Fantasy hockey sleepers: Metro Division: Rangers and Flyers

With the calendars getting close to the end of September and training camps underway, fantasy hockey leagues have started to schedule their drafts. Hopefully, you have been keeping up with the off-season moves, rookies added, and players looking to take a step forward, while some may be regressing in other cases. To help you plan, this series of columns will focus on fantasy hockey sleepers, one per team in each division.

Fantasy hockey sleepers mean different things to each person. For some, it’s the hot rookie. For others, it’s those who will take a step forward. Some view them as prior year players or acquisitions in new situations, enabling that individual to exceed projections or their initial role. For purposes of this series of columns, the focus will mainly be on the latter – those who have a chance to surpass expectations or prior production. I welcome feedback, criticism, thoughts, etc., as one man’s meat is another man’s poison, and your view may differ vastly from mine.

We kicked off this series by looking at the Atlantic Division, and then discussed the Central Division, each of which was completed. This column continues the Metro Division review which will be followed by the Pacific. As noted, in each column, two teams are covered. To simplify it, we are going alphabetically by first team name rather than by nickname. The Rangers and Flyers are the focus of this column, as we move through the Metro Division review.

New York Rangers

The Rangers are an interesting team. No rookies are expected to make a material impact due to the veteran presence on the team. Brennan Othmann and/or Will Cuylle could get a look-see but are not expected to play key roles. New York is a raft with “young” veterans, as the squad has no one between the ages of 24 and 29 on the roster.

Alexis Lafreniere has yet to live up to his first-overall pick status in 2020. Similarly can be said about Kaapo Kakko, who was the second overall selection in 2019. But with Patrick Kane and Vladimir Tarasenko no longer members of the Blueshirts, openings exist at right wing on the top two lines. Blake Wheeler was signed to a one-year deal and will fill a top-nine role, but he could end up on the third trio.

Lafreniere is getting a chance to skate on the right side. If he receives decent power play time, a spike in production should occur, as he has been very good at scoring 5×5. Kakko should benefit from the puck possession and checking style favored by coach Peter Laviolette as he has shown the ability to create along the walls and be a net-front presence.

Philadelphia Flyers

Morgan Frost and Owen Tippett each had breakouts last season but both have another level to reach. Frost took advantage of consistent minutes and top-six deployment to up his production from five goals and 11 assists to 19 lamplighters and 27 helpers. He can play both center and wing and even if on the third line, should see sufficient power-play time for a rise in output.

Tippett, selected 10th overall by the Panthers, was never really given a chance to succeed by Florida. On a rebuilding team looking to build to the future, Tippett saw four minutes more per game in ice time and first-line duty. All Tippett did with the opportunity presented was go from 10 goals and 11 assists to 27 markers and 22 apples. Pencilled in as the top-line right winger, look for Tippett to take another step forward.

Next in line could be Cam York. After starting the year in Lehigh Valley of the AHL and dealing with a leg injury, York received the call in December. He finished the year with a pair of goals and 18 assists in 54 games, averaging 19:39 in ice time, including 1:44 on the man advantage. With Ivan Provorov now in Columbus, look for York to see an uptick in ice time, including on the man-advantage, which should result in a rise in production.

Atlantic Division:

Boston Bruins and Buffalo Sabres

Detroit Red Wings and Florida Panthers

Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators

Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs

Central Division:

Arizona Coyotes and Chicago Blackhawks

Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars

Minnesota Wild and Nashville Predators

St. Louis Blues and Winnipeg Jets

Metropolitan Division:

Carolina Hurricanes and Columbus Blue Jackets

New Jersey Devils and New York Islanders