 12 home games, but just three points (one goal) through 13 road appearances. Meanwhile, Andrei Kuzmenko has a goal and seven points at home, but just two assists on the road.

Nazem Kadri and Connor Zary are two exceptions who have done fine regardless. Kadri has a nine/eight home/road point split while Zary has supplied six points in each category. However, outside of rare cases like that, you might want to avoid using Calgary players on the road until the team shows it can travel better. Fortunately, that won’t be a concern for fantasy managers for the early stages of the upcoming week.

Colorado Avalanche (Tue @ BUF, Thu @ CAR, Sat @ DET, Sun @ NJD)

Colorado doesn’t have that stark contrast between home and away -- the Avalanche are mediocre in both cases, resulting in a 13-12-0 record. Colorado has lost its last two contests, but it will continue its quest to emerge from its early season inconsistency during a road stretch that will see the Avalanche in Buffalo on Tuesday, Carolina on Thursday, Detroit on Saturday and New Jersey on Sunday.

Injuries have been an ongoing story for the Avalanche this campaign, and I’ll discuss the latest on that front in a minute, but goaltending has also been part of the problem. Although Alexandar Georgiev has stabilized somewhat, he’s still left plenty to be desired with his 7-6-0 record, 3.33 GAA and .872 save percentage in 15 appearances in 2024-25. The problem Colorado faced was the 24-year-old Justus Annunen didn’t seem capable of stealing the job from him, posting a 6-4-0 record, 3.22 GAA and .872 save percentage across 11 outings.

As a result, Colorado packaged Annunen with a 2025 sixth-round pick Saturday to get Scott Wedgewood from Nashville. Wedgewood has a 1-2-1 record, 3.69 GAA and .878 save percentage in five appearances this year, so it’s not like anyone holds any illusion that he will enter Colorado and be its savor, but at least he’s a veteran goaltender who has been serviceable in the past in the backup role. If nothing else, Wedgewood has a bigger opportunity to get starts in Colorado behind Georgiev than he did in Nashville behind Juuse Saros.

On the injury front, Miles Wood suffered an upper-body injury recently and is now regarded as month-to-month. Meanwhile, Jonathan Drouin, who made his return from injury Nov. 15, logged just four games before coming back out of the lineup and is now regarded as week-to-week. Defenseman Josh Manson (upper body) is also week-to-week after suffering the injury Friday. The only real silver lining on the injury front is that Ross Colton (foot) has started to skate.

This isn’t the most injured Colorado has been this year, but it’s still not great that Colorado has four players on IR or LTIR (Wood, Colton, Tucker Poolman and Gabriel Landeskog) as well as three more on the sidelines (Mason, Drouin and Oliver Kylington).

John Ludvig, who has logged just five games this year, will probably start playing regularly because of Mason and Kylington’s absences on the blue line. Nikolai Kovalenko will also probably feature semi-regularly on the second line until Drouin is back. At the end of the day, though, not much should be expected of Ludvig or Kovalenko from a fantasy perspective.

Dallas Stars (Mon @ UTA, Wed @ LAK, Fri @ VGK, Sun vs CGY)

The Central Division has been dominated by Winnipeg and Minnesota, but Dallas has been strong too with a 14-8-0 record. The Stars will look to maintain that success next week. They’ll play in Utah on Monday, Los Angeles on Wednesday and Vegas on Friday before concluding the week with a home game against the Flames on Sunday.

Dallas is lucky to have Matt Duchene. After the final three campaigns of his seven-year, $56 million contract were bought out by Nashville (a team which, incidentally, could really use him right now), it made a certain amount of sense for him to ink a one-year, $3 million contract for the 2023-24 season so that he would have a chance to reestablish himself. However, after scoring 25 goals and 65 points across 80 regular-season outings with the Stars in 2023-24, he decided to ink another one-year, $3 million contract for this season.

I have a hard time believing that’s the best he could do, but Dallas is a team that’s capable of competing for the Cup, and signing that massively team-friendly contract has allowed the Stars to ice the best roster they could. For his part, Duchene is thriving in Dallas with 12 goals and 27 points through 22 outings. After registering an assist in a 5-3 win over Colorado on Friday, he’s on a four-game scoring streak (two goals, four assists).

In contrast to Duchene’s success, Roope Hintz has left something to be desired. The 28-year-old forward has nine goals and 14 points through 21 appearances in 2024-25. That puts him on pace to reach the 30-goal milestone for the fourth straight campaign, but Hintz collapse in terms of playmaking has been noticeable. That might be in part due to some bad luck, though. Hintz is on pace for 15 primary assists in 2024-25, which would actually be just a mild drop from his 17 in 2023-24. However, he has only one secondary assist this year after reaching the double digits in that category in each of the previous three campaigns.

Hintz is playing alongside Jason Robertson and Wyatt Johnston, so the assists should come. If his lower point total has led to fantasy managers in your league(s) undervaluing Hintz, then now would be a nice time to buy low.

Robertson is another good buy-low candidate. He has five goals and 13 points through 22 appearances, in large part because of a nine-game stretch from Oct. 26-Nov. 18 in which he had no goals and two assists. The 25-year-old has been inconsistent this campaign, but he has also supplied over 25 goals and 79 points in each of his previous three years, so I have faith that he’s going to start turning things around. One key area to monitor is his performance on the power play. He finished each of the past three campaigns with over 20 points with the man advantage, but he’s been limited to just a goal and three points in that category in 2024-25.

Keep in mind that Robertson missed a good chunk of training camp and didn’t play in the preseason because he was recovering from foot surgery. His old linemate Joe Pavelski is also gone after retiring over the summer. Those might be contributing factors for his sluggish start, but Robertson should still find his rhythm as the campaign progresses.

Florida Panthers (Tue @ PIT, Thu @ PHI, Sat vs SJS)

Florida has won its past three games decisively, outscoring the competition 17-4. The Panthers will take that momentum into Pittsburgh on Tuesday. Florida will then play in Philadelphia on Thursday and host the Sharks on Saturday.

Sam Bennett continues to be a pleasant surprise for the Panthers. He’s been a solid secondary scorer for years, but he’s found another level this season, supplying 12 goals and 23 points through 24 appearances. He’s showing no signs of slowing either, supplying three markers and four points over his past three outings. His 16.2 shooting percentage is a potential warning sign -- his career average is 10.6 -- but he’s also generating assists at a much better rate than normal, so his success might be more than just some good puck luck.

Bennett’s far from the only Panthers forward who has done well recently. Evan Rodrigues has been streaky this campaign and is going through one of his good patches, supplying a goal and three points across his past three games. That gives him six goals and 13 points through 25 outings in 2024-25.

The only major point of concern for Florida thus far has been Sergei Bobrovsky, who has a 3.04 GAA and an .890 save percentage through 17 appearances in 2024-25. While I wouldn’t write off a netminder as accomplished as Bobrovsky over a sluggish start, Spencer Knight has outperformed him thus far with a 2.31 GAA and .911 save percentage across nine outings, so it would be interesting to see if the Panthers shift to a 1A/1B arrangement. That would also help keep the 36-year-old veteran fresh for the playoffs, especially given Bobrovsky’s heavy workload in recent years due to Florida’s back-to-back trips to the finals.

New York Islanders (Tue @ MTL, Thu vs SEA, Sat vs CAR, Sun @ OTT)

The Panthers rank fifth in terms of goals per game (3.64) while the Islanders are 26th (2.56), but surprisingly, New York is the team with more players who have hit double digits in terms of goals. Sam Reinhart and Bennett have achieved that feat with the Panthers while Kyle Palmieri, Anders Lee and Brock Nelson have each provided 10 markers with the Islanders.

Will that trio be able to save the sinking Islanders, who have lost six of their past eight games? The squad will play in Montreal on Tuesday before returning home for contests against the Kraken on Thursday and the Hurricanes on Saturday. New York will round out the week with a road game in Ottawa on Sunday.

Nelson has been the Islanders’ most successful forward during the squad’s eight-game slump, providing four goals and eight points over that span. Lee and Palmieri have also held their own with six and five points, respectively -- each of them also supplied three markers during that stretch.

Still, the absence of Mathew Barzal (upper body) continues to be noticeable. He hasn’t played since Oct. 30 and isn’t expected to return this week. The other issue is Bo Horvat’s goal-scoring drought has reached 11 games (he has five assists in that span). Maybe Horvat will get better when his usual linemate, Barzal, is healthy. Either way, Horvat’s shooting percentage has dropped to 7.1, well below his career average of 13.4.

Toronto Maple Leafs (Mon vs CHI, Wed vs NAS, Fri vs WAS, Sat @ PIT)

Toronto got some good news Saturday with the return of Auston Matthews (upper body) and Matthew Knies (upper body). Both made their presence felt with Matthews supplying two assists while Knies recorded a goal and a helper. Getting Matthews back is especially big for the Maple Leafs, and the sniper will aim to make his presence felt next week with the Maple Leafs scheduled to play at home against Chicago on Monday, Nashville on Wednesday and Washington on Friday. The Maple Leafs will also face the Penguins on the road Saturday.

Getting Knies and Matthews back will likely result in a reduced role for rookie Fraser Minten. The 20-year-old averaged 15:11 of ice time, including 3:32 with the man advantage, over his first three outings from Nov. 20-27, but he dropped to 11:31 on Saturday and wasn’t deployed at all with the man advantage (though Toronto had just one power play in the match).

If Max Domi (lower body) and Bobby McMann (lower body) rejoin the lineup without any other Maple Leafs forwards going down, then Minten might find himself reassigned to the AHL where he can play a bigger role. Still, Minten has shown promise during this NHL stint, supplying a goal and three points across four appearances.

While Minten took advantage of the Maple Leafs’ stretch of injuries, Nicholas Robertson has left plenty to be desired. He did score Saturday, but it was just his second goal and point through 20 outings in 2024-25. Although Robertson reportedly requested a trade over the summer, nothing came of that, and he certainly hasn’t done anything to make himself more appealing to other clubs. He’s still just 23, so it’s too early to write him off, but even as a middle-six secondary scorer, he hasn’t looked great this year. If the Maple Leafs find themselves fully healthy, it’s not clear if there will even be a regular spot for him in the lineup anymore.

Winnipeg Jets (Tue vs STL, Thu @ BUF, Sat @ CHI, Sum vs CBJ)

Winnipeg enjoyed a stunning 15-1-0 start, but the Jets have perhaps shown some cracks lately, dropping five of their past eight games. We’ll see if they stabilize next week. They’ll play at home against the Blues on Tuesday, play in Buffalo on Thursday, and in Chicago on Saturday before hosting the Blue Jackets on Sunday.

What’s changed for the Jets recently? For starters, their stars haven’t been quite as effective. Kyle Connor, Mark Scheifele and Nikolaj Ehlers each provided at least 1.25 points per game across Winnipeg’s opening 16 games and none of them have averaged a point per game since. Nikolaj Ehlers has seen the biggest decline, going from nine goals and 20 points through 16 appearances to five assists and a minus-7 rating over his past eight games.

It's not just the Jets’ top three forwards, though. Winnipeg’s offensive production has been down pretty much across the board. The Jets were averaging an unbelievable 4.56 goals per game through their first 16 games, but Winnipeg’s average has dropped to 2.50 over its past eight contests. We talked about the Jets’ success earlier this month, and at the time I briefly touched on this:

“It is worth noting that Moneypuck ranks Winnipeg 21st in xG/60 with 2.99, so there’s an argument to be made that the Jets have enjoyed good puck luck.”

If we look at where Winnipeg is today, its xG/60 is slightly higher at 3.08. That metric shouldn’t be taken as gospel, but it does suggest that the Jets were significantly overperforming offensively early in the campaign, which makes the fall less shocking. By the same token, Winnipeg is now underperforming, so there’s reason to believe that this will all balance out eventually, and the Jets will finish the campaign as an above average, but not phenomenal scoring team.

Which is okay because Winnipeg’s strength lies in its goaltending more than its forwards. Connor Hellebuyck did have a rough patch from Nov. 12-19 in which he allowed 11 goals on 90 shots (.878 save percentage), but he’s having a fantastic campaign overall with a 15-3-0 record, 2.11 GAA and .928 save percentage in 18 outings. The Jets offense might not be as good as initially advertised, but Hellebuyck should continue to have a season worthy of Vezina Trophy contention.

NHL: CULLEN – 20 FANTASY POINTS – Vilardi, Beniers, Roslovic receiving prime opportunities

Scott Cullen — Fri, 08 Nov 2024 22:11:32 +0000

Winnipeg Jets center Gabriel Vilardi (13) (Photo by Ric Tapia/Icon Sportswire)

Each week, I’ll dig into the stats to find information that can help you make better fantasy hockey decisions. This week, Gabriel Vilardi is riding high with the Jets, Matty Beniers is bouncing back in Seattle, Jack Roslovic has a prime opportunity in Carolina, Rickard Rakell has decent linemates in Pittsburgh, and much more!

Here is this week’s edition of 20 Fantasy Points:

#1 Following a slow start to the season, when he had just three assists in his first six games, Winnipeg Jets right winger Gabriel Vilardi has picked up his pace and has eight points (5 G, 3 A) with 19 shots on goal during a six-game point streak. The Jets are rolling, with a 13-1 record, and Vilardi is riding high on the top line alongside Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor in addition to skating on the Jets’ top power play unit. The key for Vilardi is staying healthy. He had 77 points (45 G, 32 A) in 110 games over the previous two seasons, but he has never played more than 63 games in a season.

#2 Seattle Kraken centre Matty Beniers endured a tough sophomore season in 2023-2024, finishing with 37 points (15 G, 22 A) in 77 games. He started slowly this season, too, managing just one assist through seven games, but he has started to find his range and has delivered eight points (3 G, 5 A) with 10 shots on goal in his past seven games. The issue to be wary of with Beniers is his relatively low shot rate. Among the 227 forwards that have played at least 1000 five-on-five minutes since the start of last season, Beniers ranks 194th with 5.60 shots on goal per 60 minutes and it requires an excellent shooting percentage to sustain production at that rate.

#3 A leading candidate in the Cy Young race, with nine goals and one assist, Carolina Hurricanes right winger Jack Roslovic is making the most of his opportunity to skate on Carolina’s top line. He has seven points (6 G, 1 A) and 18 shots on goal in his past five games, and the opportunity to play with talented linemates Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov gives Roslovic a better opportunity to remain productive. Roslovic had a career-high 45 points (22 G, 23 A) in 2021-2022, but could have a decent shot at surpassing that total this season.

#4 Even as the season appears to be getting away from the Pittsburgh Penguins, veteran winger Rickard Rakell is a reliable contributor, and one that is available in quite a few leagues. Across his past 13 games, Rakell has 11 points (6 G, 5 A) and 39 shots on goal, and he is skating on Pittsburgh’s top line alongside Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, as the Penguins load up, trying to shuffle the deck and get better results.

#5 Veteran New York Islanders right winger Kyle Palmieri is stepping up, and it’s desperately needed on a team that is dealing with injuries to Anthony Duclair and now Mathew Barzal at forward (as well as Adam Pelech on defence). In his past eight games, Palmieri has eight points (4 G, 4 A) and 20 shots on goal while playing more than 18 minutes per game. Palmieri has been a productive winger for a long time and recorded the second 30-goal season of his career in 2023-2024, so he is more than capable of fulfilling an offensive role for the Isles.

#6 While the San Jose Sharks are hoping that their rookie centres Will Smith and Macklin Celebrini will be able to handle scoring responsibilities this season, they are getting some added offence down the middle from Alex Wennberg, the veteran pivot who signed in San Jose as a free agent. Wennberg had no points in seven games to start the season but followed that up with seven points (3 G, 4 A) and 15 shots on goal in the next eight games, averaging nearly 19 minutes of ice time in that stretch.

#7 With injuries forcing the Islanders to move bodies around, they have taken veteran centre Jean-Gabriel Pageau and dropped him on right wing with Anders Lee and Bo Horvat, on what is the Islanders’ top line. He has three goals and 12 shots on goal in the past four games, and Pageau has the added benefit of being a consistent hitter. He has delivered 30 hits in 14 games, which makes him a viable fantasy contributor now that he is in a role to provide offensive production, too.

#8 The Washington Capitals have moved winger Aliaksei Protas to the top line, skating with Alex Ovechkin and Dylan Strome, and it’s paying off. The monstrous winger, listed at 6-foot-6, 225 pounds, has eight points (4 G, 4 A) in his past five games and while he only has seven shots on goal, Protas already has five goals on the season after scoring six in 78 games last season. Protas’ absurdly high on-ice shooting percentage suggests that he will not continue at a point-per-game pace, but if he is going to keep getting regular shifts on the top line, his offensive contributions could still be significant.

#9 Buffalo Sabres winger JJ Peterka, 22, continues his upward trend. He picked up an assist in Thursday’s 6-1 rout of the New York Rangers, giving him 12 points (6 G, 6 A) and 29 shots on goal in 12 games. He is in a prime spot, skating on Buffalo’s top line with Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch, and Peterka is on his way to becoming a star winger in his own right. He has been on a steady climb, both in the NHL and in international play, with all arrows pointing in the right direction for a skilled forward who keeps the puck moving the right way when he is on the ice.

#10 Los Angeles Kings winger Alex Laferriere has taken a massive step forward in his second NHL season. Even after moving down the depth chart, he has continued to produce for the Kings, delivering eight points (4 G, 4 A) and 14 shots on goal in his past seven games. Laferriere has 25 hits in 15 games, enhancing his value for fantasy managers. He is skating with Quinton Byfield and Warren Foegele, but Laferriere is also getting first-unit power play time which his even-strength linemates are not receiving.

#11 The Colorado Avalanche have been decimated by injuries but got a rare piece of good news on the injury front this week when winger Artturi Lehkonen returned to the lineup for the first time since having offseason shoulder surgery. Lehkonen has two points (1 G, 1 A) in two games, but the Avalanche’s depleted forward ranks have also resulted in Lehkonen playing a ton. He has averaged 23:48 of ice time per game in his first two games of the season and is in the prime position, skating on left wing with Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen.

#12 Carolina Hurricanes defenceman Dmitry Orlov has a ceiling on what his fantasy value might be since he does not play on the power play, thereby limiting his offensive production. However, the Hurricanes are such a juggernaut at even strength that Orlov should not be ignored, either. He has five points (2 G, 3 A) and nine shots on goal in his past four games, upping his total point production to eight points (3 G, 5 A) in 12 games. It helps that his ice time has jumped by more than two minutes per game compared to last season, his first year in Carolina.

#13 Second year Seattle Kraken defenceman Ryker Evans is stepping into a bigger role, especially while veteran Vince Dunn is injured. In his past eight games, Evans has four points (2 G, 2 A) and 13 shots on goal, while averaging 22:15 of ice time per game. In 140 AHL games, counting regular season and playoffs, Evans has contributed 95 points (17 G, 78 A), so he is very capable of producing offensively if given the opportunity. With Brandon Montour and Dunn on the roster in Seattle, he may have to wait a bit, or at least take advantage of the opportunities when they fall to him.

#14 Former Seattle Kraken and current Chicago Blackhawks forward Ryan Donato is earning a bigger role, including first unit power play time and even strength time on the wing with Connor Bedard. In his past seven games, Donato has eight points (5 G, 3 A) and 27 shots on goal. He isn’t going to keep scoring on 21.2 percent of his shots, as he has so far this season, but that shot rate is an encouraging sign for Donato to produce more than he did in 2021-2022 when he had career highs with 16 goals and 31 goals.

#15 St. Louis Blues defenceman Colton Parayko has added some offensive flair to his game early in the season. In the past nine games, Parayko has seven points (4 G, 3 A) and 16 shots on goal while averaging 24:30 of ice time per game. While he has been on the Blues’ second power play unit, he does not have any points with the man advantage so his nine even strength points this season is the same as Sidney Crosby and David Pastrnak, among many others.

#16 Toronto Maple Leafs left winger Matthew Knies obviously has a prime spot on the Leafs’ top line, but he is producing to keep his spot. In his past 10 games, Knies has eight points (6 G, 2 A) and 19 shots on goal. For fantasy managers, he also brings a physical dimension, with 34 hits in 14 games this season, making him more valuable than merely his point production would indicate.

#17 San Jose Sharks rookie centre Macklin Celebrini has returned to action and while he has only played three games thus far, his production – including three goals an assist and 12 shots on goal – is eye popping. He has even been better than break-even on draws in the past two games after losing 13 of 14 faceoffs in his NHL debut. Skating on a line with veterans Mikael Granlund and Tyler Toffoli, there is ample reason to believe that Celebrini will be a Calder Trophy frontrunner in short order.

#18 Veteran Buffalo Sabres winger Jason Zucker has moved around the lineup a bit, but after being held off the scoresheet for the first three games of the season, he has put up 11 points (3 G, 8 A) in his past 11 games. He is skating on Buffalo’s third line right now, with Ryan McLeod and Jordan Greenway, but Zucker also gets first unit power play time, so he has a path to continuing that production.

#19 In the previous two seasons, Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merzlikins had a .889 save percentage in 71 games, managing just 20 wins in that time.This season, Merzlikins is splitting starts with Danil Tarasov, but Merzlikins has a .910 save percentage, compared to Tarasov’s .860, so there is an opportunity for Merzlikins to earn a greater share of the starts for a surprisingly competitive Blue Jackets team.

#20 Detroit Red Wings netminder Cam Talbot is stepping up as the much-needed starter. Earlier in the season, he had a 42-save shutout against Nashville and followed that by giving up five goals on 19 shots against the New York Rangers. Since those starts, however, he has a .941 save percentage in his past four starts, giving him a .929 save percentage in seven games this season. Talbot is 37 and may not be able to handle a starter’s workload over the full season, but he had a .925 save percentage through January 2 last season (before finishing with a .903 save percentage after that), so if he has his workload managed, he could still provide value. Right now, he is showing that he is the best option available for the Red Wings and has appeal for fantasy managers, too.

*Advanced stats via Natural Stat Trick.

MCKEEN’S 2024-25 NHL YEARBOOK – NEW YORK ISLANDERS – Team Preview

Sun, 15 Sep 2024 16:00:19 +0000

_{RALEIGH, NC - APRIL 25: New York Islanders Goalie Ilya Sorokin (30) prepares for a faceoff during game 5 of the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs between the New York Islanders and the Carolina Hurricanes on April 25, 2023 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Katherine Gawlik/Icon Sportswire})

The Islanders replaced Lane Lambert with Patrick Roy around midseason and Roy led them to a 20-12-5 record, earning them 94 points (39-27-16) overall, which was good enough to get into the playoffs, where they lost in five games to the Carolina Hurricanes. The Isles ranked 25th in Corsi, at 47.3%, but 18th in expected goals percentage at just under 50%. Those percentages were better under Roy (48.7% Corsi, 51.3% expected goals). The Islanders power play ranked 17th with 7.56 goals per 60 minutes and ranked dead last in penalty killing with 10.78 goals against per 60 minutes. That they made the playoffs with such terrible penalty killing is a credit to the rest of their game, but a 94-point season could easily miss the playoffs in another season.

What’s Changed? It appears that the Islanders have moved on from veteran fourth liners Matt Martin and Cal Clutterbuck, a duo that logged a lot of minutes and threw a lot of hits in an Islanders uniform over the years. Defenceman Sebastian Aho signed as a free agent in Pittsburgh, but otherwise, the Islanders did not lose a lot. They signed winger Anthony Duclair, reuniting him with Roy, who coached Duclair in junior hockey. The Islanders also signed Russian winger Maxim Tsyplakov, who had 47 points in 65 KHL games last season, with hopes that he could fill a role in their middle six.

What would success look like? This Islanders team has had some relative success, reaching the final four in both 2020 and 2021, even when it might not have looked like the most likely outcome, and this version is similar. They should be able to compete for a playoff spot and the goaltending tandem of Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov is strong enough to make a difference in that pursuit, but they do not appear to have the high-end talent that tends to take over the deeper a team goes into the playoffs. Maybe Mathew Barzal, who had his highest point total since his rookie season, can keep elevating his production and he will be the game-breaker that the Isles need to not just make the playoffs but to go on a deeper run.

What could go wrong? The Islanders’ playoff positioning seems precarious, so it wouldn’t necessarily take a lot for things to go wrong. If the goaltending isn’t quite as good as it has been, if guys on the north side of 30 like Anders Lee, Kyle Palmieri, Brock Nelson, and Jean-Gabriel Pageau, see their production start to slip, then that could be enough for the Islanders to miss the playoffs. When a team makes the playoffs with 94 points, it is dependent on the other playoff contenders delivering mediocre seasons, too. The Islanders have reached the postseason with 94 points and 93 points in the past two seasons. In 2017, they finished with 94 points and missed the playoffs, so the challenge for the Islanders is to find a way to escape the playoff bubble so that they have a more secure chance to advance in the playoffs.

Top Breakout Candidate: For an Islanders team that does not have much by way of prospects knocking down the door, finding a breakout candidate requires some creativity, so take a look at 29-year-old winger Anthony Duclair. He is a four-time 20-goal scorer and has established his ability to score in the NHL. However, there is a higher upside for Duclair if he does indeed end up skating on the Islanders’ top line alongside Bo Horvat and Mathew Barzal. Duclair has exceeded 50 points just once in his career and if he plays on the Islanders’ top line, he should be able to do it again.

Forwards

Mathew Barzal

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
80	24	24	78	0.98

The Islanders wisely moved Barzal to right wing and it allowed him to use his dynamic skating to make plays in transition, without having to worry about faceoffs or down-low defensive responsibilities. Last season, Barzal played a career-high 20:08 per game and scored a career-high 23 goals. He finished with 80 points, his highest total since his rookie season of 2017-2018. He also averaged 3.00 shots on goal per game, a career-high mark and an increase of 0.60 shots per game from the previous season. The speedy forward is unlike anyone else on the Islanders roster, with his ability to generate chances largely with his own impressive skating skills. Not only does Barzal have straight away speed, but he is also shifty on his edges and once he puts a defender off balance, he can accelerate and leave them behind. The Islanders have always fared better with Barzal on the ice, consistently outshooting and outscoring opponents. While the Islanders could use more top-tier scorers to compete at the highest level, he is the closest that they have right now, so they are dependent on his production to make this team a contender. Looking ahead to the 2024-2025 season, Barzal should be counted on for 20 goals and 70-75 points, with the understanding that he has potential to go for more, if he stays healthy and gets better quality support.

Bo Horvat

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
81	31	34	65	0.80

A strong two-way centre, Horvat has emerged as a more consistent offensive threat in recent seasons, recording more than 30 goals in three straight seasons, including 33 goals in 2023-2024. He also accumulated a career-high 35 assists, thriving in an offensive role with Barzal his most frequent linemate. With a playmaker like Barzal on his wing, Horvat finished last season with 3.06 shots on goal per game, the highest rate of his career. When that duo was on the ice during five-on-five play, the Islanders outscored the opposition 51-35 and controlled 56.2 percent of expected goals. Horvat has a sturdy build and uses his strength effectively to win puck battles, but he is not an especially physical player overall. He has recorded 81 hits in 111 games since the Islanders acquired him from Vancouver. Horvat is strong on faceoffs, winning 55.2 percent since joining the Islanders, and remains a consistent finishing threat on the power play. In the past six seasons, he has accrued 61 power play goals, which is tied with Nathan MacKinnon for 14th in the NHL over that span. Horvat’s situation with the Islanders is positive because he gets playing time like a first-line centre, with more offensive zone starts compared to what he was getting earlier in his career, and frequently skates with the team’s most dangerous playmaker, Barzal. It is reasonable, then, to expect another 30-goal, 65-point campaign.

Brock Nelson

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
82	32	33	65	0.79

A veteran centre who was a consistent offensive contributor early in his career, Nelson has turned into a first-rate goal scorer. In the past three seasons, Nelson has scored 107 goals, which ranks 21st in the National Hockey League, ahead of Sidney Crosby, Jake Guentzel, and Elias Pettersson. Nelson finished last season with 34 goals while averaging a career-high 3.05 shots on goal per game. That is excellent production from a second line centre. Nelson uses his size very effectively to protect the puck and around the opposition net to get rebounds and deflections. Moreover, he has a quick, accurate release that allows him to score from a distance. He is not particularly adept at the faceoff dot, winning 45.2 percent of his draws last season – his lowest success rate since 2016-2017. Despite being 6-foot-4, Nelson is also not a physical player, finishing with fewer than 40 hits in three of the past four seasons. There are aspects of his game that could be better but it’s difficult to argue with the production, especially on a team that does not score a lot. Having Nelson and Horvat down the middle might not give the Islanders the highest-scoring pair of top two centres, but they can both finish and that should not be discounted. Nelson will turn 33 early in the 2024-2025 season but should be able to continue scoring at similar rates, so 30-35 goals and 65 points would appear to be reasonable expectations.

Kyle Palmieri

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
80	23	22	45	0.56

After a couple of down seasons, including being limited to 55 games by an upper-body injury in 2022-2023, Palmieri delivered a strong 2023-2024 campaign for the Islanders. The 33-year-old winger tied his career high with 30 goals and his 54 points was his highest total since 2016-2017. While Palmieri isn’t huge, he is sturdy and plays an aggressive game, consistently going hard to the net, where he is an opportunist. Of his 30 goals last season, 11 were scored directly off rebounds and that is not a skill that is likely to go away. It’s much more about his willingness to go to the hard areas and having linemates that can generate scoring chances. An increased shot rate helped him get back on the right goal scoring track. He had 2.66 shots on goal per game last season, his highest per-game rate since 2018-2019. Palmieri’s most common linemates last season were Nelson and Pierre Engvall, and the trio was on the right side of the ledger when it came to shots, goals, and expected goals during five-on-five play. At his age, it is probably optimistic to expect another 30-goal season out of Palmieri. Even so, he should be able to contribute 20-25 goals and 45 points, which is decent second-line production.

Anthony Duclair

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
77	26	24	50	0.65

Maybe, just maybe, the chance to reunite with Patrick Roy, his junior hockey coach, will help Duclair remain in place for a while. The Islanders are going to be the ninth team of the 29-year-old’s career. He has played more than 100 games for just two franchises – Arizona (172 GP) and Florida (137 GP). It is a strange pattern because Duclair does plenty of things well, notably he has excellent speed and is a four-time 20-goal scorer. Although he has a sniper’s release that helps him score in transition, when Duclair gets in alone on a goaltender, he has a strong forehand deke that works rather effectively. He recovered from an Achilles injury that limited him to 20 games in 2022-2023 and thrived late in the season when he was traded from San Jose to Tampa Bay, tallying eight goals and 15 points in 17 games for the Lightning. Duclair will surely have a chance to skate in the Islanders’ top six but could conceivably get a chance on the top line alongside Horvat and Barzal. If he gets that kind of opportunity, this could be the best chance to reach his offensive potential. A reasonable expectation would be 25 goals and 50 points, but that could tick a little higher if Duclair sticks at the top of the depth chart.

Anders Lee

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
82	21	20	41	0.50

The Islanders captain did hit the 20-goal plateau for the eighth time in his career in 2023-2024, but 37 points in 81 games was his lowest points per game (0.46) since 2015-2016. That was the last season in which Lee averaged less time on ice than he did last season (15:34), so this could very well be a case of Father Time continuing his unbeaten streak. Lee is a 34-year-old winger who has made a home planted in front of opposing goaltenders and that can take a toll on a guy. He also had career-highs of 176 hits and 68 PIM last season so it’s not like he’s fading quietly into the background. Whether his role is diminishing or not, Lee continues to push the puck in the right direction when he is on the ice, as always. The Islanders have outscored opponents with Lee on the ice during five-on-five play in five of the past six seasons. Given the Islanders’ moves in the offseason, it looks like Lee will be expected to play more of a supporting role in the middle six than he did during his prime years. Still, it would be entirely reasonable to expect 20 goals and 40 points from the power forward who has scored 210 goals since 2016-2017, leaving him tied for 32nd in that time with the now-retired Joe Pavelski.

Pierre Engvall

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
76	12	20	32	0.42

A lanky 6-foot-5 winger, Engvall managed a modest 28 points in his first full season with the Islanders, but that happened while he scored on just 7.8 percent of his shots on goal and had an on-ice shooting percentage of 6.6 percent. Those are relatively low numbers that could very easily swing in the other direction next season. Engvall is an excellent skater who uses his size to help control the puck so that he can wait for the opportunity to make the right play. Oddly enough, Engvall was an effective penalty killer in Toronto, yet has barely seen the ice when the Islanders are shorthanded, so that is an area for potential growth, though one that seems to be more in the hands of the coaching staff than Engvall himself. While he is not the most gifted finisher, he does put himself in position to score and he could have an even bigger impact if he consistently used his size to play a more physical game. He had just 28 hits last season and, considering that he is now 28-years old, it seems unlikely that he will suddenly become a thundering physical presence. Nevertheless, Engvall can capably fill a middle six role for the Islanders, and that might give him the chance to deliver 10-15 goals and 30-35 points.

Jean-Gabriel Pageau

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
82	10	21	31	0.38

A veteran centre who plays a hard-nosed game, despite his lack of size, Pageau has been getting buried in the Islanders’ zone over the past couple of seasons, starting the vast majority of his shifts in the defensive zone and then struggling to turn the tide under those difficult circumstances. This despite winning better than 55 percent of his faceoffs in each of the past four seasons. Pageau is also a consistent physical presence and while some can take issue with the veracity of the counts on Islanders hits, he did finish with a career-high 196 hits in 2023-2024. That gives him surprising value in fantasy leagues. One area of concern is that he managed just 1.23 shots on goal per game, his lowest per-game rate since he was a rookie in 2013-2014 and that makes it difficult to consistently generate offence. Pageau’s upside tends to be limited by his role – he has hit the 40-point plateau three times in his career. He is not likely to experience a major renaissance at this stage of his career, so when it comes to 2024-2025, he could be expected to provide 10-15 goals and 30-35 points, which is generally not going to have fantasy appeal, but Pageau’s hit totals can offer more value for fantasy managers.

Simon Holmstrom

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
70	12	11	23	0.33

It took some time for the 2019 first-round pick to establish his place in the NHL, but he broke through in his second season, tallying 15 goals, including five while shorthanded. There is little indication, however, that there is greater offensive upside lurking beneath the surface. Holmstrom has not scored much in the American Hockey League, compiling 70 points in 154 games, and scored on 20.8 percent of his shots with the Islanders last season, so he is a prime candidate for regression just based on his shooting percentage. Even if he does have good hands and showed the ability to create chances off the rush, there is also the reality that Holmstrom is on the lower end of the Islanders’ depth chart, and while he does have value as a penalty killer, he could get surpassed by younger players who are pushing for playing time. That uncertainty, coupled with the possibility of his shooting percentage declining makes it reasonable to expect maybe a dozen goals and 20 points for Holmstrom in 2024-2025, which leaves him as a low-end fantasy option, though in leagues that count shorthanded goals or points, he could potentially offer more value.

DEFENCE

Noah Dobson

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
80	12	20	32	0.42

There is a whole lot to like about a 24-year-old, 6-foot-4, right-shot defenceman who can quarterback the power play and is coming off a season in which he scored a career-high 70 points. That is what the Islanders have in Dobson, who had shown significant potential in the previous two seasons, but he erupted in 2023-2024 and ended up finishing eighth in Norris Trophy voting. As he has become more comfortable in the league, Dobson has been able to make more aggressive offensive plays. He is not afraid to make a move to beat a defender and with his reach, he can be difficult to contain. While he can step into a blast from the point, he is even more dangerous when he is attacking the net, putting the opposing defence on its heels. The Islanders recognized that Dobson was ready for his breakthrough last season, increasing his ice time to 24:31 per game, a jump of more than four minutes from the previous season. While there is little doubt that he is the offensive cornerstone on the Islanders’ blueline, the team’s lack of firepower could put a ceiling on his offensive expectations for 2024-2025. It’s possible that Dobson will continue to produce like he did last season, but it’s also a lot to ask for a player to duplicate a career-best season. For that reason, it would be fair to expect a dozen goals and 60-65 points from the Islanders’ No. 1 blueliner.

Ryan Pulock

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
65	8	17	25	0.38

Although the veteran defenceman has a booming shot from the point, it has not provided a consistent source of points, especially with Dobson running the point on the Islanders power play. Pulock averaged a career-high 22:33 of ice time per game last season, while starting more of his shifts in the defensive zone, so he offers more than just the big shot from the point. He missed 24 games with a lower-body injury last season, which obviously affected his total production. Pulock has had four seasons with more than 130 blocked shots and two seasons with at least 140 hits, so he has the peripheral stats production that tends to provide value for fantasy managers, and he is perhaps a better all-around defenceman than he was touted to be when his calling card coming into the league was his powerful shot. Pulock still has some upside as the No. 2 option on the Islanders blueline to quarterback the power play, which gives him regular time with the man advantage, but also makes him the first option should Dobson not be available. Provided he stays reasonably healthy, Pulock should be able to deliver 25 points and there are possible scenarios where his total goes higher than that.

Alexander Romanov

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
79	5	18	23	0.29

The 24-year-old left shot blueliner is coming off back-to-back 22-point seasons, which offers limited fantasy value, but Romanov accumulates hits and blocked shots to a degree that sets him apart from a run-of-the-mill fringe fantasy defenceman. Across the past three seasons, only the Rangers’ Jacob Trouba has surpassed Romanov’s totals in hits (582) and blocked shots (444). In his prime years, there is room for Romanov to move into a bigger role on the Islanders blueline, and he did play a career-high 20:50 per game last season, skating primarily with Dobson on the Islanders’ top pair. While the Islanders did not hold a big edge in terms of shots or expected goals with the duo on the ice, the Isles did outscore opponents 35-20 with Romanov and Dobson working as a pair during five-on-five situations. Getting to share the ice with Dobson certainly helps matters, but even if Romanov can skate well in addition to shooting and handling the puck, without power play time or any substantial changes otherwise, he should be expected to fall between 20 and 25 points during the 2024-2025 season. There might be a higher offensive potential for him, but it does not appear that it is going to be uncovered with the Islanders.

Adam Pelech

Predicted Stats
GP	G	A	PTS	PPG
61	1	8	9	0.16

Even though Pelech is not a major offensive contributor and has missed 45 games across the past two seasons, he is still an excellent defender whose production can make him a consideration in deep leagues. The injuries have not helped as Pelech was one of the game’s premier shut-down blueliners just a few years ago. Even if Pelech is a strong defender, he is not in the same class as he was in 2020-2021 when he was receiving Norris Trophy votes. Pelech is such a smooth skater and confident puckhandler that he could conceivably add more offence to his game, but considering the recent injuries, the 30-year-old is not likely to expand too far beyond what he has already established in his career. Provided that he can stay relatively healthy, and that does come with some doubt, it is still fair to expect 20-25 points from Pelech, and his blocked shot totals could bring more fantasy value, since he has 221 blocked shots in 119 games across the past two seasons. That leaves him as a low-end fantasy option, but the Islanders are not home to a lot of great alternatives on the blueline.

GOAL

Ilya Sorokin

Predicted Stats
GP	W	L	OT	SO	SV%	GAA
57	27	22	8	4	0.915	2.98

It was a turtle race to the Wild Card spot for the New York Islanders and the rest of the Metropolitan Division this past year - but for all the faults the Long Island-based hockey club may have had on the ice, their goaltending presence certainly wasn't one of them. The Russian Goaltending Tandem Machine, it seems, never breaks; even as the Islanders went through a volatile year performance-wise, starter Ilya Sorokin and veteran backup Semyon Varlamov continued to chug along as a quality, above-average pair.

Like Sorokin's fellow Russian counterpart across the East River, Igor Shesterkin, the younger starter put up what some fans considered to be a regression-heavy year in 2023. Even with a lower raw save percentage, though, Sorokin's underlying numbers remained remarkably formidable. He continued to show off one of the most consistent games in the NHL, posting quality starts in over sixty percent of his appearances in net even with a massive workload. The Islanders struggled to suppress shots all year, allowing nearly 33 pucks to land on target per game against Sorokin over the course of his 56-game workload. His fatigue started to show by the end of the year, with some of his positioning getting sloppy and some of his angles getting overly aggressive in situations where he needed to keep his options open. His ability to bounce back from a bad goal, though, should continue to serve the Islanders well as they fight to become more of a postseason contender - and with Varlamov back for another year of serving as his number two, expect more of the same from one of the league's most trustworthy tandems.

2024 NHL PLAYOFF PREVIEW: Carolina Hurricanes vs. New York Islanders

Ryan Dadoun — Fri, 19 Apr 2024 22:33:41 +0000

ELMONT, NY - APRIL 23: New York Islanders Center Mathew Barzal (13) and Carolina Hurricanes Center Sebastian Aho (20) battle for the puck during the third period of Game 4 of the National Hockey League Eastern Conference First Round Playoff game between the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Islanders on April 23, 2023, at UBS Arena in Elmont, NY. (Photo by Gregory Fisher/Icon Sportswire)

Carolina Hurricanes vs. New York Islanders

Under Rod Brind'Amour’s tenure as the head coach of the Hurricanes, Carolina has now made the playoffs for six straight games, and the squad has seen some playoff success over that span, but the one thing that’s alluded the Hurricanes during this era has been a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals. Carolina was clearly looking to change that when it acquired Jake Guentzel and Evgeny Kuznetsov from Pittsburgh and Washington, respectively, ahead of the trade deadline. Will those big acquisitions pay off, though? The reality is that they won’t unless the Hurricanes have a deep playoff run, starting with the task of eliminating the Islanders for the second straight year.

It's not hard to see why the Hurricanes are the clear favorite in this series, just as they were in 2023 when they bested the Islanders in six games. It starts with the offense -- Carolina finished the campaign ranking eighth offensively with 3.38 goals per contest, and that’s jumped to an average of 3.65 since the additions of Guentzel and Kuznetsov.

Guentzel has been everything the Hurricanes could have hoped for and more, supplying eight goals and 25 points over 17 outings since the trade. Kuznetsov, who was far more of a gamble to begin with, has been a mixed bag, collecting two goals and seven points over 20 appearances. He did have a four-game scoring streak (two goals, five points) early in his tenure with the Hurricanes, but since then he’s been limited to two assists over 13 outings. Ultimately, he hasn’t shown he can be the same forward who surpassed the 70-point mark on four occasions, but Carolina doesn’t need him to be. Instead, he can be deployed in a bottom-six role to keep the Islanders on their toes even when the main scorers are on the bench.

The Hurricanes also have arguably the best blue line in the league -- they are first in xGA/60 at 2.65. For much of this season, goaltending was a question mark despite the strong defense, but that was because Frederik Andersen wasn’t healthy. The 34-year-old is back now and seems poised to have a tremendous playoff run after posting a 13-2-0 record, 1.84 GAA and .932 save percentage in 16 contests. In other words, Carolina is a tremendously talented team.

Can the Islanders measure up? It’s hard to argue that they could.

The big gap between these teams is in terms of offense. The Islanders managed just 2.99 goals per game, ranking 22nd in the league. They certainly have scoring threats. Brock Nelson, Bo Horvat and Kyle Palmieri each recorded at least 30 goals while Mathew Barzal finished with 80 points and Noah Dobson ranked seventh in the defenseman scoring race with 70 points. After that, though, the Islanders don’t have another player who finished with at least 40 points.

New York was never expected to be a major offensive force, though. Instead, it was supposed to be goaltending that led the way. Semyon Varlamov did fulfill his end of the bargain with a 14-8-4 record, 2.60 GAA and .918 save percentage in 28 contests, but starter Ilya Sorokin struggled, posting a 25-19-12 record, 3.01 GAA and .909 save percentage in 56 appearances. Those aren’t the worst numbers in the world, but they do represent a major decline after he finished second in Vezina Trophy voting a year ago. One might hope that legendary goaltender Patrick Roy replacing Lane Lambert as the bench boss midway through the campaign would have helped spark Sorokin, but the 28-year-old netminder remained mediocre with a 12-8-3 record, 2.74 GAA and .909 save percentage in 23 outings under Roy’s leadership.

Maybe Varlamov will get the assignment in Game 1 or Sorokin will have a short leash, but at best, the Islanders have the potential to be a team with strong goaltending, whereas Carolina could be that and so much more.

KEY MATCHUPS

Bo Horvat vs. Sebastian Aho

There was a major contrast between these two top-line forwards in the first round of the 2023 playoffs, and that had a big impact on which squad advanced. Aho led the Hurricanes with four goals and seven points across the six-game series while Horvat was limited to a goal and an assist. The Islanders need Horvat at his best this time around, and it’s a similar story in Carolina.

While the Hurricanes are the more balanced team overall and rely on Aho’s offense less now that Guentzel is on the roster, Aho is still a central piece and played a major part in their regular season success with a team-leading 36 goals and 89 points over 78 outings. If the Islanders can find a way to contain Aho, then their task of pulling off an upset will become substantially more realistic.

Kyle Palmieri vs. Teuvo Teravainen

In contrast to Horvat, Palmieri was great in the 2023 postseason series, supplying two goals and five points in six games versus Carolina. The 33-year-old followed that up by having one of the best campaigns of his career with 30 goals and 54 points in 82 outings. That’s given the Islanders some much-needed oomph on the second line.

He’ll be countered in part by Teravainen, who is projected to play on the Hurricanes’ second unit. The 29-year-old Finnish forward struggled in 2022-23 with 12 goals and 37 points across 68 appearances, but he bounced back this campaign, contributing 25 goals and 53 points in 76 outings. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him continue that success into the playoffs.

Noah Dobson vs. Brent Burns

This is one of the few areas where the Islanders have the obvious edge. That wasn’t the case a year ago when Burns outscored Dobson five-to-two in the first-round series, but since then, Dobson has found another level. The Islanders blueliner has found another level -- his 70 points in 2023-24 shattered his previous career high of 51 -- while time is slowly catching up to the 39-year-old Burns. The Hurricanes defenseman still managed 10 goals and 43 points in 82 outings, which is amazing for his age, but it pales in comparison to what Dobson, who is 15 years his junior, can do.

X-FACTOR

Carolina Hurricanes: I suggested above that the return of Andersen fixes Carolina’s previously questionable goaltending situation, and I do believe that, but I have to also acknowledge that the 34-year-old goaltender’s 16 starts this year represents a rather small sample size. I don’t consider that to be a huge issue because the veteran goaltender has enjoyed a largely successful career outside of this campaign, and he has that stellar defense supporting him, but it would be fair to take his numbers with a grain of salt and acknowledge that Carolina doesn’t look as complete if its starting netminder falters, especially because the next best alternative, Pyotr Kochetkov, has just one career playoff start under his belt.

New York Islanders: I already mentioned above that Palmieri was one of the Islanders’ better players in the 2023 series, but Carolina can’t sleep on his linemate, Brock Nelson, either. That’s in part because the duo has been red hot recently. Palmieri has seven goals and 12 points over his past 10 outings while Nelson is entering the postseason riding a five-game scoring streak (four goals, eight points). A lot is riding on the Harvat and Barzal, but it might be the second line that gives Carolina more trouble.

FANTASY PLAYERS TO TARGET

Given what we just discussed about Nelson and Palmieri’s recent performance, an argument could be made that they’re being undervalued going into fantasy drafts. The only problem is the Islanders’ chances of getting past the first round are low in my opinion, so I wouldn’t jump at the opportunity to grab them.

Instead, I’d sooner load up on Hurricanes players if given the option. Given Guentzel’s success since joining Carolina, I anticipate him being fantastic in the 2024 postseason. I think Teravainen is also a solid add and perhaps an undervalued one. He had a somewhat hot-and-cold campaign, but he finished with four goals and five points over his last three appearances, giving him some momentum going into the playoffs.

Seth Jarvis set career highs in the regular season with 33 goals and 67 points in 81 outings, and I expect him to maintain that level of success into the postseason. It helps that he’s set to play on the top line alongside Guentzel and Aho.

PREDICTION

Carolina has gone all-in on this playoff run and should at the very least push past the Islanders. Perhaps I’m underestimating the chances of a Sorokin comeback or not giving enough weight to the probability that the Islanders’ second line will do well, but given the totality of the Hurricanes, I expect them to push past the Islanders in five games.

NHL: CULLEN – 20 FANTASY POINTS – Quinton Byfield is making his presence felt, a surprising source of offense for the Maple Leafs, Columbus’ All-Star is scoring, and much, much more!

Scott Cullen — Fri, 23 Feb 2024 16:42:21 +0000

PITTSBURGH, PA - JANUARY 30: Los Angeles Kings Center Quinton Byfield (55) looks on during the second period in the NHL game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Los Angeles Kings on January 30, 2022, at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA. (Photo by Jeanine Leech/Icon Sportswire)

Each week, I dive into the numbers to help make decisions when it comes time to make fantasy hockey decisions.

This week, Quinton Byfield is making his presence felt, a surprising source of offense for the Maple Leafs, Columbus’ All-Star is scoring, and much, much more!

#1 Drafted second overall by the Los Angeles Kings in 2020, Quinton Byfield took some time to get up to speed in the National Hockey League. Coming into this season, he had 8 goals and 33 points in 99 games, so he was not exactly busting down the door to stardom. He did start to show potential last season, though, and the Kings gave him a lot of ice time on the top line to start this season, skating on a line with Adrian Kempe and Anze Kopitar. More recently, Byfield has moved down the depth chart to join Pierre-Luc Dubois and Byfield continues to produce. In his past 10 games, Byfield has tallied 12 points (6 G, 6 A) with 25 shots on goal.

#2 Throwing Byfield with Pierre-Luc Dubois offers a chance for Dubois to shake out of his season-long slump. Since the Kings replaced Todd McLellan with Jim Hiller as head coach, Dubois has six points (3 G, 3 A) and 14 shots on goal in seven games. That improved production comes on the heels of Dubois managing just one point (1 G, 0 A) in the previous eight games.

#3 A 27-year-old winger who had played all of 10 games in the NHL prior to this season, Bobby McMann has become an unlikely contributor for the Toronto Maple Leafs. In his first 26 games for the Maple Leafs this season, McMann had just seven points (2 G, 5 A) but it was understandable, he played less than 10 minutes in 18 of those 26 games. McMann broke through on February 13, recording a hat trick in a 4-1 win against St. Louis and that earned him a bump up the depth chart. He has most recently found himself on a line with John Tavares and Nick Robertson and has 10 points (7 G, 3 A) and 17 shots on goal in the past six games. Suddenly, McMann is changing the perception of what he might be able to offer as an NHL player, from fringe NHLer to possible top-six winger.

#4 Getting Connor Bedard back in the lineup has helped Chicago Blackhawks forward Philipp Kurashev who has eight points (1 G, 7 A) in seven games since the All-Star break, which includes four points (1 G, 3 A) in four games since Bedard returned from his broken jaw. Prior to the break, Kurashev had just two points (1 G, 1 A) during a 14-game stretch, and yet he is still second on the Blackhawks in scoring with 32 points (9 G, 23 A) in 50 games.

#5 Columbus’ All-Star representative this season, centre Boone Jenner has emerged from the break on a five-game point streak, during which he has accrued eight points (5 G, 3 A) with 22 shots on goal. Jenner juices up his fantasy appeal with physical play, too, and has 17 hits in those five games. He is skating between Johnny Gaudreau and Jack Roslovic, both of whom are also picking up the pace offensively. Gaudreau is in full set-up mode lately, with 15 points (1 G, 14 A) and 33 shots on goal in his past 13 games. Roslovic has upped his production more recently, with five points (1 G, 4 A) and 14 shots on goal during a four-game point streak which started when he joined Jenner and Gaudreau on Columbus’ top line.

#6 Winnipeg Jets right winger Gabriel Vilardi got off to a strong start with his new club, contributing 20 points (11 G, 9 A) in 25 games, but he did miss some time due to injury and went through a six-game scoreless drought around the All-Star break. He’s making up for it, though, with eight points (4 G, 4 A) and 12 shots on goal during a three-game point streak. Vilardi is skating on the Jets’ top line with Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele, which is a pretty great opportunity for a young player looking to become a more consistent scoring threat.

#7 Although he was held off the scoresheet in Thursday’s 1-0 win against Florida, it was only the third time in the past 16 games that Carolina Hurricanes right winger Seth Jarvis did not record a point. He has 18 points (4 G, 14 A) and 34 shots on goal in that span, giving him a career-high 46 points in 56 games. Jarvis isn’t the only Hurricanes winger who has picked up his scoring pace. Martin Necas has 15 points (8 G, 7 A) and 50 shots on goal in his past 14 games.

#8 The third pick in the 2021 Draft, Anaheim Ducks centre Mason McTavish has had some ups and downs in his second NHL season, but his talent is undeniable, and he does have seven points in his past four games. While fantasy managers, especially those in banger leagues, might love that McTavish has 30 penalty minutes in his past 10 games, those frequent trips to the penalty box could start to cost him ice time.

#9 Florida Panthers centre Anton Lundell tallied 44 points as a rookie in 2021-2022 and has not been able to match that pace since, in part because his shooting percentage has fallen off, from 14.4 percent two seasons ago to 7.2 percent this season. Nevertheless, Lundell has shown some signs of life offensively, producing six points (4 G, 2 A) and nine shots on goal in his past five games. The Panthers have been excellent this season, and they have not received a huge contribution from Lundell, so if he can pick up the pace down the stretch, that would go a long way for a team that is a Stanley Cup contender.

#10 Minnesota Wild rookie centre Marco Rossi has moved into a tie with teammate Brock Faber as the second leading rookie scorer in the league behind Chicago’s Connor Bedard, who has 39 points (17 G, 22 A) in 43 games. Rossi has five points (4 G, 1 A) and 13 shots on goal in his past five games, which gets him to 33 points (17 G, 16 A) in 56 games. Rossi’s ice time is down, so tread carefully about adding him now. His improved scoring pace does offer hope that Rossi will have a bigger role both in the near and more distant future.

#11 New York Rangers right winger Kaapo Kakko missed nearly two months of action but is starting to get back into the groove. In his past six games, the 23-year-old forward has put up five points (2 G, 3 A) along with 12 shots on goal. It may be too soon to offer a full-throated recommendation for Kakko, but it’s worth keeping an eye on him. Progress has been gradual, and he is already in his fifth NHL season, but he has flashed potential.

#12 Consistent offensive production does not come easily for Buffalo Sabres winger Jordan Greenway, who scored a career high 32 points (9 G, 23 A) in 56 games for the Minnesota Wild during the 2020-2021 season. However, every now and then, he heats up and suddenly becomes an intriguing fantasy option, even if it is for short-term purposes. Over the past month, Greenway has eight points (5 G, 3 A) and 16 shots on goal in 10 games. Injuries have opened the door for Greenway to get more ice time in Buffalo and he has landed on the second line, alongside Casey Mittelstadt and Dylan Cozens, two skilled players who can help extend Greenway’s offensive good fortune.

#13 At this stage of his career, 38-year-old Corey Perry tends to not offer a lot of fantasy value during the regular season. He plays on the lower half of the depth chart and while he contributes some, it is usually only enough for consideration in the deepest of leagues. While all of that may be true, Perry does have four points (3 G, 1 A) with eight shots on goal and 16 penalty minutes in the past four games and that might warrant a little bit more attention. He is getting second unit power play time and is skating with Dylan Holloway and Mattias Janmark at evens.

#14 Goaltending has been a question mark for many teams this season and those questions have lingered in Carolina for much of the season. The answer may be found within the Hurricanes’ own dressing room, as Pyotr Kochetkov has hit a hot streak and that might be enough to solidify the play in Carolina’s crease, at least for the time being. After a sparkling 44-save shutout Thursday against Florida, Kochetkov has a .969 save percentage across his past four starts. Of course, in his previous four appearances, Kochetkov’s save percentage was a ghastly .851, so he has been offering quite the thrill ride with plenty of ups and downs.

#15 One of the primary challenges when seeking fantasy hockey answers in goal is finding goaltenders that play enough. St. Louis Blues backup goaltender Joel Hofer, for example, has been excellent lately with a .928 save percentage across his past nine starts, but that goes back to before Christmas, so Hofer still offers value in deeper leagues. If something were to happen that would give him a greater share of the starts in St. Louis, the 23-year-old could see his value soar.

#16 After lighting up the Vancouver Canucks for four points (1 G, 3 A) in Thursday’s victory, Seattle Kraken centre Jared McCann has a six-game point streak and has put up 22 points (11 G, 11 A) with 44 shots on goal in his past 15 games. McCann is coming off a career-best season in which he scored 40 goals and 70 points, but his recent production is getting him back into that stratosphere again.

#17 In his past seven games, Colorado Avalanche defenceman Cale Makar has zero points. This stretch is the first time – in his career! – that he has gone more than three consecutive games without recording a point. It’s not like this is no reason to trade Makar. He has 20 shots on goal in those seven games and has 60 points (13 G, 47 A) in 53 games this season, but an unprecedented slump from the most prolific scoring defenceman in the league at least bears watching.

#18 Since the All-Star break, the leaders in all situations expected goals: Nico Hischier (5.57), Nathan MacKinnon (5.54), Auston Matthews (5.21), Chris Kreider (4.91), J.T. Miller (4.88), Kirill Kaprizov (4.66), Zach Hyman (4.55), Jack Hughes (4.45), Brady Tkachuk (4.37), Joel Eriksson Ek (4.32), Boone Jenner (4.25), Kyle Palmieri (4.25), Evander Kane (4.23), Nazem Kadri (4.22), and Cole Caufield (4.18). While these are a lot of expected names, it’s interesting to see Hischier at the top of the list, and players like Jenner, Palmieri, and Kane are likely higher than their overall production might suggest.

#19 There are 36 players that have recorded at least seven power-play points since January 1. That list includes Juraj Slafkovsky (9), Jonathan Huberdeau (7), Frank Vatrano (7), Morgan Frost (7), and Jake Neighbours (7). Again, a lot of the names at the top of the list are to be expected – Matthew Tkachuk leads with 14 five-on-four points in 2024 – but some less established players are starting to make a difference with the man advantage, too.

#20 With Mark Stone injured, joining Jack Eichel on the shelf, the Vegas Golden Knights are getting rather thin up front, so maybe consider Michael Amadio as a short-term fix. The 27-year-old forward has scored a goal in four of the past five games, putting a dozen shots on goal while averaging more than 16 minutes of ice time per game. Amadio finished with a career-high 27 points (16 G, 11 A) in 67 games last season and has 21 points (11 G, 10 A) in 50 games this season, so he is not necessarily a long-term answer but, right now, he has an opportunity to play a more significant role.