One common question that I get asked leading up to fantasy drafts is which players I like as potential sleepers. This season I'll try to be proactive and jump on that question early. Keep in mind that leagues come in all different shapes and sizes, so what may be a sleeper for one may not be a sleeper for another. For that reason, it might be better to say that these players could perform above normal expectations. Perhaps you can even draft them a bit early – although not too early (read yesterday's Ramblings, where I discuss the importance of ADP).

I may mention more potential sleepers to target before the season starts, depending on developments through what's left of the offseason, simply being reminded of something that could result in a sleeper situation, or just simply my own gut feeling.

Evan Bouchard

Even though Bouchard has never scored more than 43 points in a season, he's in a perfect spot to shatter that career high. The deadline trade of Tyson Barrie to Nashville opened up a spot on Edmonton's first-unit power play for Bouchard, who finished the regular season with 19 points in 19 games. He then proceeded to amass 17 points in 12 playoff games, which included 15 power-play points – a total that led the playoffs even though Edmonton was eliminated in the second round. The Oilers scored on nearly a third of their power plays (32.4%) in 2022-23, leading the league by a significant margin. Wherever you are ranking Bouchard, it simply may not be high enough. He currently has a Yahoo ADP of 84.4 and climbing.

Pavel Zacha

The losses of both Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci have created a major hole at center for the Bruins. Right now, their top center is Zacha, who enjoyed a career-best 57 points in his first and only season with the Bruins. Last season he averaged 16 minutes mainly on an all-Czech line with Krejci and David Pastrnak, but this season he could be in store for even more. Those in keeper leagues have had to be patient with Zacha, as he will be entering his eighth full NHL season. Having passed the 400-game mark in 2022-23, the 6-4 Zacha has just reached the breakout point for larger NHL forwards.

Seth Jarvis

Jarvis was a popular sleeper for last season's fantasy leagues, but he only managed to post a similar point total while playing in more games. It might then seem like he qualifies as a post-hype sleeper, but he'll only be playing in his third NHL season. A closer examination of his numbers shows an incredibly low shooting percentage of 7.5%, which was less than half of that of his rookie season (15.5%). In addition, Jarvis managed to up his shooting rate from 1.6 SOG/GP to 2.3 SOG/GP, which should result in better puck luck in his third NHL season. By reaching 200 games midway through the season, he should be projected for a strong second half in particular.

Owen Tippett

There haven't been a ton of good vibes around the Flyers this past season, but one positive should be the progression of Tippett. Over the final quarter, Tippett scored nine goals and 16 points in 20 games while averaging over 20 minutes per game, which made him a popular waiver-wire add during fantasy playoff time. Tippett is also close to reaching 200 games and will be playing in his fourth NHL season, which means he's right on the curve for a breakout. He also has solid multicategory value, as he averaged three shots per game and was also good for over 100 hits in 2022-23.

Filip Forsberg

This is one where an injury-shortened season is pushing the player down the rankings. Forsberg played just 50 games last season due to a season-ending upper-body injury in February with his scoring down to 42 points. He currently has a 135 ADP on Yahoo, which could stand to be higher and the reason he is listed among these sleepers. He is consistently a player on a 60+ point pace, averages three shots per game, and averages at least a hit per game. Don't forget about him, particularly if you use point totals from last season to sort your rankings.  

Akira Schmid

In limited NHL duty last season, Schmid posted some very strong numbers (18 GP, 2.13 GAA, .922 SV%). The worry was that the Devils might acquire a veteran goalie this offseason to pair with Vitek Vanecek, but so far that hasn't happened. That means Schmid should have a chance to compete with Vanecek for the starter's role. Vanecek should be the starter, but remember that the Devils turned to Schmid during the playoffs when Vanecek was struggling. At the very least, Schmid should be a very strong streaming option that should be a strong bet for a win, as New Jersey continues to climb up the standings.

Casey Mittelstadt

Mittelstadt is the best player without an ADP in Yahoo, which likely means he's being drafted in an insignificant number of leagues. One reason might be that Yahoo mock draft teams can hold only two centers, the one and only position he qualifies as. However, we should also remember that Mittelstadt finished with a career-high 59 points in 2022-23, which included a point-per-game pace (21 PTS in 20 GP) over the final quarter. Mittelstadt may not qualify as even a C2 in 2 C, 12-team leagues. But with many leagues bigger than that, he's a strong pickup for any C3 or Flex positions.

Connor Brown

Brown's career as a Capital ended after just four games because of ACL surgery. He's been acquired by the Oilers to provide some depth scoring, but it's worth mentioning that he was a junior linemate of Connor McDavid. Could he reunite on the same line as McDavid? That's no certainty, but Brown's fantasy value would go on a major upswing if so. Brown has been a 0.60-0.65 PTS/GP scorer in his previous three full seasons with Ottawa, which works out to a 50-point pace. Staying healthy has been an issue, but there's a fairly high ceiling for Brown if everything goes right. For what it's worth, Brown was the most-added player on Yahoo on Friday.

Do you have any other sleepers in mind? List them in the comments.

Tomorrow… busts.

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Dobber’s 18th annual Fantasy Guide PDF and Draft List spreadsheet is available! Sleepers, rookies, stock drops, goalies, schedule breakdown, team-by-team projections and analysis, and more! Buy it as a standalone product, or get it as a discount as part of a package.

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