In this week's Eastern Edge, we'll discuss early answers to some questions we had during the offseason.

Is there fantasy value in Toronto's supporting cast?

The Leafs dished out numerous low-cost contracts during the offseason to round out their roster. Michael Bunting, Ondrej Kase and Nick Ritchie were among these signings and became intriguing fantasy options due to anticipated deployment beside Toronto's superstars. Of the three players, Bunting has been the most valuable so far, tallying five points through nine appearances. He seems to have solidified a top-six role for himself, averaging 15 minutes a night with frequent deployment beside William Nylander. In contrast, Kase has been stuck in a depth role, seeing 12 and a half minutes per game, mostly skating beside David Kampf and Pierre Engvall. Nick Ritchie has probably been the most disappointing of the three, tallying just one assist through nine outings despite many opportunities in the top-six alongside different combinations of the Leafs' best forwards. It's important to note that Toronto's offense has underperformed so far this year, sitting 27^th in the league with 2.33 goals per game. Perhaps the team's supporting cast will see a boost in fantasy value once the young stars inevitably find their groove.

Who's the top power-play defenseman in Philadelphia?

Following the offseason acquisitions of Ryan Ellis, Rasmus Ristolainen and Keith Yandle, the Flyers entered the 2021-2022 campaign with four defenseman who were qualified to play on the team's top power-play unit – the three newcomers and Ivan Provorov. In October, Keith Yandle held the most prominent power-play role among Philly's blueliners, claiming a 58-percent share of the team's total time with the man advantage. Through seven appearances this season, Yandle has five points – two of which were scored on the power play. Now, Ellis and Ristolainen have missed some time due to injuries this year, so what we've seen so far may not be a reliable representation of what's to come. In fact, during Monday's practice, Provorov was skating on the top unit with the team's top offensive forwards, while Ristolainen and Yandle were on the second unit. Ellis is still sidelined with a lower-body injury, so we'll see how things change once he returns to the lineup.

Who's the most valuable netminder in Boston?

The Bruins have only played seven games, so it's too early to make confident conclusions about their goaltending situation. With that being said, Linus Ullmark has outperformed Jeremy Swayman in this small sample, posting a 3-1-0 record alongside a .927 save percentage and 2.23 GAA. In contrast, Swayman is 1-2-0 with an .893 save percentage and 2.71 GAA. Now, Swayman's numbers are currently skewed by one particularly poor outing against the Flyers in which he surrendered five goals on 24 shots. He was solid in his other two starts, allowing one goal on 28 shots against the Stars and two goals on 23 shots against the Hurricanes. I wouldn't read too much into GAA and save percentage at this stage, but I think it's important to note that Ullmark has seen four starts to Swayman's three. Based on this pattern, both goalies should see a significant number of starts this year, with Ullmark getting a few more than Swayman.

Who replaces Vrana on Detroit's top line?

During the offseason, Detroit's projected top line of Tyler Bertuzzi, Dylan Larkin and Jakub Vrana seemed like an underrated trio that would do some damage this year. Unfortunately, Vrana suffered a shoulder injury early in training camp that'll keep him sidelined for the next few months. With Vrana unavailable, we wondered who would take his place on the top line beside Larkin and Bertuzzi. The answer so far has been Lucas Raymond, a 19-year-old rookie that's off to a great start the season. Raymond holds a point-per-game pace through nine appearances, but more importantly, the top line has been excellent with him on it. Larkin, Bertuzzi and Raymond have thoroughly out-chanced opponents – holding a 65-percent share of scoring chances – but they've also outscored the opposition by a margin of six to zero.

How will the Penguins fare without Crosby and Malkin?

With Pittsburgh's superstar centers slated to miss the beginning of the season, there were plenty of question marks surrounding the team. We wondered who would see an increased role with Crosby and Malkin sidelined, but we also didn't know how some of the team's big names would fare without Geno and Sid. Early on this season, Jeff Carter thrived as Pittsburgh's top center, tallying four points through five games. Unfortunately, COVID protocols derailed his hot start as he was sidelined for three games before returning on Saturday. Evan Rodrigues also saw an increased role early on, posting five points in eight games while skating 17 minutes a night. Now that Crosby is back in the lineup, I think a different set of Penguins will see their fantasy stock increase over these next few weeks. Jake Guentzel only has four points in seven appearances, but his offense should pick up now that he's playing with Sid again. Jarry has been holding the fort while the team battles injuries, boasting a 3-2-1 record alongside a 2.15 GAA and .926 save percentage. I think his job will get easier now that the team is returning to full health.