Fantasy top 100 forward rankings for June 2018

NHL.com updates the top 100 fantasy forward landscape based on past production and expectations for next season in standard Yahoo leagues. Fantasy owners should use these updated rankings as a basis for team evaluation, keeper decisions and offseason draft research. These rankings will be updated throughout the offseason after free agency, trades, injury and prospect news, fantasy mock drafts and other developments.

FANTASY COVERAGE:
Top 250 overall
|
50 defensemen
|
Offseason injury report
2018 NHL Draft, trades roundup
|
Projection for Dahlin
|
Hoffman trade
With the NHL draft over, here are five forwards that can alter the fantasy landscape:
John Tavares, C, NYI -- The New York Islanders center quietly eclipsed 80 points (84) for the third time of his NHL career this season and leads the 2018 class of
unrestricted free agents
. If Tavares signs with the right team, he could easily catapult back into first-round consideration, and his potential departure from the Islanders could lead to at least a short-term dip for Calder Trophy finalist Mathew Barzal and fellow first power-play forwards Anders Lee (potential 2019 UFA), Josh Bailey and defenseman Nick Leddy. The Islanders have hired Hockey Hall of Fame executive Lou Lamoriello, who has since fired coach Doug Weight and general manager Garth Snow and hired Stanley Cup champion coach Barry Trotz. These changes mean Tavares' numbers could still improve if he stays, but New York would need to address its defense and goaltending for their elite center to rejoin the top 15 forwards. Left wing Anthony Beauvillier (potential 2019 RFA), defenseman Ryan Pulock (2018 RFA) and forward prospect Kieffer Bellows give the Islanders hope for the future, regardless of Tavares' decision.
Ilya Kovalchuk, LW/RW, LAK -- The veteran wing will be back in the NHL next season after agreeing to terms with the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday, and fantasy owners should immediately consider him a top 50 overall player again. The 35-year-old has played the past five seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League after leaving the New Jersey Devils following the 2012-13 season. But even in the later stages of his career he is a dynamic playmaker who will have a strong center on his line with the Kings in either Anze Kopitar, a finalist for the Hart Trophy and winner of the Selke Trophy this season, or Jeff Carter. Kovalchuk led the KHL in scoring this season with 63 points (31 goals, 32 assists) in 53 games and instantly becomes the best wing on the Kings roster. Kovalchuk, who has 816 points (417 goals, 399 assists) in 816 career NHL games, has joined the top 50 overall fantasy rankings and has a legitimate chance to reach 70 points on Los Angeles' top line and first power-play unit.
Read: Fantasy projection for Kovalchuk in 2018-19
Max Pacioretty, LW, MTL -- The Montreal Canadiens left wing is entering a contract year and can become an unrestricted free agent July 1, 2019. The Canadiens have top defenseman Shea Weber and goaltender Carey Price under long-term contracts and acquired left wing Max Domi from the Arizona Coyotes, so they could feasibly choose to move on from their captain. Pacioretty was limited to 64 games this season because of a knee injury but has scored at least 30 goals in each of his past five full seasons. Whether he's with the Canadiens or another team, he's a glaring bounce-back candidate in 2018-19.
James van Riemsdyk, LW, TOR -- The Toronto Maple Leafs left wing scored an NHL career-high 36 goals this season even though he averaged 14:54 per game in mostly a third-line role. He scored 11 power-play goals (T-21st in NHL) and ranked third in goals per 60 minutes (1.79) behind Winnipeg Jets right wing Patrik Laine (1.95) and Toronto center Auston Matthews (1.81). Van Riemsdyk can become an unrestricted free agent July 1 and likely won't be back with the Maple Leafs considering Matthews and right wing Mitchell Marner can become 2019 RFAs on July 1, 2019 and forward William Nylander is a potential RFA this July 1. Van Riemsdyk would add goal-scoring pop to a top-six forward group elsewhere, so he has a chance to gain fantasy value depending on whether he lands on a line with an elite center.
Jeff Skinner, LW, CAR -- The Carolina Hurricanes left wing played on the second and third lines last season under coach Bill Peters and regressed from 37 goals in 2016-17 to 24 as a result. With the Hurricanes coming off recent changes in ownership, general manager and coach (to Rod Brind'Amour), Skinner could be traded this offseason with his contract set to expire July 1, 2019. Carolina selected Russian wing Andrei Svechnikov with the No. 2 pick in the 2018 draft and also has young forwards Sebastian Aho, Teuvo Teravainen (potential 2019 RFAs) and Valentin Zykov to build around. A trade would almost certainly boost Skinner's fantasy value for next season and help him rejoin the top 100 forward rankings below.
Read: Fantasy projection for Svechnikov with Hurricanes in 2018-19

TOP 100 FORWARD RANKINGS

Standard Yahoo skater categories include goals, assists, plus/minus, penalty minutes, power-play points and shots on goal. Positions indicate eligibility in Yahoo leagues during 2017-18 season (subject to change at Yahoo's discretion in offseason). ... Value has been quantified based on factors including but not limited to past production, projected line combinations, power-play usage, injury history, sleeper upside, anticipated regression or bounce-back candidacy, age and contract status (pending unrestricted or restricted free agent). ... In addition to players who could become unrestricted or restricted free agents July 1, any potential 2019 UFAs (\) and RFAs (\\) are also noted below. ... INJ. indicates players who dealt with injuries at the end of the regular season and/or in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
1. Connor McDavid, C, EDM
2. Alex Ovechkin, LW, WSH
3. Nikita Kucherov, RW, TBL\*
4. Sidney Crosby, C, PIT
5. Evgeni Malkin, C, PIT
6. Patrik Laine, RW, WPG\\
7. Steven Stamkos, C, TBL
8. Brad Marchand, LW, BOS
9. Nathan MacKinnon, C, COL
10. David Pastrnak, RW, BOS
11. Auston Matthews, C, TOR\\
12. Blake Wheeler, C/RW, WPG*
13. Claude Giroux, C/LW, PHI
14. Tyler Seguin, C/RW, DAL*
15. Jamie Benn, C/LW, DAL
16. Patrick Kane, RW, CHI
17. Taylor Hall, LW, NJD (INJ.)
18. Evgeny Kuznetsov, C, WSH
19. Patrice Bergeron, C, BOS
20. Mark Scheifele, C, WPG
21. Anze Kopitar, C, LAK
22. Phil Kessel, RW, PIT
23. John Tavares, C, NYI (UFA)
24. Vladimir Tarasenko, RW, STL (INJ.)
25. Artemi Panarin, C/LW, CBJ*
26. Aleksander Barkov, C, FLA
27. Jack Eichel, C, BUF
28. Johnny Gaudreau, LW, CGY
29. Filip Forsberg, LW, NSH
30. Joe Pavelski, C/RW, SJS*
31. Ryan Getzlaf, C, ANA
32. Mitchell Marner, C/RW, TOR\\
33. Jakub Voracek, RW, PHI
34. William Karlsson, C/LW, VGK (RFA)
35. Mathew Barzal, C, NYI
36. Evander Kane, LW, SJS
37. Leon Draisaitl, C/RW, EDM
38. Ilya Kovalchuk, LW/RW, LAK
39. Alexander Radulov, RW, DAL
40. Nicklas Backstrom, C, WSH
41. Sean Monahan, C, CGY (INJ.)
42. Jonathan Marchessault, C/LW, VGK
43. Mikko Rantanen, LW/RW, COL\\
44. Brock Boeser, RW, VAN (INJ.)\\
45. Sebastian Aho, LW/RW, CAR\\
46. Rickard Rakell, C/LW/RW, ANA
47. Patric Hornqvist, RW, PIT
48. Sean Couturier, C, PHI (INJ.)
49. Matthew Tkachuk, LW, CGY (INJ.)\\
50. Nikolaj Ehlers, LW/RW, WPG
51. Viktor Arvidsson, LW/RW, NSH
52. Mikael Granlund, C/RW, MIN
53. William Nylander, C/RW, TOR (RFA)
54. Max Pacioretty, LW, MTL (INJ.)*
55. Logan Couture, C/LW, SJS*
56. Cam Atkinson, RW, CBJ
57. Brayden Point, C/RW, TBL\\
58. Vincent Trocheck, C, FLA
59. Jonathan Huberdeau, LW, FLA
60. Brayden Schenn, C/LW, STL
61. Wayne Simmonds, RW, PHI (INJ.)*
62. Eric Staal, C, MIN*
63. Gabriel Landeskog, LW, COL
64. Clayton Keller, C/LW/RW, ARI
65. Anders Lee, LW, NYI*
66. Ryan Johansen, C, NSH
67. Teuvo Teravainen, C/LW/RW, CAR\\
68. Mike Hoffman, LW/RW, FLA
69. Nazem Kadri, C, TOR
70. Jeff Carter, C, LAK
71. Mark Stone, RW, OTT (RFA - INJ.)
72. Evgenii Dadonov, LW/RW, FLA
73. Matt Duchene, C/RW, OTT*
74. Jaden Schwartz, LW, STL (INJ.)
75. Jonathan Toews, C, CHI (INJ.)
76. James van Riemsdyk, LW, TOR (UFA)
77. Reilly Smith, LW/RW, VGK
78. T.J. Oshie, RW, WSH
79. Dylan Larkin, C/RW, DET (RFA)
80. Kyle Connor, LW, WPG\\
81. Chris Kreider, LW, NYR
82. Jake Guentzel, C/LW, PIT\\
83. Pierre-Luc Dubois, C/LW, CBJ
84. Andrei Svechnikov, RW, CAR
85. Dustin Brown, LW/RW, LAK
86. J.T. Miller, C/LW/RW, TBL
87. Jason Zucker, LW/RW, MIN (RFA)
88. Mika Zibanejad, C, NYR
89. Tom Wilson, LW/RW, WSH (RFA)
90. Brendan Gallagher, RW, MTL
91. Tomas Hertl, C/LW/RW, SJS (RFA)
92. Alex DeBrincat, LW/RW, CHI
93. Yanni Gourde, C/RW, TBL*
94. Sam Reinhart, C/LW/RW, BUF (RFA)
95. Pavel Buchnevich, LW/RW, NYR\\
96. Corey Perry, RW, ANA
97. Jordan Eberle, C/RW, NYI*
98. Travis Konecny, C/LW/RW, PHI\\
99. Nico Hischier, C, NJD
100. Alex Galchenyuk, C/LW, ARI
Just missed: Tyler Toffoli, C/RW, LAK; Nino Niederreiter, LW/RW, MIN; Filip Zadina, LW, DET; Jeff Skinner, LW, CAR\; Kevin Fiala, LW/RW, NSH\\; Josh Bailey, LW/RW, NYI; Henrik Zetterberg, C/LW, DET; Tyler Johnson, C/RW, TBL; Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, C, EDM; Bo Horvat, C, VAN; Kyle Palmieri, RW, NJD; Mats Zuccarello, RW, NYR\; Ryan O'Reilly, C, BUF; Nolan Patrick, C, PHI; Alex Tuch, RW, VGK\\
Top potential UFAs: James Neal, LW/RW, VGK; Paul Stastny, C, WPG; Joe Thornton, C, SJS (INJ.); Rick Nash, LW/RW, BOS
Top potential RFAs: Anthony Mantha, LW/RW, DET, Elias Lindholm, C/RW, CGY, Oliver Bjorkstrand, RW, CBJ; Sven Baertschi, LW, VAN (INJ.); Ondrej Kase, LW/RW, ANA
READ**:
Top 100 forward rankings for May 2018