Unfortunately, not everything that came from another busy free agency period in the NHL world produced positive fantasy results.
As per usual, there were many implications from the past few days —some good, some not so good.
In fact, there are numerous players whose stock could be negatively impacted entering next season from the recent roster activity. With that in mind, here are five names to potentially avoid reaching on in your draft next fall.
Michael Bunting – Carolina Hurricanes – LW
After riding shotgun alongside Auston Matthews in Toronto for the majority of the past two seasons, Bunting figures to settle into a middle-six role with the Carolina Hurricanes. The 27-year-old is coming off back-to-back 23 goal seasons, a number that will be tough to match assuming he’s deployed in a checking role for Rod Brind’Amour’s squad.
Pyotr Kochetkov – Carolina Hurricanes – G
Surprisingly, the Canes decided to bring both Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta back for the 2023-24 campaign, which is obviously tough news for Kochetkov and his fantasy owners. Barring injury – which is always a possibility with both guys ahead of him – the 24-year-old could be destined to start next season in the AHL. In 27 career outings, Kochetkov’s tallied a 15-7-5 record to go along with a 2.43 goals against average, a .903 save-percentage and four shutouts.
Shayne Gostisbehere – Detroit Red Wings – D
After rising back to fantasy prominence in Arizona last season, Gostisbehere’s stock took a substantial hit when he was traded at the deadline to Carolina. Now with Detroit, the 30-year-old should get ample opportunity —at least at even strength. That said, Moritz Seider figures to retain his role quarterbacking the first power play unit, which obviously bodes terribly for Gostisbehere’s fantasy stock.
Alex Killorn – Anaheim Ducks – LW
Taking nothing away from some of Anaheim’s emerging stars, at this point in their careers they pale in comparison to the likes of Nikita Kucherov and Steven Stamkos, among others. Because of that, it’s reasonable to expect a dip in production for the veteran winger with the Ducks. The 33-year-old, who’s coming off a career high in goals (27), assists (37) and points (64), should see some healthy attachment to the likes of Trevor Zegras, Troy Terry and Mason McTavish.
Ryan O’Reilly – C – Nashville Predators
Putting it mildly, it’s been a fascinating past two weeks or so for the Predators. They traded Ryan Johansen and bought out Matt Duchene, which means O’Reilly is their new No. 1 center. There are minimal doubts that the 32-year-old will skate with Filip Forsberg, but aside from that, Nashville’s roster is filled with relatively unproven entities. At this point in his career, it’s understandable to question whether O’Reilly can still excel in this type of role or not. We’ll see.
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