3 Canadiens players you must consider for your fantasy hockey lineup in 2024-25
It should go without saying that Nick Suzuki is the top player on the Montreal Canadiens you’ll want on your fantasy hockey team if you play this season. With 77 points last season and 33 goals, plus 31 power play points, Suzuki is turning into one of the league’s elite players. And if he crosses the 80-point threshold this season, you’ll be glad you picked him for fantasy hockey.
Other players like Alex Newhook may also be worth seeking out as a sleeper, but if you’re looking for three to consider beyond Suzuki, keep reading. We got a pair of young forwards plus a proven defenseman who can definitely make their mark on your fantasy team.
Cole Caufield
With one season under his belt in which Cole Caufield was completely healthy, it resulted in a 28-goal, 65-point season, with 21 points on the power play. Should Caufield stay healthy in 2024-25, look for his fantasy output to increase, and if you take a chance on him in what will likely be the middle rounds, he won’t disappoint you.
Caufield’s floor this season, assuming he plays in all 82 contests, should be 65 points again. But now that he’s becoming a force in Quebec, there’s a good chance he finishes 2024-25 with 70-80 points, especially if he keeps building chemistry with Nick Suzuki and the next player on our list.
Juraj Slafkovsky
This time last season, Juraj Slafkovsky was nothing more than a waiver-wire pickup, if that. But this year, expect him to be a mid-to-late-round pick, depending on the size of your fantasy league. What’s scary about Slafkovsky is that most of the damage he inflicted on opponents came during the latter parts of the 2023-24 season, meaning there’s a chance he builds on that success early, and he could do so for a long time.
Should that occur, he’ll sail past the 63-point, 26-goal projection ESPN laid out for him in 2024-25. While this will be Nick Suzuki’s and Cole Caufield’s team, if you need value during the second half of your fantasy draft, Slafkovsky would be an epic pickup.
Mike Matheson
Mike Matheson may be a risk, as the question is whether he can realistically build off of what was an incredible 2023-24 season that ended up with him accumulating 62 points and 11 goals. ESPN doesn’t think so, as he’s slated for 53 points, 10 goals, and 21 power play points, but those also aren’t half-bad projections.
Like Slafkovsky, Matheson shouldn’t go until the back end of your fantasy draft, but if you’re looking for value - I feel like I’m saying that word a lot - he is definitely the way to go. If he falters and fails to build on last season’s performance, then whatever. He is a low-risk, potentially high-reward pick.
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(Projected statistics powered by ESPN)