Spoiler alert: Connor McDavid remains indisputably the No. 1 ranked fantasy hockey player heading into the new season.
And just like years ago, fellow Edmonton Oilers superstar Leon Draisaitl trails right behind him at No. 2.
For all intents and purposes, most standard non-keeper league drafts should unofficially start at No. 4. Of course, that’s assuming Auston Matthews, who’s coming off a 60-goal campaign and a second straight Rocket Richard Trophy, goes third. Hard to pass on that.
After Matthews, all bets are off as to who will go off the board next. For starters, Nathan MacKinnon deserves serious consideration. The 27-year-old notched 32 goals and 88 points in 65 outings last season. Prorated over 82 games, that’s a 40-goal, 111-point pace.
Then there’s Kirill Kaprizov. The Minnesota Wild phenom followed up his Calder Trophy-winning campaign with a ridiculous 47-goal, 108-point explosion. Nikita Kucherov, Mikko Rantanen and Cale Makar are no slouches either.
Speaking of Makar, the 23-year-old’s fantasy stock could be at an all-time high right now. The Colorado phenom had himself quite the month of June walking away with a Stanley Cup, a Conn Smythe Trophy and just for good measure, a Norris Trophy as the league’s top blue-liner, too. Unsurprisingly, the Alberta native is widely regarded as a top-10 fantasy pick this season, which is unfamiliar territory for the position he plays.
That said, there’s a plethora of other elite options worth your consideration on the backend as well. Roman Josi is one of them. All the Predators’ captain did last season was rack up 23 goals and 96 points. The 32-year-old was just four points shy of the 100-point plateau; a mark that hasn’t been hit by a defender in 30 years (Brian Leetch).
From a strategic standpoint, you may want to be aggressive and target at least one marquee blue-liner sooner rather than later. Simply put, the position lacks substantial high-end depth. Act swiftly.
In the crease, it’s quite definitive and clear that it’s Andrei Vasilevskiy and Igor Shesterkin — whatever way you want to rank them — and then everyone else.
Furthermore, for the first time in recent memory, even despite the extreme volatility surrounding the position, it is not outlandish to contemplate grabbing a goalie in the first round. Truth be told, there’s no right way per se to handicap the position in your draft, especially in the era of tandems and timesharing. With that in mind, it’s important to be prepared for the inevitable goalie run because there’s a significant drop-off in talent once the first 10-to-12 guys come off the board. After that, it’s all about flier plays and there’s no telling how those will ultimately play out.
Up front, there are no shortage of difference makers to tickle your fancy — at least in the top 100. Last season, eight different forwards hit the 100-point plateau and 15 managed to tally at least 90 points.
From a depth standpoint, the center ice position is once again ripe with quantity and quality. In fact, in doing some pre-season mock drafts recently, brand names like Patrice Bergeron, Nazem Kadri, Mathew Barzal and Ryan O’Reilly have been slipping down the ranks like crazy. Unless a big fish falls into your lap, it could be worth your time to exercise patience and prioritize wingers while you wait to bargain shop on centers. Just some food for thought.
Sportsnet’s top 250 fantasy hockey player rankings are curated based on past production, projection, age, and potential. The formula is weighted on goals, assists, plus/minus, power-play points, shots on goal and penalty minutes for skaters and wins, goals-against average, save percentage and shutouts for goaltenders.
Additionally, a variety of factors such as line deployment and contractual status, among other things, are taken into heavy consideration when compiling this list.
These rankings are crafted specifically for single-season, non-keeper league formats.
* — Indicates an injured player.
1. Connor McDavid, EDM, C
2. Leon Draisaitl, EDM, C/LW
3. Auston Matthews, TOR, C
4. Nathan MacKinnon, COL, C
5. Kirill Kaprizov, MIN, LW
6. Nikita Kucherov, TBL, RW
7. Mikko Rantanen, COL, RW
8. Cale Makar, COL, D
9. Mitch Marner, TOR, RW
10. Andrei Vasilevskiy, TBL, G
11. Igor Shesterkin, NYR, G
12. Aleksander Barkov, FLA, C
13. Jonathan Huberdeau, CGY, LW
14. Steven Stamkos, TBL, C/LW
15. Sidney Crosby, PIT, C
16. Alex Ovechkin, WSH, LW
17. Roman Josi, NSH, D
18. Matthew Tkachuk, FLA, RW
19. Artemi Panarin, NYR, LW
20. Sebastian Aho, CAR, C
21. David Pastrnak, BOS, RW
22. Brady Tkachuk, OTT, LW
23. Patrick Kane, CHI, RW
24. JT Miller, VAN, C/LW
25. Andrei Svechnikov, CAR, LW
26. Victor Hedman, TBL, D
27. Jack Hughes, NJD, C
28. Kyle Connor, WPG, LW
29. Adam Fox, NYR, D
30. Jake Guentzel, PIT, LW
31. Gabriel Landeskog, COL, C/LW
32. Mark Stone, VGK, RW
33. Mika Zibanejad, NYR, C
34. Alex DeBrincat, OTT, LW
35. Frederik Andersen, CAR, G
36. Aaron Ekblad, FLA, D
37. Ilya Sorokin, NYI, G
38. Jack Eichel, VGK, C
39. Vladimir Tarasenko, STL, RW
40. Juuse Saros, NSH, G
41. Elias Pettersson, VAN, C/LW
42. Johnny Gaudreau, CBJ, LW
43. Jacob Markstrom, CGY, G
44. John Carlson, WSH, D
45. Chris Kreider, NYR, LW/RW
46. Jason Robertson, DAL, LW
47. Evgeny Kuznetsov, WSH, C
48. Sam Reinhart, FLA, C/RW
49. William Nylander, TOR, LW/RW
50. Evgeni Malkin, PIT, C
51. John Tavares, TOR, C
52. Mark Scheifele, WPG, C
53. Marc-Andre Fleury, MIN, G
54. Kris Letang, PIT, D
55. Brayden Point, TBL, C
56. Nikolaj Ehlers, WPG, LW/RW
57. Dougie Hamilton, NJD, D
58. Jack Campbell, EDM, G
59. Tristan Jarry, PIT, G
60. Dylan Larkin, DET, C
61. Morgan Rielly, TOR, D
62. Connor Hellebuyck, WPG, G
63. Filip Forsberg, NSH, LW
64. Thatcher Demko, VAN, G
65. Elias Lindholm, CGY, C
66. Patrice Bergeron, BOS, C
67. Darcy Kuemper, WSH, G
68. Evander Kane, EDM, LW
69. Brad Marchand*, BOS, LW
70. Kevin Fiala, LAK, LW/RW
71. Patrik Laine, CBJ, RW
72. Nazem Kadri, CGY, C
73. Pierre-Luc Dubois, WPG, C
74. Jake Oettinger, DAL, G
75. Teuvo Teravainen, CAR, LW/RW
76. Alexander Georgiev, COL, G
77. Tim Stützle, OTT, LW
78. Quinn Hughes, VAN, D
79. Joe Pavelski, DAL, C/RW
80. Anze Kopitar, LAK, C
81. Sergei Bobrovsky, FLA, G
82. Mathew Barzal, NYI, C
83. Shea Theodore, VGK, D
84. Mats Zuccarello, MIN, RW
85. Brent Burns, CAR, D
86. Jonathan Marchessault, VGK, LW/RW
87. Lucas Raymond, DET, RW
88. Cole Caufield, MTL, LW/RW
89. Jeremy Swayman, BOS, G
90. Torey Krug, STL, D
91. David Perron, DET, RW
92. Blake Wheeler, WPG, C/RW
93. Linus Ullmark, BOS, G
94. Brock Boeser, VAN, RW
95. Roope Hintz, DAL, C
96. Thomas Chabot, OTT, D
97. Trevor Zegras, ANA, C
98. Cam Talbot, OTT, G
99. Taylor Hall, BOS, LW
100. Tony DeAngelo, PHI, D
101. Spencer Knight, FLA, G
102. Ryan O’Reilly, STL, C
103. Devon Toews, COL, D
104. Bo Horvat, VAN, C
105. Claude Giroux, OTT, C/RW
106. Matt Duchene, NSH, RW
107. Zach Hyman, EDM, LW/RW
108. Timo Meier, SJS, LW/RW
109. Carter Verhaeghe, FLA, LW
110. Moritz Seider, DET, D
111. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, EDM, C/LW
112. Clayton Keller, ARI, LW/RW
113. Bryan Rust, PIT, RW
114. Nick Suzuki, MTL, C
115. Semyon Varlamov, NYI, G
116. Sam Bennett, FLA, C
117. Rasmus Dahlin, BUF, D
118. Tyler Bertuzzi, DET, LW/RW
119. Matt Murray, TOR, G
120. Brayden Schenn, C/LW
121. Tomas Hertl, SJS, C
122. Robert Thomas, STL, C
123. Troy Terry, ANA, RW
124. Jordan Kyrou, STL, LW/RW
125. Matty Beniers, SEA, C
126. Jonathan Quick, LAK, G
127. Pavel Buchnevich, STL, RW
128. Josh Norris, OTT, C
129. Brock Nelson, NYI, C/LW
130. Ondrej Palat, NJD, LW
131. Jordan Binnington, STL, G
132. Jakub Voracek, CBJ, LW/RW
133. Jesper Bratt, NJD, RW
134. Valeri Nichushkin, COL, LW/RW
135. Vincent Trocheck, NYR, C
136. Ryan Strome, ANA, C/RW
137. Jamie Benn, DAL, C/LW
138. Tyler Seguin, DAL, C/RW
139. Sean Couturier, PHI, C
140. Logan Couture, SJS, C
141. Zach Werenski, CBJ, D
142. Mason McTavish, ANA, RW/LW
143. Tage Thompson, BUF, C
144. Alex Pietrangelo, VGK, D
145. Matt Boldy, MIN, LW/RW
146. Mikael Granlund, NSH, C/LW
147. Logan Thompson, VGK, G
148. Alex Tuch, BUF, RW
149. Andrew Copp, DET, C/RW
150. Noah Dobson, NYI, D
151. Alex Killorn, TBL, LW/RW
152. Mackenzie Blackwood, NJD, G
153. Miro Heiskanen, DAL, D
154. Drew Doughty, LAK, D
155. TJ Oshie, WSH, C/RW
156. Evan Bouchard, EDM, D
157. Anders Lee, NYI, LW
158. Michael Bunting, TOR, LW
159. Tyler Toffoli, CGY, LW/RW
160. MacKenzie Weegar, CGY, D
161. David Krejci, BOS, C
162. Owen Power, BUF, D
163. John Gibson, ANA, G
164. Bowen Byram, COL, D
165. Jared McCann, SEA, LW
166. Drake Batherson, OTT, RW
167. Ryan Johansen, NSH, C
168. Elvis Merzlikins, CBJ, G
169. Anthony Cirelli, TBL, C/RW
170. Chandler Stephenson, VGK, C/RW
171. John Klingberg, ANA, D
172. Ilya Samsonov, TOR, G
173. Charlie McAvoy*, BOS, D
174. Carter Hart, PHI, G
175. William Karlsson, VGK, C/LW
176. Jeff Skinner, BUF, LW
177. Calvin Petersen, LAK, G
178. Andre Burakovsky, SEA, LW/RW
179. Viktor Arvidsson*, LAK, LW/RW
180. Seth Jones, CHI, D
181. Vitek Vanecek, NJD, G
182. Justin Faulk, STL, D
183. Anthony Mantha, WSH, LW/RW
184. Pavel Francouz, COL, G
185. Andrew Mangiapane, CGY, LW/RW
186. Erik Karlsson, SJS, D
187. Alex Nedeljkovic, DET, G
188. Darnell Nurse, EDM, D
189. Juraj Slafkovsky, MTL, LW/RW
190. Jake Allen, MTL, G
191. Mikhail Sergachev, TBL, D
192. Jakob Chychrun, ARI, D
193. Adrian Kempe, LAK, LW/RW
194. Nino Niederreiter, NSH, LW/RW
195. Jake Sanderson, OTT, D
196. Conor Garland, VAN, LW/RW
197. Ryan Hartman, MIN, C
198. Booner Jenner, CBJ, C
199. Philipp Grubauer, SEA, G
200. Calen Addison, MIN, D
201. Oliver Bjorkstrand, SEA, RW
202. Mason Marchment, DAL, LW/RW
203. Alexis Lafreniere, NYR, LW
204. Anton Lundell, FLA, C
205. Alex Kerfoot, TOR, C/LW/RW
206. Jaden Schwartz, SEA, LW
207. Dylan Strome, WSH, C/RW
208. Travis Konecny, PHI, LW/RW
209. Ville Husso, DET, G
210. Cam Atkinson, PHI, RW
211. Nico Hischier, NJD, C
212. Jeff Petry, PIT, D
213. Yanni Gourde, SEA, C/RW
214. Neal Pionk, WPG, D
215. Marcus Foligno, MIN, LW/RW
216. Victor Olofsson, BUF, RW
217. Jake DeBrusk, BOS, LW/RW
218. Brendan Gallagher, MTL, RW
219. Yegor Sharangovich, NJD, C/LW
220. Oliver Wahlstrom, NYI, RW
221. Kirby Dach, MTL, C/RW
222. Denis Gurianov, DAL, LW/RW
223. Joel Eriksson Ek, MIN, C
224. Nick Schmaltz, ARI, C/RW
225. Jared Spurgeon, MIN, D
226. Phil Kessel, VGK, RW
227. Martin Necas, CAR, C/RW
228. Seth Jarvis, CAR, LW/RW
229. Tyson Barrie, EDM, D
230. Kevin Hayes, PHI, C
231. Shayne Gostisbehere, ARI, D
232. Shane Wright, SEA, C
233. Connor Brown, WSH, LW/RW
234. Tanner Jeannot, NSH, RW
235. Joel Farabee*, PHI, LW/RW
236. Kailer Yamamoto, EDM, RW
237. Jordan Staal, CAR, C
238. Rasmus Andersson, CGY, D
239. Jamie Drysdale, ANA, D
240. Jordan Eberle, SEA, RW
241. Marco Rossi, MIN, C
242. Vasily Podkolzin, VAN, LW/RW
243. Rickard Rakell, PIT, LW/RW
244. Alec Martinez, VGK, D
245. Anton Forsberg, OTT, G
246. Ross Colton, TBL, C/LW
247. Andrei Kuzmenko, VAN, LW
248. Ivan Barbashev, STL, C/LW
249. Blake Coleman, CGY, LW/RW
250. Lawson Crouse, ARI, LW/RW
Other key injuries
• Nicklas Backstrom, WSH, C — Out indefinitely (hip).
• Anthony Duclair, FLA, RW — Out indefinitely (Achilles)
• Tom Wilson, WSH, RW — Late January (knee).
• Max Pacioretty, CAR, LW — Post All-Star Game (Achilles)
• Robin Lehner, VGK, G — Out for season (hip).
• Carey Price, MTL, G — Out indefinitely (knee).