Jack Roslovic

A short stint In New York saw Roslovic suit up in 35 games, including the postseason, for the Blueshirts. It seems the 27-year-old winger didn't show the club enough to warrant bringing him back, as he signed a one-year deal to join the Hurricanes this season. Perhaps it was Roslovic's 12-game goal drought, all in the playoffs, that convinced the Rangers to look elsewhere for forward depth. While the Columbus native has seen minutes in a top-line role at certain points during his career, he will be hard-pressed to unseat Seth Jarvis or Martin Necas for that kind of spot in the lineup this season. As such, fantasy managers may not want to expect too much out of Roslovic heading into the 2024-25 campaign.

Roslovic registered a career-high 33 assists last season and finished with 44 points over 77 appearances. He has contributed offense in bunches over the past two campaigns, but his lack of consistency has prevented him from hitting the 50-point mark. The addition of Adam Fantilli, who was selected with the No. 3 pick in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, to the roster could push Roslovic down the depth chart. It wouldn't be a surprise if Roslovic was moved up and down the lineup in 2023-24, which should help him top 40 points for a third consecutive year.

Recently completing his second full season for his hometown Blue Jackets, Roslovic posted new career highs in goals (22), assists (23), points (45), and shots on goal (131). Roslovic's breakout season occurred despite the fact his overall ice time was down more than two and a half minutes per game to 14:17. Columbus' two best forwards, Patrik Laine and the newly-acquired Johnny Gaudreau, are both wingers. That should allow Roslovic a reasonable chance to center the club's No. 1 line this coming season, giving him the opportunity to perhaps top the numbers he was able to generate a year ago. He's an intriguing late-round fantasy pick.

Roslovic badly wanted out of Winnipeg and finally got his wish in late January after being shipped to the Blue Jackets along with Patrik Laine in exchange for Pierre-Luc Dubois. He excelled in his new surroundings, posting a career-high 34 points (12 goals) in 48 games. Roslovic was given far more responsibility in Columbus, seeing 16:54 worth of ice time per game, up a full two minutes from his final year with the Jets. It remains to be seen how Roslovic will fare under new head coach Brad Larsen, but the Jackets aren't exactly a hockey club overflowing with offensive talent. They would appear to have no choice but to run Roslovic back out there on a consistent basis. He should make for a reasonable late-round fantasy pick once again.

Roslovic continued to improve with 29 points in 71 appearances for the Jets last season. However, the restricted free agent did not report to training camp in January, requesting a contract or a trade. He frequently saw second-line usage in 2019-20, so losing Roslovic for any amount of time will impact the Jets offense as a whole. It's also quite possible he holds out for the whole season if his demands aren't meant. Any missed time in training camp could lead to a slow start for the 23-year-old forward, so any fantasy manager planning on stashing Roslovic in 2020-21 should do so with tempered expectations for his scoring output.

This season will be a critical year for Roslovic in determining his long-term future and proving he can be a top-six guy for the Jets. The youngster did get some opportunities due to injuries during the 2018-19 campaign and performed well when called upon. Without having to spend time in the minors, the speedy playmaker set career highs in goals (nine), assists (15) and shots (74), despite averaging a mere 9:45 of ice time per game. If he can earn more minutes, even in a bottom-six spot, there is no reason the winger can't push for the 35-40 point range this year, though he will need a strong start to the season to prove he is ready to contribute at a high level.

Roslovic made his NHL debut with the Jets in April of 2017 but was limited to a single introductory appearance. As the club's first-round (25th overall) draft pick from 2015, he hasn't been short on hype, and the young scoring winger flaunted a deft scoring touch on the way to five goals and nine assists over 31 games in a bottom-six role this past season. Since Roslovic -- who receives modest power-play ice time -- was on the 2018 playoff roster and the Jets let Joel Armia walk in free agency, it's clear that the 21-year-old is on the fast-track to success in both the NHL and fantasy arenas. Buy low while there's still time to do so.