Every Sunday, we share 21 Fantasy Rambles from our writers at DobberHockey. These thoughts are curated from the past week’s 'Daily Ramblings'.

Writers/Editors: Ian Gooding, Michael Clifford, Alexander MacLean, Puneet Sharma, and Dobber

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DobberHockey’s 2026-27 Fantasy Hockey Guide is available in the Dobber Shop! Team-by-team overviews updated through to the start of the regular season to reflect injuries, trades, or other pertinent information.

The French version, le Guide des Poolers, is also available. You can pre-order it here. 

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1. There are still several days left in September, yet this is already the last weekend that we won’t see regular-season NHL games. Hope you are ready! Let’s start with some news and notes.

– Dylan Larkin has expanded his trade list to Colorado, Dallas, Tampa Bay, and Washington. It seems like Larkin wants to move to a contending US-based team. The concern there is that he might not be the top center on one of those teams. (sept26)

– The Carolina Hurricanes have signed Pyotr Kochetkov to a two-year extension with a cap hit of $3.95 million. Kochetkov is in the final year of his current contract, which has a cap hit of $2 million this season. After the successful first NHL season of Brandon Bussi, Kochetkov has kind of been forgotten about. Yet I think this is a situation that could be a timeshare. Kochetkov seems like a solid goaltending option in the later rounds of your draft. (sept26)

– Goalie Leevi Merilainen has been claimed off waivers by the Vancouver Canucks from the Ottawa Senators. Thatcher Demko seems unlikely to be able to start the season, so Merilainen could help ease Kevin Lankinen‘s workload. Merilainen’s addition to the Canucks is not good news for Chris Driedger, who is on a PTO; as well as Nikita Tolopilo, who could be placed on waivers as a result. That’s probably enough information for a team whose goaltending you should probably avoid in fantasy leagues. 

Within a few hours of losing Merilainen, the Senators acquired Jonas Johansson from the Tampa Bay Lightning for good ol’ future considerations. Johansson should serve as the Sens’ third goaltending option behind Linus Ullmark and Samuel Ersson and could be in the AHL. (sept26)

2. Many names hit the waiver wire on Friday. Perhaps the most prominent was Brandon Tanev, who the Utah Mammoth decided to waive in order to send him to the AHL. Tanev did not score a goal and registered just three assists in 56 games last season. His crash-and-bang style makes him a perpetual source of hits, as he consistently averages over two hits per game. His glaring lack of scoring means that he should not have been on any fantasy teams last season, however. (sept26)

3. Moreover, this past week: the Columbus Blue Jackets finally signed forward Adam Fantilli, extending him for six years with an average annual value of $13.75-million. The contract runs through the end of his age-27 season, and now he’s got a few days to get up to speed before the regular season starts. (sept25)

– Alexander Nikishin still not signed. The Canes have seven Dmen on one-way contracts (plus their seventh defenceman from last year Mike Reilly on a two-way deal), so it looks like they’re moving forward as though Nikishin is already out the door. Treat it as such, which is good news for K’Andre Miller who will likely run the second power play unit. (sept23)  

– With Jason Zucker out there is some additional room for young guys to make an impact in Buffalo. Peyton Krebs has taken over the top line LW slot that he held most of last season, while Jiri Kulich is still working his way up the lineup as he returns to full speed. By the end of the season those two will have likely swapped places, regardless of where Zucker ends up filling in once he returns. (sept23)

– Nils Hoglander is looking to get back on track after injuries derailed the last few years. He was viewed as a top-six scorer prior to making the NHL full time, where he never seemed to get fully settled in with the Canucks during the Covid seasons. Now fully healthy and with a clean slate in Nashville, can he regain his 40-point paces that he put up early in his career, or even top that now that he’s lined up opposite fellow Swede Filip Forsberg? He might be worth a gamble later in drafts, though maybe the better bet is Matthew Wood, who is centering that line and also seeing top power play time. (sept23) 

– A dark horse Calder pick (still with the team on Sunday)? Nikita Klepov, who was given a real shot to make the Ducks, lining up with Leo Carlsson and Cutter Gauthier. Klepov put up excellent numbers in the OHL last year, with nearly 100 points, equating to first-line PNHLe value. He’s a skilled player, and getting to start out on the top line with two of the best young stars in the game could lead to some eye-popping numbers out of the gate. (sept23)

4. Continuing on from my last week’s article covering the Central Division. We are now moving on to the Pacific Division. Let’s get right into it!

Anaheim Ducks – Troy Terry

The concern with Terry heading into this season is more about his health than his ability to produce. Terry will out of the lineup for nearly 30 games of the season which gives ice time to other top-six NHLer’s on the Ducks but once he returns, I can see him regaining top line deployment. if you’re willing to take on the risk of missing some games, you’re potentially getting a player who has consistently produced at a 60-plus-point pace over the last five years. Terry ended the NHL playoffs with 11 points in 12 playoff games, so he can still produce when healthy enough to play. With the type of surgeries Terry had this off season he start the season off slow. However, provided he comes back without any issues and continues to see top-line and power-play responsibility we’re still looking at a valuable option, especially in a top-six role. (sept21)

5. Calgary Flames – Simon Nemec

Simon Nemec is one of those players where the situation may be more important than what he has already accomplished. Nemec put up 11 goals and 26 points in 68 games last season with New Jersey while averaging 19:40 per game. He also recorded 101 shots and 104 blocked shots, giving him some additional fantasy value beyond his point totals. Now he moves to Calgary after signing a five-year contract, and I think the Flames are giving him an opportunity to finally take on the type of responsibility expected from a player drafted that high. The organization has been reshaping its defence, which should give Nemec a chance to establish himself as one of its more important blueliners. The offensive numbers still need to improve, but he is already playing close to 20 minutes a night and coming off an 11-goal season. If his role expands and the power-play opportunities increase, I think there is room for him to move well beyond the 26 points he had last season. (sept21)

6. Edmonton Oilers – Matt Savoie

Savoie has quickly made himself an important piece of the Oilers because of how much he can bring to the lineup. He has the speed and hands to be a dangerous scorer, but his ability to contribute on the penalty kill gives him a sneaky-high TOI ceiling. He averaged 14:47 as a rookie, but there’s room for that number to climb. After the Olympic break, Savoie scored nine goals and 19 points in 24 games, showing what he can do with more opportunity. The biggest concern is whether new coach Mike Babcock leans heavily on veterans, but Edmonton doesn’t have enough forward depth to completely block Savoie’s path. His injury is expected to keep him out of most, if not all, of training camp, with a return targeted for late October. That could actually work in your favour, as his missed camp may create a chance to grab him off waivers rather than spending a draft pick. (sept21)

7. LA Kings – Mats Zuccarello

Mats Zuccarello is probably one of the easier value picks to overlook simply because of his age. He turns 39 this season, although that didn’t stop him from putting up 15 goals and 54 points in 59 games with Minnesota last season. He also had 21 power-play points, so there is still plenty of offensive production left when he’s in the lineup. He’s also coming off a stretch where he averaged 0.91 points per game over the previous six seasons, so last year wasn’t exactly a one-off. Obviously, the concern is durability. Zuccarello has played fewer than 70 games in three straight seasons, and at 39 that risk isn’t going away. Regardless of that, there is still value here but the key to remember is that if he isn’t tied to Artemi Panarin like he was with Kirill Kaprizov and does not have top powerplay duties, then his production may look very different. (sept21)

8. San Jose Sharks – Igor Chernyshov

Chernyshov doesn’t have a long NHL track record to lean on yet, and while San Jose doesn’t have the same depth as some of the other teams on this list, the Sharks are clearly building around Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith. That should give players like Chernyshov a chance to establish themselves as another important piece of the young forward group. He has already seen time on the top line and first power-play unit, while also getting an opportunity alongside Michael Misa. I wouldn’t draft him expecting a massive breakout right away because there is still plenty of development left, but his 19 points in 28 games works out to a 56-point pace over 82 games. If he can earn more ice time and establish himself as a regular on the power play, Chernyshov could outperform his draft position pretty quickly. For what it’s worth, I think he has a legitimate shot at reaching that 56-point mark this season. (sept21)

9. Seattle Kraken – Bobby McMann

Well, were looking at finding the best player on a mediocre team, that’s not easy to do but it looks like we found one in Bobby McMann. McMann finished his time in Toronto with 32 points in 60 games before being traded, then scored 10 goals and 14 points in only 18 games with Seattle while averaging nearly 18 minutes per game. That is a pretty significant jump in both opportunity and production. That small Seattle sample obviously needs to be taken with some caution, but I think it’s enough to take notice. If the Kraken give him a legitimate top-six role and allow him to maintain the type of ice time he saw after the trade, I think another 25-goal season is possible. For me, this is more about buying into the role than expecting another massive jump. (sept21)

10. Vancouver Canucks – Maro Rossi

It’s hard to expect much from Vancouver this season with the Canucks clearly in the middle of a rebuild and while Elias Pettersson is actually an interesting value at a Yahoo! ADP around 135, but I’m more interested in Marco Rossi. I wrote about Rossi during my Bubble Keeper week, and I believe there’s a good chance his production comes surprisingly close to Pettersson’s this season. Rossi should step into a significant top-six role and has a strong chance to see plenty of time on the top power-play unit. After giving up Quinn Hughes to acquire him, Vancouver has every reason to give Rossi a legitimate opportunity to establish himself as a core piece moving forward. That should mean quality linemates, increased responsibility and prime power-play deployment right from the start. If the situation clicks, I think 65 points is a realistic ceiling for him and that makes Rossi much more appealing to me than players like Brock Boeser or Jake DeBrusk. We’ve already seen Rossi produce at this level, and now he’s heading into a situation where he should have a much bigger role. (sept21)

11. Vegas Golden Knights – Victor Olofsson

This is definitely a swing-for-the-fences type of pick, and there’s a very real chance it doesn’t work out. I’m going with Victor Olofsson in Vegas, where most of the obvious fantasy options will already be off the board. Jack Eichel, Mark Stone, Mitch Marner, Shea Theodore, Ivan Barbashev and Tomas Hertl are the obvious choices. Brett Howden spent a lot of time alongside Marner and Stone last season, but I could see Olofsson working his way into the top six at times and taking some of those minutes. He put up 31 points in 78 games between Calgary and Colorado last season before returning to Vegas, but we’ve also seen Olofsson produce at a much higher level when given the right opportunity. Olofsson has always been at his best when he can find open ice and let his shot go, and he can still add some scoring punch. Even a spot on the second power-play unit would give him a path to some value at what should be a very cheap draft cost. (sept21)

12. As I worked through the Yahoo rankings early this past week and compared them to the Fantasy Hockey Geek rankings for my specific league, I couldn’t help but notice several players that were not ranked high enough by Yahoo, weren't being drafted high enough in fantasy leagues, or both. I’m sharing those players below.

If you are wondering how I ranked these players, my league uses the following stat categories: G, A, +/-, SOG, PPP, HIT, BKS, SV%, GAA, W. I believe these stat categories are very similar to those of a standard Yahoo league. Regardless, maybe these players make sense to remember in your league’s draft too.

Dylan Cozens, C, OTT (Yahoo Rank 138, ADP 141.5)

The forwards on this list should all be defined as bangers, but Cozens has the highest scoring upside of the three. Although he has never been able to surpass his output of 31 goals and 68 points from 2022-23, Cozens came closest to that in his first full season in Ottawa with 28 goals and 59 points. Cozens wasn’t much of a hitter during that 2022-23 season (just 55 hits), but he has changed his game dramatically with back-to-back 200-hit seasons since then. Cozens has also added power-play scoring to his resume, as his 13 power-play goals and 29 power-play points from last season were both career bests. (sept20)

13. Linus Ullmark, G, OTT (Yahoo Rank 150, ADP 134.1)

The Senators fan that you know probably tells you that their team doesn’t get enough respect. There might be something to that, at least in fantasy leagues. Maybe the lack of respect is because of last year’s nasty rumors surrounding Ullmark when he took his leave of absence, or it could be because of the departure of Brady Tkachuk. That all aside, if you’re interested in a goalie that consistently posts a goals-against average of below 2.75 and should have little competition for the starting job while not requiring a high pick, then Ullmark might be the goalie for you. I was surprised to learn that Ullmark has never played 50 games in a season, but I’m willing to bet he will reach that total for the first time this season. (sept20)

14. Mackenzie Weegar, D, UTA (Yahoo Rank 160, ADP 112.8)

Weegar averaged 50 points per season in his last two full seasons with Calgary, but I’m not expecting him to reach those lofty numbers in Utah. The offseason departure of Sean Durzi could result in Weegar picking up second-unit power-play time, but scoring isn’t the main reason you should be drafting him. You’re drafting Weegar because he is dominant in peripherals. Take your pick: In 2025-26, Weegar finished fifth in SOG+HIT+BKS (496), sixth in PIM+HIT+BKS (430), and seventh in HIT+BKS (342). That’s why you’ll find him in this month’s Top 100 Roto Rankings. His ADP seems fair, but Yahoo has him ranked way too low. (sept20)

15. Jet Greaves, G, CBJ (Yahoo Rank 173, ADP 119.3)

Greaves might have been the most underrated goalie in fantasy leagues last season. Only four goalies posted more quality starts than Greaves (35) last season, while he was only one of 12 goalies to appear in at least 55 games. Elvis Merzlikins has no timetable to return from a shoulder injury, which means that there should be little doubt that Greaves will start the bulk of the games for Columbus. Posting respectable numbers (2.60 GAA, .908 SV%) for a Blue Jackets team that constantly flies under the radar, Greaves is an ideal pick for those fantasy teams that like to go full Zero G. (sept20) 

16. Filip Hronek, D, VAN (Yahoo Rank 205, ADP 139.8)

After about pick 100 in many fantasy drafts, finding a quality defenseman that is on a team’s top power play can be difficult. Once many of the notable names are off the board and you’re searching through what’s left, Hronek is not as bad an option as you might think. Once Quinn Hughes was traded, Hronek registered 33 points in 51 games while frequently logging 25+ minutes per game. The Canucks’ power play went on a late-season run, which resulted in him racking up 10 power-play in his last 20 games. His value decreases if your league counts plus/minus; otherwise, there are no major red flags with Hronek. (sept20)

17. Will Cuylle, LW, NYR (Yahoo Rank: 256, ADP NA)

Many bangers leaguers will jump on Kiefer Sherwood (ADP 132.3) at some point in their draft because of his domination of the hits category. However, Cuylle can provide at least the same level of scoring as Sherwood with a hit total that isn’t that far behind. Cuylle doesn’t have a Yahoo ADP, but he is being added in a few leagues (24% rostered – Sherwood is 33% rostered). Cuylle probably isn’t a top-line scorer, but his secondary assist percentage was only 16.7% last season, so a few more assists could push him above 40 points for the second time in his career. (sept20)

18. Vasily Podkolzin, LW/RW, EDM (Yahoo Rank: 345, ADP NA)

Although I don’t place major season-long stock into early training camp line combinations, Podkolzin couldn’t possibly have better linemates at the moment with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Cast aside by the Canucks two seasons ago when he seemed like the odd man out, Podkolzin has carved out an important role as a secondary scorer who provides plenty of juice (back-to-back 200+ hit seasons). He has also steadily improved scoring-wise, reaching 19 goals and 37 points last season. He should build on that if he sticks with the Oilers’ two top scorers. He’s a definite sleeper, especially in bangers leagues. (sept20)

19. Over the last few weeks, these Ramblings have been reviewing my fantasy hockey projections for the 2026-27 season. In Friday’s Ramblings, the topic was multi-position centres and those who are more valuable as wingers than they are as centres. Contained in those Ramblings are a handful of links discussing draft values for shallow and deep league forwards/defencemen, goalies, rookies, and more. To get a primer on multi-position players, or links for prior Ramblings discussing the fantasy draft value for dozens of players, go check that out. 

In today’s Ramblings, we’re going to continue with multi-position players, but we’re focusing on those with LW/RW designations. I am using a method called ‘Z-Score’ for fantasy value, which compares a player’s output to a replacement-level option in a 12-team league. The fantasy stats used are goals, assists, shots, blocks, hits, and power-play points with data from Evolving Hockey, Natural Stat Trick, All Three Zones, and Frozen Tools. ADP data is from Fantrax.

As a refresher, using my projections and roster depth of 12-team leagues, left wingers are expected to be much less productive than right wingers, but have a huge average projection in hits:

If a player has both LW and RW eligibility, those whose value is derived from goals, assists, and power-play points are better off being used at LW. If their value comes from hits and blocks, they’re better used at RW; it isn’t quite that simple but it’s a good guideline. Here are some dual-eligible wingers who have good draft values and should be used at left wing.

Eeli Tolvanen (New York Rangers)

Over the last three years, here is the list of players with at least 50 goals, 60 assists, 200 blocks, 400 shots, and 600 hits:

• Eeli Tolvanen

That is the entire list. (Tom Wilson was just shy in blocks.)

Tolvanen shot 8.5% in 2025-26 after being at least 10.5% in each of the prior three seasons, averaging 14% in that span. If he shoots 14% last season, he scores 20 goals, and it’s a wonder if Seattle lets him walk.

Regardless, Tolvanen is on our list in a big way giving a lot more value as a left winger and also providing high draft value by ADP:

My projections for Tolvanen aren’t sky-high with 21 goals, 22 assists, and 152 shots in 84 games, but there are a lot of blocks and hits here, so when we combine the modest goals/assist value with high peripheral value, we get a very useful multi-cat forward here. So far in training camp, Tolvanen has been skating on the third line, but injuries happen, and he is more than capable of overtaking Oliver Bjorkstrand for a second-line role. He might not be a target in shallower fantasy formats, but he’s at least someone to keep an eye on early in the season. 

[Follow the link for more…] (sept22)

20. For the last few weeks, my Ramblings have been reviewing my projections for the 2026-27 fantasy hockey season. On Tuesday, we discussed players with LW/RW designations, and which are good draft values. Before that, we covered those with C/LW designations and their draft values. In the handful of Ramblings prior to the positional write-ups, we evaluated draft values for:

• Shallow league forwards
• Shallow league defencemen
• Deep league forwards
• Deep league defencemen
• Rookies
• Goalies
• Teams to stack

With the final fantasy draft weekend just ahead of us, I want to take today’s and tomorrow’s Ramblings to create my Draft and Do Not Draft lists. These are basically players I’ve been targeting or avoiding in my drafts. We are going to use ADP data from Fantrax and the data for my projections come from Evolving Hockey, Natural Stat Trick, All Three Zones, and Frozen Tools. The fantasy categories are goals, assists, shots, blocks, hits, and power-play points.

My projections use a value method called ‘Z-Score’ which just reflects how far above/below a player’s projection is in a given category compared to a replacement-level player in a 12-team league. Today will go over forwards – and they will be assembled into one ‘Forward’ category – I have been targeting/avoiding and tomorrow we’ll do the same for defencemen.

Forwards to Target

We won’t post a chart for every single player, but rather just provide one chart that shows each of our target forward’s overall Fantasy Value Z-Score and their rank at their position compared to ADP. That gives us players who are expected to provide positive fantasy value and have ADPs lower than their rank in my projections. I have done eight drafts so far this fantasy season, and the following forwards are on at least three of my teams:

Let’s go through each of them quickly.

Wyatt Johnston (Dallas Stars)

There is concern that Johnston scored 27/45 goals last season on the power play and shot 21.8%. Usually, that means a player would be over-valued. However, he is in his prime, should skate 19-20 minutes on the top line and top PP unit, gets plenty of time with the empty net, and a healthy Stars roster should be better at even strength. He is at the top of the second tier of centres below the likes of Jack Eichel and Auston Matthews.

[Follow the link for more…] (sept24)

21. For the last few weeks, my Ramblings have been reviewing my projections for the 2026-27 fantasy hockey season. On Tuesday, we evaluated players with LW/RW designations and which of them are good draft values. Before that, we covered those with C/LW designations and their draft values. In the handful of Ramblings prior to the positional write-ups, we discussed draft values for:

• Shallow league forwards
• Shallow league defencemen
• Deep league forwards
• Deep league defencemen
• Rookies
• Goalies
• Teams to stack

With the final fantasy draft weekend upon us, yesterday’s Ramblings covered forwards I’m targeting or avoiding, and today’s Ramblings will cover defencemen and goalies. We are going to use ADP data from Fantrax and the data for my projections come from Evolving Hockey, Natural Stat Trick, All Three Zones, and Frozen Tools. The fantasy categories are goals, assists, shots, blocks, hits, and power-play points.

My projections use a value method called ‘Z-Score’ which just reflects how far above/below a player’s projection is in a given category compared to a replacement-level player in a 12-team league. The further above/below, the higher/lower the Z-Score value. We will start with the players to draft, and having completed nine fantasy drafts thus far, each player on my Target List are guys I’ve drafted at least twice.

Defencemen/Goalies to Target

There won’t be a chart for every player mentioned, but rather one chart for those I’m targeting and one for those I’m avoiding. The chart below will show the overall Z-Score fantasy value along with their position rank in my projections compared to their position rank by Fantrax ADP. That intersection gives us their total fantasy and ADP value. The red lines are the cut-offs for those with positive fantasy value and positive draft value. These are some of the defencemen I’ve been focusing on:

Let’s discuss them.

Rasmus Dahlin (Buffalo Sabres)

The very top of my board has for overall fantasy value among blue liners has Cale Makar and Zach Werenski, which makes sense. Dahlin is my third defenceman, ahead of both Quinn Hughes and Evan Bouchard. Once Buffalo came alive last year, so did Dahlin, posting 58 points in 55 games from December 1^st onward. My projections have him with his first career point-per-game effort, and that makes him a draft value this season.

[Follow the link for more…] (sept25)

Have a good week, folks!

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