5. Linemate of Giroux

It doesn't matter who it is, but someone will play on the wing next to Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek. And that guy can be pencilled in for at least 60 points this season. Last season, it was Scott Hartnell. But now that he's moved to Columbus, someone else will get that coveted role. My guess is it will be Wayne Simmonds if he recovers from his current injury. A big tough guy, Simmonds hit 60 points last year, and that's with him playing just 16:46 a game. If he winds up on the top line, 70-75 is a good bet.

4. Steve Mason

In Yahoo pools, Mason is the 17th goalie taken overall, trailing behind guys such as Mike Smith, Jimmy Howard and Ryan Miller. Yet, Mason finds himself in a great situation. He's undoubtedly the number one goalie in Philly, and will pile up the wins with the Flyers (last year, he was ninth in the league in wins). He's certain to play at least 60 games (which is more than most goalies), and he finished 10th in saves last year. Sure his goals against could be lower and his save percentage higher, but he was still better than guys like Smith, Howard, Brayden Holtby and Craig Anderson in those categories, and better than Jonathan Quick, Marc-Andre Fleury, and Antti Niemi in save percentage. As scary as it sounds, Mason could be a top 10 goalie this season.

3. Justin Schultz

I'm calling it now. Schultz will be top-10 defenceman for points in the NHL this season (around the 50-point mark). The Oilers are poised for big strides (yeah, yeah, we hear this every season), but at the age of 24, Schultz is about to enter his offensive prime. As a plus, he's still the top power play quarterback on the Oilers for at least this season. He should also see an improvement in plus-minus as well.

2. Ondrej Pavelec

The Rodney Dangerfield of the goaltending world, Pavelec gets no respect. But I'm pencilling him in for at least 30 wins, with a solid chance at 35. He played much better once Paul Maurice became the head coach last year. Before Maurice, Pavelec was just 11-19-7, but with Maurice, he was 11-7-3, and two goals or less in 12 of those games. With him still entrenched as the number one goalie, Pavelec can still salvage his fantasy hockey career.

1. Tyler Bozak

I'm taking a bit of heat for this one in the Bodog bets thread, but I stand by my gut instinct that Bozak will be a 70-point player. That's great for those in points-only pools, but for those in leagues with other categories, you'll also see an improvement. Bozak has generally been a very good faceoff guy until last season (his last four years have seen him with winning percentages of 54.6, 52.7, 52.6 and 48.7). His plus-minus should be better this year, and he should also rebound in power play points (he had just eight last season). He's also going to play the full year with Phil Kessel, so he also has that going for him.