Will Butcher

Technically, Butcher was ruled out for the rest of the season in early March due to a thumb injury, but he didn't miss much in terms of additional games due to the league going on hiatus a few days later. The two-way, 24-year-old blueliner has steadily seen his numbers drop in each of his past three seasons all the way to last year's career-low 21-point total. That's not exactly the type of trend fantasy players are looking for, nor the Devils faithful, but the silver lining is that it can only get better from here. If he can stay fully fit, the vertically-challenged defenseman still has the tools to be a 30-40 point producer, which would make him a decent fantasy option in 2020-21. Whether he can capitalize on those skills remains to be seen.

Butcher's calling card has been his power-play prowess -- half of his 74 points through two seasons have come with the extra man. As long as the offseason addition of P.K. Subban doesn't push Butcher off the top power-play unit, the skilled passer should continue to rack up plenty of points. Butcher is average at best in his own zone (minus-16 rating) and has averaged just 13 PIM per season, so you're drafting him almost entirely for his offensive ability.

Butcher hit the ground running as a rookie last year, posting 18 points in his first 23 games. While the league figured out how to slow him down a bit after that, the American blueliner still finished with an outstanding 44 points, including 23 with the extra man. He's locked into a role on New Jersey's top power-play unit, which should remain potent as long as a healthy Taylor Hall's sharing the ice with Butcher. The 23-year-old defenseman's rating will likely drop if his minutes become less sheltered in Year 2, but Butcher's upside with the extra man easily overshadows that minor risk.

Butcher was this offseason's collegiate free-agent prize after he declined to sign an entry-level deal with Colorado. Instead, the 22-year-old opted to join the Devils where he figures to start out as a third-pairing defenseman. Selected in the fifth round of the 2013 NHL Draft, the diminutive player spent four seasons with the University of Denver -- including a senior campaign in which he tallied seven goals and 30 helpers in 43 outings. The Wisconsin native's limited stature -- he's just 5-foot-10 and 185 pounds -- undoubtedly will be tested by teams implementing an aggressive forecheck, which could be a red flag for fantasy owners with a heavy weight on plus/minus scoring. Otherwise, he profiles as an intriguing speculative add in virtually any format.