Five players where the underlying process and the opportunity are beginning to line up

For this list, Fantasy Hub is looking for something more specific: players where the underlying offensive process is already stronger than the public production profile suggests — and where the 2026–27 role could finally unlock it.

The key metrics are Actual P/G, Expected P/G, Offensive Driver and Deployment. Expected P/G should not be read as a traditional season projection. It describes the scoring level currently supported by a player’s offensive environment and involvement. Driver measures the underlying individual process; Deployment measures the opportunity being provided.

Here are five deliberately bold predictions.

1. Igor Chernyshov scores 55+ points — and becomes impossible to ignore in standard leagues

Prediction: Igor Chernyshov finishes with at least 55 points and establishes himself as one of San Jose’s core fantasy forwards.

This is the player where the Fantasy Hub model is flashing the brightest.

Chernyshov produced 0.68 P/G in 28 games, but that isn’t actually the most interesting part of his profile. His underlying offensive process was among the strongest in the dataset, while his Deployment lagged materially behind it. Fantasy Hub’s historical model classified the gap as STRONGLY UNDERUTILIZED.

That distinction matters.

A young player producing because he is receiving premium minutes is one type of breakout candidate. A young player already generating elite-level underlying offense before the role has caught up is another.

Chernyshov falls into the second group.

And there is now evidence that the opportunity may be changing.

During San Jose’s September camp, Chernyshov has been used on the Sharks’ top power-play unit, including work in the bumper position alongside Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith. He has also skated in an offensive line with Michael Misa and Tyler Toffoli.

That is precisely the type of role change Fantasy Hub wants to identify:

Process first. Deployment second. Production follows.

There is still real uncertainty. His NHL sample remains limited, and San Jose has enough young forwards that line combinations could move quickly. But if the PP1 usage survives opening night, Chernyshov may not remain a speculative dynasty asset for long.

Fantasy Hub call: 55+ points, sustained PP1 exposure and a major jump in standard-league relevance.

2. William Eklund breaks 65 points in Ottawa

Prediction: William Eklund records his first 65-point season and becomes a reliable top-six fantasy forward.

Eklund’s profile is different from Chernyshov’s.

This isn’t primarily an underutilization bet. It’s a bet that an already-improving player has landed in an environment capable of converting that process into more production.

Fantasy Hub had Eklund at 0.68 Actual P/G and 0.68 Expected P/G last season. More importantly, the longer-term process trend was labelled STRONG UP / BREAKOUT CONFIRMED.

In other words, there wasn’t a large production illusion to correct. His scoring and expected scoring were aligned while the underlying process was improving.

Now add Ottawa.

Current Senators combinations have Eklund alongside Dylan Cozens and Fabian Zetterlund, while he has also been used on the first power-play unit with Tim Stützle, Drake Batherson, Dylan Cozens and Jake Sanderson.

That is significant.

At 0.68 P/G, an 84-game season already translates to roughly 57 points without assuming any improvement. To reach 65, Eklund doesn’t need to become a fundamentally different player. He needs a modest step forward combined with durable top-six and PP1 opportunity.

The underlying trend says that is plausible.

The role says there is now a route to it.

Fantasy Hub call: 65–70 points and a move from “interesting young forward” into dependable fantasy starter territory.

3. Matt Coronato scores 30 goals

Prediction: Matt Coronato reaches 30 goals and becomes one of the better mid-tier goal-scoring fantasy assets in the league.

Coronato might be the cleanest rebound case on the list.

He finished around 0.56 P/G, while Fantasy Hub’s Expected P/G sat substantially higher at 0.66. His profile remained distinctly shot-driven, and the historical process signal identified a REBOUND pattern rather than continued deterioration.

That gap is exactly what we want to investigate.

It doesn’t automatically mean a player was unlucky. Expected production can be wrong. But when stronger underlying scoring process is followed by better opportunity, the thesis becomes much more interesting.

Calgary is providing that opportunity right now.

Coronato has been skating with Matvei Gridin and Morgan Frost in camp, and the Flames have also used Coronato on their first power-play unit with Zayne Parekh, Gridin, Joel Farabee and Frost.

The player profile and role fit neatly together:

• shot-oriented individual process,
• top-six offensive deployment,
• PP1 access,
• previous production below the model-supported level.

A 30-goal prediction is intentionally aggressive. But this is the type of player where a goal spike would have an identifiable underlying mechanism rather than simply being a guess.

Fantasy Hub call: 30 goals, 60-point territory and much broader fantasy relevance than last season.

4. Frank Nazar becomes a 60-point player

Prediction: Frank Nazar clears 60 points even if he does not begin the season on PP1.

Nazar is one of the more interesting examples of why fantasy analysis shouldn’t start and stop with the power play.

Last season he produced 0.62 P/G, while Fantasy Hub’s Expected P/G was slightly stronger at 0.67. His process history was classified as BREAKOUT CONFIRMED.

That doesn’t scream massive regression candidate.

Instead, the question becomes whether Chicago can give him enough high-end offensive environment to push the scoring rate another step forward.

The early answer from training camp is encouraging.

Chicago opened camp with Nazar centering Patrick Kane and Roman Kantserov on the first line. Coach Jeff Blashill specifically highlighted the way Nazar’s speed can create passing lanes for Kane and how the three players’ give-and-go instincts could complement one another.

The complication is special teams. Early preseason configurations have also shown Nazar on PP2 rather than the top unit.

That is precisely why this prediction is useful.

The market tends to treat PP1 status as binary: get it and you’re interesting; don’t get it and you’re capped.

Nazar’s profile gives us a different argument. If his even-strength role is genuinely first-line quality and the individual process continues progressing, he doesn’t necessarily need immediate premium power-play deployment to become fantasy relevant.

And if PP1 eventually arrives, the ceiling moves higher again.

Fantasy Hub call: 60+ points despite opening the year outside PP1, with upside beyond that if his special-teams role grows.

5. Sean Durzi returns to 45-point territory — and becomes a top-30 fantasy defenseman

Prediction: Sean Durzi reaches 45 points and finishes the season as a legitimate top-30 fantasy defenseman.

Defense is where opportunity can distort fantasy value most dramatically.

A player can possess excellent offensive process but remain blocked from PP1. Conversely, a mediocre creator can become useful simply because he quarterbacks an elite power play.

Durzi is interesting because the underlying process doesn’t require the role to do all the work.

Fantasy Hub had him at only 0.45 Actual P/G, compared with 0.55 Expected P/G, with a high-confidence offensive profile and an improving/breakout process signal.

Now he is in New York.

The Rangers acquired Durzi during the offseason and have been using him in the top four alongside Marcus Pettersson. He is also expected to quarterback PP2 behind Adam Fox.

That last part is obviously the ceiling constraint.

Fox owns the premium role.

But PP2 is not the entire case for Durzi. If his strong puck-moving and offensive process translate into consistent top-four minutes on a Rangers team that wants more offense from the back end, he doesn’t need to displace Fox to produce.

Durzi has previously reached the high-30s/low-40s in points. A move back toward 45 is therefore less about inventing a new level than restoring production toward what the process suggests is possible.

And Fox’s missed time last season also demonstrated why New York needed another defenseman capable of handling offensive responsibility.

Fantasy Hub call: 45 points and enough multi-category offensive value to finish inside the fantasy top 30 among defensemen.

The common thread

These five predictions aren’t built on the same signal.

That’s the point.

The most interesting fantasy targets are rarely just the players with the highest score in one metric.

They’re the players where process, opportunity and environment are beginning to converge.

Chernyshov is the most aggressive bet here. Coronato may be the cleanest production-rebound candidate. Eklund has arguably the safest combination of established production and improved context. Nazar tests how much value can be created at even strength before the power-play role arrives. Durzi gives us the defenseman case: strong process without needing PP1 to carry the entire profile.

Not all five predictions will hit.

But if Fantasy Hub’s framework is doing its job, these are exactly the players we should be watching before the production jump becomes obvious in the standings.