Fantasy Hockey Breakdown of Offseason NHL Trades: Part II

We’re back with a fantasy hockey‑focused breakdown of the nonstop wave of offseason NHL trades, a stretch of seismic moves that’s rapidly reshaping rosters and fantasy outlooks.

Fantasy Hockey Breakdowns of Latest Trades

Simon Nemec Trade

Calgary Flames receive: Simon Nemec (D), Maxsim Tsyplakov

New Jersey Devils receive: 2026 2nd-round pick, 2027 1st-round pick, 2028 2nd-round pick

Nemec has a massive opportunity in front of him. In New Jersey, he was buried behind Brett Pesce (D) and Dougie Hamilton (D) on the depth chart and behind Hamilton and Luke Hughes for power-play opportunities.

In Calgary, he finds himself in wide-open territory. With Zack Whitecloud and Zayne Parekh leading the way on the right side, nothing in Calgary is set in stone.

He did struggle mightily defensively when given big minutes in New Jersey. Don’t expect Nemec to suddenly mature and become a top-two defender. This will be a process requiring patience. With the price the Flames paid, they clearly believe he will get there.

Nemec Fantasy outlook: Expect 30-35 points this year, 40-point potential. There’s 50-point upside, but patience is key. It could take a couple of years.

William Eklund Trade

Ottawa Senators receive: William Eklund (RW), Kasper Halttunen (RW), Brandon Svoboda (C)

San Jose Sharks receive: 1st-round pick, 9th Overall

The Senators wasted no time flipping the 9th overall pick from the Brady Tkachuk deal to San Jose. Eklund will slot into the hole left by Tkachuk. He’s an entirely different type of player. He’ll beat you with skill, not his physicality.

With 53 and 58 points in his last two seasons, Eklund has shown himself to be an offensive winger with promise. The Senators are banking on Eklund to unlock that next gear and become more of an offensively dominant player.

Don’t expect Eklund to take a step back offensively because he doesn’t have Macklin Celebrini to play with anymore. After all, only 12.7% of his five-on-five ice time was spent with Celebrini. With a power-play consisting of Tim Stutzle (C), Jake Sanderson (D), and Drake Batherson (LW), he’ll be surrounded with talent.

Eklund Fantasy Outlook: Eklund is a safe 60–65‑point winger with PP1 upside and zero Celebrini‑related regression risk. His ceiling is closer to 80.

Halttunen Fantasy Outlook:  2-3 years from playing NHL games. Only the deepest of pools should look at him. Third-line upside with goal-scoring punch.

Kyrou – McMichael Trade

Washington Capitals receive: Jordan Kyrou (RW)

St. Louis Blues receive: Connor McMichael (C/LW), Milton Gastrin (RW), 2026 1st-round pick, 16th Overall

This was an overpay by the Capitals to get Kyrou.

As the centerpiece of this deal, we’ll start with him. Kyrou is one of the fastest players in the league. He also has hands that can keep up. That speed is going to make the Capitals very dangerous off the rush.

After three straight 30-goal seasons and four straight seasons with 67 or more points, Kyrou fell off a cliff last year. His production plummeted to 46 points in 72 games.

Kyrou Fantasy Outlook: Expect Kyrou to bounce back to his 30-goal, 70-point self. The Capitals are legitimately stacked, and he is primed to benefit.

At age 25, McMichael is just entering his prime years. In 2024-25, he scored 26 goals and put up 57 points.  With fewer goals, points, and fewer shots, and a shooting percentage taking a 5% dip, he had a down year across the board.

McMichael Fantasy Outlook: 50-point floor. Sleeper 70-point potential. The talent is there.

Gastrin Fantasy Outlook: It’ll be at least two years before Gastrin should be considered, even in deep pools. Long wait.

Bowen Byram Trade

Chicago Blackhawks receive: Bowen Byram (D), Jordan Greenway (LW/RW)

Buffalo Sabres receive: Louis Crevier (D), 2026 1st-round pick, 4th Overall, 2026 2nd-round pick, 45th Overall

For a defenseman, they weren’t going to be able to re-sign; this was an absolute haul.

The rumor mill has swirled since Byram was with the Colorado Avalanche that he wanted to be the number one option on a team. He gets that chance in Chicago. For Chicago’s sake, let’s hope he enjoys his time.

Byram will be given first pair minutes and get a long look on the first power-play unit. Artyom Veshunov didn’t take off like folks hoped last year. We all know defencemen take longer to develop than other positions. Byram has his opportunity to prove he’s a number one defenceman.

Byram Fantasy Outlook: He should surpass 50 points for the first time in his career, with a safe projection of 12-15 points from the power play.

Crevier Fantasy Outlook: Beyond deep multi-cat leagues, Crevier holds little value.

Tuch Sign & Trade

Washington Capitals receive: Alex Tuch

Buffalo Sabres receive: David Kampf, 2026 3rd-round pick

With the announcement that Tuch was headed to Washington with an 8-year, 84 million dollar contract extension (10.5 Average Annual Value – AAV), and the recent signing of restricted free agent, Zach Benson, to a 7-year 7.5 AAV contract, it’s clear why they let Tuch go. There’s only so much salary cap to go around.

Tuch leaves an up-and-coming Sabres team, loaded with young talent, and joins another team loaded with offensive weapons. One day earlier, the Capitals traded for Jordan Kyrou. They may be a stronger offensive team than the one he just left.

Tuch Fantasy Outlook: Deployment on the first power-play unit should give Tuch a 10-point bump, on his career average, up to 75 points. Without it, it’s status quo.

Svechkov, L’Heureux Trade

Colorado Avalanche receive: Fedor Svechkov (C), Zachary L’Heureux (LW)

Nashville Predators receive: Jack Drury (C), Chase Bradley (LW), 2029 3rd-round pick

Svechkov never found his footing with Nashville. For better or worse, he’s getting a fresh start in Colorado. There’s still upside with Svechkov, although it’s not the top-six impact winger some hoped he would become.

Svechkov Fantasy Outlook: With second-unit power play exposure, we’re looking at a 35-40-point ceiling this year.

L’Heureux is a wrecking ball on skates. The energy and physicality he brings is what Colorado desires. There is potential offence in his game, too. He’s been a point-a-game player, or close to it in the CHL and the AHL, with 28 points in an injury-plagued season last year.

L’Heureux Fantasy Outlook:  If he hits 25 points, take it. The real hope is for him to play the full season, provide 100+ penalty minutes, and 200 hits. He has a road to becoming a 50-point player, but it’s a couple of years down the road.

Drury holds no fantasy value. In 20-team leagues, Drury may still be on the wire.

Nichushkin Trade

Columbus Blue Jackets receive: Valeri Nichushkin (LW) 

Colorado Avalanche receive: 2026 2nd-round pick, 2027 3rd-round pick, 2029 5th-round pick

Nichushkin should slot onto one of Columbus’s top two lines. Unfortunately, Adam Fantilli (C) is not Nathan MacKinnon, and Sean Monahan is not Brock Nelson (C) or Nazem Kadri (C). Gaining access to the first power play unit is also not assured. The Blue Jackets have several comparable options to Nichushkin. We will need to wait for training camp to see who lands the final one or two spots. Charlie Coyle (C), Sean Monahan (C), Conor Garland (RW), and potentially Cayden Lidstrom (C) are all in the mix.

Nichushkin Fantasy Outlook: Slight step back. Expect around 60 points. On the first power play, there’s a road to 65-plus points.

It’s draft day, the trade boards are buzzing, and the league feels one move away from chaos. This weekend is going to be wild. I’ll be back next week with a full breakdown of every NHL trade and draft storyline that matters.