20 Fantasy Thoughts: Ehlers finally delivering on great expectations

There is perhaps no more polarizing and frustrating player in fantasy hockey than Nikolaj Ehlers. 

The talent and skill are undeniable, but the production typically underwhelming. Ehlers has just one 60-plus point season since 2017-18 and he seems to always be the odd man out when it comes to ice time, constantly leaving fantasy general managers wanting more. This season, however early it may be, Ehlers appears to be a new player, with real potential to meet expectations. 

Ehlers has points in every game so far but one, for a total of 10 in eight contests. The Winnipeg Jets forward also has at least three shots in five of those games. He’s thriving, which is somewhat surprising, because in many ways his circumstances aren’t all that different compared to years past. 

One thing that has changed is the head coach, though Scott Arniel was an assistant with Jets last year and the team isn’t playing much differently than they were under Rick Bowness. They’restill a defensively responsible squad with good structure. Ehlers is also still on the second line, away from the likes of Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor, Winnipeg’s most potent offensive players. His ice time also hasn’t increased and believe it or not, heading into Saturday night he was averaging only 15:28 per game, which is less than he got last year.

What has changed is maybe Arniel’s belief in Ehlers. He’s on the top power-play unit and seeing an increase in his offensive zone starts, going from 66.9 per cent last year to 71.8 per cent in 2024-25. If you’re looking for a more specific example, look no further than Thursday night against the Seattle Kraken. Arniel sent Ehlers out as the extra attacker in overtime when Seattle had a delayed penalty, and he promptly took a pass in the high slot and wasted no time in ripping it through Joey Daccord to keep the Jets undefeated. 

Ehlers seems to playing with more confidence than he’s shown in some time and the timing couldn’t be better. He’s in a contract year and if he continues on this pace Ehlers is going to be rewarded with a huge deal next summer. 

Everyone that plays fantasy hockey has one player that they never give up on no matter how many times they get let down or are disappointed. Ehlers has been that player for a number of years on many fantasy teams, but this year he may just flip the script. Better late than never. 

1. Tom Wilson has already scored five goals, tallying in each of the first four games of the season for the Washington Capitals. We know Wilson can pile up the hits, but it’s been a few seasons since he was really fantasy relevant offensively. He’s shooting at 35.7 per cent right now, so it could be a sell-high situation. If your league doesn’t count hits, you may want to see what’s out there on the trade market for Wilson. 

2. Still no goals for Buffalo's Dylan Cozens in what was supposed to be a bounce-back season. His shot volume and hit coverage have been inconsistent as well, so Cozens is a challenging hold in one-year leagues. He’s probably getting close to drop territory if you’re in danger if digging yourself a hole you can’t get out of. 

3. Miro Heiskanen’s 2024-25 campaign so far is just furthering the narrative he’s a much better NHL player than a fantasy-hockey asset. He finally recorded his first point on Thursday for the Stars, has just three hits and five games where he’s posted only one shot or less. Heiskanen always gets drafted way too high in my humble opinion. 

4. Teuvo Teravainen got off to a great start to the season for the Chicago Blackhawks. He was really clicking with Connor Bedard and started out with seven points in his first five games. However, Teravainen has promptly now gone four straight without a point and I think we’ll continue to see that type of inconsistency from him all year. The Blackhawks aren’t deep enough and it’s going to be challenging for them to avoid tough defensive matchups for the top line. Teravainen is probably around a 50-point player in a best-case scenario. 

5. Michael Bunting was made a healthy scratch late last week. It’s a disappointing outcome for a player that had 19 points in 21 games last year after joining the Pittsburgh Penguins and even more so considering Bunting was playing with Evgeni Malkin, who got off to a torrid start. It’s hard to see Bunting to become relevant again unless there’s a major turn of events. 

6. Speaking of Penguins healthy scratches, Tristan Jarry appears to be the odd man out in goal right now. With Alex Nedeljkovic healthy and Joel Blomqvist emerging as a solid option, it’s going to take a lot for Jarry to work himself back into the crease. We’ve seen goalies get shut down for a week or two only to find their game again, but I’m not necessarily banking on that with Jarry. I don’t think the Pens are strong enough anymore to help prop Jarry up and they are giving up high quality chances left and right, so I’d start looking for other options between the pipes on your fantasy squad. 

7. I don’t see Brent Burns getting his No. 1 power-play spot in Carolina back anytime soon. Shayne Gostisbehere recently had a stretch where he had goals in four straight games and three points with the man advantage over that stretch. Burns was clearly declining last year, so drafting Gostisbehere was a savvy move. Earlier this week Gostisbehere was still available in almost 40 per cent in leagues, but now that number has dropped to almost 30 per cent. 

8. It looks like Marco Rossi has cemented the No. 1 centre spot for the Minnesota Wild. He has seven points in his past seven games and while it’s still early, it looks like Rossi could be headed for a breakout season. Rossi has had opportunities that he couldn’t take advantage of before but this year feels different. Minnesota seems content keeping Joel Eriksson Ek on the second line to balance out the offence, so Rossi doesn’t have a lot of other competition to fend off for the spot. It also doesn’t hurt that Kirill Kaprizov is off to a hot start. At only 12 per cent rostered, I’d grab Rossi while you still can. 

9. Meanwhile, between the pipes, Filip Gustavsson had been sensational for the Wild before Saturday’s rough outing against the Philadelphia Flyers. He was 4-0-1 with a .952 save percentage prior to Saturday and it appeared like he was bouncing back in major way from last year’s rough campaign. Gustavsson may end up being the best value goalie this season if Minnesota can keep it going, as he had an ADP of 146 in drafts. It also could mean a good opportunity to sell high before more games like he had against the Flyers pop up. I have my doubts Gustavsson and the Wild can maintain this level of play for the majority of the season, so if you’re well stocked in the crease, you may want to see if someone is interested in Gustavsson for a big return. 

10. Jake Sanderson is becoming a power-play aficionado. Six of his seven points this season with the Senators have come with the man advantage and he’s getting huge minutes right now, currently sitting in the top 10 in the NHL for ice time. There was a bit of a power struggle for fantasy value between Sanderson and Thomas Chabot over the past couple of seasons, but Sanderson has clearly pulled away. He’s the blueliner to roster in Ottawa going forward. 

11. I thought Joel Hofer was emerging as a good Zero-G candidate after starting 3-0-0 with a .932 save percentage and a shutout, but the St. Louis Blues promptly gave Jordan Binnington the next three starts. Binnington was good in two of those games and it feels like the crease may have shifted back to him again. It’s so hard to get the timing right when snagging a bargain goalie off waivers. One more quality start from Hofer and maybe he is running with the job on an improved Blues squad. Let’s also not forget about Binnington’s contract, I also think that plays a part in the goalie rotation. Teams tend to fall back on the guy making significantly more money unless they are getting vastly outperformed. 

12. That’s the challenge Justus Annunen is facing, too. Annunen has been excellent in three starts since taking over for Alex Georgiev in Colorado and is a must-add right now, but we all know how loyal Jared Bednar is to Georgiev. One bad start from Annunen and he could easily turn back to Georgiev. Don’t forget Kaapo Kahkonen is also in the mix now. Annunen might have the most upside out of any goalie on waivers right now, but when deciding between him and Alex Lyon, I chose the Detroit Red Wings netminder. I think his path to keeping the top job is safer and I was looking for volume. 

13. Yegor Chinakhov has become a major fantasy asset this season. He’s tallied a point in every game but two, has solid shot volume and isn’t bad for hits either. The Columbus Blue Jackets play four times next week, so it’s not a bad time to give Chinakhov a look. 

14. A few teams have the great Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Sunday schedule next week, including Calgary, Tampa and Winnipeg. Yegor Sharangovich returned to the lineup Saturday for the Flames and is just 38 per cent rostered. He was great last year and has C/RW eligibility. 

As for the Jets, I’d look at Cole Perfetti, who is really heating up. He has nine points in his past five games, including a pair of contests where he had at least three points. If Perfetti can give you even one game like that next week, he’ll be worth the pickup. 

Dallas probably has the worst schedule next week, playing just twice in a back-to-back against the Florida Panthers. Those games are Friday/Saturday, so any Stars on your roster will be sitting for four days. It’s tough to drop a Star, but you should look to swap out anyone from Dallas that’s on the fringes of your roster. 

15. The Toronto Maple Leafs also play four times, which could make Bobby McMann an interesting pickup as well. Though he hasn’t always been consistent, McMann has 18 goals in his past 65 games and, after an early scratch, seems firmly entrenched in the lineup. The challenge with adding McMann is that after playing a few good games with William Nylander and Max Domi, head coach Criag Berube bumped him down the lineup Saturday. If he’s not with those two, McMann’s value drops significantly.

Still, McMann can provide decent hit coverage if your league counts those. He might not be consistent enough to roster full time, but a week with four games is probably the best time to take a chance on McMann. 

16. Kiefer Sherwood could become a trendy waiver add very soon. He’s piling up the hits for the Vancouver Canucks, tallying 50 already on the year. It definitely doesn’t hurt that he has a four-game point streak going as well. 

17. Lukas Dostal looks like a legit fantasy option to me. It’s not like he was bad a season ago, but given the Anaheim Ducks aren’t a strong team, there was always a chance he could be on the receiving end of some blowout losses. Dostal has had quality starts in every game but one this year and three of those came against quality competition versus the New York Rangers, Los Angeles and Colorado. With John Gibson injured and a possibility he could be dealt this season, Dostal should also see an increase in playing time, too. Maybe Dostal isn’t a No. 1 option for your fantasy team just yet, but he’s probably a safe No. 2. 

18. The Flames' Rasmus Andersson could be a great sell-high option right now. He’s shockingly already tallied 10 points, which would account for more than 25 per cent of his total from last year. Andersson has never topped 50 points in a season and he’s not on the top power-play unit, so eventually this hot start is going to fizzle. 

19. There was so much hype around Matvei Michkov in the pre-season and he’s more than lived up to it so far. The Flyers forward is averaging more than a point per game and already has three multi-point outings. He’s getting great ice time as well and there hasn’t even been a whiff of friction with John Tortorella. There’s a chance Michkov could greatly exceed most of the pre-season point projections he was tabbed for. 

20. It’s hard to believe we’re pushing November and Zach Hyman just recorded his first point. For a player that scored 50 last year in Edmonton and averaged more than a point per game over the past two seasons, it’s a shocking and disappointing development. The ice time and shot volume are still solid and Hyman is still playing with Connor McDavid, so it would be foolish to give up on him this early. But it’s understandable to have some concern.

We have seen an Edmonton Oilers forward regress mightily in recent years, as Ryan Nugent-Hopkins went from more than 100 points in 2022-23 to 67 points last year. I’m not saying the same thing is going to happen to Hyman, but Nugent-Hopkins is a good example of how someone can catch lightning in a bottle playing next to McDavid. 

Similar to players like Elias Pettersson and Jack Hughes in Vancouver that started off a bit slow, the best path forward at this point in the season is still patience. People are going to be sending buy-low offers for Hyman, but you can’t move a second-round pick and bona-fide keeper like Hyman just yet. Edmonton is going to really start clicking sooner or later and hopefully Hyman can take advantage of it.