Now that pre-season is underway and we are all getting excited for the regular season to get started, I have provided my top three Fantasy forwards and top Fantasy defenseman for each team in the Western Conference. On top of that, I’ve added a sleeper/breakout player from each team; hopefully this will help you prepare for your upcoming Fantasy draft(s).
Anaheim Ducks 1) Corey Perry 2) Ryan Getzlaf 3) Ryan Kesler Top D – Cam Fowler Sleeper – Sami Vatanen - 6G 15A 21PTS in 48GP last year, could get 45-50 points in full season if given sufficient power play time.
Arizona Coyotes 1) Mikkel Boedker 2) Sam Ganger 3) Antoine Vermette Top D –Oliver Ekman-Larsson / Keith Yandle (both excellent) Sleeper – Max Domi – Expect 35-40 points from Domi in a top 6 role with power play time, I think this is the year Domi breaks into the NHL and has a great rookie season.
Calgary Flames 1) Jiri Hudler 2) Curtis Glencross 3) Sean Monahan Top D – Mark Giordano Sleeper – Johnny Gaudreau – You don’t always need to have a big frame to produce, expect Gaudreau to be alongside sophomore sensation Sean Monahan. If things click you may see both of these players hit the 45-50 point mark, which would be excellent for the Flames in their rebuild.
Chicago Blackhawks 1) Jonathan Toews 2) Patrick Kane 3) Patrick Sharp Top D – Duncan Keith Breakout – Brandon Saad – After an excellent season last year, expect things to continue to progress for Saad, as he will be alongside Patrick Kane and likely either Brad Richards or Andrew Shaw…all depending on how Richards does with that line. No matter how it pans out, Saad will put up over 50 points, likely just shy of 60.
Colorado Avalanche 1) Nathan MacKinnon 2) Matt Duchene 3) Gabriel Landeskog Top D – Tyson Barrie Breakout – Alex Tanguay – One of the best top 6 forward lineups in the league, Colorado hopes that Tanguay can get back on track to his point per game totals he once tallied. Keep this name in mind; I have a feeling he’s going to have a monster season for the Avalanche as long as he can stay healthy all season. I predict 65 points for Alex.
Dallas Stars 1) Jamie Benn 2) Tyler Seguin 3) Jason Spezza Top D – Alex Goligoski Breakout – Valeri Nichushkin – To me, Nichushkin is likely going to be one of the best, if not the best sophomore fantasy player in the NHL this season. Playing with Benn and Seguin is going to be huge for Valeri, expect him to have a high scoring season – don’t be shy to grab him when the first line players are starting to fall off the radar.
Edmonton Oilers 1) Taylor Hall 2) Jordan Eberle 3) Ryan Nugent-Hopkins Top D – Justin Schultz Sleeper – Nail Yakupov – Last season was awful for Nail Yakupov, he only got 24 points in 63 games and had a horrendous -33 on the season. This is not the Nail Yakupov that Edmonton got with the first overall pick in 2012. Perron and possibly Edmonton’s newest forward Leon Draisaitl will attempt to get things back on track for the Oilers. With risk comes reward, and I think Yakupov is worth the risk this season…I predict he breaks 40 points and brings that +- to single digits with a -5 on the season.
Los Angeles Kings 1) Anze Kopitar 2) Marian Gaborik 3) Jeff Carter Top D – Drew Doughty Sleeper – Tyler Toffoli - After that cup run we all know Toffoli is going to get some attention in this year’s Fantasy drafts…but how much attention? Jeff Carter and Toffoli were dynamite together. Carrying over and building off last season’s success is exactly what Toffoli has in mind; expect 50-55 points for the young sophomore.
Minnesota Wild 1) Zach Parise 2) Thomas Vanek 3) Jason Pominville Top D – Ryan Suter Sleeper – Mikael Granlund – Coming off a 41 point season, you can bet your bottom dollar that Granlund is primed and ready to explode this season for the Wild. Hopefully he will get lots of ice time with Pominville and Vanek as there is no doubt they would up his Fantasy value tremendously.
Nashville Predators 1) James Neal 2) Mike Ribeiro 3) Craig Smith Top D – Shea Weber Sleeper – Seth Jones – Coming off a 25 point season with the Predators you can be sure that Jones will increase his point total. He will be only 20 years old when the season begins, and I am sure he would like to get his +- in much better shape this season, it was an ugly -23 last season. Seth should be scoring more than 6 goals a season, so I would say he gets 10 this year, with 27 assists, totally 37 points, which would be a hefty improvement over last year.
San Jose Sharks 1) Joe Thornton 2) Patrick Marleau 3) Joe Pavelski Top D – Brent Burns Breakout - Logan Couture - with 53 points in 65 games last season you can expect Couture to continue this production alongside veteran Patrick Marleau, expect 65 points for Couture.
St. Louis Blues 1) David Backes 2) Alex Steen 3) Paul Statsny Top D – Alex Pietrangelo Sleeper/Breakout – Jaden Schwartz – Entering his third NHL season and still a RFA, you can see Schwartz has the tools; he will be getting top 6 minutes on quality St. Louis team, whether it be Stastny or Backes as his center. I figure he breaks the 60 point plateau for the first time of his career.
Vancouver Canucks 1) Henrik Sedin 2) Daniel Sedin 3) Radim Vrbata Top D – Alexander Edler Sleeper/Breakout – Nick Bonino - Bonino came to the Canucks in the Kesler trade…he had a breakout season with 49 points, that being said; I feel he still has a good season, but falls shy of last year’s point total with 45 this year.
Winnipeg Jets 1) Blake Wheeler 2) Andrew Ladd 3) Evander Kane Top D – Tobias Enstrom Sleeper – Jacob Trouba – Fans of the Jets will love this kid if they don’t already…only 20 years old and has a great career ahead of him; 29 points last year in 69 games, expect another 10 points from Trouba as well as a good chunk of penalty minutes and hits.
Thank you for reading, I will be sure to post an Eastern Conference list soon!