Luke Glendening

Glendening had his worst output since his rookie year in 2019-20, producing just nine points while posting a minus-29 rating in 60 games. That included a dreadful 28-game point drought to end the year. It's unlikely the 31-year-old completely lost his game once the calendar flipped to 2020, but he's never been a prolific scorer. Entering 2020-21, Glendening will likely have to compete for a bottom-six role -- it wouldn't be shocking to see him average under 15 minutes of ice time per game for the first time since 2017-18. Fantasy managers will rightfully be wary of Glendening on draft day, as he doesn't warrant a pick outside of deep formats that reward physicality. He's topped 130 hits in each of the last six years.

Glendening was one of the few bright spots for the Red Wings in the 2018-19 campaign, as he established career highs in points (23), hits (198) and blocked shots (102) through 78 games. While the tireless winger struggles with puck possession, his defensive focus and off-the-charts compete level is readily apparent to the Detroit fanbase. Best of all, since he's not a popular name outside of Motown, Glendening can be viewed as a potential free-agency pickup for owners left thin at the forward position at the conclusion of a given fantasy draft.

Glendening stacked 11 goals and 19 total points against a career-worst rating (minus-14) through 69 games in the 2017-18 campaign. Of course, the industrious forward only averaged 13:12 of ice time in a fourth-line capacity, so he was indubitably left off most fantasy rosters. The Red Wings have the 29-year-old under contract through 2020-11 at a reasonable cap hit of $1.8 million per season, and he'll be expected to boost the team's 24th-ranked penalty kill. Glendening's offseason wrist operation went without a hitch, therefore, he's slated to be ready for training camp in preparation for his sixth NHL season of exclusivity in Detroit.

A physical, blue-collar winger, Glendening hails from Michigan and naturally fits in the Motor City. The Red Wings have the versatile penalty killer under contract through the 2020-21 campaign, costing the club a reasonable $1.8 million per season. However, the obvious downside to Glendening from a fantasy perspective is his limited ice time, as he was unable to average more than 15 minutes per contest in his first four NHL seasons, plus he spent time in the summer rehabbing from a fractured ankle that required surgery. The 28-year-old's only worth a look if your virtual roster runs extremely deep or puts a special emphasis on defensive stats like hits and blocked shots.

Glendening was a decent fill-in for the injury ravaged Wings in 2013-14, scoring seven points in 56 games and adding a goal in the playoffs. That being said, there are likely too many centers ahead of Glendening to start the season anywhere but Grand Rapids in the fall.