Following one of the quieter offseasons in recent memory, we’re more than ready for NHL action to cycle back up, both on-ice and online within ESPN’s fantasy hockey forum. It truly is the most exciting time of year, in that a clean slate is offered to all 32 clubs, as well as your very own fantasy team. Whether looking to repeat as champ or hoping to make amends for a disappointing showing in 2024-25, settling back at square one presents a fresh start for everyone.
As with most fun challenges, while the fantasy hockey game is easy enough to grasp, success is most often earned by those who do their due diligence. Whether you’re a seasoned manager or new to the game — welcome aboard! — let us help you get off on the most promising foot. Starting with the chance to assemble the best group of fantasy performers possible.
Jump ahead: Bounce-back and breakout candidates | Goalies | Defensemen | League types | Categories | Mock drafts | Building a dynasty | Roster maintenance | Injured reserve | Trading
The draft
Off the top, be prepared and don’t overthink matters. Ahead of the most important two hours of your entire fantasy hockey season, the first piece of counsel is obvious enough: Do your research and forge a loose plan. ESPN’s fantasy hockey department will help in that regard by providing reams of useful preseason material throughout the month of September.
As for the second bit of advice, just select the best player available … at least to start. Every year, too many fantasy managers try to out-clever their competition by going off road when, say, Nikita Kucherov is sitting right there.
In ESPN’s standard points leagues, Nathan MacKinnon, Auston Matthews, Leon Draisaitl, and Connor McDavid lead the pack of forwards, sitting a slim tick above Kucherov, David Pastrnak, and Kirill Kaprizov. If available, one of those players is your first-round selection, end of discussion.
There will be plenty of opportunities in the later stages of your draft to pad your squad with valuable sleepers, while filling positional holes. Keep in mind, 37 forwards averaged between 2.1 and 2.3 fantasy points in 2024-2025. That’s a healthy enough glut from which to choose once the game-changers are off the board. Only Matthews, MacKinnon, Draisaitl, and Kucherov averaged more than 3.0 points this past season.
Once your top star forward is secured, peruse the rest-of-the-best and grab the likes of a Jack Eichel, William Nylander, or Kyle Connor. Or the reigning Norris Trophy winner. As far as elite fantasy defenders are concerned, Cale Makar is a tier of one.
Tiered forward rankings | Tiered defensemen rankings | Default rankings and scoring system
As for filling your fantasy net, know that there’s Connor Hellebuyck, Andrei Vasilevskiy, and then everyone else. Barring an early run on goalies, hold off on securing your netminder until the elite skaters are taken. Then grab a good one that plays regularly for a team that wins often. While Hellebuyck and Vasilevskiy represent the cream of the fantasy goaltending crop, remember Darcy Kuemper, Logan Thompson, and Mackenzie Blackwood all finished top-seven in total fantasy points this past season.
Once the best players are off the board, and your top-tier netminder is secured, start paying closer attention to satisfying positional and categorical needs. There’s no point in loading up on quality centers — no matter how attractive they are — at the expense of other positions. Like in the real-life game, they can’t score from your bench. Naturally, if your league adheres to the all-encompassing (F) classification, continue to draft the best players on hand.
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Bounce-back and breakout candidates
Did anyone predict Mark Scheifele would pot 87 points, including 39 goals, at the age of 32? Us neither. But other bounce-back candidates are easier to divine. At heart, Washington’s Tom Wilson isn’t a 35-point guy, despite his digits in 2023-24 arguing otherwise. So, while still serving as a pleasant surprise, this past campaign’s 33-goal/32-assist haul, along with his usual hearty number of hits, was less shocking.
It’s no different with breakout candidates. Montreal’s Nick Suzuki amassed 61 points three years ago, 66 the following campaign, and 77 in 2023-24. Respecting that pattern from a center entering his prime, this past season’s haul of 89 shouldn’t bowl anyone over.
(Bonus Suzuki fun fact: He hasn’t missed a single game in all six full NHL seasons.)
In addition to better health, game maturation, improved chemistry with linemates, a change in scenery often goes a long way in bringing the best out of a slumping player. We’re interested in seeing how ex-Duck Trevor Zegras performs in his first year with the Philadelphia Flyers. Centering a top line with Travis Konecny and Matvei Michkov could see the Zegras knock out 70 points for the first time in his young career. The 24-year-old collected only 32 in 57 games with Anaheim last year.
Figuring out who’s ready to wow us next, either in rebound or for the first time, goes a long way to assembling a successful fantasy squad. Read the tea leaves to suss out those potential “sleepers” as best you can.
Less appealing “B” candidates
Backsliders. Those who take a step or several in the wrong direction, fantasy stats-wise. Age and injury can play into pitching skaters in reverse, along with filling a less prominent role in a new/old lineup. Yet another reason to pay close attention to how coaches are shuffling their units in training camp. Then there are those who are negatively regressing to the mean after an altogether irregular showing the season previous. Last fall, we cautioned against expecting another 37-goal performance from Anaheim’s Frank Vatrano in light of how out of character that total seemed and true to form, he scored 21 last season.
Following this past Calder-winning campaign, Montreal defender Lane Hutson concerns us a little bit. We knew the kid would be good, but not necessarily 66-points-in-his-first-season good. A truly abnormal number from a 20-year-old blueliner, and one that could be difficult to replicate, particularly with ex-Islander Noah Dobson on the scene. This goes beyond lazy sophomore slump chatter; will Dobson eat into some of Hutson’s power-play time? A fantasy-relevant question that hopefully summons an answer sooner than later.
This isn’t to suggest you shouldn’t draft the Canadiens’ rising star. Just perhaps modify your expectations, and select him accordingly.
More on goalies
Excuse the absurd understatement, but this isn’t a position to disregard. Too few characters are saddled with carrying too great a number of categories. While you might not win your league with solid goaltending, you certainly won’t without.
First and foremost, don’t select netminders on lousy teams, no matter how talented the individuals themselves. The top 10 fantasy goaltenders in 2024-25 competed for the Winnipeg Jets, Tampa Bay Lightning, Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota Wild, Dallas Stars, Washington Capitals, Colorado Avalanche, Florida Panthers, Vegas Golden Knights, and Calgary Flames. Notice the common theme?
Only the Flames didn’t make the playoffs, and they came pretty close. Between a gifted goalie on an inferior squad and a mediocre figure on a good one, go with the latter. Juuse Saros is an excellent netminder who endured an awful fantasy season in Nashville because his team (unexpectedly, mind you) couldn’t score or win games.
You also want to target solid goaltenders who play as much as possible. It’s no coincidence the top two fantasy netminders in 2024-25 — Hellebuyck and Vasilevskiy — earned the most starts. While Jet Greaves posted superb fantasy digits in Columbus, he competed in only 11 contests. So, outside of Daily Fantasy competition, it hardly matters.
Once your top figures between the pipes are wrangled, feel free to expand your scope to include heavy-lifters with teams on the rise and top-tier tandem members. For the former, Anaheim’s Lukas Dostal and Utah’s Karel Vejmelka are two such examples. Veteran John Gibson could serve as a pleasant fantasy surprise in his new Detroit crease. Bounce back candidates like Boston’s Jeremy Swayman and the aforementioned Saros also merit consideration.
In deeper leagues, taking a late-draft swing with a super-sleeper could eventually pay off. Again, once your top performers are in place.
A deeper dive on D-men
Along with league size, relevant categories factor significantly in which blueliners you’re going to target for your roster. If your lineup requires more than twice as many total centers, right and left wingers as defensemen, concentrate more on your skaters up front.
Of course you want at least one blue-line star, or several in smaller leagues. After Makar, that group includes Zach Werenski, Rasmus Dahlin, Moritz Seider, Quinn Hughes, and MacKenzie Weegar. In competition that rewards blocked shots, such as ESPN’s standard, there are many other useful performers who don’t necessarily put up the most sparkling scoring numbers. Calgary’s Rasmus Andersson averaged 2.0 fantasy points/game this past season because he blocked 196 shots along with potting 31 points.
Thirty-five regular defenders averaged between 1.7 and 1.9 points in 2024-25. Plenty from which to pick to pad your roster, once your top-tier stars are in place.
Leagues, leagues, leagues
As far as customizing your ideal league, the ESPN Fantasy game offers many exciting options. While head-to-head (H2H) points leagues endure as the most popular, there’s no wrong way to play the game. Some fantasy veterans still appreciate the charms of Rotisserie (Roto) competition, in which scoring is determined by how well you do across a variety of statistical categories such as goals, shots, power-play points for skaters, and wins, saves and shutouts for goalies. H2H category leagues can be the most dramatic in that victory is often determined by the slimmest of margins — one goal here, a blocked shot there — also attracts a steadfast following. Pick your format, pick your categories, and go from there.
Categories matter
Do they ever! Not only is becoming intimately familiar with every category essential, the actual weight of each statistic also merits close examination in points leagues. For instance, a single hit in H2H category competition sports a lot more heft over where only valued at 0.1 points. Are goals worth twice as much as assists? Winnipeg’s Kyle Connor (41 goals) and Jack Eichel of the Golden Knights (28 goals) no longer lie on the same fantasy plane. A defender like Philly’s Nick Seeler is far more useful in leagues that incorporates blocked shots.
Investing in mock drafts
Just as shooting pucks at the old dryer over and over again is both enjoyable and advances your rate of success, taking part in several fun mocks will improve your drafting form. There’s no diminishing the insight gathered from gauging how other managers tackle the same task in trying to assemble the best roster possible.
If other managers are avoiding a higher-ranked player until later rounds, look into why. The same applies if others scramble to grab a skater/goalie well before their projected draft position. If this becomes a common theme, figure out if there’s a good reason or not.
There are options in our Mock Draft Lobby for any league scoring setup and number of players. Take some time, here and there, to best prepare yourself ahead of the big day. It’s much easier to fiddle with a well-assembled roster than being forced to perform major surgery straight away. Again, it’s also fun.
Building a dynasty
Compared to re-draft competition, dynasty and keeper leagues are cut from a different fantasy cloth. Particularly in dynasty leagues where, barring trades, you’re stuck with these performers for the long haul. This fall, any invested manager should relish the chance to select Matthew Schaefer of the New York Islanders, even if the 2025 No. 1 draft pick doesn’t see much NHL action over the next few months. Barely 18 years old, the young defender is already drawing some comparisons to Colorado’s Makar. (No pressure, kid.) Definitely a figure you’d appreciate having on your dynasty roster for the next 15 years or so, thank you very much.
Keeper leagues offer more flexibility in that a greater number of players are jettisoned back in the draft pool each season. Depending on the strength of your core, decisions need to be made regarding whether you’re in win-now mode or building for the future. If imminent playoff run appears in sight, those effective veteran players could be worth scooping up. Otherwise, investing in younger, slow-burn talent, might be the wiser course of action.
In step with real-life competition, are you supervising a contending Panthers squad and snagging Brad Marchand for that little extra push, or patiently playing the long-term game with a team more akin to the rebuilding San Jose Sharks? Figure that out and draft accordingly.
Roster maintenance
Unless invested in the more set-and-forget model — which best suits the most casual fantasy competitors — a good fraction of the fun in managing a fantasy team is the actual management part. Unless you’ve drafted an elite team for the ages … or the opposite … the more maintenance the better.
First off, becoming well acquainted with your pool of available free agents is essential, particularly early on. Guaranteed, some unheralded skaters are going to slide into a plum lineup position and comfortably surpass preseason expectations. In his first season with St. Louis, Dylan Holloway serves as a good example. After splitting time in the NHL and minors with the Oilers, Holloway collected 63 points in 77 games after joining the Blues while skating on a scoring unit with Brayden Schenn and Jordan Kyrou. In late November, the 23-year-old bounced from being a fantasy afterthought to becoming a solid substitute for other underperforming players.
Between the pipes, Logan Thompson quickly established himself as the go-to for Capitals after asking out of Vegas. In his first two months with Washington, Thompson banged out a 10-1-1 record, .911 SV% and 2.56 GAA. His tandem mate, Charlie Lindgren, was 7-5-0 with a .893 SV% 2.95 GAA.
Guess who earned more starts after that? And guess who finished sixth in total points in ESPN standard leagues? A netminder who was largely available to begin the campaign. Paying attention always pays off.
Another roster maintenance tip: In daily adjustment leagues, set every day’s lineup at the start of the week. While you can always fiddle on the go, we all know life sometimes happens If caught away from your fantasy club because of other matters, at least you’re reasonably established for the week.
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A word on injured reserve
There shouldn’t be a single IR slot vacant on your roster to start the season. Those inactive individuals — consider them placeholders for now — can always be moved out, when necessary, to accommodate another banged-up, quality player. For now, there’s zero harm in stockpiling some potential talent from the gaggle of those currently out of action.
A fantasy gem in competition that rewards a little bit of everything, like ESPN’s standard league, Matthew Tkachuk is unofficially expected to miss a few months after undergoing summertime surgery. We can’t rustle up a better example of a figure to jam into an injured slot, to start. Imagine the boost in fantasy dividends to be paid out once the productive, physical Panther is back to his patented business of scoring and annoying the competition. Just don’t overreach and draft him too early at the expense of selecting other quality, active skaters still available. The projected length of absence factors largely in how early, or not, you should secure someone who’s not going to play for a stretch.
The art of trades
Forge them, especially in deeper leagues. Not with the view to swindle another manager, but to strengthen both rosters with complementary pieces. For instance, your extra forward for their superfluous defender. Maybe a winger for a center. Perhaps a skater needed to check one specific categorical box for an overachieving backup who doesn’t see enough action with their current fantasy squad. You’ll often find managers with shoddy net-minding particularly enthusiastic about hammering out a deal. There are no limits to the mutual back scratching possible when two managers are willing to negotiate.
Just like in the real-life game, your gig is to build, massage, and manage the most dynamic roster possible. Using every tool at your disposal. Good luck!
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