Fantasy playoffs don't reward "good players" , they reward usable roles. At this point in the season, you're hunting for three things: top-unit power-play exposure, minutes that won't disappear after one mistake, and category floor that survives a quiet night. This week's batch is built around that logic: Alexs Lafreniere is the classic "new pecking order, new touches" scorer to ride while he's hot, Jimmy Snuggerud is a high-usage young gun on a team letting the kids run, Conor Garland is a volatile but dangerous streamer who can swing a matchup in two games, and Jamie Drysdale and Brent Burns are the defense options depending on what you need — Drysdale for PP1 upside, Burns for shots/blocks stability even if the PPP ceiling isn't what it used to be.

All player/roster data can be found in Frozen Tools.

Lineup info via Daily Faceoff

All information current as of March 11th, 2026.

Alexis Lafreniere (24% rostered) — New York Rangers

Role: L1, PP1 | Context: Artemi Panarin out changes the Rangers' pecking order, and Laf is the cleanest "minutes + touches" winner for fantasy playoff scoring.

Lafrenière's season line is quietly strong and fantasy-friendly: 42 points in 65 games (0.65 P/GP) with 18 goals, 123 shots (1.89 SOG/GP), and real bangers juice (79 hits = 1.22 HIT/GP) in 17:03 TOI/GP. He's not just a points-only passenger — the shot/hit combo keeps him relevant when he isn't on the scoresheet, which matters a ton in playoff matchups.

The micro-trend is the tell: he's finishing hotter than he started, even while the PP usage has been inconsistent until it suddenly wasn't. Quarter by quarter: 12 → 11 → 14 → 5 points, but that Q4 sample is the loud one — 5 points in 4 games, with PPTOI jumping to 3:27 after living around ~2:00 most of the year (2:29, 1:38, 1:49). That's the "new role" signal you actually care about, because it's not just line 1 — it's top-unit special teams time.

The recent game log matches that spike: over his last 6 games he's posted 9 points (including back-to-back 3-point games on March 5 and March 10), and the usage has followed. He logged 20:44 vs New Jersey with a ridiculous 6:47 PPTOI, then kept living in the 18 to 21-minute range while producing. That's exactly how a mid-rostered winger becomes a playoff difference-maker: not because he suddenly became a different player, but because the team's new lineup reality forces more puck touches onto him.

Fantasy call:

Add/hold everywhere. In points leagues, this is the kind of "role jump + hot streak" you ride until it cools. In cats, the hits make him less streak-dependent than most scoring wingers. If someone still prices him like a 50-point guy, you can even argue trade-for in leagues where deadlines are still open.

Watch list (next week):

Does PPTOI stay north of ~2:30 (or do we get more "6-minute" spike games)?

Does he keep a stable top-six center (Vincent Trocheck/Mika Zibanejad attachment), or does NYR start blendering?

Shot pace: if he stays around 2.0 SOG/GP, the goal floor holds even when the finishing regresses.

Brent Burns (56%) — Colorado Avalanche

Role: L2, PP2, PK1 | Context: the name still scares people into thinking "automatic fantasy D," but the 2025–26 version is more of a minutes/blocks stabilizer than a PP-point engine.

Burns' season line is fine, but it's not vintage: 28 points in 64 games (0.44 P/GP) with 128 shots (2.00 SOG/GP) and 76 blocks (1.19 BLK/GP) in 18:59 TOI/GP. That's usable in most formats because shots + blocks from the blue line are hard to stream, but the power-play juice is basically gone right now: one PPP on the season with just 0:42 PPTOI/GP. If you're adding him purely for "defensive scoring," the data is waving a big red flag — the role is not built for big PPP.

The micro-trend shows what's actually happening: his ice time is still solid (Q1 20:09, Q2 18:45, Q3 19:03), but the PP usage has collapsed into token minutes (0:51 → 0:25 → 0:43). That's why the scoring is mostly assists-on-assists and the fantasy ceiling feels capped. The pairings are also telling: he's been rotated alongside basically everyone (Devon Toews, Cale Makar, Sam Girard, Josh Manson), which screams "utility minutes" rather than "this is our offensive driver."

The recent game log matches the new reality: he's been mostly a 0–1 point guy with peripheral nights (like the 5-block game vs Minnesota on March 8), and the PP time isn't reliably there game-to-game. He'll still pop a random multi-point game (Jan 10: 2 goals on 4 shots), but that's not something you can bank on weekly when the special teams role is thin.

Fantasy call:

Cats/bangers: add/stream if you need SOG + BLK with steady minutes — he's a stable floor play.

Points-only: he's more of a "depth D" unless your league rewards shots/blocks heavily; the lack of PP usage makes him hard to treat like a true scoring defenseman.

Watch list (next week):

Does PPTOI climb back over ~1:30 even once? If not, his ceiling stays capped.

Any sign he's being used as a consistent partner for Makar/Toews (that's how you get "accidental points").

Shot volume: if he stays around 2+ SOG/GP, he's still rosterable even without PPP.

Jimmy Snuggerud (10%) — St. Louis Blues

Role: L1, PP1 | Context: the Blues aren't playing scared — they're letting the kids run, and Snuggerud is getting exactly the kind of "nothing to lose" deployment that turns into fantasy playoff gold.

Snuggerud's season line is already legit for a low-rostered winger: 34 points in 53 games (0.64 P/GP) with 15 goals, 119 shots (2.25 SOG/GP), and real multi-cat filler (59 hits, 31 blocks) in 16:15 TOI/GP. Add in 8 PPP with 2:14 PPTOI/GP and you've got the core fantasy recipe: shots + PP time + enough peripherals that a 0-point night doesn't feel like a waste.

The micro-trend is the loudest part of the profile. His quarters show a mid-season dip, then a full-on role/production ramp: 11 points in Q1, then the dead zone (2 points in 10 games in Q2), then the rebound (14 points in Q3), and now the heater: 7 points in 3 games in Q4 with TOI climbing to 18:15 and PPTOI holding 2:30+. That's not just "hot streak," that's "coach is feeding him more minutes while he's scoring," which is what you actually want in the fantasy playoffs.

The game log backs it up in neon. Over his last 7 games he's put up 12 points — including a four-game run of 2, 0, 2, 3, 2, 2 (and it keeps going). The shot volume is huge (he just fired 8 SOG vs the New York Islanders on March 10), and he's staying involved on special teams (multiple games in that stretch with 2–4 minutes of PPTOI). That's exactly the kind of "ride it until it breaks" winger that wins a playoff week.

Fantasy call:

Add/hold everywhere outside the shallowest leagues. In points leagues he's a clean playoff scorer. In cats/bangers he's even better because shots + hits make him harder to cold-streak into irrelevance. If someone thinks he's just a temporary heater, that's your stream/add window before he becomes an auto-roster guy.

Watch list (next week):

Does TOI stay 17–20+ while he's on this run, or does it snap back to 14–15?

PPTOI: if he keeps living around 2:15–2:45, the PPP keep flowing.

Linemates: he's bounced around, but any consistent attachment to Robert Thomas, Pavel Buchnevich, and Dylan Holloway keeps the ceiling high.

Conor Garland (7%) — Columbus Blue Jackets

Role: L2, PP2 | Context: the Jackets are in "push for the spot" mode, and Garland is the exact kind of engine player coaches lean on when they need steady offense shift-to-shift. Trade earlier has made him much more valuable to the CBJ compared to VAN.

Garland's season line is quietly strong for a 7% roster guy: 30 points in 54 games (0.56 P/GP) with 115 shots (2.13 SOG/GP) and solid special teams contribution (10 PPP) while playing heavy minutes for a winger (18:34 TOI/GP). That's a very usable fantasy profile because the shot rate gives you a floor, and the power-play time (2:26 PPTOI/GP) keeps him in the scoring ecosystem even when the 5v5 line blender hits.

The micro-trend is basically two different seasons. Early on, he was living in a high-usage, high-PP role: Q1: 13 points in 18 GP with 3:09 PPTOI and 20:05 TOI; Q2 stayed productive (9 points in 15 GP) with similar PP usage (3:04 PPTOI). Then Q3 went ice-cold — 4 points in 17 GP — and the deployment got yanked at the same time (PPTOI down to 1:20, TOI down to 17:14). That's the key: the slump wasn't just "bad puck luck," it was also a role squeeze. Now in Q4 (small sample) the points are back (4 goals in 4 games) even though the minutes are still lower (13:56 TOI), which tells you he can still spike — but his week-to-week value depends on whether the coaching staff restores the heavier usage.

The recent game log shows the exact streamer profile you want in playoff weeks: a player who can win you a matchup in two nights if he heats up. He just posted back-to-back 2-goal games (March 9 vs Los Angeles, March 10 @ Tampa Bay) on big shot volume (3 SOG then 6 SOG) with a power-play goal mixed in. The risk is the floor games — like March 12 @ Florida (0 points) — but if you're streaming for scoring, you care more about whether the shot rate and PP time stay non-zero.

Fantasy call:

Add/stream in points leagues if you're chasing goals/shots and can live with some volatility. In cats, he's mostly a SOG + PPP play (peripherals aren't the selling point). He's the kind of pickup that's best when you're playing the schedule aggressively rather than marrying him for the rest of the season.

Watch list (next week):

Does his PPTOI get back toward 2:30–3:00, or does it stay in the 1:15–1:30 range?

Is he getting real top-six TOI again (closer to 17–20), or staying in the 13–16 lane?

Shot volume: if he's firing 2.5–3.0+ SOG/GP over the next week, you ride the heater.

Jamie Drysdale (5%) — Philadelphia Flyers

Role: L2, PP1 | Context: Philly isn't playing for anything real, which is exactly when young skill D get force-fed reps — and Drysdale's role is already "fantasy-relevant minutes," not just development minutes.

Drysdale's season line is quietly useful for deeper formats: 27 points in 62 games (0.44 P/GP) with 6 PPP and a big minutes load (21:32 TOI/GP). The shot rate is light (1.34 SOG/GP), but he's giving you category floor elsewhere with 69 blocks (1.11 BLK/GP) and consistent deployment that keeps him on the ice when points happen.

The micro-trend is the key: the TOI is basically locked at "workhorse" all season (21–22 minutes every quarter), while the power-play usage has actually climbed in the second half. Quarter splits: 8 → 10 → 7 → 2 points, but the PPTOI bumps from 1:47 in Q2 to 2:40 in Q3 (and still 2:23 in Q4). That's what you want from a young defenseman — the scoring can fluctuate, but the PP leash getting longer is how a late-season run starts.

The recent game log looks like the exact playoff streamer profile: not a point-per-game guy, but steady touches with occasional pop. In his last 7 games he has 4 points (including a 2-point game vs Boston on February 28), and he's consistently logging 21–24 minutes with regular PP time (often 2–3 minutes, with a spike to 4:55 at New York on February 26). If you're hunting for cheap defense scoring, this is the kind of role you stream — especially when your alternative is a 17-minute third-pair guy with no PP.

Fantasy call:

Deep-league add if you need a defenseman who can chip in assists/PPP without murdering your week. In cats/bangers, the blocks help, but he's not a hits guy. In shallow points leagues, he's more of a schedule stream unless the PP1 role starts producing consistently.

Watch list (next week):

Is he staying on PP1 and keeping 2:30+ PPTOI, or does it get chopped back under 2:00?

Shot volume: if he can even get to ~1.7–2.0 SOG/GP for a week, the points ceiling rises fast.

Any run of multi-point games — with this TOI/PP role, a heater can show up quickly once the puck bounces his way.