2023-2024 Fantasy Hockey Best Ball Strategy

In this piece of the Fantasy Hockey Draft Guide, I’ll share my Fantasy Hockey Best Ball Strategy at UnderdogFantasy and NFHC. I’ll show you an example of one of my drafts and my strategy behind it. We’ll discuss targets, roster construction and stacking. Before we get going, I plan on doing a couple of live drafts on our YouTube page so make sure you subscribe!

Live best ball draft:

A friendly reminder that a best ball draft has no in-season waiver wire pickups. The website will automatically insert your best players’ performances for each week. If you’re someone who likes to work the waiver wire and stream positions, this type of format may not be for you. However, I’ll argue that best ball drafts are a lot of fun, and although I love to work the wire (waiver wire articles to come every week this year at FTN Fantasy), there’s something about just drafting and forgetting it. Who doesn’t love to draft? You all do, and that’s why you’re here! Your job is finished after your draft, and you can sit back and watch the points pile up without having to stress over waivers each Sunday.

For those who are just getting their feet wet at Underdog, use promo code FTN for a 100% first time deposit match up to $100.

The Best Puck Classic at Underdog is only a 16-round draft with a larger field and prize pool. NFHC offers two different types of best ball drafts. The NFHC 25s consist of 12 teams and 32 rounds with a top prize of $200. There’s also a Draft Champions league which also consists of 12 teams and 32 rounds with a top league prize of $700 and top overall prize of $2,500. More on those drafts below.

Below we’ll highlight the difference between drafts at Underdog and NFHC. We’ll discuss roster construction and builds. How many centers, wingers, defensemen and goalies should you have? I’ll discuss my sweet spot, including when to take goalies and defensemen, along with what types of players to target as well as stacking.

Fantasy Hockey Rankings: https://www.ftnfantasy.com/nhl/fantasy-hockey-rankings

Targets: https://ftnfantasy.com/nhl/2023-2024-fantasy-hockey-preview-top-targets

Sleepers: https://ftnfantasy.com/nhl/2023-2024-fantasy-hockey-preview-sleepers

Breakouts: https://ftnfantasy.com/nhl/2023-2024-fantasy-hockey-preview-breakouts

Busts: https://ftnfantasy.com/nhl/2023-2024-fantasy-hockey-preview-busts

Old Faces, New Places: https://ftnfantasy.com/nhl/2023-2024-fantasy-hockey-preview-old-faces-new-places

High Stakes Strategy: https://ftnfantasy.com/nhl/fantasy-hockey-high-stakes-draft-strategy

Best Puck Classic @ UnderdogFantasy

Entry: $10
Entrants: 14,100
Prizes:$125k
Draft Size: 12
Draft Rounds: 16

Prizes
1st: $25k
2nd: $10,000
3rd: $7,975
1176-2820th: $10

Tournament Schedule
Qualifiers: Weeks 1-19
Quarterfinals: Weeks 20-21
Semifinals: Weeks 22-23
Championship: Weeks 24-25

Scoring
Goal: 6.0
Assist: 4.0
Power Play Point: 0.5
Shot: 1.0
Block 1:0
Hit: 1.0
Win: 6.0
Save: 0.6
Goal Against: -3.0

Roster
1 C
2 W
1 D
1 G
1 FLEX
10 Bench

Centers

The Best Puck Classic only has 1 center position in the starting lineup compared to two wingers. Yes, your one FLEX spot could come from a center, winger or defenseman, but wingers are more likely to enter your starting lineup, and I believe they’re more valuable in this format. As you’ll see below, NFHC has seven forward positions in your starting lineup each week. It doesn’t matter if they are a C or a W. At Underdog, I believe it’s important to hammer the winger position after the first couple of rounds.

For the fantasy football people out there, think of the Hero RB strategy, where you have a top-10 running back to anchor your squad, then draft a running back in the first two rounds and revisit the position in the middle rounds. It was my favorite strategy to deploy in fantasy football this season, and it’s the strategy to take in fantasy hockey best ball formats at Underdog.

Let’s call this the Hero C strategy. If you land any of the following centers in the first, second or third round, you can avoid the C position for several rounds after.

Elite

Connor McDavid, EDM
Leon Draisaitl, EDM
Auston Matthews, TOR
Nathan MacKinnon, COL
Jack Hughes, NJ
Tage Thompson, BUF
Elias Pettersson, VAN

The center position at Underdog is extremely deep, and there are several appealing names to target toward the middle and the end of the drafts to go with your Hero C. There are even real-life wingers listed at center at UF (Adrian Kempe & Carter Verhaeghe). Most people in draft rooms let the C position fall. You won’t see Sidney Crosby in the fourth, Brayden Point in the fifth or Roope Hintz in the sixth or seventh in your typical redraft league with waivers. There’s something to be said about stacking wingers with four of your first six picks, then taking some of the value at C in the middle or near the end of your draft.

The reason to do this is simple. If you have one of the centers listed above, they’ll most likely crack your starting lineup each week. There won’t be too many skaters on your roster at the C position who will outscore McDavid, Draisaitl, Matthews, MacKinnon, Hughes or Thompson. If you have McDavid, Crosby, Point, Hintz and Zibanejad, it almost feels like a waste. Underdog will only take your top-scoring C for the week. The only way to get a second C in your lineup is if they outperform winger No. 3 or defenseman No. 2. So two of Hintz, Point and Zibanejad won’t even make your starting lineup.

Now, not everyone will be lucky enough to get a top 3 or 4 pick, so rostering four centers is all right if you don’t have an elite center. Having five is a unique build, but I wouldn’t roster more than four on most occasions. It’s not the end of the world to miss on the first few centers. Targeting elite wingers or a goalie early on is perfectly fine.

Here are a few other centers to target:

J.T. Miller, VAN
Roope Hintz, DAL
Mika Zibanejad, NYR
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, EDM
Carter Verhaeghe, FLA
Adrian Kempe, LA
Sebastian Aho, CAR
Nico Hischier, NJ
Boone Jenner, CBJ
Barrett Hayton, ARI
Dawson Mercer, NJ
Seth Jarvis, CAR
Gabriel Vilardi, WPG

Wingers

Attack the winger position early and often. I wouldn’t leave the draft with less than six wingers, and I’m more than comfortable taking seven. We already established getting an elite C, and the hope is that C is in your lineup each week. Your second C will have a hard time topping any of the top 5-7 centers listed above if you take this strategy.

Target shooters

David Pastrnak, BOS
Jason Robertson, DAL
Brady Tkachuk, OTT
Timo Meier, NJ
Alex Ovechkin, WAS
Tim Stutzle, OTT
Kyle Connor, WPG
Zach Hyman, EDM
Alex DeBrincat, DET
Jake Guentzel, PIT
Alex Tuch, BUF
Rickard Rakkell, PIT
Clayton Keller, ARI
Filip Forsberg, NSH
Matt Boldy, MIN
Cole Caufield, MTL
Tyler Toffoli, NJ
Drake Batherson, OTT
Taylor Hall, CHI
Oliver Bjorkstrand, SEA

Goalies

Ah yes, the goalie position. You often hear the term voodoo or volatile when people talk about the position. They’re not wrong, but that doesn’t mean you should ignore them. I want to leave my draft with at least three goalies. The only way I won’t leave my draft with three goalies is if I have two top-five goalies, which I’ve yet to do and don’t think I will.

I wouldn’t suggest reaching on goalies, and it’s fine to go another way if the draft room is goalie-crazy (example below). Having said that, you won’t win the grand prize with poor play in goal. Make sure you leave your draft with one of my top-five goalies. Andrei Vasilevskiy and Igor Shesterkin didn’t live up to their expensive price tags last season, but they still finished in the top 10 at the position. There are plenty of teams with mediocre goalies and only a few goalies who will get a majority of starts. Below are a few of my favorite goalie targets, but you can check out my goalie rankings here.

See more fantasy hockey content here.

Top Goalies To Target

Ilya Sorokin, NYI
Igor Shesterkin, NYR
Jake Oettinger, DAL
Juuse Saros, NSH
Alexandar Georgiev, COL
Ilya Samsonov, TOR
Filip Gustavsson, MIN

Value

Joonas Korpisalo, OTT
Adin Hill, VGK
Frederik Andersen, CAR
Logan Thompson, VGK
Akira Schmid, NJ
Phoenix Copley, LA
Cam Talbot, LA

I prefer Copley over Talbot, as I think he’ll get the majority of the starts for the Kings this season, and he was good last year (24-6-3). Korpisalo will rack up saves and could push 60 starts if he stays healthy. Schmid could take over as the No. 1 in NJ, and the VGK duo may actually be a duo all season, but both are going near the end of drafts. Don’t reach for Andersen. He’ll pile up the wins but he won’t get many saves and he has issues staying healthy. However, I’ve noticed he’s fallen outside the top 20 at the position which makes him a value.

Stacking

Stacking isn’t as important as it is in football or baseball, but the right stacks can take your team to another level and can be the difference between winning large and just getting your money back. Most teams will mix up their lines throughout the season, so you may not have a 5v5 line stack at the end of the season that you thought you had at the beginning. Consider stacking power plays on high-powered teams. I prefer two or three-man stacks as opposed to a four-man stack from one team.

Edmonton Oilers

If you’re lucky enough to get McDavid or Draisaitl, you should absolutely be thinking of Zach Hyman, Evander Kane, Connor Brown or Evan Bouchard. Ryan-Nugent Hopkins is listed a C, but I have shares in leagues where I have McDavid or Draisaitl. In that case, I’ll ignore C3 and C4 until late.

New Jersey Devils

The Devils are for real and have plenty of appealing options up front, including Jack Hughes, Timo Meier, Tyler Toffoli, Nico Hischier, Dougie Hamilton and Dawson Mercer. New Jersey will mix their lines up, so it’s not a lock that Meier will be with Hughes or that Toffoli will be with Hughes. Having said that, I fully believe Meier will be on the first PP.

Toronto Maple Leafs

It’s a loaded top six in Toronto. Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander and John Tavares will fly off the board early. Tyler Bertuzzi is a value.

Dallas Stars

Jason Robertson, Roope Hintz and Miro Heiskanen.

Ottawa Senators

Brady Tkachuk and Tim Stutzle are a strong duo to stack. Drake Batherson is a shooter poised to break out.

Buffalo Sabres

Tage Thompson, Alex Tuch and Rasmus Dahlin.

Seattle Kraken

Jared McCann, Matty Beniers and Vince Dunn

Arizona Coyotes

I’m really feeling Clayton Keller and Barrett Hayton this season.

Conclusion

Make sure you target shooters over pass-first players. Players like Artemi Panarin, Johnny Gaudreau, Quinn Hughes and Chandler Stephenson don’t really do it for me. The only way I’d consider those players is if I was looking to complete stacks. Hughes may not finish as high as you think.

Don’t be afraid to draft players who are popular in bangers leagues (here), who will provide a bit of grit for your team. Remember players who hit, shoot and block are very valuable, especially at defense.

Get yourself a top-five goalie and leave with three.

Three defensemen is the way to go and try to get someone who skates on the power play. Stacking a PP1 defenseman on a team with others you’ve already selected will go a long way in the end.

Pass on players who are injured (minus Jake Guentzel). I don’t see much of a point in taking Andrei Vasilevskiy or Brandon Montour. If either suffers a setback, it’s a wasted pick.

These are my favorite builds and the builds that have been most successful.

3C-7W-3D-3G
4C-6W-3D-3G
4C-7W-3D-2G
3C-8W-3D-2G

If you’re looking for more players I like, check out the rest of the draft guide. I tend to play in leagues with hits, blocks and shots, so those types of targets are highlighted throughout this guide. Be sure to also check out the bust section! Good luck!

NFHC 25s

Just like at Underdog, shooters and goal scorers get a boost in these formats. You also get rewarded for special team goals, hits and blocked shots. You don’t have to focus on players who only hit, but you’ll want to make up for it if you start your draft with Jack Hughes, William Nylander or Artemi Panarin.

My strategy changes slightly in this format as I tend to be aggresive in goal and I think stacking is more important at NFC. First of all, there are 32 rounds so this is a very deep league. You can afford to take fliers on players you think will progress as the season gets deeper.

Below is a look at one of my best ball drafts at NFC. As you’ll see, I decided to punt the goalie and defense position (for the most part). It’s not ideal, but I wanted to show you how quickly goalies fly off the board in this format and what your team could look like if that’s the strategy you take.

I have two goalies I really like in Joonas Korpisalo and Pheonix Copley, but I don’t have a top-10 lock. I love my forwards, but if I don’t hit on one of those goalies, I could be in trouble. Goalie tandems are more ideal in this format (VGK, LA, CAR, NJ). Backing up one of your top goalie picks, like handcuffing running backs isn’t a bad idea. If you grab Ilya Sorokin or Igor Shesterkin early, consider Semyon Varlamov and Jonathan Quick later on.

As for defensemen, NFC decided to add bonus points for goals and assists, so they’re more valuable this year than in the past. I have no issues selecting Rasmus Dahlin, Evan Bouchard or Miro Heiskanen early. I didn’t in this draft below, but I wanted to show you this draft because it shares a few of my sleepers at G and D.

Here’s the draft in which I picked from the two spot.