Fantasy Hockey Players To Put On Your Do Not Draft List

Hey folks. There are always players heading into a fantasy hockey season who I just don't want to draft. Sometimes they're being taken too early, sometimes I see legitimate bust potential, and sometimes I simply don't believe they're worth the draft capital being spent on them.

These are five players I'm going to be avoiding this season. That doesn't mean I think they'll all have bad NHL seasons, but for one reason or another, they're way off my radar when it comes to building my fantasy teams. Let's dive in.

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Alexander Nikishin - Carolina Hurricanes

Nikishin is a player I have a really hard time drafting right now because of the situation surrounding him in Carolina. Reports have surfaced that he requested a trade after the 2025-26 season, and that request reportedly remains in place. He is also currently unsigned and did not report to Carolina's training camp, so there is still plenty of uncertainty surrounding where he will actually play this season.

I know there is a lot to like about Nikishin from a fantasy perspective. He showed plenty of flashes of brilliance as a rookie and put up 33 points in 81 games, so the talent is clearly there. My concern is that if he does get traded, there is no guarantee he lands somewhere with the same opportunity or surrounding talent that he currently has in Carolina.

Until we get some kind of official resolution and know that Nikishin is committed to playing in Carolina, he's on my do not draft list. I don't want to spend a fantasy pick on a young player who could suddenly find himself in a completely different situation. Maybe he gets traded and thrives, but there is enough uncertainty here that I'd rather let someone else take that gamble.

Anthony Stolarz - Toronto Maple Leafs

Stolarz was part of a tandem with Joseph Woll in Toronto last season, but neither goalie was able to stay healthy enough to take on a full starter's workload. Stolarz played only 34 games last season after missing time with a knee injury, and he also dealt with another upper body injury during the season. Now Toronto has added Sergei Bobrovsky, who steps in as the team's clear starter goalie after winning the Stanley Cup with Florida in each of the previous two seasons.

That really changes the fantasy equation for Stolarz. Last season, there was at least a path for him to split the net with Woll and potentially take over more of the workload if he stayed healthy. Now he has to compete with Bobrovsky, who has a massive amount of experience and has recent back-to-back Stanley Cup championships. Toronto has already said it views the position as a tandem situation, but I still don't see a realistic path for Stolarz to get the kind of workload he would need to become a valuable fantasy starter.

From a fantasy perspective, I'm staying away. Even if Stolarz plays well, I think the games simply won't be there for him unless something happens to Bobrovsky. He's also already shown that staying healthy for a heavy workload has been difficult, so I'm not interested in drafting him and hoping everything breaks perfectly. There are other goalies I'd rather take a chance on than one who could end up playing roughly half the games.

Morgan Rielly - Toronto Maple Leafs

Rielly is another player who has fallen off my fantasy radar because I don't think he's the defensemen he used to be. He's still an important part of the Maple Leafs, but his offensive game has declined, and I don't think the fantasy production matches the reputation anymore. Now Toronto has brought in Darren Raddysh after he put up 70 points and 26 powerplay points with Tampa Bay last season, and Raddysh is expected to quarterback the Leafs' top powerplay.

That is a major problem for Rielly's fantasy value because the powerplay was always one of the biggest reasons to draft him. If Raddysh takes that role and holds onto it, Rielly loses one of the clearest paths he had toward putting up meaningful offensive numbers. Toronto's projected defense already has Raddysh and Rielly on separate pairings, but Raddysh is the one expected to handle the top powerplay duties.

From a fantasy perspective, I don't see where the upside comes from anymore. Rielly is 32 years old and has already shown over the past few seasons that he isn't producing at the level he once did. Unless Raddysh gets hurt or something changes dramatically with the powerplay, I think Rielly is going to have a reduced fantasy role, and that's enough for me to keep him firmly on my do not draft list.

Aliaksei Protas - Washington Capitals

Protas is a player I think could really struggle to provide fantasy value this season because his peripherals don't give him much of a floor. Last season he showed that he can contribute offensively, but if the scoring isn't there, there isn't enough else in his fantasy profile to make him particularly useful. That's a big concern when you're looking at a player who could see his role change because of the additions Washington made this offseason.

The Capitals added Alex Tuch and Jordan Kyrou to an offense that already has a now-healthy Pierre-Luc Dubois, captain Alex Ovechkin, and several other established forwards, giving them significantly more options up front. Washington's own preseason outlook has described Protas as someone competing for a role rather than someone locked into a major offensive position.

From a fantasy perspective, that makes Protas a really tough player for me to draft. If he's not getting consistent powerplay time or producing offensively, his lack of strong peripherals leaves him with a very low floor. There is certainly more talent around him now, but that's not necessarily a good thing for his fantasy value if it comes at the expense of his ice time and offensive deployment. For me, the risk has become too high for what he brings to the table.

Brock Boeser - Vancouver Canucks

Boeser is probably the easiest player on this list for me to explain because I just don't think his fantasy profile is what it used to be. He is still capable of scoring goals, but the offensive production has fallen from the level we saw earlier in his career, and Vancouver simply doesn't have the type of roster that gives me much confidence in a major bounce back. He finished last season with 48 points, although he did have a strong finish after the Olympic break.

The biggest concern for me is that there isn't really a deployment change that suddenly fixes everything. Boeser can play in the top six and get offensive opportunities, but I don't think that's enough anymore. His fantasy value is tied heavily to scoring, and when the points aren't there, his peripherals don't give him much of a safety net. His +/- potential also gives me nightmares, as the Canucks have such a depleted roster that they are going to get shelled a lot. Vancouver is also coming off a season where it missed the playoffs, and the current roster still leaves me questioning where enough offense is going to come from.

For me, Boeser has gone from a player I would consider in the middle rounds to someone I would rather leave for the late rounds or the waiver wire. He's still a seven-time 20 goal scorer, so I'm not saying there is no value here, but I don't see enough upside to make him someone I want to draft ahead of other options. At this point, he's a streamer for me unless something changes dramatically.