Fantasy top 100 forwards: Gaudreau eyes rookie lore

Every Tuesday during the season, NHL.com fantasy hockey insider Pete Jensen will provide you with in-depth forward analysis. From updated weekly top 100 rankings to trending players and more, Jensen will be your go-to guy for fantasy forward advice all season long.

Once upon a time this season, Nashville Predators forward Filip Forsberg was the clear front-runner for the Calder Trophy. But his ongoing slump and a late push by "Johnny Hockey" will make for an interesting race to the finish.

Not only has Calgary Flames forward Johnny Gaudreau found his way back into the rookie-of-the-year race during Forsberg's dry spell, but the Boston College product is also on pace to reach rarefied air among first-year players of recent seasons.

Gaudreau, on pace for 62 points in 81 games, could approach the highest total for points by a rookie since 2008-09 (63) -- held by Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche (2013-14) and Jeff Skinner of the Carolina Hurricanes (2010-11). The most single-season points by a rookie before that came in 2007-08, when Patrick Kane and Nicklas Backstrom scored 72 and 69, respectively. Gaudreau has 23 points in 30 games since Jan. 1, and has put forth his best stretch of the season at an opportune time for Calgary with nine points in his past seven games. Last week, Gaudreau had back-to-back multipoint efforts for the fourth time this season.

Forsberg, meanwhile, is still on pace for 62 points, but won't be much longer if his scoring funk continues. After hanging with the NHL leaders with 50 points in his first 55 games, the Predators rookie has two goals and two assists over his past 16 games. He still carries a ton of value in Yahoo leagues with tri eligibility (LW/C/RW) and quality linemates, but with 11 games left compared to Gaudreau's 13, his grasp on the rookie scoring lead is unraveling.

Fantasy owners had their share of concerns regarding Gaudreau from a team and size standpoint entering the season (Yahoo average draft position: 165.4), but there's been nothing diminutive about the 5-foot-9 wing's efforts. He's a huge reason why the Flames have managed to maintain their Stanley Cup Playoff standing (for now) in the Western Conference despite a season-ending injury to captain Mark Giordano.

Gaudreau (57 percent owned in Yahoo; LW) and linemate Jiri Hudler have combined on 27 team goals with each scoring a point, tied for 11th in the League among all point pairs. After Josh Jooris' injury in early January, Sean Monahan (53 percent; C) took the Gaudreau-Hudler line to even greater heights. According to Elias Sports Bureau, Monahan and Hudler have 17 points apiece since Feb. 14 (T-4th in NHL over span), and Gaudreau has been along for the ride with 12 in those 14 games.

Whether or not Gaudreau ends up winning the rookie scoring title or eclipsing the best first-year totals from recent seasons, he and his linemates have established themselves as must-own fantasy forwards. For those in keeper formats, Monahan, 20, and Gaudreau, 21, are among the most promising 21-and-under forwards in the game -- and the fact that the youthful Flames are already on the cusp of the postseason could only accelerate their fantasy cause for years to come.

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TRENDING UP

Vladimir Tarasenko, RW, St. Louis Blues

There hasn't been an NHL player with 40-plus goals, 40-plus assists and a plus-30 rating in a single season since Daniel Sedin of the Vancouver Canucks did it in 2010-11. Tarasenko, one of my preseason breakout candidates, has 34 goals, 33 assists and a plus-29, giving him a legitimate chance to reach those heights with 13 games left on the table. The 23-year-old had two goals, one assist and 15 shots on goal in four games last week, and is among the top 10 League-wide in goals, points, plus-minus and SOG (237). He's only played five more games than he did last season but has shattered his previous career highs in nearly every offensive category. He's been the biggest forward surprise in fantasy hockey this season considering his average draft position was 159.6. He's not shooting at a ridiculous rate either (14.3 in 2014-15, 15.4 in 2013-14), which bodes well for his keeper-league sustainability.

TRENDING DOWN

James Neal, LW/RW, Nashville Predators

Forsberg isn't the only Predators forward slumping these days, and Neal's fall from fantasy grace has been just as staggering. With one goal and no assists in his past 11 games, Neal has fewer points through 63 games this season (35) than he did in 40 games during the shortened season of 2012-13 (36). Though his goal-scoring is still respectable, only Mike Cammalleri, Nino Niederreiter and Matt Beleskey have 20-plus goals and fewer assists than Neal's 13. Owners can't afford to drop him with the head-to-head fantasy playoffs underway, but he's fallen way out of the top-50 forward conversation after another slow week. Especially with news that Neal is day-to-day because of an upper-body injury, it's time to stash him on your fantasy bench or in an IR+ spot if you have productive players waiting in the wings.

KEEP AN EYE ON

Teuvo Teravainen, LW/C, Chicago Blackhawks

Fantasy owners have come to know Teravainen's name because of his keeper-league value, but with Kane done for the regular season, the Blackhawks are banking on this prized prospect for short-term assistance. He's seeing time at even strength next to Antoine Vermette and Brandon Saad, and has a goal and two assists (one power-play point) in six games since being recalled from the American Hockey League. The biggest development here is that Teravainen has gone from minimal power-play usage in his first three games after the call-up to logging serious time with the man advantage in his next three against the New York Rangers (3:31), Arizona Coyotes (4:27) and San Jose Sharks (2:47). If you're in a deep league and looking for a high-upside pickup from an elite team, Teravainen (two percent) should be your guy -- especially with the Blackhawks tied for the most games remaining League-wide (14).

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TOP 100 FANTASY FORWARDS

These rankings are based on expectations for the season ahead. Upward and downward trends are based on games since March 10, 2015. Value is quantified by line combinations, overall upside and past performance in standard Yahoo categories (goals, assists, plus-minus, penalty minutes, power-play points and shots on goal). Games remaining, as of March 17, 2015, have also been factored in.

1. Alex Ovechkin, LW/RW, WSH (SAME)

2. Sidney Crosby, C, PIT (+1)

3. John Tavares, C, NYI (-1)

4. Steven Stamkos, C/RW, TBL (+1)

5. Evgeni Malkin, C/RW, PIT - DTD

6. Tyler Seguin, C/RW, DAL (SAME)

7. Vladimir Tarasenko, RW, STL (+3)

8. Rick Nash, LW/RW, NYR (SAME)

9. Claude Giroux, C/RW, PHI (-2)

10. Nicklas Backstrom, C, WSH (-1)

11. Max Pacioretty, LW, MTL (+1)

12. Jakub Voracek, RW, PHI (-1)

13. Joe Pavelski, LW/C/RW, SJS (SAME)

14. Pavel Datsyuk, LW/C, DET (+2)

15. Henrik Zetterberg, LW/C, DET (+4)

16. Jamie Benn, LW/C, DAL (-1)

17. Zach Parise, LW, MIN (+1)

18. Tyler Johnson, C/RW, TBL (-4)

19. Jonathan Toews, C, CHI (+2)

20. Ryan Getzlaf, C, ANA (+2)

21. Nick Foligno, LW, CBJ (+4)

22. Andrew Ladd, LW, WPG (+2)

23. Ryan Johansen, C/RW, CBJ (SAME)

24. David Backes, C/RW, STL (+2)

25. Filip Forsberg, LW/C/RW, NSH (-8)

26. Alexander Steen, LW/C, STL (+2)

27. Blake Wheeler, RW, WPG (+3)

28. Corey Perry, RW, ANA (-8)

29. Nikita Kucherov, LW/RW, TBL (-2)

30. Jeff Carter, C/RW, LAK (+6)

31. David Perron, LW/RW, PIT (+6)

32. Marian Hossa, RW, CHI (+6)

33. Daniel Sedin, LW, VAN (-2)

34. Patric Hornqvist, RW, PIT - DTD

35. Patrice Bergeron, C, BOS (-2)

36. Logan Couture, LW/C, SJS (-4)

37. Anze Kopitar, C, LAK (+4)

38. Wayne Simmonds, RW, PHI (+2)

39. Tomas Tatar, LW, DET (-4)

40. Radim Vrbata, RW, VAN (-1)

41. Gabriel Landeskog, LW, COL (+1)

42. Jason Spezza, C, DAL (-8)

43. Joe Thornton, C, SJS (+1)

44. T.J. Oshie, C/RW, STL (+5)

45. Jaden Schwartz, LW, STL (-2)

46. Ryan Callahan, RW, TBL (+4)

47. Bryan Little, C/RW, WPG - DTD

48. Jiri Hudler, LW/RW, CGY (+11)

49. Gustav Nyquist, C/RW, DET (+2)

50. Henrik Sedin, C, VAN (-3)

51. Patrick Sharp, LW/C, CHI (+7)

52. Marian Gaborik, LW/RW, LAK (+4)

53. Ryan Kesler, C/RW, ANA (+2)

54. Kyle Okposo, RW, NYI (-9)

55. Bobby Ryan, LW/RW, OTT (-2)

56. Derick Brassard, C, NYR (-2)

57. Milan Lucic, LW, BOS (+6)

58. Jarome Iginla, RW, COL (+6)

59. Scott Hartnell, LW, CBJ (+9)

60. Johnny Gaudreau, LW, CGY (+12)

61. Chris Kunitz, LW, PIT (-4)

62. Anders Lee, LW/C, NYI (+4)

63. Eric Staal, LW/C, CAR (-2)

64. Chris Kreider, LW, NYR (+5)

65. Sean Monahan, C, CGY (+17)

66. Phil Kessel, RW, TOR (-4)

67. James Neal, LW/RW, NSH - DTD

68. Tomas Plekanec, C, MTL (+3)

69. Mike Ribeiro, C, NSH (-4)

70. Jason Pominville, RW, MIN (+3)

71. Derek Stepan, C, NYR (-4)

72. Mark Stone, RW, OTT (+18)

73. Patrick Marleau, LW/C, SJS (-3)

74. Brad Marchand, LW, BOS (+1)

75. Brendan Gallagher, RW, MTL (+1)

76. Jaromir Jagr, RW, FLA (+2)

77. Tyler Toffoli, RW, LAK (+2)

78. Brandon Saad, LW/RW, CHI (+6)

79. Craig Smith, C/RW, NSH (+2)

80. Mats Zuccarello, LW/RW, NYR (-3)

81. Matt Duchene, LW/C, COL (+6)

82. Jordan Eberle, RW, EDM (+14)

83. Jonathan Huberdeau, LW/C, FLA (+6)

84. Justin Abdelkader, LW/RW, DET (NEW)

85. Ryan Strome, C/RW, NYI (-11)

86. James van Riemsdyk, LW, TOR (-6)

87. Mark Scheifele, C, WPG (+8)

88. Nick Bjugstad, C, FLA (-3)

89. Mike Cammalleri, LW/C, NJD (+3)

90. Colin Wilson, LW/C, NSH (-7)

91. Alex Killorn, LW/C, TBL (+9)

92. Mike Hoffman, LW/C, OTT (-6)

93. Alex Tanguay, LW/RW, COL (NEW)

94. Steve Downie, LW/RW, PIT (+5)

95. Alex Galchenyuk, LW/C, MTL (-4)

96. Paul Stastny, C, STL (+2)

97. Valtteri Filppula, LW/C, TBL (-3)

98. Ryan O'Reilly, LW/C, COL (NEW)

99. Thomas Vanek, LW/RW, MIN (NEW)

100. Curtis Glencross, LW, WSH (NEW)

Just Missed: Erik Cole, Kyle Turris, Mikko Koivu, Mika Zibanejad, Blake Comeau, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Loui Eriksson, Mike Fisher, Drew Stafford, Milan Michalek

Dropped out: Turris, Comeau, Fisher

Key injuries: Patrick Kane, Taylor Hall, Martin St. Louis, Ondrej Palat, Nathan MacKinnon, David Krejci, Mathieu Perreault, Brett Connolly, Johan Franzen, Evander Kane, Mikkel Boedker, Valeri Nichushkin, Tanner Pearson, Pascal Dupuis

DTD: Day-to-day

Follow Pete Jensen on Twitter: @NHLJensen