Nathan MacKinnon headlines the hottest line in the NHL.

Lead us forwards…..

Matt Duchene – Gabriel Landeskog – Nathan MacKinnon (Colorado)

This line has been ridiculous as of late as they constantly generate offense every time they step on the ice.  Duchene has resurrected from the dead as he has 16 points in his last 10 games. This trio should continue to produce and one could only hope Coach Roy keeps them together. The Avalanche do not have the greatest upcoming schedule but I would still roll any of these studs going forward.

• EV Strength Production = 7 points
• PP Production = 3 points

Ryan Getzlaf – Corey Perry – Rickard Rakell (Anaheim)

As I write this Rakell has just scored another goal with Getz on the assist. We all know what to expect from the dynamic duo in Getzlaf and Perry. The real intriguing piece to this line is Rakell who is auditioning for a spot with the big boys. The Ducks drafted Rakell with the 30^th pick in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. The young Swede hasn’t had too many opportunities with the Ducks but he seems to be making the most of his current situation on the top line. Rakell is definitely add worthy in most formats as he is also getting top PP time.  

• EV Strength Production = 5 points
• PP Production = 5 points

Sven Andrighetto – Lars Eller – Alex Galchenyuk (Montreal)

This line doesn’t excite me as much as just Galchenyuk. Alex has strung together a nice little scoring streak with seven points in his last five games. There was a lot of talk about Galchenyuk in the offseason as he went beast mode with the workouts. His new two-year bridge deal which he signed at the end of July really seemed to motivate him and we may be witnessing his hard work paying off over the last week. I know the future is bright for Galchenyuk but the question is will he have that magical fourth-year breakout or will we have to wait until the 2016-17 season for that.

• EV Strength Production = 7 points

Marcus Johansson – Evgeny Kuznetsov – Justin Williams (Washington)

Boy, oh boy, is Kuznetsov playing well. With eight points in his last five games, Evgeny is making a strong case that his play isn’t just a hot start to the season. To be honest I really don’t know where this kid could end up in terms of scoring come seasons end. He has been removed from the top line as Nicklas Backstrom has reclaimed his spot there, however, he continues to produce. Additionally, he isn’t getting top PP time as he plays on the second unit. Considering all that one would expect for him to regress as he has 26 points in 23 games this season. However, how can you sell him? Every time you want to he puts up a multiple-point night. Either way if you managed to draft Kuznetsov or pick him up of waivers, congrats and well played.

• EV Strength Production = 7 points
• PP Production = 6 points

Defend this…..

Niklas Hjalmarsson – Duncan Keith (Chicago)

Good Ol’ Duncan. Keith is as consistent as it gets on the back end. He’s a pleasure to own in pretty much every format and he’s money in the bank for leagues that count plus/minus. Keith has eight points in his last 10 games and I’m not quite sure what to expect from him this season. We all know that he is capable of putting up monster stats as he dropped 69 and 61 points respectively in the 2009-10 and 2013-14 seasons. But then he has his usual 45 point seasons in between. What’s it going to be this season? With the way Patrick Kane is producing it should be an extremely productive fantasy season for Mr. Keith… owners REJOICE!

• EV Production = 4 points

John Carlson – Nate Schmidt (Washington)

Carlson has snapped out of his most recent funk with five points in his last three games this past week. Before that Carlson had only accumulated three points over his last 10 games played. I wouldn’t worry too much about John as he is a sure bet to eclipse the 50 point mark and with added PP time this season he could flirt with 60 points. As for his line mate Schmidt, he has no fantasy relevance as it’s all about John. The Caps are currently on a five-game winning streak in which they have averaged 4.2 goals per game. Roll Carlson with confidence as the Caps are clicking offensively right now.

• EV Strength Production = 3 points
• PP Production = 3 points

Cam Fowler – Sami Vatenen (Anaheim)

The BUY LOW window for Vatanen has been shut closed. Sami has 10 points in his last 10 games played giving him an incredible point per game pace over that span. What is most impressive is most of his production came at even strength as only two of those 10 points came on the man advantage. If the PP gets rolling for the Ducks which one would assume it would with names like Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf on it… then watch out cause Vatanen could produce handsomely. As for Fowler, he has become somewhat fantasy relevant with seven points in his last 10 games. More importantly is most of his damage has actually come on the PP with four of those aforementioned points coming on the man advantage. For those of you who stood PAT with Vatanen, well done. Keep an eye on Fowler and his TOI, most especially on the PP.

• PP Production = 5 points

– Follow Jonathan Coretti on Twitter (@HolyPuckHockey)