Like real NHL teams, winning isn't just about having good players; it's about getting those players cheaply enough to gain a competitive edge. In standard fantasy leagues, a player's cost is measured by when you drafted them rather than by a cap hit, but the principle is the same. One of the best ways to end up with terrific value is to select a player who goes on to have a breakout season, and this article will help you do just that.
Before we dive in, let's establish one important definition: For the context of this article, a breakout candidate is a player who hasn't enjoyed any significantly fantasy-relevant seasons, but is believed to take a meaningful step forward in 2026-27. In other words, for this article, a player who has been good before but hasn't done anything special in recent years doesn't qualify. That would instead be a sleeper candidate for our purposes. As a consequence, this list will skew towards younger players than a sleeper list would, based on our definitions. You should also note that those listed below won't include Calder Trophy-eligible players to avoid excessive overlap with a top rookies article.
Egor Chinakhov, LW/RW, Pittsburgh Penguins
To an extent, Chinakhov has already enjoyed his breakout, but because it only encapsulated half of the 2025-26 campaign, he might still fly under the radar in some leagues. After beginning last season with just three goals and six points across 29 outings with Columbus, the Blue Jackets decided to cut their losses on the promising but still unproven forward by trading him to Pittsburgh. That immediately paid off for the Penguins, who got 18 goals and 36 points across 43 regular-season outings out of Chinakhov following the trade. A big part of his jump in productivity was thanks to the greater opportunity he had in Pittsburgh, especially because the Penguins would typically play him alongside at least one of Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin. He should remain in Pittsburgh's top six for 2026-27, which makes his surpassing of the 50-point mark feasible and even hitting 60 points a possibility that can't be ignored.
Zach Benson, LW, Buffalo Sabres
Taken with the No. 13 overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, Benson has slowly come along, providing 34 goals and 101 points across 211 career regular-season appearances with the Sabres. However, he trended upward with 43 points in the 2025-26 regular season, and Buffalo was encouraged enough by his development to lock him to a seven-year, $52.5 million contract extension over the summer. There's a solid chance Benson will be on Buffalo's top line this campaign, but regardless of how the Sabres divvy up their top six, Benson is primed to take a significant step forward. His $7.5 million cap hit might feel like a risk right now, but it's one that has a high chance of paying off handsomely.
Matvei Gridin, LW/RW, Calgary Flames
I'm excluding Calder Trophy-eligible players from this list, but I won't completely exclude players gearing up for their first full NHL season. Gridin is one such example: He had 10 goals and 30 points in 37 AHL outings, as well as six goals and 20 points in 37 appearances with the Flames in the 2025-26 regular season. Calgary doesn't have much in the way of offensively gifted forwards, which creates an opportunity for Gridin to end up carving out a big role for himself in Calgary. Of course, that's a double-edged sword because it also means his linemates won't be a lot of help. He's risky, but the potential for a strong campaign is there.
Logan Stankoven, C/RW, Carolina Hurricanes
Stankoven had 21 goals and 44 points in 81 regular-season appearances in 2025-26, which is solid but not special, especially when you're looking at players to fill out a roster in a 12-team fantasy league. However, he showed what he's capable of in the playoffs, providing 11 goals and 16 points across 19 outings to help the Hurricanes win the Cup. His potential was already known -- there's a reason the Hurricanes locked him up to an eight-year, $48 million contract in the summer of 2025, which is already starting to look like a steal without it even beginning until this season. The continued presence of Sebastian Aho keeps Stankoven off the top line, which somewhat limits his short-term offensive upside. However, the 23-year-old Stankoven should be able to comfortably push past 50 points this year.
Igor Chernyshov, LW/RW, San Jose Sharks
Welcome to the Sharks portion of this article. I'm optimistic about the direction of this team, and especially its young forward group. Chernyshov should become a significant part of it. He already gave fans a taste of what he's capable of with his nine goals and 19 points in 28 appearances in 2025-26, which incidentally was barely enough to put him out of Calder Trophy eligibility for this year. If he gets to spend the upcoming campaign playing primarily alongside Macklin Celebrini, which was the arrangement when Chernyshov played last year, then the Russian winger should turn a lot of heads. Just one caveat: Chernyshov's 19.6 shooting percentage was awfully high and might have been the result of a relatively small sample size. His offensive capabilities are real, but don't be surprised if his shooting percentage, and consequently his goal-scoring pace, don't live up to what we saw in 2025-26.
Michael Misa, C, San Jose Sharks
Misa's first NHL campaign wasn't anything to write home about. It's not that his nine goals and 21 points in 45 appearances with the Sharks in 2025-26 represented a disastrous start, but it also isn't anything close to what the 2025 second overall pick is capable of. To be fair to him, he didn't get much of an opportunity for the first half of the campaign. Between a lower-body injury and a stint with Team Canada for the World Juniors, Misa logged just seven games with the Sharks through Jan. 10. He played in all of San Jose's final 38 games, but even then, he was averaging just 13:00 of ice time in that span with a minimal power-play role. Still, Misa's incredible upside makes him one worth watching now that he has some NHL experience under his belt. It wouldn't be surprising if he plays a meaningfully bigger role this time around, partially at the expense of Alexander Wennberg. If Misa can jump up to about 15:00 per game this year, then pushing past 50 points as a sophomore is possible.
Yaroslav Askarov, G, San Jose Sharks
This is the biggest gamble on this list. Although Askarov is seen as having a lot of upside, he struggled last season with a 21-20-4 record, 3.63 GAA and an .883 save percentage in 47 starts with the Sharks. It also wasn't just a case of the team in front of him leaving him out to dry -- Askarov's goals saved above expected were minus-18.9, per Moneypuck, which was the third worst in the league. So whatever you want to say about last year's Sharks defense, there's an argument to be made that Askarov made things worse. Even still, goaltenders can take time to come into their own, so it wouldn't be surprising to see him do better in his age-24 campaign. On top of that, San Jose reinforced its blue line by adding Darnell Nurse and Jacob Trouba, so even if the defense wasn't fully to blame for the netminder's 2025-26 campaign, Askarov's job should be less demanding this time around. Couple that with plenty of offensive support, and Askarov is one of the most interesting goalie options going into this campaign.
Gabe Perreault, RW, New York Rangers
Perreault was amazing at the college level, contributing 35 goals and 108 points in 73 games with Boston College across two seasons before gearing up for his first full pro season in 2025-26. The campaign proved to be somewhat mixed, but his 12 goals and 27 points in 49 appearances with the Rangers represented a decent start, especially when coupled with his 10 goals and 17 points in 20 outings with AHL Hartford last year. Most importantly, he excelled when given an opportunity to play a bigger role, accumulating nine goals and 19 points in the Rangers' final 23 games while averaging 17:00 of ice time. If he can continue to get a sizable role this season, then he should be able to carry that end-of-season momentum into 2026-27.
Mavrik Bourque, C/RW, Nashville Predators
Bourque had 25 regular-season points as a rookie in 2024-25, followed by 41 last year, and naturally, his inclusion on this list means I expect him to take another step forward. Part of the reason for that optimism was the trade from Dallas to Nashville over the summer. The Stars have a deep forward corps, especially up the middle, which forced him to shift to the wing. However, the center position is far more open in Nashville. Bourque should get to play in his natural position this season, likely anchoring the second line behind Ryan O'Reilly. Nashville already made a six-year, $33 million commitment to Bourque, so the 24-year-old should get every opportunity as he looks to take another sizable step forward.
Tyson Foerster, LW/RW, Philadelphia Flyers
Foerster was trending in the right direction when he set career highs with 25 goals and 43 points in 81 regular-season appearances in 2024-25, but he was limited to just 29 games in the 2025-26 regular season because of injury. However, he's healthy now, and Philadelphia reinforced its commitment by signing him to an eight-year, $56.8 million contract over the summer. The Flyers have already shown a willingness to give Foerster significant minutes, and he should be a mainstay on the top power-play unit this campaign. If he can stay healthy, it wouldn't be surprising to see the talented young forward comfortably surpass his previous career highs. Just keep in mind that he does skew heavily towards goal scoring -- 61 of his 100 career points are markers -- which has its benefits, but unless he develops his playmaking side more, his point totals will be somewhat limited.
