Frozen Fantasy: Early Rookie Frenzy

Matthew Schaefer (87 percent Yahoo!) was named NHL Rookie of the Month for October. Rightfully so. The kid is dynamic. The skating. Such poise. Incredible skill. 

Is he a Cale Makar (100 percent Yahoo!) clone? I dare you to disagree. 

Cripes, I've been convinced. He just turned 18 in September. He's already carrying himself like a true No. 1. Makar was similar, albeit one year older. 

Makar has a Calder, multiple Norrises, a Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe. Schaefer is on track for ROTY consideration. Ivan Demidov (67 percent Yahoo!) may be the only one who can take that trophy from Schaefer, though Zeev Buium (66 percent Yahoo!) will also have something to say about that. 

On Saturday, Demidov became the fastest Habs' rookie to hit 10 points in a season (12 games) since Stephan Lebeau did it in 1989-90 (11 games). Let's hope his impact with the Habs is more than Lebeau's. Buium's impact on Minny's power play was immediate. And his advanced metrics show a player with elite potential. 

Who's the best of the rest?

Alexander Nikishin (83 percent Yahoo!) looks every part a dominant two-way stud on the backend. He does it all, and his pro experience in the KHL is obvious. Jakub Dobes (57 percent Yahoo!) has been a complete surprise this season. Six wins, a sub-2.00 GAA and .930 save percentage. Great things sometimes come from the fifth round. 

Jimmy Snuggerud (17 percent Yahoo!) has surprised me. I didn't like his game on Draft Day, though his power-play work has impressed me. Ryan Leonard (nine percent Yahoo!) is making a dent on Washington's third line. He can rip the puck.  

Michael Misa (11 percent Yahoo!) is showing flashes of the smarts and skill that made him the best in the OHL last season. He might even be the Sharks' 2C by season's end. Beckett Sennecke (6 percent Yahoo!) has played 10 games and is here to stay. His speed and skill are electric, and he'll put up points. Time will polish his game. 

The biggest other name is Zayne Parekh (28 percent Yahoo!), whose offensive talent is the closest to Schaefer's. The kid is dynamic. Too bad his 5v5 play is porous. The current Flames are a bad place to learn that part of the game. I hope they don't destroy him. 

This year's rookie crop is remarkably strong. I'm lucky to have Demidov, Misa and Parekh, albeit in three separate leagues. Can you imagine them all on the same fantasy team?

Now let's take a look at who caught my eye this week. 

Andre Burakovsky, LW, Chicago (3 percent Yahoo!) -- Burakovsky is Connor Bedard's (99 percent Yahoo!) latest wingman. He's posted nine points in 11 games, including five (two goals, three assists) on a three-game streak. That run also includes two power-play assists. The 30-year-old may lose this gig as easily as he got it. But Burakovsky can claim a 61-point campaign, and it came when he skated with stars. And Bedard is certainly one of those.

Dylan DeMelo, D, Winnipeg (7 percent Yahoo!) -- I really like what I've seen from DeMelo over the last 10 days or so with a goal, three assists, five hits and 10 blocks through five outings. The point pace won't continue, but he's a perennial triple-digit hits and blocks performer with a combined plus-77 the last two years. DeMelo is an unspectacular top-pairing defender who can be close to a set-and-leave contributor for success in those three categories, especially in deep formats. Especially if he can come close to his 31 points from 2023-24. There are a lot of others we roster who end up delivering in fewer categories. 

William Eklund, LW, San Jose (44 percent Yahoo!) -- Eklund's rostering exploded 16 percent heading into Saturday. His five-game, nine-point streak (four goals) was snapped, but the Sharks looked good against the Avs in a 3-2 win. Eklund doesn't have the sex appeal of Macklin Celebrini (99 percent Yahoo!) or even Will Smith (42 percent Yahoo!), yet he's on a near point-per-game pace (11 in 12) and second on the team in that category and goals (five). Eklund is one of those smart pickups who might not be notable now, but you can look back at and smile. Who wouldn't smile at a LW with 70-point potential? (NOTE: Eklund missed Sunday's contest with an injury, so be sure to monitor his status before adding him.)

Vladislav Gavrikov, D, NY Rangers (2 percent Yahoo!) -- Gavrikov isn't an offensive force, though he can block shots and chip in a few points. In his last four games, he's put up a goal, an assist, nine blocks and eight shots. His skillset can help when those peripheral categories are in play. After all, Gavrikov managed 30 points and 140 blocks last season. He's behind the offensive pace, but almost on par with the latter. 

Tristan Jarry, G, Pittsburgh (38 percent Yahoo!) -- Maybe all Jarry needed was a true platoon to regain his confidence and show off his skills. He's starting every other outings and has won four straight, including one via the shutout. And Jarry has only allowed seven goals during that stretch. Managers are starting to notice - his rostering almost doubled overnight this past weekend. The Pens are among the hottest teams, so we'd all be smart to milk Jarry's early success immediately. Yes, I think the team will cool off. Someone else will be warm by then, and you can slot them in. 

Philipp Kurashev, LW/C, San Jose (19 percent Yahoo!) -- Fantasy managers almost universally forgot that Kurashev went off for 54 points in 75 games in Chicago two seasons ago. Probably because of his minus-44, but that Hawks squad was abysmal. Kurashev is hot with eight points across five matchups that includes four goals. Add in 17 shots, five hits and a plus-six rating, and Kurashev looks like a star. He's not. Let's not get ahead of ourselves - he was rostered in 1 percent of Yahoo! leagues heading into this weekend. That's a huge jump. I've added Kurashev. Because hot is hot. 

Alex Laferriere, RW, Los Angeles (8 percent Yahoo!) -- Laferriere is on a four-game, four-point run heading into Tuesday with all six of his points from his last seven outings. He may be playing in the middle-six, but he's on PP2. And I really don't think Laferriere's 42 points (19 goals, 23 assists) in 77 games last year were a fluke. Managers in deep leagues could use some of his skill. 

Anthony Mantha, RW, Pittsburgh (13 percent Yahoo!) -- Mantha is on yet another redemption tour, this time in Pennsylvania. Last season, he tore his ACL in early November and that was that. Mantha has NEVER played a full campaign with 67 marking his career peak. Right now, he has eight points - including five goals - and 16 shots in his last eight games. And he's clicking with the aging, but eternal Evgeni Malkin (80 percent Yahoo!). Mantha is worth riding until he gets hurt. Because he will. I'm simply being real. 

Leevi Merilainen, G, Ottawa (3 percent Yahoo!) -- I really like Merilainen. Yes, he stumbled out of the gate and was sent down, though he went 2-1-0 in three AHL starts. He arrived back in Canada's capital on Saturday, and the Sens have a back-to-back next weekend. Merilainen will be in the blue paint against either Philly or Utah. The Sens may save Linus Ullmark (86 percent Yahoo!) for the Mammoth on Sunday. And that makes Merilainen a solid start against the orange and black. He'd still be worthy against Utah as he may feel he has something to prove. 

Corey Perry, RW, Los Angeles (2 percent Yahoo!) -- This is a seriously short-term recommendation. Perry is 40. And while that's elder millennial by everyday standards, it's pleistocene in hockey. He ripped off seven points - five of those goals - over the last week-plus. And yes, he'll run out of steam. BUT, and it's a big but. The Kings play an intensely structured game that will ultimately shelter Perry. Look at what it did for Cam Talbot (29 percent Yahoo!) last year. Perry may be slow, yet his hands are still sublime. And he continues to reinvent his game to stay relevant. I like him for spot starts on light nights. 

Jack Roslovic, RW/C, Edmonton (3 percent Yahoo!) -- Roslovic represents another temporary pickup consideration. He hopped the boards on PP1 Saturday night and promptly found twine. He's posted two goals, two assists and 12 shots from his last four games. Roslovic will drop back down to PP2 when Zach Hyman (83 percent Yahoo!) returns in about a week. Fill your boots until then. 

Back to quality rookies.

Last year, we saw Lane Hutson, Macklin Celebrini, Matvei Michkov and Dustin Wolf (99, 99, 68 and 87 percent Yahoo!) leap off the page. The year before, it was Connor Bedard, Luke Hughes, Logan Cooley and Lukas Dostal (99, 92, 87 and 69 percent Yahoo!, respectively). 

Matt Boldy, Wyatt Johnson, Owen Power and Matty Beniers (100, 97, 19 and 12 percent Yahoo!, respectively) were the cream of the crop in 2022-23. In 2021-22, Cole Caufield, Moritz Seider and Lucas Raymond (99, 97 and 91 percent Yahoo!, respectively) set out their planks for NHL stardom. 

Oh yah, Jeremy Swayman (79 percent Yahoo!) also came out of that class. And the year before? Kirill Kaprizov, Jason Robertson and Tim Stutzle (100, 99 and 98 percent Yahoo!, respectively). Boom.

We all love rookies, and it's clearly justified when you see them spelled out like this. Will the 2025-26 class rise to the level of the ones  who came before? I'd say it's right up there.

And every one of them is well worth watching. 

Until next week.