Who to start · 2025-26
Steven Stamkos vs William Nylander
Blending 2025-26 with 2026-27 so far, William Nylander projects to 2.36 fantasy points per game under ESPN default scoring to Steven Stamkos's 2.00.
Stamkos had 66 points in 82 games; Nylander had 79 in 65 games.
This week Stamkos has 1 game left with 1 soft matchup; Nylander has 1 left. We project Nylander for 2.1 ESPN points to Stamkos's 2.0.
Steven Stamkos has the better number in 20 of the 34 stats both are ranked on.
Stamkos's biggest edges: Hits 89, Penalty minutes 58, Scoring chances 52.7%.
Nylander's biggest edges: Transition attempts /60 1.67, Net penalties drawn /60 +0.10, Turnover Ledger /60 +0.036.
Head to head on the dot, Nylander leads Stamkos 7–4.
- • 2026-27 so far: 1 GP, 0 G, 1 A, 0 PPP, 1 SOG.
- • 2026-27 so far: 2 GP, 2 G, 0 A, 0 PPP, 6 SOG.
Fantasy value: your scoring
Steven Stamkos
2.00
fantasy points per game
William Nylander
2.36
fantasy points per game
Under ESPN default points, William Nylander has the edge.
| Points per game from | Stamkos | Nylander |
|---|---|---|
| Goals (+2) | 0.96 | 1.05 |
| Assists (+1) | 0.34 | 0.67 |
| Power-play points (+0.5) | 0.15 | 0.14 |
| Shorthanded points (+0.5) | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Shots on goal (+0.1) | 0.24 | 0.25 |
| Hits (+0.1) | 0.11 | 0.02 |
| Blocks (+0.5) | 0.21 | 0.24 |
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: Stamkos vs Nylander
Every event between them in NHL play-by-play, 2017-18 to 2025-26: games against each other, faceoffs, shots on goal, hits and penalties. Regular season and playoffs.
Stamkos 10G 26A, 101 SOG · Nylander 16G 20A, 116 SOG
Stamkos's offensive zone 1–1 · neutral 1–5 · Stamkos's defensive zone 2–1 (2017-18 to 2021-22)
Stamkos blocked 1 of Nylander's shots; Nylander blocked 2 of Stamkos's.
On the ice against each other (Stamkos's side)
4:11 at 5-on-5 over 2 games, 2025-26, from Stamkos's side
- Shot attempts
- 4–5
- 44.4%
- Expected goals
- 0.1–0.3
- 19.0%
- Goals
- 0–1
Games against each other
| Date | Score | Stamkos | Nylander |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-12-20 | NSH 5–3 TOR | 1G 1A 4S | 0G 0A 2S |
| 2025-10-14 | NSH 4–7 TOR | 0G 0A 2S | 1G 2A 4S |
| 2025-03-22 | NSH 5–2 TOR | 0G 0A 3S | 0G 0A 2S |
| 2024-12-04 | NSH 2–3 TOR | 0G 0A 0S | 1G 0A 2S |
| 2024-04-17 | TBL 6–4 TOR | 0G 2A 3S | 0G 1A 5S |
| 2024-04-03 | TBL 4–1 TOR | 1G 0A 2S | 0G 0A 5S |
| 2023-11-06 | TBL 5–6 TOR | 0G 1A 2S | 0G 1A 3S |
| 2023-10-21 | TBL 3–4 TOR | 0G 1A 0S | 1G 1A 6S |
| 2023-04-29 · PO | TBL 1–2 TOR | 1G 0A 4S | 0G 0A 3S |
| 2023-04-27 · PO | TBL 4–2 TOR | 0G 0A 5S | 0G 0A 4S |
| 2023-04-24 · PO | TBL 4–5 TOR | 1G 0A 3S | 0G 3A 3S |
| 2023-04-22 · PO | TBL 3–4 TOR | 0G 1A 2S | 0G 1A 7S |
Latest 12 of 37 meetings.
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.
Steven Stamkos
2games (1 left)
2.0proj. ESPN pts
- Thu, Oct 1 vs MINOpp allows 11th-fewest FP to CLikely vs Jesper Wallstedt (.916)
- Sat, Oct 3 vs DAL2.0 ptsOpp allows 3rd-most FP to CSchedule edge +13.0 win%Likely vs Casey DeSmith (.907)
William Nylander
3games (1 left)
2.1proj. ESPN pts
- Tue, Sep 29 vs MTLOpp allows 12th-most FP to RWLikely vs Jakub Dobes (.901)
- Wed, Sep 30 vs NYIB2BOpp allows 14th-most FP to RWSchedule edge −9.3 win%Likely vs Ilya Sorokin (.906)
- Sat, Oct 3 vs OTT2.1 ptsLikely vs Linus Ullmark (.891)
Similar matchups
FAQ
- Should I start Steven Stamkos or William Nylander in fantasy hockey?
- Blending 2025-26 with 2026-27 so far, William Nylander projects to 2.36 fantasy points per game under ESPN default scoring to Steven Stamkos's 2.00. Stamkos had 66 points in 82 games; Nylander had 79 in 65 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, Steven Stamkos or William Nylander?
- On 2025-26 numbers, Steven Stamkos leads in 20 of 34 stats where both qualify, from scoring and power-play production to on-ice shot share and NHL EDGE tracking.
- How have Stamkos and Nylander done against each other?
- In 37 games against each other in our data, Stamkos's team went 20–17. Stamkos had 36 points (10 goals) and Nylander had 36 (16 goals).
- Who wins more faceoffs, Stamkos or Nylander?
- Against each other, Stamkos has won 4 and Nylander 7 of their 11 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 →