Fantasy hockey line top 25 rankings for 2018-19

NHL.com ranks the top fantasy hockey forward lines and tracks notable changes and production trends each week during the 2018-19 season. For more fantasy coverage, visit NHL.com/Fantasy.

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PRODUCTION TRENDS

-- Last season, the Vegas Golden Knights were driven by their top line of forwards Jonathan Marchessault, William Karlsson and Reilly Smith. But the line of left wing Max Pacioretty, center Cody Eakin and right wing Alex Tuch has outperformed the first line lately, combining for 26 points (14 goals, 12 assists) in the past nine games. Tuch missed the first eight games of the season but leads the Golden Knights with 17 points (seven goals, 10 assists) in 17 games since making his season debut Oct. 24. Eakin (C, 6 percent owned in Yahoo) is already three goals from matching last season's total (11 in 80 games; eight in 22 games this season) and will continue to see his fantasy value rise with centers Paul Stastny and Erik Haula injured.
-- A long-term injury to Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron has led to the dismantling of the line that topped these rankings all season. But, despite all the changes to the Bruins' forward group, forward Jake DeBrusk (LW/RW, 31 percent owned) has seven goals in the past nine games after starting the season with three goals in his first 14 games. In four games since Bergeron's injury, DeBrusk has scored three of the Bruins' nine goals with 12 shots on goal in the span. Until Bergeron returns, Boston will rely heavily on its second line of DeBrusk, David Krejci and Danton Heinen, making all three members worth streaming in deep fantasy leagues.
-- Winnipeg Jets right wing Patrik Laine became the first NHL player to score five goals in a game since Johan Franzen on Feb. 2, 2011. Laine has played more with center Bryan Little (10 percent owned) than any other Jets forward at 5-on-5 this season. Little assisted on four of Laine's five goals against the St. Louis Blues on Saturday and has totaled eight points (one goal, seven assists) in the past five games. Laine and linemate Kyle Connor are owned in most leagues, but Little is worth adding and usually an under-the-radar fantasy center when healthy.

LINE CHANGES

There have been four coaching changes through the first two months of the season. Here's a look at some lines benefiting from these changes:
-- Chicago Blackhawks coach Jeremy Colliton has stacked his first line with center Jonathan Toews, right wing Patrick Kane and left wing Brandon Saad (17 percent owned), who has five points (three goals, two assists) in his past five games. Entering Sunday, Saad has played at least 20 minutes in each of the past three games after only playing that much once through his first 19 games. As long as Saad continues to play with Toews and Kane, he's a relevant option in all fantasy leagues.
-- St. Louis Blues coach Craig Berube has replaced injured left wing Jaden Schwartz with Zach Sanford (C/LW, 1 percent owned) on the top line with center Ryan O'Reilly and right wing Vladimir Tarasenko. Entering Sunday, Sanford has points in two straight games, including a goal in a 6-2 win against the Nashville Predators on Friday. With exposure to O'Reilly and Tarasenko, Sanford is a viable short-term option in deeper leagues.
-- The Edmonton Oilers replaced coach Todd McLellan with Ken Hitchcock on Tuesday, and elite forwards Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl have been playing on the same since the game before the coaching change. Forward Drake Caggiula (LW/RW, 11 percent owned) played a season-high 20:57 and scored a goal in Hitchcock's first game; Caggiula enters Sunday with four points (two goals, two assists) in the past five games. Fantasy owners should also monitor forward Ryan Spooner (C/RW, 2 percent owned), who was acquired from the New York Rangers on Nov. 16 and practiced on a line with McDavid and Draisaitl on Saturday.

FANTASY LINE RANKINGS FOR 2018-19

These rankings have taken into account NHL.com fantasy top 200 rank (listed next to applicable players), recent production in standard Yahoo categories (goals, assists, plus/minus, power-play points, shots on goal, hits), line stability or fluctuation from previous season(s), team scoring distribution and injury risk or contract status of any individual player(s).
1. COL: Gabriel Landeskog -- Nathan MacKinnon -- Mikko Rantanen (+1)
2. CGY: Johnny Gaudreau -- Sean Monahan -- Elias Lindholm (+1)
3. DAL: Jamie Benn -- Tyler Seguin -- Alexander Radulov (+1)
4. BUF: Jeff Skinner -- Jack Eichel -- Sam Reinhart / Jason Pominville (+3)
5. WSH: Alex Ovechkin -- Evgeny Kuznetsov (DTD) / Nicklas Backstrom -- Tom Wilson (+1)
6. NSH: Filip Forsberg -- Ryan Johansen -- Craig Smith / Kevin Fiala (-1)
7. BOS: Brad Marchand -- Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson -- David Pastrnak (-6)
8. PIT: Tanner Pearson -- Evgeni Malkin -- Phil Kessel (+1)
9. CAR: Micheal Ferland -- Sebastian Aho -- Teuvo Teravainen (-1)
10. FLA: Evgenii Dadonov -- Aleksander Barkov -- Mike Hoffman (+2)
11. TOR: Zach Hyman -- John Tavares -- Mitchell Marner (-1)
12. CBJ: Artemi Panarin -- Pierre-Luc Dubois -- Cam Atkinson (+4)
13. TBL: Tyler Johnson -- Brayden Point -- Nikita Kucherov (-2)
14. WPG: Nikolaj Ehlers -- Mark Scheifele -- Blake Wheeler (+1)
15. TBL: Yanni Gourde -- Steven Stamkos -- J.T. Miller (-1)
16. SJS: Timo Meier -- Logan Couture -- Tomas Hertl (-3)
17. VGK: Max Pacioretty -- Cody Eakin -- Alex Tuch (+8)
18. STL: Zach Sanford -- Ryan O'Reilly -- Vladimir Tarasenko (-1)
19. PHI: Claude Giroux -- Sean Couturier -- Travis Konecny (+2)
20. EDM: Drake Caggiula -- Connor McDavid -- Leon Draisaitl (-2)
21. CHI: Brandon Saad -- Jonathan Toews -- Patrick Kane (+1)
22. NJD: Taylor Hall -- Nico Hischier -- Kyle Palmieri (-3)
23. WPG: Kyle Connor -- Bryan Little -- Patrik Laine (NEW)
24. OTT: Brady Tkachuk -- Colin White (DTD) / Chris Tierney -- Mark Stone (-1)
25. OTT: Ryan Dzingel / Mikkel Boedker -- Matt Duchene -- Drake Batherson (NEW)
NOTES: Elite center Auston Matthews (shoulder) has been practicing for the Toronto Maple Leafs and is nearing a return, but his line remains off the list for now. … With Bergeron out long-term, Colorado's top line has moved to No. 1 in the rankings for the first time this season. … The Ottawa Senators, who rank third in goals per game (3.61) and eighth in power-play percentage (24.4 percent) entering Sunday, have two lines in the rankings for the first time this season. … The Tampa Bay Lightning adjusted their top two lines Friday, resulting in a slight dip for each given their frequent lineup changes this season. … The Golden Knights' second line was the biggest riser in this week's rankings. ... Nashville Predators wing Austin Watson saw time on the top line with Forsberg and Johansen on Sunday and had a hat trick.
Read: November 18 line rankings