Fantasy face-off: Most valuable right wing for 2018-19

NHL.com compares elite right wings Nikita Kucherov, Patrik Laine and David Pastrnak to see who is most valuable at the position in fantasy for 2018-19. See how these players compare in terms of scoring, category coverage, team security, lineup placement and other factors before viewing the @NHLFantasy Twitter poll results. For more fantasy coverage, visit NHL.com/Fantasy.

NOTE: Players are listed in order of rank in NHL.com's top 250.
Nikita Kucherov, TBL -- The Tampa Bay Lightning right wing finished second in Yahoo last season with an NHL career-high 100 points (39 goals, 61 assists) in 80 games. Kucherov was part of an elite first-line duo with center Steven Stamkos, who finished eighth in Yahoo. Kucherov was the only player in the NHL with at least 100 points, 30 power-play points and 200 shots on goal. He gains additional value playing on a strong team and having the security of a talented power-play unit (23.9 percent last season, third in NHL). These gaudy numbers make him a lock to be selected among the top five in season-long fantasy drafts. Even with the injury concerns surrounding Stamkos, Kucherov would still thrive playing with No. 2 center Brayden Point, who broke out for 66 points in 82 games last season. Kucherov, NHL.com's highest ranked fantasy right wing, has the third best points-per-game average over the past two seasons (1.20), behind only Connor McDavid (1.27) and Evgeni Malkin (1.21).

Patrik Laine, WPG -- The Winnipeg Jets wing ranks second in goals per game (0.52) in his two NHL seasons, trailing only Malkin (0.54) over the span. Laine's career shooting percentage (18.0) is the highest in the NHL among those with at least 400 shots on goal (445), but he's one of the few players capable of maintaining such a percentage because he's proven he can play in multiple lineup spots, even away from center Mark Scheifele. Even after the departure of veteran center Paul Stastny in free agency (signed with Vegas Golden Knights), Laine should be just fine on a line with bounce-back candidate Bryan Little, underrated forward Mathieu Perreault or prospect Jack Roslovic. If you get the fifth pick in a standard draft and are choosing between Kucherov and Laine, it's hard to ignore the 50-goal potential of Laine, who plays for the top-ranked fantasy team in NHL.com's
power rankings
. Laine could eclipse Alex Ovechkin for the NHL lead in goals as early as this season.

David Pastrnak, BOS --The Boston Bruins right wing had an NHL career-high 80 points (35 goals, 45 assists) in 82 games. He played on the best top line in the NHL, featuring center Patrice Bergeron and left wing Brad Marchand. Pastrnak built on his elite regular season by scoring 20 points (six goals, 14 assists) in 12 Stanley Cup Playoff games. His ceiling is even higher considering Marchand (68 games) and Bergeron (64) did not play a full season. If healthy, each player on this line can score at least 30 goals and finish among the fantasy top 20. It's a feasible season-long fantasy stacks to target Marchand or Pastrnak in the first round and then Bergeron a round or two later. Pastrnak followed up his breakout season (2016-17 Yahoo rank: 12th) with a top 20 finish last season and has catapulted into first-round territory after a stellar postseason.

Next highest ranked right wings in NHL.com's top 250: Blake Wheeler, WPG; Patrick Kane, CHI; Vladimir Tarasenko, STL; Phil Kessel, PIT; Mitchell Marner, TOR