If you missed Part One covering the Eastern Conference, you can check that out here. Today, I wrap up the offseason by looking at the major changes in the West. Let’s get to it!
ANAHEIM DUCKS
The Ducks are planning on having growth from within. Robby Fabbri could end up being a decent streamer depending on his role, but Cutter Gauthier as a full-time player is the big addition. With how bad the team is, he should get huge minutes and could be a bottom end hold as early as this season. He’s a viable late round pick. Also, keep an eye out for a potential Cam Fowler trade.
CALGARY FLAMES
As far as skaters go, the only new player that could be in the top six is Anthony Mantha. He’ll probably be a middling streamer. The big change is that Markstrom is gone, opening the door for Dustin Wolf to be the starter. While I’m a big fan of his talent, the Flames are likely to be bad, so keep expectations in check for redrafts. I’ll probably have him as a bottom end #2 but preferably your #3. In dynasties, bump him up your board.
CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS
A lot of solid moves for Chicago as they look to get back to icing a legitimate NHL team. Two of their biggest moves could have a large fantasy impact, especially if Bedard takes another step forward as expected. Teuvo Teravainen and Tyler Bertuzzi both signed middle-term deals in the 5.5m range. They should have the chance to play together with Bedard as their center. At the least, they’ll be elite streamers, but both have hold potential. I have a slight lean to Teravainen, but it’s close. Laurent Brossoit will probably split with Mrazek, but I’m not particularly interested in the goaltending here. Odds are they are going to have one more year of sucking.
COLORADO AVALANCHE
There were only depth additions for Colorado. I like taking the chances on Oliver Kylington and Erik Brannstrom, but I can’t imagine shallow league fantasy value unless there are some injuries for the Avs. I will say that Nikolai Kovalenko has a chance to be in the Top 6 while Big Val is suspended, assuming Landeskog is out too. He plays a heavy game which gives him some deep league viability.
DALLAS STARS
Dallas overpaid for some depth defensemen that don’t move the fantasy needle. Mavrik Bourque should be a full-time player but will only be a streamer because of Dallas’ depth. There’s potentially big dynasty value though. Casey DeSmith is the new backup which makes him a quality streamer in most matchups.
EDMONTON OILERS
He’s deeply flawed in real life, but Jeff Skinner stepped into a potential gold mine in Edmonton. As long as he’s with McDavid or Draisaitl, he has a chance for another 30-40 goal season, even if his PP time is limited (as it should be). Skinner will be a solid middle round pick. I’ve always been a big Viktor Arvidsson fan, and he also should play in the top six. I love taking him late in drafts because of the upside. Just don’t push it because of his injury history, but early ADP data suggests you won’t have to.
LOS ANGELES KINGS
In the forward group, they made some decent depth signings, especially Warren Foegele, but I don’t see much fantasy wise. On the blue line, Brandt Clarke should finally get a chance to play full time. I love the talent and would use a late round pick on him. Their big move was dumping Dubois and getting Darcy Kuemper in return. The Kings have generally been strong defensively, and should remain so, giving Kuemper a chance to bounce back. I was bullish on Talbot last season for that reason and he was worth the investment in his draft slot. I’ll be targeting Kuemper as my third goalie if possible and expect to rank him over consensus.
MINNESOTA WILD
There is literally nothing relevant that changed for the Wild. I’m expecting a bigger role for Marco Rossi throughout the whole season, but that’s about it.
NASHVILLE PREDATORS
It feels to weird to type that Nashville had the craziest offseason in the league, but here we are. Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, and Brady Skjei all arrive in major roles, along with Scott Wedgewood as the backup goalie. It’s too early to know, but my assumption is that Brunette keeps the first line together, which puts Stammer and Marchessault with Tommy Novak. The big winner would be Novak, who is worth a late round dart throw. Brunette loves to play an attacking brand of hockey, which means I don’t expect much of a drop off for Stammer. Marchessault was already going to have a very difficult time repeating a 42 goal season, but he’s still going to be a relatively early pick. Nyquist takes a hit as he’ll lose his PP1 spot. Skjei could slot in with Josi and PP2, which would be great for him. I’d peg him as a D4. Wedgewood will be worth streaming in decent matchups.
SAN JOSE SHARKS
It’s going to be tough to hold Sharks this year as they continue their rebuild, but there will be some options to consider. First off, Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith should be their top two centers for this year and ideally for the Sharks, the next decade. Both are potential stars in dynasties, but this year, they’re only a late round dart throw. Tyler Toffoli will be there to ease their centers in and could put up 30+ goals on a bad team. They rebuilt their bottom six, but I don’t see any value even for deep leagues with the exception of Alex Wennberg. It’s hard to say how the PP time is divided, but perhaps Jake Walman can get on the radar. Their big move was to trade for Yaroslav Askarov. He’s arguably the best goaltending prospect in the world. For redrafts, I have no interest because the Sharks will be so bad (also Blackwood will still be the 1A). In dynasties, he’s a top end talent.
SEATTLE KRAKEN
The Kraken made two major additions in Chandler Stephenson and Brandon Montour. Montour is the easiest one to discuss. He’ll slide right into the top four on the blue line and presumably the top power play unit. He’ll be on the fringe between a #2 and #3, with a slight downgrade to Vince Dunn. Stephenson is going to have a big role, mostly to split the tough minutes with Gourde to make life easier for Beniers and Wright. The problem is that Stephenson really fell off last season, especially when he wasn’t playing with Eichel or Stone. I’m not really interested in him for fantasy this season.
ST. LOUIS BLUES
I’m not sure any of the St. Louis additions will be in their top six. They completely revamped their depth, including with two offer sheets(!), but that doesn’t move the needle for us. Perhaps Dylan Holloway forces his way into being a solid streamer, but I have my doubts.
UTAH HOCKEY CLUB
Man, that felt weird to type. The big moves for Utah were on the blue line, acquiring Mikhail Sergachev and John Marino. Marino won’t do much for fantasy, but Sergachev certainly will. The big question is whether it’s Durzi or Sergachev on PP1. Sergachev’s value will change significantly depending on that. If he’s locked into top pair minutes and top PP, I’ll have him ranked as a top 20 defenseman. Otheriwse, Utah is depending on internal growth from their forwards in year one.
VANCOUVER CANUCKS
The big Vancouver move was to sign Jake DeBrusk to a seven year deal. I always thought DeBrusk was a fine middle six’er, but the statistic models seem to love him, so perhaps he breaks out in Vancouver? He should get to play with Pettersson, but I can’t see him getting onto PP1. He’s a solid streamer to start with upside. Daniel Sprong has never been given consistent top minutes, and I doubt he will in Vancouver either. I’ll need to see preseason to see how his role is shaping up.
VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS
The Golden Knights acquired Victor Olofsson and Alexander Holtz, two snipers with flaws in their game. I have a hard time taking either of them seriously for fantasy. As good as Olofsson has been at times (including with Eichel), I can’t see Cassidy stomaching his play off the puck for significant minutes every night. Brendan Brisson has a chance to play in the top six to get onto the fantasy radar. Ilya Samsonov is the new backup goalie. I would stream him in most starts because of my trust in the Vegas system defensively.
WINNIPEG JETS
The Jets team is almost the exact same, with the biggest difference being Kaapo Kahkonen as the backup behind Hellebuyck. Good move by him signing there to try and reset his career. Bowness being gone makes me a little lower on them defensively so Kahkonen isn’t an automatic streamer when he starts, but I’m still willing to see how it shakes out in his first couple starts.
That’s all for now guys. I’ll be back later in the week with my Top 10. As always, feel free to ask any questions, leave any comments, or give any suggestions below. Thanks for reading, take care!
