Fantasy Hockey League-Winners: 6 Must-Have Forwards to Draft

September 18, 2026

Doug's fantasy hockey forward draft targets for Yahoo leagues. His league-winners at forward include Pavel Dorofeyev, Porter Martone, and more.

Hey, RotoBallers! For the first time we will bring you dedicated in-season fantasy hockey coverage for the upcoming 2026-27 season in addition to our in-season DFS content. A few weeks ago, I gave you some players that I think are sleepers for your drafts at every position. Today we are zooming our lens closer to the front line and looking at forwards who I think will break out and be potential league-winning picks for your fantasy drafts. Sometimes those league-winners are guys on whom you’ve taken big swings, like a rookie or a player thrust into a new role on a new team. 

Other times those players are consistent, foundational pieces who get drafted too low because they are “boring.” I liken these players to former Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward. He was never going to win your league by himself, but you knew what you were getting when you drafted him, and he was never the reason you lost a league. Those players hold a ton of value and regularly get overlooked in drafts.

Be sure to follow RotoBaller on X for all of our league-winning content and me @Bankster17. Also, use discount code DOUG for 50% off any Premium Packages and get access to our Team Sync platform with customized lineup tools, projections, and more based on your league settings. Also, check out our full updated top 250 rankings. Let's dive in!

Fantasy Hockey Must-Have Centers

Brayden Point (TB - C; Yahoo ADP 85.3/C23)

The first name is more of a sleeper and "post-hype" breakout than a traditional breakout, like the second center.

Before playing through an injury-plagued 2025-26 season, Brayden Point had three consecutive years where he scored at least 42 goals and produced at least 82 points. He centers one of the most dynamic lines in the league, skating next to All-World winger Nikita Kucherov. How there are 22 centers being drafted before him is beyond me. 

Point is the most accomplished player you’ll find in this article, but at just 30 years old, he’s still in the prime of his career. While he has never been a “ceiling” guy, his floor is solid. No, he shouldn’t be your top center, but he’s a guy you can plug into your lineup any week and not see a dropoff. Point may never win you a week on his own; that’s not his game, but he’s so consistent that he also will never be the reason you lose a week. 

He’s the kind of player you draft in the middle rounds if you’ve taken some big swings earlier in the draft, or if you plan on reserving some players who will start the season on the injured list. I’m the type of drafter who will take shots up and down the draft board, but there’s always room for an anchor like Point. 

Michael Misa (SJ - C; Yahoo ADP 131.9/C40)

If Point is your safe floor play, then Michael Misa is the high-ceiling guy you can grab a little later in the draft. Misa had a modest rookie season, producing just 21 points (nine goals, 12 assists) in 45 games after being taken with the second overall pick in the 2025 NHL draft.

The Sharks allowed him to play only about 12 minutes per game last year, a number we can expect to rise with Misa’s promotion to the second line this season. San Jose is a young team with massive upside, and pairing Misa with the second pick of the 2026 draft, Ivar Stenberg, will give the young duo an opportunity to grow into a dynamic pairing for years to come. 

What gives me the most hope for a breakout year from Misa is not his overall stats from last season, but his four-game run at the end that saw him produce two goals, two assists, and an average of 2.75 shots on goal per game. That was a small glimpse into the kind of upside we can expect to see from the budding superstar this coming season. 

Per MoneyPuck.com, over his last 10 games of the season, Misa generated an impressive 55% Fenwick% with a 62.5% On-Ice Expected Goals%, the highest among any Sharks in that span.

These two in teal is a combination we're excited for! 👀

The 2026 and 2025 second overall #NHLDraft selections, Ivar Stenberg and Michael Misa!

(📸: @SanJoseSharks) pic.twitter.com/y7PvOxHP0y

— NHL (@NHL) September 11, 2026

I’m super high on the Sharks offense this season, and I want to get exposure on all of my teams. While I may not get a high enough draft pick to be overweight on Macklin Celebrini, I’m more than happy to reach for the pairing of Misa and Stenberg later in the draft to cash in on the explosiveness I expect to see from the team this year. 

Additional Considerations: Logan Stankoven (CAR), Mason McTavish (STL), Anton Frondell (CHI)

Fantasy Hockey Must-Have Left Wings

Pavel Dorofeyev (NYR - LW; Yahoo ADP 72.3/LW23)

As a Golden Knight’s homer, it breaks my heart to have to write up Pavel Dorofeyev playing for another team. I was sure that the 25-year-old winger was going to be a major part of the team's future, but now he gets to be that guy for the New York Rangers. Dorofeyev scored 35 goals each of the past two seasons, proving an efficient striker and scoring on about 15% of his shots. 

As he was in Vegas, Dorofeyev is slated to power the second line for New York, skating alongside JT Miller and Oliver Bjorkstrand. The biggest upside with Dorofeyev could be on the power play, where he scored 45% of his goals the previous two seasons. It looks like he’ll be on New York’s top unit with Mika Zibanejad and Adam Fox, two guys who are adept at making it count when their team has the man advantage. 

Those power-play points will matter in points leagues where they give you a bonus, or where those stats are separate categories. He’s currently going in the seventh round of drafts, which means you can get him as your second left winger; a perfect complement to one of your higher-round picks. 

Egor Chinakhov (PIT - LW; ADP 131.3/LW39)

Currently, Chinakhov will only cost you an 11th-round pick, and if he continues to play as he did after his trade to Pittsburgh in late December of last season, you are getting a steal at the end of your draft. 

Chinakhov produced a measly six points in the season’s first 29 games for Columbus, but then went on to combine for 36 points in just 43 games to finish out the season in Pittsburgh. Something unlocked in him with his move to the Steel City, and that looks not to change as he will once again play on Pittsburgh’s second line with Evgeni Malkin and Thomas Novak. 

At just 25-years of age, and coming off his best season as a pro, Chinakhov is just entering his prime, and he has plenty of room to grow. It wouldn’t be a shock to see him cross the 60-point barrier this year, a strong return on a late-round depth piece for your fantasy roster. 

Additional Considerations: Bobby McMann (SEA), William Eklund (OTT), Emmitt Finnie (DET)

Fantasy Hockey Must-Have Right Wings

Porter Martone (PHI - RW; Yahoo ADP 68.6/RW25)

Earlier this summer I wrote up forward Matvei Mitchkov as a potential sleeper to target in drafts, and now I’m recommending teammate Porter Martone as another potential breakout candidate. Needless to say, I’m high on the youth movement happening in Philly. 

Martone is a 19-year-old phenom who sparked the Flyers during last season's playoff run. He played in just nine regular-season games but managed to accumulate 10 points (four goals, six assists).

He then went on to put up five more points in the playoffs, including game-winning goals against the Penguins in his first two postseason appearances. His underlying metrics support his late-season run as he generated a team-high 53% Corsi% and On-Ice Shot Attempts per 60 during the postseason (according to MoneyPuck).

Porter Martone working with John LeClair. LeClair said in summer that he thinks what Martone did last season was not a fluke at all, that he’ll build on it. pic.twitter.com/YoWFnO5UbB

— Jordan Hall (@JHallNBCS) September 15, 2026

Martone is currently projected to start on Philly’s top line alongside Christian Dvorak and Travis Konecny, per the Daily Faceoff. As the current Calder Trophy favorite, expectations are high for Martone, but given how he exploded onto the scene last season, he seems more than up to the task. 

Alex Tuch (WSH - RW; Yahoo ADP 91.7/RW32)

The second of our “I thought he was our future in Vegas” players, Alex Tuch is on the move to Washington to play alongside, and possibly one day replace, Alexander Ovechkin. The Caps pursued Tuch in the offseason, acquiring him from Buffalo in a sign-and-trade, giving him a monster contract in the process. 

They clearly have big plans for the 30-year-old, 30-goal scorer, as they’ve immediately placed him on the second line, presumably to groom him to take over for Ovi upon his retirement. The 10-year veteran has scored at least 33 goals in three of the past four seasons, and will arguably be playing with his best-ever set of teammates this coming year. 

He will be counted on to carry the scoring load for both the second unit during even strength and on the power play. We may have already seen his ceiling, but Tuch is still in the prime of his career and provides an excellent scoring boost without being a major investment.

There are 31 other right wingers going before him in drafts, so you won’t have to count on Tuch to carry your squad, but he makes for a great injury replacement or a utility player for the back end of your starting unit.

He is a prime mid-round sleeper that could very well flirt with a season-high goal total in an improved Washington offense.

Additional Considerations: Matthew Knies (TOR), Morgan Geekie (BOS), Juraj Slafkovsky (MTL)

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