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1. Reinhart keeps depleted Panthers offense afloat
When the Florida Panthers acquired forward Sam Reinhart from the Buffalo Sabres on July 24, 2021, they added a versatile player who could take their offensive depth to new heights. This season, Reinhart is tied for the NHL lead in goals (13).
A big reason Florida won the Presidents' Trophy in 2021-22 and then reached the Stanley Cup Final in 2023, Reinhart continues to be productive regardless of lineup placement and has 24 points in his first 16 games (tied for fourth in NHL) and has especially excelled in scoring on his high-percentage shot attempts.
Per NHL EDGE stats, Reinhart leads the entire NHL in high-danger goals (10) this season – on top of having the most goals, points, even-strength points (17), power-play goals (five) and points (six) on the Panthers playing mostly on a line with center Aleksander Barkov. In 2021-22, Reinhart was better than a point-per-game player (82 in 78 games) despite playing most of that season on the third line.
Reinhart, who will likely remain on the first power play when defensemen Brandon Montour and Aaron Ekblad return from injuries, has helped Florida rank second in the NHL in advanced stats like power-play offensive zone time percentage (65.1; New York Rangers, 66.8) and offensive zone time percentage in all situations (44.8; Carolina Hurricanes, 47.3).
In the lengthy absences of Montour, Ekblad and center Sam Bennett (limited to four of Florida's 16 games because of injuries) and with elite wing Matthew Tkachuk having a low shooting percentage (4.4; three goals on 69 shots on goal), the Panthers (10-5-1) have survived their early season adversity. With Florida getting fully healthy (Montour, Ekblad are expected to make their season debuts Friday), the offense still has plenty of room for improvement considering it ranks in the lower half of the League in goals per game (3.13; 19th) and power-play percentage (17.3; 23rd).
2. Bouchard has high ceiling under Knoblauch
It has been a mostly forgettable start of the season for the Edmonton Oilers, who have won their first two games under new coach Kris Knoblauch but still have the fourth fewest points (11) in the NHL standings. But defenseman Evan Bouchard has remained productive offensively and still has another gear to reach as the Oilers' continue their uphill climb.
Knoblauch, who was hired to replace Jay Woodcroft on Nov. 12, has connections with top-ranked fantasy skater Connor McDavid, as well as two secondary Oilers forwards in Connor Brown and Warren Foegele from their time with Erie of the Ontario Hockey League. But Knoblauch hiring legendary NHL defenseman Paul Coffey as an assistant coach can not only improve Bouchard's defensive game but also help him generate even more offense than he did under Woodcroft.
Bouchard has three assists in two games under Knoblauch and Coffey, giving him 15 points (three goals, 12 assists) in 15 games this season -- an extremely high fantasy floor considering how much went wrong for the Oilers early on this season. Per NHL EDGE stats, Bouchard is tied with Shea Theodore of the Vegas Golden Knights for the NHL lead in long-range shots on goal (28), and Bouchard's coveted spot on the Oilers' first power play could not only help him achieve a full-fledged breakout in the goals category but also be a dark horse to lead NHL defensemen in goals and points by season's end. It's also worth noting the Oilers rank third in offensive zone time percentage (44.6), another NHL EDGE metric, meaning the floodgates could open soon for their offense.
More proof of Bouchard's offensive upside is his performance in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Oilers lost to the eventual Stanley Cup champion Golden Knights in six games in the Western Conference Second Round, but Bouchard still led NHL defensemen in playoff points (17 in 12 games), power-play points (15) and finished tied for second in goals (four) at the position behind Montour (eight), who played nine more games and all four postseason rounds.
Now may be the time to buy low on Bouchard in fantasy before his long-range attempts lead to more goals for the Oilers -- potentially helping him close the gap on Quinn Hughes of the Vancouver Canucks for the points lead among defensemen (27 in 17 games).
3. Johansson holding down fort for Lightning
When it was announced Tampa Bay Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy was having microdiscectomy surgery to address a lumbar disk herniation Sept. 28, the initial timeline for his return was 8-10 weeks. Fantasy managers who had already drafted or kept the elite goalie were scrambling for replacements, and many opted for outside options because backup Jonas Johansson was relatively unproven at the NHL level.
But Johansson has shouldered a heavy workload (leads NHL goalies with 14 games played), especially in terms of high-quality shot attempts faced, and is keeping the Lightning in playoff position with Vasilevskiy eyeing a return before December.
Per NHL EDGE stats, Johansson has faced the most high-danger shots on goal (131) in the NHL this season and ranks second in high-danger saves (106) behind only Mackenzie Blackwood of the San Jose Sharks (107). Johansson, to the Lightning offense's credit, has seen plenty of goal support (Tampa Bay has scored 45 in 14 games in front of him; third most goal support of any goalie behind the Colorado Avalanche for Alexandar Georgiev, and the Canucks for Thatcher Demko; 46 each) but is also tied for second in the NHL in shutouts (two; Tristan Jarry of the Pittsburgh Penguins has three) -- meaning his clutch saves are returning the favor for their elite skater talent.
Although it may be a time to sell high on Johansson in fantasy for the right price before Vasilevskiy returns, Johansson could still provide quality spot starts to give Vasilevskiy more rest than usual after earning at least one standings point in 10 of his 14 games (6-4-4). For fantasy managers that have both Vasilevskiy and Johansson, this could become one of the top five goalie tandems in the NHL once they are at full strength.
