For the last 21 years (12 with The Hockey News) Dobber has reviewed each team from a fantasy-hockey standpoint and graded them.

The 22nd annual review will appear here on DobberHockey throughout the summer. This is not a review of the likely performance on the ice or in the standings, but in the realm of fantasy hockey both for the season ahead as well as the foreseeable future. Offensively, will the team perform? Are there plenty of depth options worthy of owning in keeper leagues? What about over the next two or three years? These questions are what I take into consideration when looking at the depth chart and the player potential on that depth chart.

Enjoy!

* * Pick up the DobberHockey Fantasy Guide here – always updated * * 

Gone – Jack Roslovic, Alex Wennberg, Barclay Goodrow, Erik Gustafsson, Blake Wheeler

Incoming – Reilly Smith, Bo Groulx, Casey Fitzgerald

Impact of Changes – The reigning Presidents' Trophy winning Rangers did not do much to overhaul their roster. Last year was Peter Laviolette's first season as head coach and he brought them to the top of the standings. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

One of the changes worth noting is bringing in Smith, who is poised to ride alongside Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad in the Rangers' top-6 forward group. Though on paper the Kreider – Zibanejad unit was listed as the top line, it was truly the Artemi Panarin – Vincent Trocheck – Alexis Lafreniere line that saw most of NYR's minutes. This led to a career year for all of Panarin, Trocheck and Lafreniere. 

Smith adds a new look to this top-six group and is in a fantastic position to provide sneaky value to fantasy rosters. He isn't much of a shooting threat, but if given top-six minutes he could threaten 50-55 points. 

Ready for Full-Time – Brett Berard will likely be used as an injury fill-in during the 2024-25 season. He posted impressive numbers in the AHL last season, and despite his size he does not shy away from a hard-nosed style of play. When you see him with the NHL club and you're in need of some penalty minutes, you can look to Berard as a decent bet (if Matt Rempe is not available). 

Zac Jones has had a few cups of coffee already: 31 games with the big club last year and entering a contract year. Jones spent most of last year as the seventh defenseman, but enters 2024-25 as a good bet to be the third left side D and show what he can do with consistent minutes. 

Fantasy Outlook – Career years from Panarin, Trocheck and Lafreniere have to be the biggest question surrounding the overall impact of the Rangers fantasy outlook. Artemi Panarin exploded for 3.7 shots on goal per game which parlayed into 49 goals and lifted his totals to 120 points on the year. Before coming to New York Panarin's career high in goals was 31. He broke that record in his first year in New York and has had a points pace over 100 points in four of his five years as a Ranger. 

In an article from Vince Mercogliano, Artemi talks about how staying in motion and attacking all areas of the ice have given him more room to shoot, making it harder for defenses to track him. "More lanes, more time, more open ice" – he says, also giving credit to his linemates for their ability to find him. Is this an outlier or has Panarin found a new gear at almost 33 years old? I find it hard to imagine Laviolette is going to ask him to stop shooting, or that opposing teams weren't already targeting him in their pregame briefings. It's always the safe bet to say that he should regress back to his averages next year, but if Panarin continues to find room to shoot, he will keep shooting. If Panarin is rolling, Trocheck and Lafreniere will be too. This production should trickle down on the power play as well to Zibanejad, Kreider, and Adam Fox.

Lafreniere is another one to keep an eye on, as 57 points without a top-power play role is impressive. There is not a clear path to top power play minutes for Lafreniere, unfortunately. The chances he is on the top power play are low but they are not 0%. His performance in the playoffs did not feel like a streak either, he has some powder keg energy surrounding him. 

The Igor Shesterkin/Jonathan Quick tandem might be the strongest in the NHL. Quick even created some buzz about stealing the job, though that feels like a stretch. Over the last three years, Shesterkin is fourth in games played, first in wins, second in save percentage, fourth in goals-against average, sixth in raw saves, second in shutouts, third in high danger save percentage, and fourth in games with a save percentage above .900. It's important to have a good backup and Jonathan Quick is exactly that: firmly a backup. 

Fantasy Grade: A (last year was also an A)

Check out the rest of the Dobber team previews here.