Marco Kasper, Jackson Blake, Logan Stankoven, and Kirby Dach pace the spotlight as undervalued second-year standouts poised to push fantasy rosters in 2024-25. The episode breaks down per-player paths to ice time, with Detroit's two-way engine Kasper and Blake’s top-six ceiling for Carolina taking center stage. Stankoven brings high-end burst and shot volume, while Dach’s Montreal rebound could unlock a deeper lineup. These names offer late-draft potential with multi-cat upside as the season unfolds.

Detroit’s system and Detroit’s special-teams fix will largely dictate Kasper’s break, while Blake benefits from Carolina’s depth and Brind’Amour’s aggressive deployment. Stankoven’s sprint for minutes hinges on performance in training camp and a favorable lineup fit, and Dach’s health and role will shape Montreal’s second-line dynamics. Collectively, they represent value bets for fantasy managers who target rising talent beyond the big-name rookies.

Keep an eye on minutes, power-play work, and multi-category contributions (shots, hits, blocks) as the season starts. The show highlights that these players can outperform traditional expectations if given even marginal boosts in deployment, making them ideal late-round targets or waiver-wire plays in the right depth leagues.

Wyatt Kaiser looms as Chicago’s most intriguing young defender, and the panelic take on the Hawks’ blue line centers on his ceiling and workload. Kaiser flashed speed, smart gap control, and a calm puck game in limited ice last season, and analysts project a heavy top‑four role this year. If he locks in 18–21 minutes nightly and adds power‑play minutes, his fantasy floor tightens into reliable contributions in both goals and assists, with a real upside if his pairing remains stable.

The conversation also centers on how Chicago pieces its defense around Kaiser, Murphy, Vlasic and the rookie trio of Korchinski, Del Mastro, and LeVanov/Levchenov look‑alikes. The coaching staff’s approach—consistency, durability, and a measured push for all defensemen to earn minutes—shapes Kaiser’s development curve and contract trajectory, with lingering questions about who handles top‑pair responsibility and how Rockford minutes translate to NHL production.

The show also highlights the Hawks’ coaching continuity and the role of veterans in fostering a competitive environment, framing camp as a true audition for unique guardrails on a rebuilding roster. For fantasy players, Kaiser’s path to steady ice time and a breakout year depends on how quickly he cements chemistry with Murphy or Vlasic and how the rest of the group responds to a more structured, analytics‑driven system.