20 Fantasy Thoughts: What will Ovechkin do for an encore next season?

Alex Ovechkin proved the doubters wrong this year.

Not only did he topple a record that very few thought could ever be broken, but Ovechkin also showed those in fantasy hockey circles that he still has plenty left in the tank.

The Washington Capitals star was a fifth-round pick on average in fantasy drafts this season, which was uncharted territory for a player who is used to being taken in the first couple of rounds. You could argue his draft placement was justified this season, given his age and after scoring only 31 goals in 2023-24. Despite that down year, Ovechkin is showing very few signs of slowing down.

There is actually an argument to be made that this was Ovechkin’s most impressive campaign. Yes, he’s had several 50-goal seasons and a 65-goal year to his credit, but scoring 44 goals in 65 games at age 39 is in a category all by itself. Let’s not forget, he missed a significant chunk of time in 2024-25 with a broken leg and the only players that finished with more goals than Ovechkin were Leon Draisaitl and William Nylander.

Ovechkin stated he isn’t retiring following the 2024-25 campaign and instead will return and add to his all-time goals record. You could envision a world where Ovechkin’s numbers fall a bit because the motivation of the chase has ended and he’ll be 40 when next season begins, but given what he showed this year, it’s hard to imagine there’s a massive drop-off. Even if he doesn’t score as much, there are other reasons to be confident in selecting Ovechkin moving forward.

He was on pace for close to 300 shots and nearly 150 hits this year if you extrapolate his numbers out over 82 games, which means he has a high floor if the goals stop going in as consistently as we’re used to. Plus, outside of last year’s freak injury, Ovechkin has remained very healthy throughout his career. There’s a good chance you can count on him for close to 80 games and you don’t have to worry about injuries with Ovechkin like you typically would with other players in their late 30s.

It’s also important to mention the impact Dylan Strome has had on Ovechkin. Strome has developed into a great offensive player and broke out for a point-per-game season this year. This gives Ovechkin a great distributor to play with, something he hasn’t had since Nicklas Backstrom was in his prime. As long as Ovechkin can get open to tee up that devastating wrister, Strome is going to continue to find him.

The 2025-26 season is the final year of Ovechkin’s contract and it may very well be his last one in the NHL. Don’t expect Ovechkin to go out quietly as a player hanging on at the bottom of the lineup, though. If this year proved anything, it’s that Ovechkin is still one of the game’s best scorers, no matter what his age is. If you pass him up in drafts next season, be prepared to regret it.

1. The Utah Hockey Club fell short of the playoffs, but the team was one of the more exciting to watch in 2024-25. The top six is loaded with young talent and as players like Clayton Keller, Logan Cooley and Dylan Guenther get scooped up in drafts next season, don’t forget about Nick Schmaltz in the later rounds. He set a new career high with 63 points this season and is a very consistent scorer who can help you in points leagues.

2. Colton Parayko returned from injury last weekend, tallying his 16th goal of the season. He’s done that in only 64 games this year. Granted, his shooting percentage has been much higher than normal, but it’s starting to feel like he has a nose for the net. Parayko will never finish with massive point totals, but this is now the fourth time he’s registered double-digit goals as a defenceman. The St. Louis Blues veteran has a little more value than just hits and blocks.

3. Speaking of Blues defencemen, Cam Fowler has looked rejuvenated since arriving in St. Louis. He scored 36 points in 51 games for the Blues, which works out to almost a 60-point pace. I don’t expect him to score at that rate for a full season in 2025-26, but Fowler is certainly fantasy relevant once again.

4. The Seattle Kraken are a tough team to read fantasy hockey-wise. There’s a lot of talent on their roster, but very few of their skaters have a ton of value in fantasy. Shane Wright is one example, as he looks like he’s developing into a solid two-way player, though you’d like to see some of the offensive numbers improve. For instance, he managed 19 goals this season without even breaking 100 shots on net. That’s going to eventually lead to somewhat of a regression when that shooting percentage comes down, so Wright needs to up those shot totals to avoid that. He’s still only 21 and far from a finished product, so next year will be a big one for Wright and his career trajectory when it comes to fantasy.

5. Kudos to Connor Brown for notching four goals in a three-game stretch late in the season. The Edmonton Oilers forward has now reached 13 goals after a brutal campaign last year, where he finished with just four. Brown is a two-time 20-goal scorer, including a season in Ottawa a couple of years ago where he scored 21 in just 56 games. I’m still amazed he didn’t click better with Connor McDavid when given an opportunity last season.

6. Jet Greaves did everything he could to get the Columbus Blue Jackets in the playoffs over the past two weeks, including winning five games with a .975 save percentage and two shutouts. It remains to be seen what the Blue Jackets do in goal next season, but both Elvis Merzlikins and Daniil Tarasov’s numbers weren’t great this season. Columbus is a team on the rise, and perhaps Greaves gets a longer look in 2025-26.

7. It was a 31-goal season for Adam Fantilli, who couldn’t have been more impressive in his sophomore campaign. What stood out to me the most is how Fantilli stepped up in big moments, including scoring six goals over a four-game stretch during the final days of the season when the Blue Jackets had no room for error. It also didn’t hurt that Fantilli registered over 100 hits. He’s a versatile player you should target next season.

8. If you’re in a playoff pool, you may want to look Morgan Rielly’s way if you believe in the Toronto Maple Leafs. Rielly has picked it up of late, notching six assists in a five-game stretch recently. He’s known to elevate his game in the post-season and has played much better since Brandon Carlo arrived.

9. What a close to the season for Charlie Coyle. With the Colorado Avalanche missing a handful of players, Coyle took advantage of a promotion to the top six and notched 11 points in his final six games. That also included a pair of three-point outings. Coyle can produce offensively and does have a 60-point campaign to his credit, so watch for him next year if players like Jonathan Drouin and Brock Nelson don’t return to Colorado. Coyle could be featured more prominently.

10. It might be worth grabbing Gabriel Landeskog off waivers and holding him through the summer to see how the playoffs go. It’s a low-risk, high-reward move, and if nothing else, Landeskog seems very motivated to get back to playing at a high level. There’s really nothing to lose.

11. Is there cause for concern about Joel Eriksson Ek’s injuries? He was tremendous in the final few games for the Minnesota Wild after returning from injury, scoring four goals and posting eight shots in his first night back. Eriksson Ek provides tremendous category coverage, so you hope this season isn’t the start of a trend where he misses significant time. The Wild forward was mostly healthy for the previous three seasons, though, so I wouldn’t hit the panic button just yet.

12. You have to be very encouraged with the way Frank Nazar has performed down the stretch, scoring five goals and nine points in his final eight games. The Chicago Blackhawks figure to be active in free agency and can hopefully add some talent this off-season to help Nazar and Connor Bedard out. I’d target Nazar with a late-round pick next season.

13. It was an electric debut for Ivan Demidov of the Montreal Canadiens, notching a goal and an assist in his first game. He’s already 13 per cent rostered, even though he only played in two late regular-season contests, as people are no doubt planning to keep him next year. If you want to draft Demidov next season, you’re going to have to target him sooner rather than later, especially if he has an impressive post-season. The hype is real.

14. It’s hard to believe Alexandar Georgiev averaged 39 wins over the previous two seasons. Even with his up-and-down play, Georgiev was a great option for fantasy because of the wins, but this year has been a nightmare, and the San Jose Sharks have indicated he won’t be returning. Georgiev may very well end up on a much better squad this summer in a lesser role, but I’d still avoid him in drafts.

15. I think Pavel Dorofeyev has staying power. The Vegas Golden Knights forward’s 35 goals this season came on a shooting percentage lower than his career average, and he posted more than 250 shots on goal. Target Dorofeyev in leagues with an emphasis on goals next season without hesitation.

16. JJ Peterka delivered a breakout season, posting 68 points in 77 games. Often bouncing back and forth from rosters to waivers in numerous leagues in the past, Peterka is likely going to be a season-long hold moving forward, no matter how much the Buffalo Sabres continue to struggle.

17. Brandon Hagel is one skater who moved into a different tier this season. The Tampa Bay Lightning forward has improved significantly every year since joining the team, hitting the 90-point mark in 2024-25 for the first time in his career. Remarkably, Hagel did all of this with 35 even-strength goals and none on the man advantage. If he can increase that power-play production next season, Hagel might still have another gear to get to.

18. Nikita Kucherov has now won the Art Ross Trophy in back-to-back years, which begs the question: Where should you draft him next season? He had an average draft position of 4.8 last year, but after consecutive scoring titles, Kucherov is building a real case to go even higher. That means Kucherov would have to be taken ahead of one of Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon or Leon Draisaitl to work his way into the top three, which some might find risky. That said, Kucherov has managed to stay healthy over the past three seasons and has missed just a handful of games while posting at least 110 points in each of those campaigns. Jake Guentzel has also fit in swimmingly with the Lightning and could benefit from Kucherov’s game for the foreseeable future. Kucherov is becoming one of the safest high-end picks out there.

19. Ottawa is proving to be the perfect landing spot for Dylan Cozens. After two very challenging seasons in Buffalo, Cozens notched 16 points in 21 games with the Senators and showed flashes of the near 70-point player he was a few years back. Cozens has scored at a 63-point pace since arriving in Ottawa and looked like a completely different player with his new team. Draft him with confidence next season.

20. The arrival of JT Miller had a good impact on Mika Zibanejad. It was a disappointing season for Zibanejad up until that point, but after Miller joined the New York Rangers, Zibanejad had 33 points in his final 32 games. Miller and Zibanejad played together for a bit. When they split, it gave the Rangers more depth down the middle and more favourable matchups for Zibanejad. Hopefully, this trajectory continues into next season for Zibanejad.

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