The next two weeks are the most exciting time for a fantasy hockey fan. 

The NHL draft is the chance for many of us to get an idea of the latest prospects and where they will land. Then a few days later, there’s the start of NHL free agency day, where teams overpay for older players. It’s almost two diametrically points of a career happening within a few days of each other. 

Of course, there is also the fact that over the next two weeks will see more big-name players traded than at any other time of the year. Think of last year, when the NHL draft was July 7 and the start of free agency was July 13. In those seven days, Alexandar Georgiev, Alex DeBrincat, Alexander Romanov, Kirby Dach, Ville Husso, Vitek Vanecek, Tony DeAngelo, Matt Murray, Cam Talbot, Pavel Zacha, Brent Burns and Max Pacioretty were all dealt.

In the two weeks after the start of free agency, we also saw Jeff Petry, Oliver Bjorkstrand and the Matthew Tkachuk–Jonathan Huberdeau deals. 

That activity altered the fantasy landscape and changed the value of more players than the draft or free agency combined. 

Suffice it to say, aside from the draft and free agency, these next couple of weeks will have a massive impact on fantasy leagues.

Below are the top 10 fantasy players who are rumored to be on the trade block (or also known as Winnipeg Jets and friends). Note, all these players will not necessarily be traded in the next couple of weeks, but these are the most fantasy-relevant names that are appearing on trade boards. Most of them would see a value boost if dealt. 

10. Blake Wheeler

While this list is littered with Jets (that’s what happens when everyone over the age of 25 announces they won’t re-sign with your squad), odds are they won’t all be traded over the next few weeks. However, Wheeler might be the Jet who would potentially get the biggest fantasy boost by going to a new squad. The 36-year-old just had his worst campaign since the season he split between the Bruins and Thrashers more than a decade ago. In 2022-23, Wheeler finished with only 55 points in 72 games, a 63-point pace. In five of his previous seven seasons, he finished with an 82-game pace of 74 to 76 points (the other two seasons, he finished with a plus-90-point pace). His ice time, power-play time, shot-per-game rate and hits-per-game rate were all significantly down this year. However, a new team would want to showcase their latest acquisition and potentially put him in a bigger role. 

9. Elias Lindholm

Lindholm is one of those that I don’t trust to become an 80-point player again. He’s one of a few players who had a great 2021-22 season that then went back to their normal pace during 2022-23 (Nazem Kadri and Chris Kreider are two other names that fall into this category). Lindholm should be treated as a consistent 60-to-70-point player that might reach 80 points in a year when everything goes perfectly. In 10 seasons, he has broken the 70-point pace plateau twice. However, his fantasy value would definitely increase if he was dealt to a new team. 

8. Pierre-Luc Dubois

With the way the rumors were swirling Sunday night, Dubois may have been traded to the Kings by the time you read this. I have Dubois in one of my keeper leagues, and to be honest, I’m still waiting for him to have a great fantasy season. He’s been hyped for years, but so far, he’s topped out at 27 goals and 63 points, which is okay, but not great. However, he’s treated as a sure-fire 80-point guy by many, despite not coming close to that in six seasons in the league. Odds are, wherever Dubois goes will probably come with a new contract (rumor has him asking for north of $9 million per season). However, that’s the type of cash you give a first-line player; he hasn’t proven yet that he can be that top-line center. 

7. Travis Konecny

It seems as if the Flyers are a year late in going for a rebuild. Last year, they hired coach John Tortorella and traded for Tony DeAngelo. This year, everyone is available, including DeAngelo, but Konecny is the best fantasy option. Despite missing 22 games this past year, he still put up career highs in goals (31) and points (61). Part of that comes from a big increase in shooting percentage, but he also saw a significant increase in ice time (up 2:30 per night compared to the previous year). He’s signed for another two years, so teams don’t need to worry about signing him to a big-money contract immediately. 

6. J.T. Miller

There doesn’t seem to be as much conversation about J.T. Miller as there was a year ago, but on July 1, his new contract kicks in, and with it, a full no-trade clause. So if he is going to be dealt, it has to be by the weekend. Miller is a stud in fantasy hockey and may be a little underrated. He has at least an 84-point pace in three of the last four years, and the one year he didn’t was the 56-game Covid-shortened season when he still put up a 71-point pace. He just turned 30 years old in March, so he should still have a few more years of top production. 

5. Connor Hellebuyck

One of the most fun things to do with trade rumors is to visit Twitter to see what people come up with. A good account to follow is Insane Fan Trades, which posts some of the more outrageous trade ideas from fans. One of the trade ideas the account recently posted was Hellebuyck for Simon Nemec and Akira Schmid. One thing to note is that goalies are rarely traded for their perceived value. When was the last trade that a goalie fetched a high first-round pick or a top prospect? Robin Lehner to Vegas, Jack Campbell to Toronto, Marc-Andre Fleury to Chicago and then again to Minnesota, Alex Nedeljkovic to Detroit while his value was highest, Vitek Vanecek to Washington and then his rights to New Jersey a year later, Matt Murray to Ottawa, etc. None of them brought a high return. Maybe the only time in recent history we saw a goalie traded for a high draft pick/top prospect was Cory Schneider to New Jersey for ninth overall back in 2013. Regardless of the return, Hellebuyck is the top netminder available through trade. He’s already been great behind a team in disarray for a couple of years. Imagine how good he could be behind a top-scoring or top-defensive team.

4. Mark Scheifele 

Like many other players on this list, rumors are saying it doesn’t appear as if Scheifele will re-sign with Winnipeg when his current contract is up. Scheifele is coming off a season where he had 68 points in 81 games, but that was the first time since 2015-16 that he didn’t finish at a point-per-game pace, mostly thanks to his paltry 26 assists, his lowest total since his rookie season. However, he did put up 42 goals. While his shooting percentage was 20.4 per cent, that was pretty much on par with his normal shooting percentage. 

3. Alex DeBrincat

It was only a year ago when DeBrincat was dealt for the seventh and 39th overall picks in the 2022 draft and a third-round pick this year, and now Ottawa could be looking to trade him. Even though he just had an off season, he still potted 27 goals and 66 points. Since first suiting up for the Blackhawks in 2017-18, DeBrincat has 187 goals, 14th best in that timeframe. As an RFA this year who can become a UFA next year, anyone that trades for him is looking to sign him to a long-term deal. He will excel wherever he goes, and getting back to 40 goals next year is a very real possibility, no matter the team. 

2. William Nylander

I’ve seen Nylander’s name pop up on a couple of trade boards, but I’m not sure if it will happen. Things have been quiet since the Leafs announced Brad Treliving as their new general manager a month ago. However, after a listless second-round loss to the Panthers, many were calling for big moves for the Leafs. Nylander would see the most likely of the core four forwards to move, and he just came off posting career highs in goals (40), assists (47), points (87) and shots (293) while still posting 28 power-play points. Treliving can’t be at the Leafs’ draft table to make picks at the draft this week, but he can still make trades before and following the draft. 

1. Erik Karlsson

Karlsson’s name has been on trade boards since Christmas after a great start to the season. It got ramped up more leading to the trade deadline as he was in the midst of an offensive season not seen since Brian Leetch in the early 1990s. Karlsson managed to stay healthy for one of the few times in his career and notched a career high in goals (25) and points (101). Karlsson has said that he wants to be traded to a contender, however, his contract is a big deterrent. Being paid $11.5 million for another four years means a third team might need to be involved to eat some of the cap space as none of the contending teams can afford Karlsson straight up. Karlsson has a full no-trade clause, so it limits the teams he can go to.