Merry Christmas and comfortable holidays to all the Dobber readers!
With the NHL on its vacation break, it is time for my annual Christmas want checklist. In the present day, we’re sending Santa our needs for the second half of the NHL season. Whether or not it is groups to maintain performing the way in which they’re, particular gamers persevering with to supply strong fantasy worth, or simply gamers having the ability to keep on the ice, listed here are the fantasy hockey needs I am making this Christmas.
Simply Keep Wholesome
Beginning with preseason accidents to prime names like Matthew Tkachuk and Aleksander Barkov, up till now, accidents have been an enormous storyline thus far this season. It is not simply your creativeness as NHL Damage Viz highlighted final week how the 2025-26 season (black line) is way forward of 2024-25 (yellow line) when it comes to Man Video games Misplaced via every staff’s first 32 video games, and much forward of the 24-year common from 2000-2025 (crimson line):
Simply in real-life phrases, it at all times sucks seeing gamers go down with accidents, however that the harm price is so excessive this season makes fantasy hockey a battle of attrition. Hopefully, issues will enhance within the second half, and we see a drop within the harm charges, however with the Olympics on the horizon, that might not be the case for lots of gamers within the league.
Carolina’s High Stars Discover the Subsequent Gear
It is not as if the Hurricanes are a poor offensive staff – simply contained in the top-10 by goals-for per 60 minutes this season – however none of their prime forwards are on the point-per-game mark and solely Seth Jarvis seems to be to be an inexpensive lock for a 30-goal season (Sebastian Aho is round that tempo, so he may get there, too). Sebastian Aho was over some extent per sport in each 2021-22 and 2023-24, he had 36 objectives in 2022-23, and Martin Necas was over some extent per sport earlier than he was traded final season. That Carolina is scoring nicely however solely Jarvis is offering good fantasy worth amongst their forwards is a priority.
An enormous motive for that is the facility play. From 2023-2025, Aho averaged over one PP level each three video games however he is averaging fewer than one each 4 video games thus far in 2025-26. As a staff, the Hurricanes are within the bottom-half of the league in energy play objectives after ending eighth within the league from 2023-2025. Nearly as good as they’re at even energy, if the Carolina energy play would not get going, their prime forwards are usually not going to have high-end fantasy seasons. As somebody who’s closely invested within the fantasy success of Jarvis, Svechnikov, and Nikolaj Ehlers, a greater energy play can be a welcome sight.
San Jose Are Deadline Patrons and Not Deadline Sellers
One staff I used to be steadily stacking gamers from in fantasy drafts was the San Jose Sharks. I drafted lots of Macklin Celebrini early after which grabbed no less than one in every of Tyler Toffoli, Will Smith, or William Eklund outdoors the top-125 picks. Up to now, so good, and heading into the vacation break, the Sharks are nonetheless within the thick of the playoff race.
Only a few folks actually anticipated the Sharks to push for a playoff spot this 12 months and the subsequent six weeks – main as much as the Olympic break – will seemingly decide what they do as March, and the Commerce Deadline, roll round. The staff has quite a few veterans within the ultimate 12 months of their present contracts – Alex Wennberg, John Klingberg, Mario Ferraro, and Timothy Liljegren, to call just a few, per PuckPedia – and if the staff decides to be sellers on the Deadline, it might have a big effect on their capability to achieve success offensively down the stretch. Once more, as somebody who has lots of San Jose stacks on his fantasy rosters, this isn’t the specified consequence.
It could be nice to see San Jose play no less than .500 hockey over the subsequent month or so and make administration’s determination to commerce away gamers a lot tougher, and possibly even entice them to amass depth choices to assist bolster some holes on the roster. Possibly the Sharks run out of steam and that turns into unlikely, however this can be a want checklist, not a will-happen checklist.
Anaheim Retains Tempo
One other staff I used to be excessive on for fantasy functions, contemplating their low draft value, was the Anaheim Geese. I even wrote within the preseason about how the 2025-26 Anaheim roster might be what the 2024-25 Columbus Blue Jackets had been – a staff that made an enormous leap offensively and supplied lots of fantasy worth to those that invested within the roster. It led me to seize lots of shares of Cutter Gauthier, Leo Carlsson, Mason McTavish (ehhh), Chris Kreider, and Jackson LaCombe. With the Geese being a top-5 staff this season by objectives per 60 minutes, thus far, so good.
The query is whether or not they can sustain the tempo. Simply over the previous few weeks, the staff’s scoring price has slid from top-of-the-line within the league to the center of the pack. Right here is the excellent news: from the vacation break to the tip of the common season, the Frozen Instruments schedule planner has the Geese with the fourth-easiest schedule by opponent factors share. Now, their current schedule hasn’t been overly tough, both, so it is no assure of success, however it does present some hope that they sustain their offensive tempo.
We’ll see how the subsequent month-or-so goes, however it might be good to see Anaheim bolster their blue line a bit and add gamers slightly than subtract them. Possibly they don’t seem to be a top-3 offensive staff within the second half, but when they will simply be a top-10 staff, then they will end the season with their prime gamers being among the many greatest values in fantasy this season, and potential league-winners.
New York Islanders Keep Afloat
Even with lacking just a few video games, Bo Horvat is on tempo for a 40-goal season. Teammate Mathew Barzal began slowly however is over a point-per-game throughout his final 10 video games as his manufacturing is ticking up. After all, there’s star rookie Matthew Schaefer offering large fantasy worth for anybody that believed in his upside within the preseason. Final however actually not least is Ilya Sorokin who had a sluggish begin of his personal however has been one of many prime fantasy goalies over the past couple of months. All this has led to the Islanders being firmly within the playoff race because the NHL entered the vacation break.
The Islanders had been one other staff that I used to be shopping for on within the preseason, although Schaefer was not one in every of them (ouch). To that finish, if they will sustain the offensive success they’ve proven via 37 video games, then they’ll return superb fantasy worth for many who had been drafting them within the preseason. Is that this a self-serving want? After all – it is my very own want checklist. However the Islanders have additionally gone from a staff I dreaded watching to a staff I stay up for watching, and the seasons from Horvat, Barzal, Schaefer, and Sorokin (amongst others) is a giant motive why. The Islanders staying related within the playoff race and maintaining their fantasy success can be very welcome within the second half of the NHL common season.
Buffalo Makes a Run
Final one for at this time, and this is not actually associated to fantasy hockey, although it type of is. The Buffalo Sabres are a staff that, as of a pair years in the past, I believed was poised to turn into a playoff common. That they had found out their prime line, that they had a bevy of prospects on the way in which, that they had drafted Owen Energy first general, and Rasmus Dahlin had become one of many prime defencemen within the league. Every thing was lined up for them to be perennial playoff contenders, and that actually has not been the case.
That could be altering. We now have a protracted strategy to go however heading into their ultimate sport earlier than the vacation break, the Sabres had received six video games in a row and climbed inside three factors of a playoff place. There are lots of groups in the midst of the Jap Convention all bunched round one another, so being three factors out within the East isn’t the identical as being three factors out within the West. Regardless, this current stretch of video games has pushed them again into the playoff dialog, and that is a drastic change from how issues regarded as just lately as early December.
5 of Buffalo’s first six video games out of the vacation break are towards Boston, St. Louis, Columbus, Vancouver, and the New York Rangers (Dallas is the sixth). These are all winnable video games and going one thing like 4-2 or 4-1-1 would seemingly have them proper round a playoff spot. It’s a lot to ask, but when the Sabres wish to keep within the playoff race, they should win video games towards groups they need to beat. The following couple of weeks might very nicely decide if the staff goes to push for a playoff spot or fade down the stretch. Within the spirit of the vacation season, let’s examine an finish to the struggling of Buffalo Sabres followers, and see the staff push for a playoff spot.
From all of us right here at Dobber Hockey and Dobber Prospects, a really comfortable holidays to all of you on the market studying. We couldn’t do what we do with out the assist of the folks perusing the articles and shopping for the fantasy guides, so we’re very grateful for the devoted readership. We hope that you’ve got league-winners in your roster and that your trades work out in your favour. All one of the best to you and yours.
