Fantasy Hockey Weekly Picks: Players to Add and Stream

This week's fantasy hockey waiver wire pickups include forwards Adam Fantilli, Mathew Barzal, Kaapo Kakko, Morgan Frost, and defensemen Darren Raddysh and John Klingberg. Goaltenders Frederik Andersen and Jakub Dobes are also recommended as short-term streamers.

Weekly Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Pickups

Forwards

  • Adam Fantilli: The second-year center is filling in for Sean Monahan on the Blue Jackets' top line and has contributed three goals and three helpers in six contests. He is also shooting more often and averaging over 20 minutes per game.
  • Mathew Barzal: A more productive player since New Year's Eve, Barzal has three goals and six assists on 19 shots through eight games. He is competing on a top line with Anders Lee and Bo Horvat and averaging almost 21 minutes per game and nearly a shot per contest.
  • Kaapo Kakko: The second-overall draft pick in 2019 is enjoying a new lease on his career with the Seattle Kraken. He has three goals and seven helpers in eight contests and is skating on a top line with Matty Beniers and Jaden Schwartz. He is also seeing quality minutes with the man-advantage.
  • Morgan Frost: Skating on a scoring line and power play with Travis Konecny and Owen Tippett, Frost has four goals and two assists on 18 shots in six recent contests. He remains available in ESPN Fantasy leagues and merits rostering in deeper fantasy competition.
  • Jordan Staal: The veteran forward is on a productive roll, earning five goals and five assists since the launch of 2025. He is skating on an effective unit with Jordan Martinook and, now, Seth Jarvis, and merits fantasy consideration in deeper leagues across the ESPN Fantasy board. Particularly in those that reward faceoff wins.

Defensemen

  • Darren Raddysh: Rooted in Tampa's secondary power-play unit, the defender has a goal and five assists in his most recent seven games, including four with the extra skater. He serves as a nice fantasy addition to any imperfect defensive corps in the foreseeable future.
  • John Klingberg: At least keep an eye on how he fits into the Oilers lineup, once ready to go. This is an offensive-defenseman who once potted 67 points with the Dallas Stars (2017-18), and 412 in 633 regular-season games altogether. Yes, his numbers shrunk once out of Dallas, he's been idle for over a year, and there are concerns about how well he'll move after hip surgery, but there's no harm in keeping an eye on matters. Still only 32 years old, Klingberg served as one of the league's more valuable blue-line performers when at his healthiest.

Goaltenders

  • Frederik Andersen: After losing almost three months to a knee injury, Andersen served as insurance to Pyotr Kochetkov versus Vegas on Friday. Now the veteran goalie is expected to start either Monday in Chicago or against the Stars Tuesday. While injuries are a perennial concern, the 35-year-old is reliably valuable when healthy. For what it's worth, he says he feels great right now. If your netminding isn't up to par, Andersen certainly merits a roll of the fantasy dice.
  • Jakub Dobes: Back the winner until he loses, right? Despite facing tough opponents in Florida, Colorado, Washington, and Dallas, before hosting the Rangers, Montreal's young netminder has yet to suffer defeat in the NHL. That Dobes shut out the Panthers, and held the Avs and Stars to a single goal, further emphasizes his comfort in competing against the world's best players.

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