In this week's Eastern Edge, we'll discuss a few players who aren't rostered in most fantasy leagues despite their high rates of production.

Nick Ritchie

With 14 points in 19 games, the 25-year-old forward is having the most productive season of his young career. But is this a flash in the pan, or a sign of what's to come?

As the 10^th overall pick of the 2014 draft, Ritchie has the pedigree to justify his current scoring pace. At first glance, it seems like he's behind in his development because this is his sixth season in the NHL. However, he's only played 300 games, so the timing of this breakout makes sense. This year's increased output is largely a product of his new role on the power play. He's on the ice for 62-percent of Boston's total time with the man advantage and has made the most of it with nine power-play points already. To give you some perspective, coming into this season he had 17 points with the man advantage through 294 games. It's also encouraging to see that he's shooting more frequently than he has in previous years. He's getting 2.2 shots per game this year – a significant improvement from the 1.6 he averaged in recent seasons.

I'm excited for Ritchie and I think he can be a valuable fantasy asset going forward. However, I'm proceeding with caution because nine of his 14 points so far have come with the man advantage. In my eyes, Boston's power-play runs through the Perfection Line of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak. As a result, I'm reluctant to trust Ritchie for such a high level of power-play production when I don't see him as an integral piece of the top unit. I don't think his offensive output will dry up altogether, I'd just like to see some more even-strength production from him before I get too optimistic.

Jack Roslovic

Despite an impressive 13 points in 16 appearances with the Blue Jackets, Roslovic is only rostered in 29-percent of Yahoo Leagues. His high level of production can be explained by a high volume of ice time. He's averaging 17 and a half minutes a night, with two and a half of those minutes spent on the power play. He's on the ice for 58-percent of Columbus' total time with the man advantage and has made the most of it – tallying five power-play points in 16 games. That's a huge step up from the seven power-play points he tallied through 180 games in Winnipeg, where he was limited to a minor power-play role. At even strength, Roslovic has spent the majority of his minutes alongside two offensively gifted wingers in Patrik Laine and Cam Atkinson. The trio is frequently put in a position to score as they start way more shifts in the offensive zone than the defensive zone – sporting an offensive zone faceoff percentage of 82-percent. As a line, they don't have the best stats in terms of shot share or goal differential, but they have created more high danger chances than their opponents (via NaturalStatTrick). I'm not sure if Roslovic can maintain this level of production all season, but it's clear he's being used in an offensive role and seeing more ice time than he's ever seen before. If he's sitting on your waiver wire and you can acquire him for free, I recommend you add him to your roster and see how the season plays out.

Carter Verhaeghe

Verhaeghe's 15 points in 21 appearances this season put him on pace for roughly 60 points in a typical 82-game campaign. That's impressive for a player in his second NHL season, who tallied just 13 points through 52 games as a rookie last year.

While his overall numbers look good this year, it's worth noting that he's cooled off recently after a scorching hot start. He posted 12 points in his first 13 games but managed just three points over eight appearances since then. Verhaeghe has spent the majority of his minutes alongside Anthony Duclair and Aleksander Barkov at even strength. Through 200 minutes of ice time together, the trio has managed more shots than their opponents, with a shot-share of nearly 60-percent. In addition, they've thoroughly out-chanced the opposition, creating 64-percent of all scoring chances produced while they're on the ice and 71-percent of all high danger opportunities (via NaturalStatTrick). They've managed this possession domination while starting a modest 56-percent of their shifts in the offensive zone. As a result, I’d say the advanced stats are a product of their success as a unit rather than favourable deployment. It's important to keep this in mind because it suggests that Verhaeghe should continue playing with Barkov as the season progresses, which should help him sustain a respectable scoring pace. I wouldn't necessarily recommend giving up assets for Verhaeghe, but if I'd certainly keep an eye on him if he's sitting on your waiver wire.

Honourable Mentions

Pavel Zacha

Nick Leddy

Colin Blackwell

Pavel Buchnevich

Drake Batherson