Brady Tkachuk

After his first 30-goal performance, Tkachuk had a career year in 2022-23 with 35 goals and 83 points in 82 games. He was one of the most impactful skaters in the league, with or without the puck; he finished fourth in the NHL with 347 shots on goal and eighth among all forwards with a whopping 242 hits. The 23-year-old also racked up 126 PIM but managed to block only nine shots. Tkachuk recorded 29 of his 83 points with the man advantage, including 11 goals. He's locked into his spot on the first line next to star center Tim Stutzle and a role with the top power-play unit. Tkachuk is worth the early-round pick and will continue to contribute in several categories.

It depends on the settings in your fantasy league, but there is most definitely a scenario in which Tkachuk is worthy of a top-five pick, if not higher. In 79 games a season ago, Tkachuk finished with 30 goals, 67 points, 117 penalty minutes, 288 shots on goal, 17 power-play points and 270 hits. All this production came in his age-22 season for a poor Senators team. Ottawa loaded up this offseason, trading for Alex DeBrincat and signing Claude Giroux in unrestricted free agency. They'll be a better club this coming year, perhaps a much better one, and that should only serve to increase Tkachuk's fantasy ceiling. The hits and shots on goal will always be there, so give Tkachuk a massive bump in the rankings if your league values such numbers.

Tkachuk scored 17 goals and 36 points through 56 contests last season, setting new career lows in each of those categories. However, on a per-game basis, his offensive production was nearly identical to his first two seasons. In fact, the 6-foot-3 winger has scored between 0.62-0.64 points-per-game in each of his three years in the NHL. Tkachuk also ranked second among all skaters with 248 hits while averaging 18:14 of ice time. The 21-year-old will have a secure spot on the Senators' first line and top power-play unit, giving him a good chance to reach the 50-point mark for the first time in his career in 2021-22.

Tkachuk is a tough kid with a ton of skill whose game is a lot like Washington's Tom Wilson, one of the few true power forwards in the NHL. Tkachuk's nasty streak puts his game on the edge, but fantasy owners should be happy to walk that line with a guy who has 50-point, 100+ PIM and 300-hit (and shot) potential (or more). You need to be able to swallow a putrid plus-minus to gain those hard-to-get categories, at least for the next couple years. Tkachuk is a building block for the young Sens and he could be for your specialty league, too.

The No. 4 overall pick from last year's draft impressed as a rookie, registering 22 goals and 45 points in 71 contests. Much like his brother Matthew, Tkachuk has a nasty streak to his game, which led to him racking up 75 PIM and 174 hits last season. The 19-year-old winger is likely to be a liability in the plus-minus department, but he should contribute in every other category this campaign, especially if he earns the trust of new head coach D.J. Smith and averages more than the 16 minutes per game he logged in 2018-19. Should that happen, Tkachuk could easily post upwards of 25 goals, 50 points, 200 hits and 1.0 PIM per game in 2019-20.

The Senators selected Tkachuk, 18, fourth overall in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. There's a reason GM Pierre Dorion and Co. spent such high draft currency on him, passing on Filip Zadina (Detroit) in the process. Last season, playing at Boston University, Tkachuk tallied 31 points in 40 games, posting a plus-15 rating along the way. Ottawa desperately needs scoring after trading away Matt Hoffman, and while the left winger does not currently possess the scoring touch of Hoffman, Tkachuk does profile as a playmaking forward who, with time, should be able to notch 20-plus goals over an 82-game span. The rebuild is on in Canada's capital, and with it comes an influx of young talent to assess. Monitor Tkachuk's training camp closely. Should he crack the Opening Night roster, he is worth taking a late-round flier on, especially in dynasty formats.