Fantasy picks, props, futures with EDGE stats

TUE. OCT. 7

Player to watch for a goal and/or point: Anze Kopitar, F, LAK (vs. COL)

Kopitar announced he will be retiring after this season, his 20th in the NHL (all with Kings), and has scored 12 career goals in season openers, trailing only Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin (13) for the most among active players. Kopitar is the Kings’ all-time leader in games played (1,545) and assists (838), ranks third in goals (440) and second in points (1,278) behind Marcel Dionne (1,307). The 38-year-old Kopitar, who had a hat trick in last season’s opening game against the Buffalo Sabres, also has 11 points (one goal, 10 assists) in his past eight games against the Colorado Avalanche. Per NHL EDGE stats, Kopitar ranked among the forward leaders in both total skating distance (259.06 miles; 97th percentile) and high-danger goals (15; 89th percentile) last season. – Troy Perlowitz

Player to watch for 3-plus shots on goal and/or point: Carter Verhaeghe, F, FLA (vs. CHI)

The 30-year-old wing led the Panthers in shots on goal (242; tied for 17th in NHL) last season, and his 3.21 shots on goal per game over the past three seasons is tied for 24th among forwards. Verhaeghe, who has scored at least 20 goals in each of the past four seasons, also had at least three shots on goal in seven of his final eight regular-season home games last season. Per NHL EDGE stats, Verhaeghe ranked in the 95th percentile at his position in top skating speed (23.42 mph), midrange shots on goal (84) and long-range shots on goal (27). The Chicago Blackhawks allowed 31.1 shots on goal per game last season, the third most in the NHL behind the Anaheim Ducks (32.3) and San Jose Sharks (31.8). – Troy Perlowitz

Player to watch for point, assist and/or shots on goal: Sam Rinzel, D, CHI (at FLA)

The 25th pick in the 2022 NHL Draft joined the Chicago Blackhawks near the end of last season and finished with five assists (three power-play assists) and 22 shots on goal in nine games. Although it was a small sample size, Rinzel ranked second on Chicago in average ice time (23:22 per game) and average even-strength ice time (19:28) and was tied for third in average power-play ice time (2:24). The rookie defenseman will open the season on the first power-play unit for Chicago, which ranked seventh last season (24.9 percent), bringing exposure to elite forward Connor Bedard. In four preseason games, Rinzel had three assists, 18 shots on goal and was tied for third in the NHL with 34 shot attempts. Per NHL EDGE stats, Rinzel ranked in the 85th percentile at his position in average miles skated per 60 minutes (9.00) last season. – Chris Meaney

Player to watch for assist and/or point: Erik Karlsson, D, PIT (at NYR)

The Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman, a three-time Norris Trophy winner, frequently plays on the first power play with high-scoring forwards Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Rickard Rakell and could see an even heavier workload compared to last season. Karlsson is a five-time 70-point scorer (NHL career-high 101 with San Jose Sharks in 2022-23), has nine seasons of at least 50 and is an EDGE stats juggernaut, ranking among the defenseman leaders in the following categories:

• Top skating speed: 23.67 mph (98th percentile)
• 20-plus mph speed bursts: 139 (98th percentile)
• Total skating distance: 263.65 miles (94th percentile)
• Top shot speed: 97.52 mph (89th percentile)
• Offensive zone time percentage: 45.7 (93rd percentile)

The New York Rangers will play their first game under new coach Mike Sullivan but were tied for the fifth-most shots on goal per game allowed (29.9) last season as they missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Karlsson had three assists in four games against the Rangers last season. – Pete Jensen

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Others to watch for goal and/or point:

-Brad Marchand, F, FLA (vs. CHI)
-Gabriel Landeskog, F, COL (at LAK)
-Will Cuylle, F, NYR (vs. PIT)

Others to watch for assist and/or point:

-Andrei Kuzmenko, F, LAK (vs. COL)
-Ville Koivunen, F, PIT (at NYR)
-Connor Bedard, F, CHI (at FLA)
-Mackie Samoskevich, F, FLA (vs. CHI)

Others to watch for shots on goal:

-Sam Bennett, F, FLA (vs. CHI)
-Nathan MacKinnon, F, COL (at LAK)
-Adrian Kempe, F, LAK (vs. COL)
-Rickard Rakell, F, PIT (at NYR)
-Ryan Donato, F, CHI (at FLA)

Point combos to consider:

-NYR: J.T. Miller – Mika Zibanejad
-FLA: Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett
-COL: Nathan MacKinnon – Cale Makar
-PIT: Rickard Rakell – Sidney Crosby
-LAK: Anze Kopitar – Adrian Kempe
-CHI: Connor Bedard – Sam Rinzel

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FUTURES WATCH

NOTE: The following are candidates, either front-runners or sleepers, for various NHL Awards.

Rocket Richard:

-Connor McDavid, F, EDM
-Tage Thompson, F, BUF
-Jake Guentzel, F, TBL
-Cole Caufield, F, MTL
-Matt Boldy, F, MIN

Art Ross:

-Nathan MacKinnon, F, COL
-Jack Eichel, F, VGK
-Mikko Rantanen, F, DAL
-Kirill Kaprizov, F, MIN
-Nick Suzuki, F, MTL

Hart:

-Jack Eichel, F, VGK
-Mikko Rantanen, F, DAL
-Kirill Kaprizov, F, MIN
-Cale Makar, D, COL
-Nick Suzuki, F, MTL

Norris:

-Lane Hutson, D, MTL
-Thomas Harley, D, DAL
-Shea Theodore, D, VGK
-Jake Sanderson, D, OTT
-Roman Josi, D, NSH

Vezina:

-Andrei Vasilevskiy, G, TBL
-Logan Thompson, G, WSH
-Anthony Stolarz, G, TOR
-Mackenzie Blackwood, G, COL
-Adin Hill, G, VGK

Calder:

-Ivan Demidov, F, MTL
-Sam Rinzel, D, CHI
-Zeev Buium, D, MIN
-Matthew Schaefer, D, NYI
-Jimmy Snuggerud, F, STL

40 goals:

-Cole Caufield, F, MTL
-Jason Robertson, F, DAL
-Matt Boldy, F, MIN
-Dylan Guenther, F, UTA
-Adrian Kempe, F, LAK

Stanley Cup:

-Colorado Avalanche
-Tampa Bay Lightning
-Dallas Stars
-Vegas Golden Knights