Yahoo Fantasy Hockey top 50 players for 2017-18

Yahoo Fantasy Hockey 2017-18 has arrived, which is truly a joyous time for those of us who love to dig our nails into a draft, assemble an amazing team and then basically abandon it when your two best goalies are hurt around the middle of January.

Fantasy players can start fiddling around with mock drafts for this season, and within those drafts we find the first ranking of players for the 2017-18 Yahoo Fantasy Hockey season.

(Keep in mind these are the “x-rankings” for the players, i.e. the expert ranking based on last season’s performance and predictions for this season. This is the ranking used in the auto draft.)

Here’s the current top 50 players in Yahoo Fantasy Hockey, including updated positions:

1. Connor McDavid, C, Edmonton Oilers

2. Sidney Crosby, C, Pittsburgh Penguins

3. Patrick Kane, RW, Chicago Blackhawks

4. Auston Matthews, C, Toronto Maple Leafs

5. Carey Price, G, Montreal Canadiens

6. Brent Burns, D, San Jose Sharks

7. Vladimir Tarasenko, RW, St. Louis Blues

8. Alex Ovechkin, LW, Washington Capitals

9. Nikita Kucherov, RW, Tampa Bay Lightning

10. Evgeni Malkin, C, Pittsburgh Penguins

11. Jack Eichel, C, Buffalo Sabres

12. Jamie Benn, LW, Dallas Stars

13. Patrik Laine, RW, Winnipeg Jets

14. Brad Marchand, LW, Boston Bruins

15. Braden Holtby, G, Washington Capitals

16. Leon Draisaitl, C/RW, Edmonton Oilers

17. Erik Karlsson, D, Ottawa Senators

18. Victor Hedman, D, Tampa Bay Lightning

19. Nicklas Backstrom, C, Washington Capitals

20. Mark Scheifele, C, Winnipeg Jets

21. John Tavares, C, New York Islanders

22. Matt Murray, G, Pittsburgh Penguins

23. Dustin Byfuglien, D, Winnipeg Jets

24. Tyler Seguin, C/RW, Dallas Stars

25. Sergei Bobrovsky, G, Columbus Blue Jackets

26. Cam Talbot, G, Edmonton Oilers

27. Phil Kessel, RW, Pittsburgh Penguins

28. Max Pacioretty, LW, Montreal Canadiens

29. Artemi Panarin, C/LW, Columbus Blue Jackets

30. Steven Stamkos, C, Tampa Bay Lightning

31. Mitchell Marner, C/RW, Toronto Maple Leafs

32. Jake Allen, G, St. Louis Blues

33. Roman Josi, D, Nashville Predators

34. Johnny Gaudreau, LW, Calgary Flames

35. Kris Letang, D, Pittsburgh Penguins

36. Duncan Keith, D, Chicago Blackhawks

37. Pekka Rinne, G, Nashville Predators

38. Joe Pavelski, C/RW, San Jose Sharks

39. Blake Wheeler, RW, Winnipeg Jets

40. P.K. Subban, D, Nashville Predators

41. Wayne Simmonds, RW, Philadelphia Flyers

42. Filip Forsberg, LW, Nashville Predators

43. David Pastrnak, RW, Boston Bruins

44. Shea Weber, D, Montreal Canadiens

45. John Gibson, G, Anaheim Ducks

46. Martin Jones, G, San Jose Sharks

47. Evgeny Kuznetsov, C, Washington Capitals

48. Ryan Getzlaf, C, Anaheim Ducks

49. Tuukka Rask, G, Boston Bruins

50. Patrice Bergeron, C, Boston Bruins

Any surprises?

Willie Nylander of the Leafs fell just outside the Top 50 at No. 52. Kevin Shattenkirk is at No. 63 for the New York Rangers. Ottawa Senators LW/RW Mike Hoffman, of 26 goals last season, is at No 67. Brandon Saad, back with the Chicago Blackhawks, is at No. 73. Dylan Larkin of the Detroit Red Wings is at No. 153.

One player of note on this list: Panarin. Obviously, there’s going to be some apprehension about his numbers without Patrick Kane on his line, but he’s now a dual-eligibility player at left wing and center. Huzzah!

Alas, there are more than a few renowned players who lost their dual eligibility, including Patrik Laine (now just a RW), Jakub Voracek (now just a RW), Nathan MacKinnon (now just a center) and Ryan O’Reilly (now just a center). Boooo!

Sign up for Yahoo Fantasy Hockey today!

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Greg Wyshynski is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter. His book, TAKE YOUR EYE OFF THE PUCK, is available on Amazon and wherever books are sold.

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