Top Fantasy Hockey Sleepers to Boost Your 2025-26 Draft Strategy

At their core, fantasy drafts are about trying to accurately predict which players will provide more value than their draft position suggests, and correctly picking which sleepers will have a great year is one of the best ways to do that. So, let's highlight some sleepers who seem primed to provide that kind of value this year.

Let's start by defining what the term sleeper means in the context of this article, especially in contrast to a breakout candidate, because those terms can sometimes be used interchangeably. For our purposes, a sleeper is someone who might have had fantasy relevance in the past and has typically been around for a while, but he hasn't lived up to expectations in recent years. By that definition, sleeper candidates tend to be veterans, whereas breakout candidates cover the younger players with plenty of potential, but who haven't stepped up yet.

To make this list more valuable, the players highlighted will either have a Yahoo average draft position (ADP) above 150 or not have one at all because they aren't being drafted often enough.

Andrei Kuzmenko, LW, Los Angeles Kings

Kuzmenko isn't likely to repeat his 39-goal, 74-point showing from 2022-23, but 2025-26 might be his second-best campaign after finishing the 2023-24 and 2024-25 regular seasons with 46 and 37 points, respectively. He's bounced around a lot in recent years, but the 29-year-old found chemistry with the Kings last year, recording five goals and 17 points in 22 regular-season appearances after LA acquired him in a trade, followed by another three goals and six points in six playoff outings. Despite being taken in just 13 percent of leagues with an ADP of 175.5, a full season with the Kings should work well for Kuzmenko, especially because he's projected to serve on the top six and first power-play unit.

Trevor Zegras, C, Philadelphia Flyers

Zegras showed promise early in his career by scoring over 20 goals and 60 points in each of his first two full campaigns. However, injuries have held him back over the past two seasons, which has led to fantasy managers writing him off -- he's drafted so rarely that he doesn't even have an ADP. Now with Philadelphia after being acquired over the summer from Anaheim, Zegras will get a fresh start. Keep in mind that he's still just 24 years old and has clear offensive upside, so while concerns about his health are valid, Zegras is in a position to vastly exceed expectations.

John Klingberg, D, San Jose Sharks

Although Klingberg exceeded the 30-point mark in each of his first nine campaigns, including six instances in which he hit the 40-point milestone, his last two seasons have been a disaster. He logged just 25 regular-season outings and 19 playoff appearances between 2023-24 and 2024-25 because of injury. However, he does seem to be healthy now and might be in the ideal destination for a comeback. The Sharks have a young forward corps, but what they lack is offensive defensemen, which might lead to Klingberg quarterbacking an effective top power-play unit. He's being taken in just five percent of leagues with an ADP of 182, so you don't need to grab him right away, but if he does end up in that power-play position, then he'll be worth taking a chance on.

Andrew Mangiapane, LW, Edmonton Oilers

Edmonton's attempts to bring in veteran forwards to complement its stars have a mixed record. Jeff Skinner and Viktor Arvidsson didn't exactly play out as hoped for the Oilers in 2024-25. Still, Mangiapane is worth keeping an eye on. Although he was limited to just 14 goals and 28 points across 81 regular-season appearances with Washington last year, he was also averaging just 13:02 and commonly served in a bottom-six capacity. However, Edmonton is thin on the wings, especially while Zach Hyman (wrist) is unavailable. Mangiapane is being tested alongside Connor McDavid during training camp, and if he can develop chemistry with either McDavid or Leon Draisaitl, then there is a chance for the 32-year-old Mangiapane to reach the 30-goal mark for the first time since 2021-22. Mangiapane is being drafted in only six percent of leagues with an ADP of 190, so you can afford to take a wait-and-see approach with the intention of grabbing him if he does display that chemistry during training camp or the early season.

Gabriel Landeskog, LW, Colorado Avalanche

Before the 2025 playoffs, Landeskog hadn't played in an NHL game since June 26, 2022, due to a knee injury, and consequently, it's hard to know what to expect from him. On top of that, he hasn't played more than 54 regular-season games in a single campaign since 2018-19, so the threat of injury continues to loom even if he was healthy entering training camp. That said, at the age of 32, a comeback season is absolutely possible, especially because he's expected to serve in a top-six capacity and on the first power-play unit. The potential is there for him to have 20-plus goals and close to a point-per-game pace, which makes him a nice gamble relative to his ADP of 164.7.

Patrik Laine, RW, Montreal Canadiens

Laine is another forward who has been held back due to injuries, though there's another wrinkle here. He tends to be extremely streaky, piling on goals like an elite at times, while also having stretches where he contributes almost nothing offensively. That kind of inconsistency can be frustrating for fantasy managers, but there's reason to believe this year might be better. He's missed a significant chunk of time early in the campaign for each of the past five seasons, which can be tough to adjust to. It's risky to rely on better injury luck, but the 27-year-old's situation makes doing so tempting. Laine's likely to play alongside promising rookie Ivan Demidov at even strength, and he should continue to get key opportunities with the man advantage after hitting the 15 power-play goal mark for the third time in his career during the 2024-25 regular season. Laine's being taken in just 25 percent of leagues with an ADP of 172.8. For that late draft selection, you could end up with a 30-goal performer if things go his way.

Boone Jenner, LW, Columbus Blue Jackets

Jenner played in just 26 games due to injury last year, but he was great when available, scoring seven goals and 19 points. Although the 32-year-old has never reached the 50-point mark, it wouldn't be shocking to see him do so this season if he's healthy. The Blue Jackets' forward corps made huge strides in 2024-25, so Jenner has some really talented players to work with. Based on the early training camp, Sean Monahan and Kirill Marchenko, the latter of whom is coming off a 74-point campaign, are likely to be Jenner's linemates. That's an enviable assignment for a forward who is taken in just six percent of leagues with an ADP of 173.

Evander Kane, LW, Vancouver Canucks

Like a lot of players on this list, injury is the biggest concern for Kane, and that's a problem unlikely to go away given his physical style of play, coupled with the fact that he's now 34 years old. Still, there is some reason for cautious optimism. Kane has exceeded the 20-goal mark on nine occasions, including four seasons where he logged 65 or fewer games, so he tends to put up decent numbers even in campaigns limited by injury. He's also a great source of PIM and hits, which gives him some versatility. Playing for his hometown team might also give him a bit, especially because he tends to perform best early in his tenure with a new franchise. Kane's being selected in 73 percent of leagues with an ADP of 168.4. A big part of Kane's worth comes from his contributions in hits and PIM, so if your league doesn't use either of those categories, then his appeal is significantly smaller. If you are towards the end of your draft, though, and you find yourself needing help in one of those physical categories, consider Kane.