Fantasy: 10-team NHL mock draft with analysis
theScore staff took part in a 10-team, 16-round mock to provide a glimpse at what your drafts could look like, and provide analysis on the picks that were made.
Related: theScore's 2018-19 Fantasy Hockey Draft Kit
This is a standard scoring, head-to-head league made up of the following categories:
| Skater | Goalie |
|---|---|
| Goals | Wins |
| Assists | Goals-against average |
| Plus/Minus | Save percentage |
| Penalty Minutes | Shutouts |
| Power play points | |
| Shots on goal |
The roster positions are as follows: C, C, LW, LW, RW, RW, D, D, D, D, G, G, BN, BN, BN, BN, IR, IR
Draft participants: Craig Hagerman, Josh Gold-Smith, Esten McLaren, Austin Owens, John Matisz, Eric Patterson, Josh Wegman, Alan Wong, Patrick Allen, Jason Wilson.
Round 1| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | C Connor McDavid (EDM) | Hagerman |
| 2 | RW Nikita Kucherov (TB) | Gold-Smith |
| 3 | C Steven Stamkos (TB) | McLaren |
| 4 | C Sidney Crosby (PIT) | Owens |
| 5 | C Evgeni Malkin (PIT) | Matisz |
| 6 | C Nathan MacKinnon (COL) | Patterson |
| 7 | LW Brad Marchand (BOS) | Wegman |
| 8 | LW Alex Ovechkin (WSH) | Wong |
| 9 | C Auston Matthews (TOR) | Allen |
| 10 | RW Patrik Laine (WPG) | Wilson |
The first round came and went with no outlandish surprises. Ovechkin probably slipped further than he should have, providing nice value for Team Wong. I went with Marchand instead, who finished fourth in points per game last year and accumulates more PIMs than most first-round players. Team McLaren is banking on improvement from Stamkos after an 86-point campaign. If he plateaus, this will turn out to be a bad third overall pick.
Round 2| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 11 | C John Tavares (TOR) | Wilson |
| 12 | RW David Pastrnak (BOS) | Allen |
| 13 | RW Patrick Kane (CHI) | Wong |
| 14 | C/RW Tyler Seguin (DAL) | Wegman |
| 15 | LW Taylor Hall (NJ) | Patterson |
| 16 | C/RW Blake Wheeler (WPG) | Matisz |
| 17 | D Erik Karlsson (OTT) | Owens |
| 18 | C Evgeny Kuznetsov (WSH) | McLaren |
| 19 | C/LW Claude Giroux (PHI) | Gold-Smith |
| 20 | C Mark Scheifele (WPG) | Hagerman |
Team Owens takes Karlsson as the first D off the board. His ceiling will be enhanced further if he's dealt to a cup-contending team. If Giroux has another season like his 102-point campaign from a year ago, Team Gold-Smith has a steal on his hands. Pastrnak is full of upside and plays on the league's best line, but this may have been a slight reach from Team Allen.
Round 3| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 21 | G Andrei Vasilevskiy (TB) | Hagerman |
| 22 | LW Artemi Panarin (CLB) | Gold-Smith |
| 23 | RW Vladimir Tarasenko (STL) | McLaren |
| 24 | G Connor Hellebuyck (WPG) | Owens |
| 25 | LW Jamie Benn (DAL) | Matisz |
| 26 | LW Johnny Gaudreau (CGY) | Patterson |
| 27 | D Victor Hedman (TB) | Wegman |
| 28 | D Brent Burns (SJ) | Wong |
| 29 | RW Phil Kessel (PIT) | Allen |
| 30 | D Dustin Byfuglien (WPG) | Wilson |
Vasilevskiy is the first goalie off the board. It's not necessary to take a netminder this early in a 10-team league, but Team Hagerman knows he doesn't choose again for another 18 picks. Don't be surprised if Tarasenko has a career year. He was quite unlucky in 2017-18 and his supporting cast has improved drastically.
Round 4| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 31 | LW Filip Forsberg (NSH) | Wilson |
| 32 | C Jack Eichel (BUF) | Allen |
| 33 | C Anze Kopitar (LA) | Wong |
| 34 | C Aleksander Barkov (FLA) | Wegman |
| 35 | RW Mitch Marner (TOR) | Patterson |
| 36 | D P.K. Subban (NSH) | Matisz |
| 37 | D Drew Doughty (LA) | Owens |
| 38 | D John Klingberg (DAL) | McLaren |
| 39 | D Roman Josi (NSH) | Gold-Smith |
| 40 | G Pekka Rinne (NSH) | Hagerman |
Team Matisz seemed to start a run on defensemen, but all three players that followed were worthy selections. Eichel may have slipped further than anticipated, given his sky-high ceiling. Marner could have a breakout season skating alongside Tavares.
Round 5| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 41 | C Patrice Bergeron (BOS) | Hagerman |
| 42 | G Sergei Bobrovsky (CLB) | Gold-Smith |
| 43 | C/RW Leon Draisaitl (EDM) | McLaren |
| 44 | RW Mikko Rantanen (COL) | Owens |
| 45 | G Frederik Andersen (TOR) | Matisz |
| 46 | C/RW Joe Pavelski (SJ) | Patterson |
| 47 | LW Evander Kane (SJ) | Wegman |
| 48 | C Mathew Barzal (NYI) | Wong |
| 49 | G Braden Holtby (WSH) | Allen |
| 50 | C Sean Couturier (PHI) | Wilson |
Bergeron is certainly worthy of going in this slot, but Team Hagerman now has three centers without winger eligibility. In a standard league set up without a UTIL spot, he'll have to bench one of his top three skaters on busy game nights. I took a slight risk taking the oft-injured Kane here, but if he can stay healthy, he'll flourish in San Jose.
Round 6| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 51 | G Tuukka Rask (BOS) | Wilson |
| 52 | D Shayne Gostisbehere (PHI) | Allen |
| 53 | G Jonathan Quick (LA) | Wong |
| 54 | G John Gibson (ANA) | Wegman |
| 55 | RW Brock Boeser (VAN) | Patterson |
| 56 | RW Jakub Voracek (PHI) | Matisz |
| 57 | C Nicklas Backstrom (WSH) | Owens |
| 58 | RW Cam Atkinson (CLB) | McLaren |
| 59 | C/LW Sebastian Aho (CAR) | Gold-Smith |
| 60 | D John Carlson (WSH) | Hagerman |
Team Hagerman redeems himself by stealing Carlson at the end of Round 6. The Caps blue-liner led all NHL defenseman in points last year and will be among the league leaders again after re-upping in Washington. Team Allen also gets good value on a D-man with Gostisbehere, who racked up 65 points last season. Team Owens reached on Backstrom, considering center is by far the deepest position in fantasy, and his upside is capped playing away from Ovechkin.
Round 7| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 61 | D Alex Pietrangelo (STL) | Hagerman |
| 62 | D Seth Jones (CLB) | Gold-Smith |
| 63 | G Matt Murray (PIT) | McLaren |
| 64 | RW Alexander Radulov (DAL) | Owens |
| 65 | C/LW Jonathan Marchessault (VGK) | Matisz |
| 66 | G Carey Price (MTL) | Patterson |
| 67 | D Oliver Ekman-Larsson (ARI) | Wegman |
| 68 | C/LW William Karlsson (VGK) | Wong |
| 69 | C/RW William Nylander (TOR) | Allen |
| 70 | G Martin Jones (SJ) | Wilson |
Team Gold-Smith gets excellent value with Seth Jones this late. Much has been made about William Karlsson's high shooting percentage contributing to his 43-goal season, but in Round 7 it's a calculated risk by Team Wong. In hindsight, I definitely could've waited on Ekman-Larsson, a perennial green jacket candidate (worst plus-minus).
Round 8| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 71 | LW/RW Nikolaj Ehlers (WPG) | Wilson |
| 72 | LW/RW Rickard Rakell (ANA) | Allen |
| 73 | C Brayden Point (TB) | Wong |
| 74 | D Dougie Hamilton (CAR) | Wegman |
| 75 | D Torey Krug (BOS) | Patterson |
| 76 | C Vincent Trocheck (FLA) | Matisz |
| 77 | C Sean Monahan (CGY) | Owens |
| 78 | LW Jonathan Huberdeau (FLA) | McLaren |
| 79 | LW/RW Clayton Keller (ARI) | Gold-Smith |
| 80 | D Kris Letang (PIT) | Hagerman |
Trocheck finished sixth in the NHL in shots last year, will play on one of the league's better second lines, and won't face the toughest matchups with Barkov ahead of him on the depth chart. This is an astute pick by Team Matisz at this point in the draft. Rakell and Ehlers could also outproduce their draft slots.
Round 9| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 81 | RW Mark Stone (OTT) | Hagerman |
| 82 | LW James van Riemsdyk (PHI) | Gold-Smith |
| 83 | G Devan Dubnyk (MIN) | McLaren |
| 84 | RW Viiktor Arvidsson (NSH) | Owens |
| 85 | LW Jeff Skinner (BUF) | Matisz |
| 86 | C Ryan Getzlaf (ANA) | Patterson |
| 87 | G Marc-Andre Fleury (VGK) | Wegman |
| 88 | D Tyson Barrie (COL) | Wong |
| 89 | D Rasmus Dahlin (BUF) | Allen |
| 90 | LW/RW Ilya Kovalchuk (LA) | Wilson |
Dahlin is the first rookie off the board. He should have an outstanding career, but only two 18-year-old defensemen have ever cracked the 40-point plateau: Bobby Orr and Phil Housley. Even if Dahlin miraculously joins them, there are plenty of 50-point blue-liners still available, making this a massive reach in a non-keeper league. Team Wilson also took a risk with Kovalchuk, but as long as he sticks alongside Kopitar, 30 goals are in the cards.
Round 10| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 91 | RW Wayne Simmonds (PHI) | Wilson |
| 92 | G Ben Bishop (DAL) | Allen |
| 93 | G Corey Crawford (CHI) | Wong |
| 94 | D Zach Werenski (CLB) | Wegman |
| 95 | G Cam Talbot (EDM) | Patterson |
| 96 | G Henrik Lundqvist (NYR) | Matisz |
| 97 | C/RW Mikael Granlund (MIN) | Owens |
| 98 | D Mikhail Sergachev (TB) | McLaren |
| 99 | G Antti Raanta (ARI) | Gold-Smith |
| 100 | LW/RW Mike Hoffman (FLA) | Hagerman |
Team Wong takes a bit of a gamble by selecting Crawford, who still isn't 100 percent healthy after missing most of last season with reported vertigo-like symptoms. Team Owens gets a steal with Granlund this late. He's quietly averaged 68 points per year in the last two seasons. A dual-position, high-volume shooter in Hoffman is a good value pick this late as well.
Round 11| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 101 | D Charlie McAvoy (BOS) | Hagerman |
| 102 | C Ryan O'Reilly (STL) | Gold-Smith |
| 103 | C/LW Logan Couture (SJ) | McLaren |
| 104 | D Ryan Ellis (NSH) | Owens |
| 105 | D Morgan Rielly (TOR) | Matisz |
| 106 | LW Jake Guentzel (PIT) | Patterson |
| 107 | LW Matthew Tkachuk (CGY) | Wegman |
| 108 | LW Jaden Schwartz (STL) | Wong |
| 109 | LW Gabriel Landeskog (COL) | Allen |
| 110 | D Aaron Ekblad (FLA) | Wilson |
Make it back-to-back rounds Team Owens gets outstanding mid-round value in Ellis, who played at a 60-point pace upon his return from injury. With winger eligibility, Couture is a very shrewd pick this late in the draft. He had a career-high 34 goals last season. Team Hagerman is banking on McAvoy making big strides offensively in his second season.
Round 12| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 111 | D Mark Giordano (CGY) | Wilson |
| 112 | LW Max Pacioretty (MTL) | Allen |
| 113 | D Matt Dumba (MIN) | Wong |
| 114 | C Brayden Schenn (STL) | Wegman |
| 115 | RW Patric Hornqvist (PIT) | Patterson |
| 116 | LW Kyle Connor (WPG) | Matisz |
| 117 | D Jake Gardiner (TOR) | Owens |
| 118 | D Ryan Suter (MIN) | McLaren |
| 119 | C Dylan Larkin (DET) | Gold-Smith |
| 120 | C Nazem Kadri (TOR) | Hagerman |
Schenn was much more valuable when he had winger eligibility, but there's no reason he can't repeat his 70-point season playing with Tarasenko. Minnesota's top two defensemen go off the board in this round, and in the correct order. Dumba should only continue to grow, while Suter is coming off a serious ankle injury, though he should be good to start the season.
Round 13| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 121 | LW Anders Lee (NYI) | Hagerman |
| 122 | D Rasmus Ristolainen (BUF) | Gold-Smith |
| 123 | RW Eeli Tolvanen (NSH) | McLaren |
| 124 | G Jake Allen (STL) | Owens |
| 125 | C/RW Yanni Gourde (TB) | Matisz |
| 126 | C Ryan Johansen (NSH) | Patterson |
| 127 | LW/RW Jason Zucker (MIN) | Wegman |
| 128 | LW/RW Evgenii Dadonov (FLA) | Wong |
| 129 | C Nico Hischier (NJ) | Allen |
| 130 | RW T.J. Oshie (WSH) | Wilson |
Allen is coming off a bad year, but there's virtually no competition in the Blues' crease this season. If St. Louis is going to make some noise, Allen could rack up 35-plus wins. Tolvanen was possibly the best teenager the KHL had ever seen a year ago, but he'll have to work his way into Nashville's top six in order to return value at this draft slot. He's more than capable, though.
Round 14| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 131 | C Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (EDM) | Wilson |
| 132 | D Keith Yandle (FLA) | Allen |
| 133 | C Jeff Carter (LA) | Wong |
| 134 | RW Andrei Svechnikov (CAR) | Wegman |
| 135 | D Ivan Provorov (PHI) | Patterson |
| 136 | D Josh Morrissey (WPG) | Matisz |
| 137 | D Will Butcher (NJ) | Owens |
| 138 | D Colton Parayko (STL) | McLaren |
| 139 | LW/RW Teuvo Teravainen (CAR) | Gold-Smith |
| 140 | RW Josh Bailey (NYI) | Hagerman |
Team Wilson could have the steal of the draft in Nugent-Hopkins, who flourished on McDavid's line in the second half of the season, and is projected to start there to begin 2018-19. It likely won't take him to long to gain winger eligibility either. Morrissey is a great two-way D, but even this late, Team Matisz easily could've found a blue-liner with more offensive upside than one who doesn't see power-play time.
Round 15| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 141 | LW/RW Alex DeBrincat (CHI) | Hagerman |
| 142 | D Kevin Shattenkirk (NYR) | Gold-Smith |
| 143 | C Matt Duchene (OTT) | McLaren |
| 144 | C/RW J.T. Miller (TB) | Owens |
| 145 | D Nate Schmidt (VGK) | Matisz |
| 146 | D Jake Muzzin (LA) | Patterson |
| 147 | RW Tom Wilson (WSH) | Wegman |
| 148 | C Jonathan Toews (CHI) | Wong |
| 149 | C Casey Mittelstadt (BUF) | Allen |
| 150 | D Shea Weber (MTL) | Wilson |
If Team Matisz was seeking a Golden Knights blue-liner, either Colin Miller or Shea Theodore would've made for a better choice than Schmidt. I opted to go with Wilson, who will single-handedly win PIMs some weeks and won't bring down my offense a whole lot. Weber likely won't return until at least December, but he's worth an IR stash in the draft's second-last round. Look for Miller to have a career year playing alongside Kucherov and Stamkos.
Round 16| Pick | Player | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 151 | G Juuse Saros (NSH) | Wilson |
| 152 | D Mike Green (DET) | Allen |
| 153 | D Duncan Keith (CHI) | Wong |
| 154 | D Ryan Pulock (NYI) | Wegman |
| 155 | D Mattias Ekholm (NSH) | Patterson |
| 156 | C Elias Pettersson (VAN) | Matisz |
| 157 | LW/RW Travis Konecny (PHI) | Owens |
| 158 | C Nolan Patrick (PHI) | McLaren |
| 159 | C/LW Pierre-Luc Dubois (CLB) | Gold-Smith |
| 160 | RW James Neal (CGY) | Hagerman |
A lot of high-upside picks here, which is the right idea in the draft's final round. Konecny was dynamic in the second half of last year, and Team Owens is hopeful he carries that over into the start of this season. Pettersson is a blue-chip prospect who set numerous Swedish Hockey League records a year ago. Team Hagerman goes the high-floor route, securing a minimum 25-goal scorer in Neal.
(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)
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