Who to start · 2025-26
Frederick Gaudreau vs Marat Khusnutdinov
Blending 2025-26 with 2026-27 so far, Frederick Gaudreau projects to 1.39 fantasy points per game under ESPN default scoring to Marat Khusnutdinov's 1.06.
Gaudreau had 24 points in 68 games; Khusnutdinov had 33 in 77 games.
This week Gaudreau has 2 games left; Khusnutdinov has 2 left with 2 soft matchups. In ESPN default points scoring we project Gaudreau for 2.4 to Khusnutdinov's 2.4 over the games left.
Marat Khusnutdinov has the better number in 26 of the 36 stats both are ranked on.
Gaudreau's biggest edges: Turnover Ledger /60 +0.023, Faceoffs won 296, Blocked shots 52.
Khusnutdinov's biggest edges: Offensive-zone start % 57.8%, Top skating speed 22.9, Sequence xG 49.3%.
In standard categories (G, A, +/-, PPP, SOG, HIT), the default in Who Should I Start, Marat Khusnutdinov rates ahead, -0.5 to -1.3 in summed category z-scores.
Role trend over the last 5 games: Gaudreau is steady, 4 P in last 5 (0.40/GP before); Khusnutdinov is rising, On-ice xGF/60 3.84 (was 2.14).
- • Gaudreau, 2026-27 so far: 10 GP, 5 G, 2 A, 0 PPP, 12 SOG.
- • Khusnutdinov, 2026-27 so far: 10 GP, 2 G, 3 A, 0 PPP, 10 SOG.
Seattle Kraken · Boston Bruins · Who should I start? · Compare other players
Fantasy value: your scoring
Frederick Gaudreau
-1.3
category z-score total
Marat Khusnutdinov
-0.5
category z-score total
Under Standard (6 categories), Marat Khusnutdinov has the edge (Gaudreau wins 3, Khusnutdinov wins 3 of 6 categories).
| Category | Gaudreau | Khusnutdinov |
|---|---|---|
| Goals / game | 0.26 | 0.20 |
| Assists / game | 0.23 | 0.26 |
| Plus/minus / game | 0.11 | 0.33 |
| Power-play points / game | 0.03 | 0.01 |
| Shots on goal / game | 1.10 | 1.01 |
| Hits / game | 0.47 | 0.65 |
Per-game rates from the selected sample; blended mixes last season with this season, weighting this season more as games are played. Categories are scored as z-scores against qualified players at the same position. Your scoring choice is shared with Who Should I Start: saved on this device, and on your account when you are signed in.
Head-to-head: Gaudreau vs Khusnutdinov
Every event between them in NHL play-by-play, 2023-24 to 2025-26: games against each other, faceoffs, shots on goal, hits and penalties. Regular season and playoffs.
Gaudreau 0G 2A, 3 SOG · Khusnutdinov 1G 1A, 3 SOG
Gaudreau's offensive zone 0–0 · neutral 0–0 · Gaudreau's defensive zone 1–0 (2025-26)
Goals each scored with the other picking up an assist (as teammates).
On the ice against each other (Gaudreau's side)
8:11 at 5-on-5 over 2 games, 2025-26, from Gaudreau's side
- Shot attempts
- 6–17
- 26.1%
- Expected goals
- 0.2–0.5
- 29.2%
- Goals
- 0–0
Games against each other
| Date | Score | Gaudreau | Khusnutdinov |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-15 | SEA 2–4 BOS | 0G 0A 1S | 1G 0A 2S |
| 2026-01-06 | SEA 7–4 BOS | 0G 2A 2S | 0G 1A 1S |
Faceoffs: Gaudreau vs Khusnutdinov
Model: Frederick Gaudreau wins 50.9% of draws against Marat Khusnutdinov on average (R shot vs L shot). Opposite-handed, so they are both strong or both weak at every dot and the dot barely matters.
| Gaudreau at | OZ left | OZ right | NZ left (att.) | NZ right (att.) | Centre | NZ left (def.) | NZ right (def.) | DZ left | DZ right |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 50% | 50% | 52% | 51% | 51% | 52% | 51% | 53% | 53% |
| Road | 49% | 49% | 50% | 50% | 51% | 50% | 50% | 51% | 51% |
Head-to-head 2025-26: Gaudreau 1–0 (100.0%). Blended with the model: 51.0%. The record is normal luck for this matchup (z 1.0); pair-specific edges are about ±2 points, so the model carries most of the weight.
Gaudreau faceoffs · Khusnutdinov faceoffs · how the model works
Every stat, side by side
Season values; bars are percentiles at each player's position (longer is better). Click a stat for its explainer.
Fantasy box score
Possession & shot quality (5-on-5 on-ice)
Transition, turnovers & faceoffs, Usage, Special teams & discipline, Luck & trend, NHL EDGE tracking continue below
Every stat, side by side (continued)
Transition, turnovers & faceoffs
Usage
Special teams & discipline
Chemistry as teammates
How their expected-goal share at 5v5 changed together vs apart (shrunk for sample size), and how closely their DraftKings points moved game to game (raw, that season only; for forward linemates the typical value is about .28).
| Season | 5v5 min together | xG% lift | xGF/60 lift | DK correlation (raw) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-24 MIN | 99 | −3.9 | −0.35 | .52(−.04 to .83), 10 GP |
This week's schedule
Oct 19 to Oct 25. More games usually wins a weekly start/sit. Chips show how many fantasy points the opponent allows to the player's position (soft or tough), the Schedule Edge from rest and travel, and the likely opposing goalie with his save percentage. Projections cover the games left: Edgehalla's rest-of-season rates per game, adjusted for each opponent's scoring allowed, in ESPN default points.
Scored in ESPN default points (G 2, A 1, PPP 0.5, SHP 0.5, SOG 0.1, HIT 0.1, BLK 0.5). Use your league's scoring
Frederick Gaudreau
3games (2 left)
2.4proj. ESPN default pts
- Tue, Oct 20 vs DETOpp allows 12th-fewest FP to CLikely vs Daniil Tarasov (.895)
- Thu, Oct 22 vs UTA1.2 ptsOpp allows 15th-fewest FP to CLikely vs Karel Vejmelka (.897)
- Sat, Oct 24 vs MIN1.2 ptsOpp allows 14th-fewest FP to CLikely vs Jesper Wallstedt (.916)
Marat Khusnutdinov
3games (2 left)
2.4proj. ESPN default pts
- Tue, Oct 20 @ DALOpp allows 8th-fewest FP to CLikely vs Jake Oettinger (.899)
- Thu, Oct 22 vs NSH1.2 pts
- Sat, Oct 24 vs SJS1.2 ptsOpp allows 4th-most FP to CLikely vs Yaroslav Askarov (.884)
Similar matchups
- Frederick Gaudreau vs Connor McDavid
- Frederick Gaudreau vs Nathan MacKinnon
- Frederick Gaudreau vs Macklin Celebrini
- Frederick Gaudreau vs Nikita Kucherov
- Marat Khusnutdinov vs Connor McDavid
- Marat Khusnutdinov vs Nathan MacKinnon
- Marat Khusnutdinov vs Macklin Celebrini
- Marat Khusnutdinov vs Nikita Kucherov
FAQ
- Should I start Frederick Gaudreau or Marat Khusnutdinov in fantasy hockey?
- Blending 2025-26 with 2026-27 so far, Frederick Gaudreau projects to 1.39 fantasy points per game under ESPN default scoring to Marat Khusnutdinov's 1.06. Gaudreau had 24 points in 68 games; Khusnutdinov had 33 in 77 games. Check this week's games and your league's scoring in the fantasy panel above, since more games usually decide a weekly start.
- Who is better, Frederick Gaudreau or Marat Khusnutdinov?
- On 2025-26 numbers, Marat Khusnutdinov leads in 26 of 36 stats where both qualify, from scoring and power-play production to on-ice shot share and NHL EDGE tracking.
- How have Gaudreau and Khusnutdinov done against each other?
- In 2 games against each other in our data, Gaudreau's team went 1–1. Gaudreau had 2 points (0 goals) and Khusnutdinov had 2 (1 goals).
- Who wins more faceoffs, Gaudreau or Khusnutdinov?
- Against each other, Gaudreau has won 1 and Khusnutdinov 0 of their 1 head-to-head draws.
2025-26 regular season from NHL play-by-play, shift charts and NHL EDGE, processed by Edgehalla. Head-to-head covers every loaded season (play-by-play from 2019-20; on-ice matchups from 2025-26).Compare other players →