Every Sunday, we share 21 Fantasy Rambles from our writers at DobberHockey. These thoughts are curated from the past week’s 'Daily Ramblings'.

Writers/Editors: Ian Gooding, Michael Clifford, Alexander MacLean and Tom Collins, pinch-hitting in for Dobber

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1. In just their second NHL season, the Seattle Kraken will be one of 16 teams competing for the Stanley Cup. Key to their success this season has been their scoring. Yes, their scoring. The Kraken sit fourth in the league with just over 3.5 GF/GP, yet they don’t feature a single player that has reached 70 points yet. Conversely, every other team in the top 10 in scoring has at least one player with at least 90 points (or is on the verge of reaching 90 points).

So what gives? Scoring depth. With no one in the top 50 in scoring, the Kraken are truly a four-line team. A total of 13 Seattle players have at least 10 goals. Team leader Jared McCann has 38 goals, but no other player has reached at least 25 goals. If you are looking for a team to stream, the Kraken usually feature plenty of options with all but three players (McCann, Vince Dunn, Adam Larsson for peripherals) being rostered in fewer than 50% of Yahoo leagues. Not your typical high-scoring team, but one that has used the expansion draft and salary cap space to its advantage while providing a multitude of serviceable options in fantasy leagues. (apr8)

2. Even though I just explained that the Kraken are a team that spreads out the scoring, Jordan Eberle will actually finish with his highest point total in a season since way back in 2014-15, when he was an integral part of what was supposed to be a brighter future in Edmonton. Not an Erik Karlsson-level bounceback, but still worth mentioning. (apr8)

3. Mikko Rantanen became the fourth member of the 50-goal club this season, thanks to a hat trick on Thursday. In fact, he’s been absolutely dominant recently with 10 points and a plus-10 with 18 shots over three games entering Saturday action. He’s also on the verge of reaching 300 shots for the first time in his career. 

Rantanen is also two points shy of reaching 100 points, a total that Nathan MacKinnon has also reached. (apr8)

4. As suggested by Andy in this season’s finale for Looking Ahead, Samuel Girard is a solid pickup if you need a defenseman. On Saturday, Girard was still available in three-quarters of Yahoo leagues. You’ll also receive plenty of mileage from him, since Colorado led all remaining teams (along with Buffalo) with five games to play. Girard’s ice time and power-play time remains largely unchanged with Cale Makar out, but he could still stand to benefit anyway.

If Girard isn’t available or you need to add a forward instead, J.T. Compher and Evan Rodrigues are also possibilities. Compher just reached 50 points for the first time in his career while playing on Colorado’s first power-play unit, while Rodrigues has been skating on the top line with Rantanen and MacKinnon. (apr8)

5. Jake Livingstone made his NHL debut for Nashville on Thursday, although he wasn’t a factor on the scoresheet in 16 minutes of icetime. In the Midseason Guide, I wrote about Livingstone being perhaps the most highly sought-after NCAA free agent because of his size, offense, and right shot, and that was based on input from at least two Dobber Prospects writers.

Another player I had mentioned in the same Midseason Guide article was Akito Hirose, recently signed by the Canucks. Hirose has impressed in Vancouver so far, recording two assists on Thursday while even getting a spin on the second-unit power play. I’m not sure whether Hirose makes the Canucks next season, but he has made a strong case heading into next season. (apr8)

6. At time of writing, Joonas Korpisalo‘s really bad start last Thursday (five goals on 15 shots in just over a period) was his first since all the way back to December 7. Since then, he had posted 18 quality starts. Only Linus Ullmark and Logan Thompson had a lower really bad start percentage than Korpisalo (8.1 RBS%) among goalies that played as many games as Korpisalo (37).

What a difference a year makes for Korpisalo. He and Pheonix Copley continue to alternate starts, so it will be interesting to see who starts Game 1 of the playoffs for the Kings. I would think Korpisalo based on the ratios, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s Copley instead based on the fact that his second-half numbers have improved. (apr8)

7. Keep an eye on Luke Hughes, who according to Elliotte Friedman is set to join the Devils this weekend. Hughes, who is rostered in 46% of Fantrax leagues, just finished his season in Michigan with 47 points in 38 games. Although I don’t think he’ll make much of an impact in the remaining games this season, Hughes is someone to find room for in your keeper league because of his high upside as a point-producing defenseman. For more, see his Dobber Prospects page.

With Hughes and Simon Nemec both pushing for a spot on the Devils next season, UFA-to-be Damon Severson seems likely to be playing for a new team next season. (apr8)

8. Adam Fantilli, who is projected to be picked right behind Connor Bedard at the draft, has won the Hobey Baker Award as the top US college player. As a freshman, Fantilli led the NCAA in scoring with 65 points. He will be a nice consolation prize for a team that just misses out on Bedard. To find Fantilli’s and other 2023 draft-eligible prospects profiles, go to the 2023 NHL Draft page on Dobber Prospects. (apr8)

9. Alex Lyon has been this season’s example of why the head-to-head fantasy playoffs are subject to the whims of luck and opportunity. The truth is, these types of unexpected results happen every week in fantasy hockey, and any head-to-head matchup doesn’t play out exactly the way we think it should. Even with the injuries in net in Florida, I didn’t view Lyon as a must-add at all when he was recently recalled. I instead thought about the goalie who posted a 3.72 GAA and .892 SV% in a six-game callup in January.

Regardless, Lyon was a world beater again on Thursday, stopping 56 of 58 shots in a chippy 7-2 Panthers win over Ottawa. As an injury replacement, Lyon had reeled off five consecutive wins and quality starts (entering Saturday action), posting a 1.40 GAA and .961 SV% over that span while vaulting the Panthers into a wild-card spot.

I don’t think this kind of run is sustainable for the 30-year-old who has spent most of his pro career in the AHL. But as a UFA following the season, Lyon could be playing his way into some sort of NHL job next season. (apr7)

10. Brandon Montour has reached 72 points. Yes, you read that right. Only three defensemen have more points this season. Montour’s previous career high was 37 points, which was set last season. As soon as Montour was given first-unit power-play time in Florida with Aaron Ekblad injured, his production skyrocketed. Once Ekblad returned, Montour never lost the spot and even shares it with Ekblad now. Montour is a top-5 defenseman in power-play points, as his 33 PPP is nearly triple his previous career high from back in his Anaheim days. He also has hidden added value in leagues that count penalty minutes, as his 101 PIM is tied for the league lead among defensemen. (apr7)

11. Tage Thompson has reached 46 goals and Dylan Cozens, 31. It seems unlikely that you had either player budgeted for those amounts, but the Sabres continue to roll offensively as one of the league’s highest-scoring teams.

Thompson has actually slowed to just under a point per game over the second half. Even though he seemed inevitable to cool down at some point, his incredible first half (68 PTS in 48 GP) put him in a position to at least flirt with 100 points. With four games remaining and seven points needed, Thompson will need a big final push to get there. Cozens has broken out in just his third NHL season, making the jump from 38 points last season all the way to 67 points (and counting) this season. (apr7)

12. Banger extraordinaire Tanner Jeannot was forced to leave last Thursday's game with what might be a serious injury. The Bolts paid a king’s ransom to pull Jeannot out of Nashville, so this would be a big loss if he is unavailable to start the playoffs.

Joel Eriksson Ek also left Thursday’s game early for the Wild. Eriksson Ek’s departure after blocking a shot with his leg is particularly worrisome for fantasy teams, as he entered the game with five points over his last four games and also contributes in a variety of different fantasy categories. (apr7)

13. Reviewing changes in player performance is one key to preparing for the next fantasy season. What those changes are can tell us a lot about what we might expect (or not expect) from a defenceman in future seasons.

My Ramblings on Tuesday discussed some scoring chance creation changes for names like Jakob Chychrun, Adam Pelech, Mikey Anderson, Marcus Pettersson, Jaycob Megna, and others. Today, we are going to look at changes on the power play compared to 2021-22. Specifically, that means looking at improvements (or declines) in ice time or relative ice time.

For example: Calen Addison. This is kind of cheating because Addison is a rookie, but he did see an increase of nearly two minutes per game in 5-on-4 PPTOI as he’s been the one tasked with running the top PP unit this season. He has been moved off at times, especially since John Klingberg was added to the lineup at the trade deadline, but it’s clear the team has him tabbed as the top PP defenceman for years to come. (apr6)

14. For all the hand-wringing of Minnesota’s power play, the top PP unit was scoring 10.3 goals/60 minutes (at time of writing) when Calen Addison was running things. Comparatively, Buffalo’s top PP Unit was at 11.2 goals/60 minutes, so it’s not as if they’re far off from one of the top quintets in the league.

Addison’s lack of a role outside of the power play means he has been incredibly reliant on special team production with 18 of his 28 points coming on the man advantage. It is a wonder how much more production he’d actually have with 20 minutes a night rather than 16-17, considering Minnesota is 29^th in 5-on-5 goals per 60 minutes this season, nestled between Philadelphia and Columbus.

Addison has some good playmaking skills, but he still has a lot more growth to do if he wants to be a reliable top-4 defenceman on this roster. He is just 22 years old with fewer than 80 NHL regular season games to his name. (apr6)

15. Detroit on the whole is a young team and as they improve over the next few years, 28-year-old Ville Husso will just be coming into his own as a starting goalie, too. He struggled a little in the second-half of the year, but that is expected from goalies that don’t have experience with heavier workloads. Once he builds up his stamina, his first-quarter stats (9-3-3 record / 2.58GAA / .912sv%) could be similar to what we see from him across a full year. (apr5)

16. The Maple Leafs generally get a lot of press, so when someone breaks out or has a rebound season, a lot of media attention and digital ink has already been spilled on the subject. However, I don’t believe that to be the case here with John Tavares. He has put together an incredible fantasy season, pacing a point per game with his highest shot rate since his debut year in Toronto, and his highest PPP and Hit totals of his career. This has all been accomplished without inflated percentages, and in spite of his lowest career ice time to date. (apr5)

17. Mackenzie Weegar saw his numbers slump with the Flames, but he picked things up in the second half. He’s around a point per game player in the last dozen or so games and approaching his breakout threshold, as well. He may not hit the 55-point threshold he did in his best year with Florida, but consistently hitting 45 should be in the cards moving forward. (apr5)

18. It feels like a lifetime ago, but the 2019 first-round pick Thomas Harley made his debut way back in the 2020 Bubble Playoffs. Entering 2022-23, he had just 34 total NHL games to his name, but was expected to be a big piece of this team for years to come. His recall to the Stars might not just be a tryout thing, either, as the team is looking for more from its bottom pair. Harley has 10 goals and 34 points in 66 AHL games this season, perhaps a sign his offensive game is starting to reach the level he needs to be an NHL regular. (apr4)

19. Evgeni Malkin has 82 points on the season. Maybe more surprisingly, Malkin has played in all 80 games so far this campaign. If he plays in the remaining two games, it will be the first time he has not missed a game since 2008-09. While it would have been great if he could have stayed healthy during his elite days, it's always a treat when older players turn back the clock a little.

As for Sidney Crosby, he's at 91 points and he's also shockingly played in every game this year. I don't know if there's ever been a time when Crosby and Malkin have played so many consecutive games together.

20. Tyler Toffoli now has his first 70-point season under his belt at the age of 30. His 72 points (entering Saturday) are tops on the Flames, as his previous high was 58 back in 2015-16 with the Kings. Toffoli now becomes the second player on my pre-season list of 10 players with a long shot to reach 70 points for the first time. Maybe most surprising is that he has accomplished this away from Jonathan Huberdeau at even strength.

21. J.T. Miller's season has been a strange one from a fantasy value. He started with many fantasy general managers expressing disappointment in his production. While he's gone through some struggles, he's been having an excellent season with 77 points in 77 games (entering Saturday). That pales slightly to last year’s 99 points, but is still second on the team in points. It’s not even like he had a poor first half, as he had 27 points in his first 26 games. He had an awful December, but in truth, almost every Canuck did.

I already have Miller in one keeper league, and I'd be looking to acquire him in almost every league as long as you can keep the expectation of him finishing as a point-per-game player. Anything better is just gravy. He’s put up at least a point per game in three of the last four years and should be able to continue that mark for at least a few more years.

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