Fantasy Hockey: Recap & Guide for the Upcoming Season
As we’ve been in the offseason of the NHL with numerous trades, signings, and news across the league, we’re slowly reaching fantasy hockey time and to kick things off, providing a recap on how everything unfolded for my team.
I want to share a few of the players that I drafted that helped lead my fantasy team to a championship. Included below are my sleeper picks and players to keep an eye on for the upcoming 2024–2025 season.
Highlighted players on my fantasy roster
Nathan MacKinnon — acquired in draft (#3)
An absolute monstrous season from the Avalanche’s franchise player as he amassed over 50 goals and 140 points in the regular season. He attacked the net with 405 shots on goal in the regular season, absurd. He was awarded honors in receiving the Ted Lindsay and Hart Trophy at the NHL Awards in late June.
Artemi Panarin — acquired in draft (#46)
Another player with an incredible season where he topped career-highs in goals (49) and points (120). He led his team to its first Presidents’ Trophy for most points of any team in the regular season for the first time since the ‘14-’15 season. The Rangers also set a franchise record in wins and points this past year, assisting in the efforts was their star forward.
Filip Forsberg — acquired in draft (#118)
Nashville’s bright-light in their surprisingly good season (especially the latter half as they were able to sneak into the postseason). He set career highs in goals, assists, and points in his 12th season. With the Predators revamping their roster this offseason, I expect a better, if not, the same output as he had in the ‘23-’24 season.
Wyatt Johnston — acquired in draft (#238)
Sophomore slump? Not for this guy. Johnston is so elite and fits perfectly into the top six for the Stars who remain a contender for their first cup since 1999. The 21-year old amassed 32 goals and 65 points while playing in his second full season. Expect similar results for the upcoming season with his ceiling being so high.
Seth Jarvis — acquired in draft (#243)
Another late round steal and breakout season type player in this list. The Hurricanes have been breeding young guns in their roster as he found the back of the net 33 times. Jarvis is a gamer in all situations. We’ll have to wait and see how the Canes handle him this offseason being in cap issues and having him still as an RFA.
Zach Werenski — acquired in draft (#75)
The *only* bright light in Columbus this past season. He is so underrated in my eyes the way he transitions the puck out of his own zone, his ability to lead the rush, and produce as a defensemen on an incredibly-mediocre team. His team finished last in the league with a -63 goal differential, yet he was still able to keep his plus/minus at 0. Werenski put together 57 points in 70 games. Although injury-prone, he’s an elite talent.
Adrian Kempe — acquired in draft (#70)
A small dip in his usual goal totals, but his point production was almost at a point per game. He’s so steady and elusive. The Kings have a great 1–2 punch at the center position with him and Anze Kopitar at the helm. He’s entering his prime so expect the production to remain steady.
Matt Boldy, Carter Verhaeghe, and Jacob Chychrun — acquired by trade (Dec. 16) in exchange for Jared McCann, Brady Tkachuk, and Mikhail Sergachev
Sleepers/Depth Picks/Notables per Team
Anaheim Ducks: Cutter Gauthier, Robby Fabbri, Pavel Mintyukov, Cam Fowler, Olen Zellweger
Boston Bruins: Matthew Poitras, Morgan Geekie, Fabian Lysell, Charlie Coyle, Mason Lohrei
Buffalo Sabres: Jack Quinn, Bowen Byram, Dylan Cozens, Zach Benson, Owen Power, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
Calgary Flames: Connor Zary, MacKenzie Weegar, Jonathan Huberdeau, Andrei Kuzmenko, Dustin Wolf
Carolina Hurricanes: Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Sean Walker, Shayne Gostisbehere, Pyotr Kochetkov
Chicago Blackhawks: Philipp Kurashev, Tyler Bertuzzi, Teuvo Teravainen
Colorado Avalanche: Casey Mittlestadt, Jonathan Drouin, Nikolai Kovalenko
Columbus Blue Jackets: Sean Monahan, Kent Johnson, Adam Fantilli, Yegor Chinakhov, Ivan Provorov
Dallas Stars: Mavrik Bourque, Mason Marchment, Matt Duchene
Detroit Red Wings: JT Compher, Jonatan Berggren, Erik Gustafsson,
Edmonton Oilers: Jeff Skinner, Dylan Holloway, Darnell Nurse, Mattias Ekholm
Florida Panthers: Anton Lundell, Sam Bennett, Aaron Ekblad, Adam Boqvist
Los Angeles Kings: Brandt Clarke, Jordan Spence, Phillip Danault, Trevor Moore, Warren Foegele
Minnesota Wild: Marco Rossi, Brock Faber
Montreal Canadiens: Lane Hutson, Mike Matheson, Juraj Slafkovsky
Nashville Predators: Tommy Novak, Brady Skjei
New Jersey Devils: Dawson Mercer
New York Islanders: Anthony Duclair, Anders Lee
Ottawa Senators: Jake Sanderson, Thomas Chabot, Drake Batherson, Linus Ullmark
Philadelphia Flyers: Matvei Michkov, Tyson Foerster, Joel Farabee, Morgan Frost
Pittsburgh Penguins: Bryan Rust, Michael Bunting
San Jose Sharks: Mikael Granlund, Tyler Toffoli, William Eklund, Macklin Celebrini
Seattle Kraken: Brandon Montour, Joey Daccord, Matty Beniers, Oliver Bjorkstrand
St Louis Blues: Jake Neighbours, Jordan Binnington
Tampa Bay Lightning: JJ Moser, Anthony Cirelli, Cam Atkinson
Toronto Maple Leafs: Matthew Knies, Max Domi, Joseph Woll/Anthony Stolarz
Utah Hockey Club: Barrett Hayton, Matias Maccelli, Logan Cooley, Dylan Guenther, Connor Ingram
Vancouver Canucks: Jake DeBrusk, Filip Hronek, Conor Garland
Vegas Golden Knights: Alexander Holtz, Ivan Barbashev, William Karlsson
Washington Capitals: Pierre-Luc Dubois, Dylan Strome, Tom Wilson, Andrew Mangiapane, Connor McMichael, Charlie Lindgren/Logan Thompson
Winnipeg Jets: Gabriel Vilardi, Cole Perfetti, Alex Iafallo, Neil Pionk
From the above list, the few that are bolded are who I expect the most from if they earn a top-six or top-four role in this upcoming season and/or who I like the most based on how I’ve seen them play in prior year(s).
