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NHL season preview: Power Rankings, X factors, predictions
More Teams. More Games. With NHL opening night on the horizon, take a look back at some of the best moments from last season. (0:58) After a wild offseason that included multiple superstars joining or leaving the Calgary Flames, opening night of the 2022-23 NHL season is fast approaching. ESPN will be your home for […]
Continue reading2023-24 Fantasy hockey top 300 player rankings
No surprises at the top, where a pair of star teammates in Edmonton lead fantasy forwards once again. Keep reading to see where postseason standouts in Matthew Tkachuk and Jake Oettinger sit, as well as much-hyped draft pick Connor Bedard. 1. Connor McDavid, C, Edm (C1) 2. Leon Draisaitl, C, Edm (C2) 3. Elias Pettersson, […]
Continue readingDoes height still matter for NHL draft prospects?
For years, Yanni Gourde and players like him have constantly faced questions about whether they were too small to reach the NHL. After more than 450 games, nearly 300 points, two Stanley Cups and $34.7 million in career earnings, the 5-foot-9 Seattle Kraken forward has a question of his own: Why are we still talking […]
Continue readingRest-of-season rankings: The most improved players
There isn’t anything special about the rankings here compared to every week, but that’s because these rest-of-season rankings aim to capture a snapshot of what a draft might be like every single week of the season. With that in mind, we are going to highlight some of the biggest swings in value since the puck […]
Continue readingThursday fantasy hockey tips: NHL picks, matchups, more
This five-game slate, light for a Thursday, has some more solid defensive teams on tap. The Nashville Predators at the Tampa Bay Lightning, in particular, is two teams good at preventing. Overall, eight of the 10 likely starting goaltenders have positive results for the goals saved above expected statistic. But with a light slate, you […]
Continue readingFantasy hockey rankings: Can these disappointing starters turn it around?
Injuries don’t count, so Zach Werenski and Josh Norris get a pass. Rookies don’t count either, so we aren’t bothering with Marco Rossi and Shane Wright. This is about established NHLers with a reliable baseline coming well short of expectations. They are arranged by how much they are missing the preseason projections I assigned to […]
Continue readingFantasy hockey rankings: Why these two Coyotes can keep scoring
Jakob Chychrun and Nick Schmaltz returned to the lineup for the Arizona Coyotes for the first time this season (basically, as Schmaltz was hurt two minutes into the opener and Chychrun hadn’t yet played in 2022-23). In four games since then, the upstart Coyotes have earned four of a possible eight points (great by their […]
Continue readingFantasy hockey rankings: What’s behind Mikhail Sergachev’s rise?
Since the change, the Bolts advantage has gone six-for-19 on the advantage (31.6%). On the surface and certainly by the statistics, Sergachev is beating Hedman when it comes to fantasy value. But don’t be so hasty now. Sergachev deserves to push up these rankings. His offense off the power play has leveled up, with 10 […]
Continue readingNHL Power Rankings: 1-32 poll, points pace vs. expectation
In this week’s power rankings, we take a look at the preseason point total over/unders established by Caesars Sportsbook, and how far teams are beyond or below that mark based on their point projections. How we rank: A panel of ESPN hockey commentators, analysts, reporters and editors rates teams against one another — taking into […]
Continue readingFantasy hockey rankings: Power play roles to watch
Brandon Montour (up one spot to No. 158) has been dazzling on the point for the Panthers for the past few weeks, sitting sixth in fantasy points among defensemen. Hampus Lindholm (up eight spots to No. 189) has been nearly as good for the Boston Bruins and sits 11th among defenders. So why are they […]
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