Who to start · 2025-26
John Tavares vs Quinton Byfield
Blending 2025-26 with 2026-27 so far, John Tavares projects to 1.80 fantasy points per game under ESPN default scoring to Quinton Byfield's 1.57.
Tavares had 71 points in 82 games; Byfield had 49 in 79 games.
This week Tavares has 1 game left; Byfield has 1 left with 1 tough matchup. We project Tavares for 1.7 ESPN points to Byfield's 1.4.
Quinton Byfield has the better number in 19 of the 36 stats both are ranked on.
Tavares's biggest edges: Faceoff win % 57.5%, Draw Equity /100 +0.071, Forecheck xG /60 0.34.
Byfield's biggest edges: Transition attempts /60 1.78, Goals above expected +2.2, Scoring chances 53.3%.
Head to head on the dot, Tavares leads Byfield 8–2.
- • 2026-27 so far: 2 GP, 0 G, 1 A, 0 PPP, 5 SOG.
- • 2026-27 so far: 1 GP, 0 G, 0 A, 0 PPP, 3 SOG.
Fantasy value: your scoring
John Tavares
1.80
fantasy points per game
Quinton Byfield
1.57
fantasy points per game
Under ESPN default points, John Tavares has the edge.
| Points per game from | Tavares | Byfield |
|---|---|---|
| Goals (+2) | 0.67 | 0.57 |
| Assists (+1) | 0.49 | 0.30 |
| Power-play points (+0.5) | 0.11 | 0.07 |
| Shorthanded points (+0.5) | 0.00 | 0.01 |
| Shots on goal (+0.1) | 0.24 | 0.23 |
| Hits (+0.1) | 0.09 | 0.08 |
| Blocks (+0.5) | 0.22 | 0.32 |
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 custom weights are saved in this browser only.
Head-to-head: Tavares vs Byfield
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.
Tavares 7G 3A, 19 SOG · Byfield 3G 3A, 16 SOG
Tavares's offensive zone 3–2 · neutral 4–0 · Tavares's defensive zone 1–0 (2024-25 to 2025-26)
Tavares blocked 1 of Byfield's shots; Byfield blocked 0 of Tavares's.
On the ice against each other (Tavares's side)
16:08 at 5-on-5 over 2 games, 2025-26, from Tavares's side
- Shot attempts
- 12–26
- 31.6%
- Expected goals
- 0.5–1.2
- 30.6%
- Goals
- 1–0
Games against each other
| Date | Score | Tavares | Byfield |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-04-04 | TOR 6–7 LAK | 1G 2A 1S | 2G 0A 3S |
| 2025-11-13 | TOR 3–4 LAK | 2G 0A 4S | 1G 1A 3S |
| 2025-03-29 | TOR 3–1 LAK | 2G 0A 3S | 0G 0A 1S |
| 2024-10-16 | TOR 6–2 LAK | 1G 0A 3S | 0G 0A 3S |
| 2024-01-02 | TOR 3–0 LAK | 0G 1A 4S | 0G 0A 4S |
| 2023-10-31 | TOR 1–4 LAK | 1G 0A 4S | 0G 2A 2S |
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
This week's schedule
Sep 28 to Oct 4. 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 use ESPN default points for the games left.
John Tavares
3games (1 left)
1.7proj. ESPN pts
- Tue, Sep 29 vs MTLOpp allows 12th-most FP to CLikely vs Jakub Dobes (.901)
- Wed, Sep 30 vs NYIB2BOpp allows 13th-most FP to CSchedule edge −9.3 win%Likely vs Ilya Sorokin (.906)
- Sat, Oct 3 vs OTT1.7 ptsLikely vs Linus Ullmark (.891)
Quinton Byfield
2games (1 left)
1.4proj. ESPN pts
- Wed, Sep 30 @ COLOpp allows 8th-most FP to RWLikely vs Mackenzie Blackwood (.903)
- Sat, Oct 3 @ SJS1.4 ptsOpp allows 7th-fewest FP to RWLikely vs Yaroslav Askarov (.884)
Similar matchups
FAQ
- Should I start John Tavares or Quinton Byfield in fantasy hockey?
- Blending 2025-26 with 2026-27 so far, John Tavares projects to 1.80 fantasy points per game under ESPN default scoring to Quinton Byfield's 1.57. Tavares had 71 points in 82 games; Byfield had 49 in 79 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, John Tavares or Quinton Byfield?
- On 2025-26 numbers, Quinton Byfield leads in 19 of 36 stats where both qualify, from scoring and power-play production to on-ice shot share and NHL EDGE tracking.
- How have Tavares and Byfield done against each other?
- In 6 games against each other in our data, Tavares's team went 3–3. Tavares had 10 points (7 goals) and Byfield had 6 (3 goals).
- Who wins more faceoffs, Tavares or Byfield?
- Against each other, Tavares has won 8 and Byfield 2 of their 10 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 →