Top 200 Fantasy Hockey Prospect Forwards – January 2017

Dobber

2017-01-10

Here are the Top 200 prospect forwards to own in your points-only keeper league…

Factored in are the player's upside, his likelihood, his wait time, the current depth chart and the organization's political landscape (which includes the player's contract status, draft position, whether or not anything was given up for him in a trade, etc.)

Coming this Friday, January 13 – Dobber's 10th annual Midseason Fantasy Hockey Guide. Pre-order it here! More prospect reports, second-half projections, college free agents, trading block info and more!

Jan 10	Prospect	Team	type	Prospect Rating	Dec 10	Nov 10
1	Jesse Puljujarvi	EDM	t	90.5	2	1
2	Mikko Rantanen	COL	p	83.6	4	12
3	Jimmy Vesey	NYR	o	81.9	3	3
4	Christian Dvorak	ARI	o	81.2	5	6
5	Travis Konecny	PHI	o	80.5	8	10
6	Dylan Strome	ARI	o	79.6	6	4
7	Anthony Mantha	DET	o	79.0	19	25
8	Kyle Connor	WPG	o	77.4	9	9
9	Brayden Point	TBL	os	74.8	10	15
10	Mathew Barzal	NYI	o	71.3	15	14
11	Pavel Zacha	NJD	p	70.1	11	11
12	Joel Eriksson Ek	MIN	o	69.4	14	13
13	Pierre-Luc Dubois	CBJ	o	69.2	12	7
14	Ryan Dzingel	OTT	o	69.0	21	20
15	Jake Guentzel	PIT	o	68.9	24	33
16	Jakub Vrana	WAS	o	68.2	20	30
17	Clayton Keller	ARI	o	68.2	22	21
18	Kevin Labanc	SJS	o	67.9	32	36
19	Oliver Bjorkstrand	CBJ	o	67.6	17	19
20	Colin White	OTT	o	67.4	30	29
21	Connor Brown	TOR	o	67.2	34	40
22	Anthony Beauvillier	NYI	o	66.9	23	22
23	Andreas Athanasiou	DET	o	66.4	25	24
24	Brendan Perlini	ARI	o	66.2	26	83
25	Timo Meier	SJS	o	65.8	27	26
26	Pavel Buchnevich	NYR	o	65.7	28	27
27	Kevin Fiala	NSH	o	65.6	29	34
28	Artturi Lehkonen	MON	o	65.1	31	31
29	Alexander Nylander	BUF	o	64.0	39	45
30	Brock Boeser	VAN	p	63.7	33	37
31	Devin Shore	DAL	t	62.5	40	41
32	Ivan Barbashev	STL	t	62.5	36	38
33	Tyson Jost	COL	o	62.4	38	44
34	Jack Roslovic	WPG	p	61.9	64	69
35	Lawson Crouse	ARI	p	61.7	41	46
36	Nikolay Goldobin	SJS	o	61.6	43	48
37	Nick Schmaltz	CHI	o	61.6	44	35
38	Brett Ritchie	DAL	p	61.5	37	42
39	Sven Andrighetto	MON	os	61.2	46	52
40	Denis Malgin	FLA	os	60.9	45	50
41	Mark Jankowski	CGY	p	60.8	94	95
42	Danton Heinen	BOS	o	60.7	42	47
43	Jayce Hawryluk	FLA	o	60.6	47	54
44	Jason Dickinson	DAL	t	60.4	48	56
45	Nicolas Petan	WPG	os	60.3	49	63
46	Charles Hudon	MON	o	60.1	50	58
47	Drake Caggiula	EDM	os	59.9	52	74
48	Tyler Motte	CHI	os	59.4	51	32
49	Alex Tuch	MIN	p	59.4	54	53
50	Vladislav Kamenev	NSH	t	59.4	55	60
51	Hudson Fasching	BUF	p	59.0	56	61
52	Adrian Kempe	LAK	o	58.9	59	43
53	Josh Ho-Sang	NYI	o	58.7	58	62
54	Nick Cousins	PHI	o	58.7	60	59
55	Alex DeBrincat	CHI	os	58.6	97	105
56	J.T. Compher	COL	t	58.3	61	66
57	Daniel Sprong	PIT	o	57.8	65	55
58	Frank Vatrano	BOS	o	57.7	68	70
59	Logan Brown	OTT	o	57.6	66	72
60	Sonny Milano	CBJ	o	57.6	57	23
61	Curtis Lazar	OTT	o	57.5	18	17
62	Zach Sanford	WAS	o	56.5	69	57
63	Michael Dal Colle	NYI	o	56.4	72	73
64	Nikita Scherbak	MON	o	56.3	74	79
65	Michael McCarron	MON	p	56.2	53	51
66	Evgeny Svechnikov	DET	p	56.0	76	65
67	Michael McLeod	NJD	t	55.7	71	76
68	Josh Anderson	CBJ	t	55.6	93	106
69	Austin Czarnik	BOS	os	55.4	95	158
70	Alan Quine	NYI	o	55.3	77	78
71	Kasperi Kapanen	TOR	o	55.1	63	68
72	Jean-Christophe Beaudin	COL	o	54.6	82	102
73	Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson	BOS	o	54.5	84	86
74	Anton Rodin	VAN	o	54.4	80	84
75	Hunter Shinkaruk	CGY	o	54.4	86	88
76	Brendan Leipsic	TOR	o	54.3	87	89
77	Brendan Gaunce	VAN	o	54.1	83	85
78	Tyler Bertuzzi	DET	p	54.1	89	92
79	Marko Dano	WPG	o	54.1	92	93
80	Ryan Hartman	CHI	t	53.5	108	112
81	Tobias Lindberg	TOR	o	53.5	88	91
82	Teemu Pulkkinen	MIN	o	53.5	62	67
83	Jake Virtanen	VAN	p	53.4	67	49
84	Nick Merkley	ARI	o	53.4	85	87
85	Riley Barber	WAS	t	53.2	91	80
86	Joel Armia	WPG	o	53.2	70	64
87	Martin Reway	MON	o	53.0	79	77
88	Nick Paul	OTT	p	52.9	75	71
89	Francis Perron	OTT	o	52.4	98	97
90	Rocco Grimaldi	COL	os	52.1	99	98
91	Riley Tufte	DAL	p	51.9	100	99
92	Daniel Carr	MON	o	51.8	78	82
93	Luke Kunin	MIN	o	51.8	101	135
94	Max Jones	ANA	p	51.5	102	147
95	Maxim Letunov	SJS	o	51.5	103	104
96	Seth Griffith	FLA	o	51.0	81	81
97	Nicolas Roy	CAR	p	50.9	105	108
98	Andrew Mangiapane	CGY	o	50.8	106	144
99	Ty Rattie	CAR	o	50.8	73	75
100	Reid Boucher	VAN	o	50.8	90	90
101	Valentin Zykov	CAR	o	50.5	109	113
102	Nikita Soshnikov	TOR	o	50.4	110	114
103	Kevin Roy	ANA	o	50.2	111	115
104	Adam Erne	TBL	p	50.2	112	116
105	Denis Gurianov	DAL	o	50.1	121	122
106	Matt Puempel	NYR	o	50.1	96	94
107	Anders Bjork	BOS	t	49.9	115	225
108	Kerby Rychel	TOR	p	49.8	104	100
109	Brock McGinn	CAR	p	49.7	107	111
110	Taylor Raddysh	TBL	o	49.5	116	NR
111	Lukas Sedlak	CBJ	o	49.5	117	118
112	Ryan MacInnis	ARI	t	49.5	118	119
113	Kirill Kaprizov	MIN	os	49.5	284	276
114	Nick Sorensen	ANA	o	49.1	120	121
115	John Quenneville	NJD	t	49.0	122	124
116	Vaclav Karabacek	BUF	t	49.0	123	125
117	Cole Ully	DAL	o	49.0	124	126
118	Cliff Pu	BUF	t	49.0	125	478
119	Morgan Klimchuk	CGY	t	48.9	126	127
120	Laurent Dauphin	ARI	o	48.8	127	129
121	German Rubtsov	PHI	t	48.7	113	117
122	Julius Nattinen	ANA	o	48.4	129	107
123	Deven Sideroff	ANA	o	48.4	130	109
124	Dennis Rasmussen	CHI	o	48.3	131	133
125	Alexander Khokhlachev	BOS	o	48.2	132	134
126	Vince Hinostroza	CHI	os	48.1	143	148
127	Dmytro Timashov	TOR	o	48.0	134	138
128	Jeremy Bracco	TOR	o	48.0	135	176
129	AJ Greer	COL	p	47.9	136	139
130	Oskar Lindblom	PHI	t	47.9	137	162
131	Christian Fischer	ARI	t	47.6	138	141
132	Josh Leivo	TOR	p	47.6	128	130
133	Rourke Chartier	SJS	o	47.5	139	143
134	Rasmus Asplund	BUF	o	47.4	144	150
135	Nicolas Aube-Kubel	PHI	o	47.4	140	132
136	Radel Fazleyev	PHI	o	47.3	141	145
137	Nikita Gusev	TBL	os	47.3	142	146
138	Grant Besse	ANA	o	46.7	145	NR
139	J.C. Lipon	WPG	t	46.7	146	152
140	Jordan Weal	PHI	os	46.6	147	153
141	Daniel O'Regan	SJS	o	46.6	148	154
142	Phillip Di Giuseppe	CAR	o	46.6	149	142
143	Mitchell Stephens	TBL	o	46.6	150	191
144	Jens Looke	ARI	o	46.6	133	137
145	Sam Steel	ANA	o	46.6	151	241
146	Andrew Poturalski	CAR	o	46.6	152	171
147	Nicklas Jensen	NYR	p	46.4	153	155
148	Ryan Gropp	NYR	p	46.4	154	156
149	Brendan Lemieux	WPG	p	46.3	155	157
150	Martins Dzierkals	TOR	o	46.3	157	159
151	Julien Gauthier	CAR	o	46.1	249	240
152	Joseph Blandisi	NJD	o	45.9	119	120
153	Anton Slepyshev	EDM	o	45.8	158	163
154	Anthony Richard	NSH	o	45.8	159	110
155	Justin Bailey	BUF	o	45.8	160	164
156	Nicholas Baptiste	BUF	o	45.8	161	165
157	Daniel Zaar	CBJ	o	45.8	162	166
158	Emile Poirier	CGY	o	45.8	163	96
159	Oskar Sundqvist	PIT	p	45.6	164	203
160	Axel Holmstrom	DET	o	45.6	165	167
161	Tage Thompson	STL	p	45.6	166	242
162	Travis Boyd	WAS	o	45.5	167	187
163	Giorgio Estephan	BUF	o	45.5	168	168
164	Warren Foegele	CAR	o	45.4	169	169
165	Jake DeBrusk	BOS	o	45.3	170	170
166	Kalle Kossila	ANA	os	45.3	156	128
167	Cole Cassels	VAN	o	45.3	114	101
168	Dominik Simon	PIT	o	45.2	171	123
169	Pontus Åberg	NSH	t	45.2	172	151
170	Stanislav Galiev	WAS	o	45.1	173	160
171	Michael Spacek	WPG	o	45.0	174	252
172	Andreas Johnson	TOR	o	45.0	175	140
173	Kyle Rau	FLA	os	45.0	176	173
174	Aleksi Saarela	CAR	o	45.0	177	174
175	Adam Tambellini	NYR	o	44.9	178	175
176	Matej Stransky	DAL	o	44.8	179	177
177	Zach Senyshyn	BOS	o	44.8	180	178
178	Sergey Tolchinsky	CAR	os	44.8	181	136
179	Gemel Smith	DAL	o	44.6	182	179
180	Tyler Pitlick	EDM	o	44.6	183	180
181	Remi Elie	DAL	p	44.4	184	182
182	Ryan Fitzgerald	BOS	o	44.4	185	183
183	Michael Sgarbossa	FLA	o	44.4	186	236
184	Jonny Brodzinski	LAK	o	44.2	187	266
185	Paul Bittner	CBJ	p	44.1	188	186
186	Taylor Leier	PHI	o	44.0	189	227
187	Conor Garland	ARI	os	44.0	190	189
188	Martin Frk	DET	o	43.9	191	190
189	Alexandre Grenier	VAN	p	43.7	192	201
190	Alexander Kerfoot	NJD	os	43.6	193	278
191	Adam Mascherin	FLA	os	43.5	194	260
192	Brett Howden	TBL	t	43.5	195	315
193	Anthony Cirelli	TBL	o	43.5	258	NR
194	Carl Grundstrom	TOR	o	43.5	NR	NR
195	Adam Helewka	SJS	o	43.4	197	192
196	Miles Wood	NJD	o	43.4	198	194
197	Jordan Kyrou	STL	o	43.0	199	239
198	Mario Lucia	MIN	o	43.0	200	196
199	Scott Wilson	PIT	o	42.9	201	198
200	Nick Lappin	NJD	o	42.9	202	199

This month's graduates:

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1 Marner Mitch TOR
7 Aho Sebastian CAR
13 Tkachuk Matthew CGY
16 Ritchie Nick ANA
35 Hyman Zach TOR

195 Sissons Colton NSH

1D Werenski Zach CBJ
2D Provorov Ivan PHI
4D Skjei Brady NYR

Jordan Carbone 2017-01-10 at 08:23Log in to Reply

How does Bellows not make the list?
- Dobber 2017-01-10 at 09:26Log in to Reply
  
  Bellows dropped from 222 down to 232. Very minimal upside compared to most on this list
  - Marc-Olivier Fortier 2017-01-10 at 15:05Log in to Reply
    
    Scored 2 goals vs Canada in gold medal game. That’s 2 more than most on this list. ;-) #clutch
    - Dobber 2017-01-10 at 15:07Log in to Reply
      
      Didn’t he finish with like 2 goals on the tourney and something like 3 points? Clutch all you want. Claude Lemieux was clutch, but at best a mediocre fantasy own in points-only leagues
      - Marc-Olivier Fortier 2017-01-10 at 18:06
        
        True, however Dylan Strome dominated the standings in the tourney but now everyone says his fantasy value is dropping bc his production fell in the medal round games and he wasn’t able to lead us to victory. Argument can work both ways I guess.
Jeremy Campbell 2017-01-10 at 11:55Log in to Reply

Good looking list. Most of those grads sure are doing well now, wow!
bossman 2017-01-10 at 12:14Log in to Reply

Dobber… Has Pierre-Luc Dubois performance at worlds and Jrs since being sent down by CBJ effected their outlook on him as a top line C/W and what’s his time frame?

And being that the NHL is becoming a young mans league, have you every thought about doing a under 21or 23 mix list D-men & Forwards on value not points? It would really help with dynasty leagues and some trade offers that include prospects.

Thanks
- Dobber 2017-01-10 at 12:58Log in to Reply
  
  Interesting idea but I have quite a few lists already on my plate
  Dubois looking more like a future second liner. fantasy value falling
99rules66isafatbum 2017-01-10 at 12:16Log in to Reply

Is Troy Terry just a shoot out whiz with otherwise little upside? One guy i’m surprised didn’t crack the top 200 was Jordan Greenway. Showed chemistry with potential future linemate #93 Kunin and is a 6’5 net front beast. I own him and Lemieux, and to me Greenway slots ahead at the moment.
- Dobber 2017-01-10 at 12:57Log in to Reply
  
  Greenway jumped from 266 to 247. Power forwards almost always take an extra year or two to start putting up points, Kreider a great example.
  
  Terry from 340 to 297 this month. You can see with Ritchie how quickly these guys get fantasy-worthy points (i.e. not very quickly).
Ryan Taylor 2017-01-10 at 12:46Log in to Reply

Weird to me that Tkachuk is a graduate but Konecny is not.
- Dobber 2017-01-10 at 12:55Log in to Reply
  
  It doesn’t hurt to leave a guy on there for one more month. But sure does hurt to put a player back on after I take him off. I’ve done that four times in my life, and I hate doing it each time. I’d rather leave a guy on there for an extra month. I gave Konecny a lot of thought, you can be sure. If you had to pick one of them, which would you pick?
BrianSTC 2017-01-10 at 13:51Log in to Reply

Why has Sonny Milano dropped? He seems to be putting up good AHL numbers…
Tommy Lemieux 2017-01-10 at 14:54Log in to Reply

Kaprizov 113rd?! Please explain me this one.
- Dobber 2017-01-10 at 14:56Log in to Reply
  
  Am I explaining why he’s too high (up 200 spots) or too low?
richarddoucette 2017-01-11 at 05:34Log in to Reply

I don’t notice Filip Chlapik. He is having a good season in the Q and had a good Jr. Tournament
Jordan 2017-01-12 at 02:58Log in to Reply

Clayton Keller seems like a Marner clone maybe a tad less dynamic. PPG minimum at every level. Just curious why he’s rated so low (17)? Especially after the WJC where he was a lot more impactful (scoresheet and visually) than guys like Strome (6), Pierre Luc Dubois (13). I’m a Canadian but clearly this American kid is a stud and continues to be underrated and I’m just not sure why.
- Dobber 2017-01-12 at 07:51Log in to Reply
  
  I don’t consider 17th low. And in fantasy hockey, keeper league owners are still influenced by the hype of being picked 3rd overall. Dubois is there strictly for that reason. Keller is nothing special – there are 30 Kellers on this list right now, he stands out no more than the rest of them – and with an organization that won’t have a 50-point player this year (so what does that say about the next two years?). He’s no Marner, either
  - Jordan 2017-01-14 at 02:13Log in to Reply
    
    Hold on, he’s ranked there because “keeper league owners are still influenced by the hype of being picked 3rd overall.” Are you saying you have someone ranked strictly based on recency bias/draft position and not how they’re actually projecting based on production? Dubois in his Draft +1 is not even scoring at a PPG rate in the most offensively inclined league in the CHL. Where as someone like Keller in his Draft +1 is scoring at a 1.5 PPG rate not only as a freshman at BU, but at the same rate for his WJC team.
    
    While i don’t think he’s Marner, there are not 30 Kellers. In 2 years when him, dvorak, domi, duclair, crouse and strome are playing for the Yotes’ we’ll find out who’s the dynamic scorer of the bunch. My bet is he’ll be the one you’ll want for point production in fantasy in the mold of a marner-lite, pastrnak, ehlers, gaudreau.
    
    (btw not trying to be a dick ha, just passionate about the industry of fantasy sports and I’d like to be involved in it one day. If i misread what you wrote, then I apologize!)
    - Dobber 2017-01-14 at 09:25Log in to Reply
      
      Value-bias is a thing, but it’s one of a handful of factors in this ranking. Could you trade Keller for Dubois in any of my THREE keeper leagues (heavily points-oriented)? NO. I’ll just leave it at that. But Keller, as good as he might be, could also be not-so good.
      Here are a list of “great” prospects that I’ve had angry comments over the years about:
      Kyle Beach
      Pavel Brendl
      Sergei Kostitsyn (they were mad that I didn’t graduate him…and then a month later he was sent down again)
      Robbie Schremp
      
      Draft position does not only play into a fantasy owner’s bias, but also a team’s. Do you think a player drafted 130th will get to stay in training camp for Day 2 of he has a bad Day 1? Nope. Do you think a player drafted 3rd overall same thing? Hell no, that guy gets to stay. An extreme example. But in the case of Keller, he won’t get as many opportunities as Dubois will because he wasn’t drafted third overall. One off day and camp and he’s cut. One poor NHL game and he’s scratched or sent down. Dubois gets a lot more leash (which means opportunity, which means more chances to succeed). I know the difference is only four draft slots, but at 7th overall – Arizona already has 10 guys drafted around 7th overall (I exaggerate, but you get it). How many high picks does Columbus have? Zilch. Dubois is their Golden Boy. He could suddenly go out there and forget how to skate, and drag himself around the ice by his hands, and the Jackets would just say “he’s just a little rusty” and give him more ice time.
      
      In this business, do not underestimate hockey politics and the power it wields.
      - Jordan 2017-01-14 at 17:52
        
        1st rounders are 1st rounders, I think you may be over analyzing a bit to say that the 3rd overall pick would get a longer look than the 7th or 9th or 12th. But, a team’s first rounder will always get a longer look than their 4th though we can agree on that.
        
        Also just an aside to consider moving forward in fantasy that I think people need to start considering. These old school NHL minds are starting to come around to the youth movement. Teams are finding ways to get guys time, especially teams like Arizona who are trying to rebuild in the mold of a Toronto etc.
        
        I guess I just will agree to disagree because there are a lot of points that I can’t concede on. However, like so many others I love your website, rankings and projections. Keep up the excellent work, and thanks for the response I respect your opinions.
      - Dobber 2017-01-15 at 14:18
        
        Thanks a lot Jordan. I do agree that Keller probably has more upside, and is probably just as likely (if not more) to succeed in the NHL, and all other things be equal he’s the better fantasy own. But I guess what wins out in the end is actual case examples. In this type of points format, in all three of my keeper leagues, Keller could not get Dubois straight up in a trade. So there’s an intangible there that I’m trying to get acknowledged. So in no way am I saying you’re wrong. Thanks for the kind words
seb 2017-01-21 at 14:17Log in to Reply

I am just curious, what did Dvorak do to prove he is a better prospect than Strome?

UPCOMING GAMES

Nov 05 - 19:11	CAR	vs	PHI
Nov 05 - 19:11	MTL	vs	CGY
Nov 05 - 19:11	BUF	vs	OTT
Nov 05 - 19:11	TOR	vs	BOS
Nov 05 - 19:11	NYI	vs	PIT
Nov 05 - 20:11	MIN	vs	L.A
Nov 05 - 20:11	STL	vs	T.B
Nov 05 - 20:11	WPG	vs	UTA
Nov 05 - 21:11	COL	vs	SEA
Nov 05 - 22:11	ANA	vs	VAN
Nov 05 - 22:11	S.J	vs	CBJ