Artem Zub

Zub played a bigger role for the Senators a season ago than most would have initially expected. He averaged more than 21 minutes per game (21:02) while posting career-best marks in goals (6), assists (16), points (22), shots on goal (92), hits (155) and blocks (124). Zub's fantasy value will be forever limited by the fact he doesn't receive any power-play time, but the Russian rearguard makes for a cheap source of hits and blocks late in your draft if you are struggling in those categories.

Zub played well above expectations in his first NHL season in 2020-21. The Russian secured a full-time roster spot with Ottawa in mid-February and played in every game the rest of the way. All told, Zub posted 14 points, 89 hits, 70 blocks and a plus-four rating through 47 contests. The Senators were impressed to the point they felt comfortable handing Zub a new two-year, $5 million contract extension in May. It's a deal that seemingly locks Zub into a top-four role for the Sens for the next two seasons, but his fantasy value will be minimal during that period due to a lack of power-play time. Zub saw just 0:04 of ice time per game with the man advantage a year ago.

Zub joins the Senators in 2020-21 after a relatively solid year with SKA St. Petersburg of the KHL, where he had 22 points in 57 outings. In training camp, Zub is likely to compete with Josh Brown for playing time. An undrafted blueliner, Zub is a relatively unknown asset in North America. There's reason to believe he could earn a substantial role this year, but fantasy managers would be wise to take a wait-and-see approach with the 25-year-old instead of using a draft pick to select him in the late rounds.