Patrick Maroon

As one of the most physical forwards in the NHL, Maroon isn't much of a fantasy asset. Last season, he racked up a league-leading 150 PIM while scoring just five goals and 14 points in 80 games. Maroon also racked up 172 hits, his highest total since the 2016-17 season. After a four-year run with the Lightning, he was dealt to the Wild for the 2023-24 campaign. The 35-year-old winger will skate in a fourth-line role and should see similar results. Expect around 15 points with high contributions in hits and PIM from Maroon.

Maroon is nothing more than a depth player in the latter stages of his career and thus not a fantasy option, but he again provided excellent value for the Lightning a season ago at a cap hit of just $900K. Maroon played in 81 of 82 regular season games, before seeing action in all 23 of Tampa Bay's postseason contests. He finished with 11 goals, the most he's scored since he potted 17 in 2017-18. Maroon signed a new two-year deal with the Lightning this past February worth $1 million per season. It should ensure Maroon - who will be 36 years old when the contract concludes - finishes his career in Tampa Bay.

The NHL's ultimate good luck charm, Maroon has now won three straight Stanley Cups, the first with St. Louis and the past two with Tampa Bay. The days of Maroon posting 20-plus goals and 40-plus points have come and gone, but he still has value to the Lightning in a depth role. Maroon has never finished with fewer that nine goals or 104 hits in any season in which he has played at least 62 games. That will help Tampa Bay, but most fantasy managers can fade Maroon in their drafts this coming fall.

Maroon won the Stanley Cup for the second straight year as a member of the Lightning in 2019-20. He provided 23 points and 104 hits in 63 contests during the regular season and another six points in 25 playoff outings. While Maroon is far from a high-scoring threat on the fourth line, he could still wind up seeing traces of power-play time. That probably won't be enough to get him back to the 20-point mark in the truncated 2020-21 campaign, but the veteran winger should still provide well in hits and PIM in his age-32 season.

Maroon came back to the Blues on a hefty discount to play for his hometown team, and it felt like a mistake at first when Maroon was a healthy scratch in November. However, Maroon carved out a role on the team as a physical third-liner who could be a net-front presence on the power play. And eventually, he fulfilled a childhood dream of bringing Lord Stanley to St. Louis, staking his claim in history with a Game 7 overtime goal versus the Stars in the conference semifinals. Unfortunately for Maroon, the Blues were unwilling to meet his market value after he posted just 28 points in the regular season, and the 31-year-old remains unsigned. If he ends up back with the Bluenotes, expect Maroon to land around 35 points again, but he could have an increased role with another team which could shoot him into 40-point range.

Maroon was part of St. Louis' massive offseason haul, coming over in free agency on a one-year, $1.75 million deal. He set a career high with 43 points between the Oilers and Devils last season, topping his 2016-17 total with Edmonton by one. A middle-six winger with excellent size at 6-foot-3 and 225 pounds, Maroon will likely be centered by either Ryan O'Reilly or Tyler Bozak, both of whom have the passing ability to set Maroon up for quality chances. As long as he's healthy after having surgery on a herniated disc in his back this offseason, the American power forward's a nice asset in formats that value penalty minutes, as he's averaged 84 PIM over the past two seasons to go with averages of 22 goals and 42.5 points.

It was a tale of two seasons for Maroon in 2016-17. He combined for 3.67 goals per 60 minutes while sharing the ice with Connor McDavid, but the winger posted a 2.25 mark when he wasn't flanking the star center. Maroon's 2017-18 outlook projects to mirror last season's results, too. Obviously, he takes a huge fantasy hit when he's not playing with McDavid. However, Maroon was also one of just six players to record 25 goals, 40 points, 75 PIM and 150 shots last season, so his cross-category profile offers a nice fantasy floor regardless of his linemates.

Maroon was a beast after getting dealt to Edmonton late last season, putting up eight goals and 14 points in 16 games. While the 20.5 percent shooting percentage behind that production is unlikely to be sustained over a larger sample, the outburst shows that the former Duck is capable of reaching new heights with the Oilers. Newly acquired power forward Milan Lucic and incumbent Benoit Pouliot will make it difficult for Maroon to climb the ranks at left wing, but each of Edmonton’s top three centers has the distributing skills and offense-first mindset necessary to push him past his current career high of 34 points.

Maroon turned in a mediocre 34-point campaign in 2014-15, despite spending a decent chunk of time on Anaheim’s top line with stars Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf. Even so, the 27-year-old has a strong chance to reprise his first-line role to start the upcoming season. The 2007 sixth rounder doesn’t possess incredible talent, but it’s hard not to approach fantasy relevance when receiving extended ice time alongside two of the NHL’s premier players. Maroon’s stock entering his third full NHL season would take a major hit if he loses his first-line role in camp, but his 11 points in 16 playoff games playing mostly with Getzlaf and Perry prove that Maroon shouldn’t be overlooked as long as he’s taking on a featured role on one of the NHL’s best offensive teams.

Maroon’s playing time and productivity have increased every season of his career so far and last year ended with him putting up an impressive playoff performance. Now as he enters the final year of his contract, it seems likely that 26-year-old from St. Louis will look to continue this upward trend. He could even see time with Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry again (he got five games there in 2013-14). If he doesn’t make it on a scoring line, he’ll be an intimidating presence on the third line. Thirty-five points, 120 PIMs and 150 hits are within reach, although advanced stats will tell you he’ll struggle if he starts his shifts in the defensive zone.

Maroon got two goals and one assist during the 13 games that he played in the 2012-2013 after being recalled from the Ducks' AHL affiliate. He put up good numbers in the AHL, though, and could be in line for a larger role with the Ducks during the 2013-2014 season. The more probable outcome is another year in the AHL for the 25-year-old winger and that means his prospect window is closing fast.

Maroon is just like every other power forward -- slow to develop, but solid (and hard to handle) once he does. Last season in the AHL, he pounded home 32 goals, 42 assists and 120 PIMs in 75 games. He has remarkably soft hands for such a large man and that means he might actually be able to pull off second-line duty some day. This year, watch for him to get a few cups of coffee, a couple of goals and handful of fights with the Ducks. His real shot will come in 2013-14.