Fantasy Hockey Rankings for 2023-2024 Drafts - Top 300 for Points Leagues

Brandon's fantasy hockey rankings for points leagues and the 2023-2024 NHL season. His top draft rankings including Connor McDavid, Connor Bedard and more.

The 2022-2023 NHL season has come and gone in the blink of an eye with some calling the playoffs ‘the most exciting playoffs in a long time’ due to the numerous upsets and teams who caught fire at the right time. Eventually, the Vegas Golden Knights returned to the Stanley Cup Finals, the second trip in the Franchise’s short history, defeating the Florida Panthers 4-1.

The season was full of surprises and heart wrenching ends: highlighted by the Pittsburgh Penguins scrambling on their own ice under new ownership for the first time in decades and brand-new management that saw little to no success with other hockey clubs and the Boston Bruins cruising to the Presidents’ Trophy only to get bounced in seven games in the First Round by the Florida Panthers. 

However, the 2022-2023 season is now in the past and we look forward to a brand new season filled with many roster changes, drama – yes, you Columbus Blue Jackets – and potential breakout candidates. Here are the top 300 fantasy options in points leagues as of 9/15/2023. Keep an eye out for further updates as drafting season begins and the unpredictable ADP takes shape!

Fantasy Hockey Rankings: The Top 100

To no surprise, Connor McDavid features at the top of the league as the overwhelming number-one pick. The unanimous top choice in fantasy drafts is coming off another tremendous individual season, bagging a trifecta of awards – Art Ross, Hart and Ted Lindsay. This marks the fifth Art Ross trophy and the third Hart Trophy since debuting in 2017 – the only years not to win the Art Ross were 2019 and 2020, where he missed 46 combined games due to various injuries. McDavid and company will come into this season with one thing on their mind, making a big run in the Stanley Cup playoffs, and anything short of that will be yet another disastrous season.

Sitting at the 14th overall selection is newcomer and rookie Connor Bedard. Yes, another Connor and yes, they are the same person, obviously not actually. Connor Bedard is the next phenom to hit the NHL ice and he has been touted as a combination of Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid for many years. His ability to grind in the corners and dig pucks out, his willingness to be physical and his untouchable vision are his best ‘Crosby attributes’ while his speed and his shot are what he inherits from McDavid.

During his tenure in the WHL with the Regina Pats, Bedard amassed 134 goals, 137 assists and 271 points through 134 games in the regular season courtesy of the WHL. While many fan bases around the league were hoping they would somehow land the first overall pick in the 23’ NHL Draft, the Chicago Blackhawks’ luck continued, landing them their next generational talent. Now, Bedard could easily end up in the top 10 at the end of the season in points, but it will come down to how fast he can adjust to the NHL game and whether or not Chicago can properly support him in his endeavors.

The 38th ranked player is none other than Jonathan Drouin who happens to share some history with another big name in the NHL, Nathan MacKinnon. The duo played together in the 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 seasons for the Halifax Mooseheads of the QMJHL and that is where they both would make a name for themselves before being drafted 3rd and 1st overall respectively. In those two seasons, Drouin managed to put together 48 goals, 86 assists and 134 points in 82 regular season games. He did have a third season with Halifax after MacKinnon left for the NHL, where Drouin scored 29 goals and assisted 79 goals,  courtesy of the QMJHL . The duo is now reuniting for the first time in a decade after the Avalanche signed Drouin in Free Agency. The winger and center has struggled in the NHL since being drafted by Tampa Bay for various reasons and it is unknown if Jared Bednar will have those two play on a line together or not. However, if they do, it could be the key to unlocking Drouin and he could easily touch the top 20 by the end of the season. 

Fantasy Hockey Points Rankings: No. 101-200

To kick off the next 100 players, we have Pittsburgh native, Logan Cooley. The Coyotes rookie is coming into his first season in the league with a team that is desperate for offensively productive players and consistent ones at that. In his freshman year at the University of Minnesota, he posted a 22-38-60 line in 39 games – per EliteProspects, just 11 points shy of Jack Eichel’s freshman year at Boston University. Like Eichel, Cooley will also be heading to the NHL after one season in the NCAA and the entire Coyotes organization couldn’t be happier. While many write off the Coyotes for the years to come, they are sneakily building a young team full of stars and Cooley will be front and center.

Next up to the blueline is John Klingberg, once known as one of the best offensive-defensemen in the NHL. Klingberg had a nice long run of form with his first team, the Dallas Stars and soon after was plagued with injuries that have hampered his production ever since. Per NHL, In Klingberg’s first five seasons with the Dallas Stars, he had 52 goals, 207 assists and 259 points in 367 regular season games. Since then in five abbreviated seasons with the Stars, Ducks and Wild, Klingberg has 29 goals, 119 assists and 148 points in 252 regular season games. Klingberg COULD have a similar resurgence season like Mark Giordano had when he joined the Toronto Maple Leafs, especially if Klingberg sees any power-play time. In what could be an extremely sneaky draft choice, Klingberg could pay early dividends for managers.

** Unfortunately, the Toronto Maple Leafs also thought it was a good idea to put him on the power-play and now he is starting to garner hype after a good Training Camp. Many may still not know and he could potentially have some sneaky value.** 

To conclude the next 100 rankings, we have newly acquired, Pittsburgh Penguin, Reilly Smith. Smith has had quite the adventure thus far in his career, playing for Dallas, Boston, Florida and most recently the Vegas Golden Knights, where he has the longest tenure. Smith also holds his career highs in goals, assists and points with the Golden Knights, 27-34-60 per the NHL. Now he joins a very similar organization, the Pittsburgh Penguins. Pittsburgh plays a familiar style of hockey with fast pace and quick transitions, a system that Smith has thrived in. However, there is a drastic difference between the two hockey clubs. Smith almost exclusively played with center William Karlsson and now he is about to start playing with either Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin or a mix of the two. Smith does have a modest projection coming into his first year in Pittsburgh, but if he clicks early with his new teammates, he could potentially double his career numbers, making him a steal in the middle rounds.  

Fantasy Hockey Points Rankings: No. 201-300

Severson is coming off his third-most productive season in his eight year tenure in the NHL as he finished with a 7-26-33 line and a +9 . Now he heads to Columbus, leaving New Jersey behind for the first time in his career. The Blue Jackets are unsurprisingly going through more turmoil after recent news broke that new and now ex-coach Mike Babcock was forcing players to show him their photos on their phones. However, they have since replaced him with new coach Pascal Vincent, a promotion from within the club.

It is unknown if Severson will still remain on the top pairing as projected with teammate Zach Werenski, however, if he does, he could be in store for season highs in virtually every category. Although he never produced the expected numbers in New Jersey with equal or better talent, Severson has another opportunity with an elevated role. As a late round selection, Severson could provide massive dividends, especially in Category leagues. 

Carrying the rest of the goalie position, Joel Hofer makes his way into the rankings at 268. Make no mistake though, this is only due to his role as the backup in St. Louis. In six games for the Blues last season, Hofer had a 0.955 Save Percentage, 1.44 Goals Against and a 1.14 Goals Saved Above Expected Per 60. Starting netminder and teammate Jordan Binnington in 61 games had a 0.907 Save Percentage, 2.78 Goals Against and a 0.11 Goals Saved Above Expected Per 60. Comparing the two, Hofer is clearly the better goalie, excluding the major difference in games played. However, any Blues fan could tell you that Hofer is the future starter and that he is the preferred goalie to start.

Nevertheless, Binnington is the clear starter heading into the season, although, he could be coming into the season on a short leash. If he starts underperforming early, it could be Hofer’s net to lose and this makes him a worthy stash away for rosters that can afford it.

In no way will Flyers winger, Owen Tippett finish outside of the top 50 forwards this season. Tippett is a goal scorer through and through, dating back to his days in the OHL in juniors. Drafted by the Florida Panthers as a potential replacement for Jonathan Huberdeau, Tippett never got a legitimate chance to showcase his skill, stuck in the bottom six. However, after being acquired by the Flyers in at the time shocking Claude Giroux trade, Tippett didn’t look back.

In his first full season in the NHL last year, Tippett posted a 27-22-49 line with an 11.7 Shooting Percentage. This year he is expected to play the majority of the season on the top line with what is projected to be Joel Farabee-Morgan Frost-Owen Tippett and potentially also play on the first power-play, per DailyFaceoff. With Philadelphia being counted out before the season even starts, Tippett and company could become sneaky draft choices.