Who to start · 2025-26
Tomas Hertl 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 Tomas Hertl's 1.88.
Hertl had 58 points in 82 games; Nylander had 79 in 65 games.
This week Hertl has 1 game left with 1 soft matchup; Nylander has 1 left. We project Nylander for 2.1 ESPN points to Hertl's 2.0.
William Nylander has the better number in 17 of the 34 stats both are ranked on.
Hertl's biggest edges: Ascension score 61, Hits 114, High-danger chances 59.2%.
Nylander's biggest edges: Goals above expected +7.0, Luck Meter +83, On-ice PDO 1017.
- • 2026-27 so far: 2 GP, 1 G, 0 A, 1 PPP, 9 SOG.
- • 2026-27 so far: 2 GP, 2 G, 0 A, 0 PPP, 6 SOG.
Fantasy value: your scoring
Tomas Hertl
1.88
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 | Hertl | Nylander |
|---|---|---|
| Goals (+2) | 0.63 | 1.05 |
| Assists (+1) | 0.37 | 0.67 |
| Power-play points (+0.5) | 0.17 | 0.14 |
| Shorthanded points (+0.5) | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Shots on goal (+0.1) | 0.27 | 0.25 |
| Hits (+0.1) | 0.14 | 0.02 |
| Blocks (+0.5) | 0.30 | 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: Hertl 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.
Hertl 2G 3A, 17 SOG · Nylander 5G 12A, 37 SOG
Hertl's offensive zone 0–1 · neutral 5–1 · Hertl's defensive zone 1–1 (2017-18 to 2022-23)
On the ice against each other (Hertl's side)
1:19 at 5-on-5 over 1 games, 2025-26, from Hertl's side
- Shot attempts
- 1–2
- 33.3%
- Expected goals
- 0.0–0.2
- 3.8%
- Goals
- 0–2
Games against each other
| Date | Score | Hertl | Nylander |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-15 | VGK 6–5 TOR | 1G 1A 2S | 1G 1A 1S |
| 2025-03-05 | VGK 5–2 TOR | 1G 1A 1S | 0G 1A 3S |
| 2024-11-20 | VGK 0–3 TOR | 0G 0A 2S | 1G 1A 6S |
| 2024-01-09 | SJS 1–7 TOR | 0G 0A 3S | 0G 3A 1S |
| 2024-01-06 | SJS 1–4 TOR | 0G 0A 1S | 2G 1A 5S |
| 2022-11-30 | SJS 1–3 TOR | 0G 0A 2S | 0G 0A 7S |
| 2022-10-27 | SJS 4–3 TOR | 0G 0A 1S | 0G 0A 0S |
| 2021-11-26 | SJS 1–4 TOR | 0G 0A 0S | 1G 1A 8S |
| 2021-10-22 | SJS 5–3 TOR | 0G 0A 2S | 0G 1A 1S |
| 2019-10-25 | SJS 1–4 TOR | 0G 1A 0S | 0G 1A 2S |
| 2018-01-04 | SJS 2–3 TOR | 0G 0A 2S | 0G 1A 2S |
| 2017-10-30 | SJS 3–2 TOR | 0G 0A 1S | 0G 1A 1S |
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.
Tomas Hertl
3games (1 left)
2.0proj. ESPN pts
- Tue, Sep 29 vs CHIOpp allows 6th-most FP to CLikely vs Spencer Knight (.902)
- Fri, Oct 2 vs ANALikely vs Lukas Dostal (.888)
- Sun, Oct 4 @ VAN2.0 ptsOpp allows 4th-most FP to CSchedule edge +9.3 win%Likely vs Kevin Lankinen (.875)
William Nylander
3games (1 left)
2.1proj. ESPN pts
- Tue, Sep 29 vs MTLOpp allows 9th-most FP to RWLikely vs Jakub Dobes (.901)
- Wed, Sep 30 vs NYIB2BOpp allows 10th-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 Tomas Hertl 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 Tomas Hertl's 1.88. Hertl had 58 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, Tomas Hertl or William Nylander?
- On 2025-26 numbers, William Nylander leads in 17 of 34 stats where both qualify, from scoring and power-play production to on-ice shot share and NHL EDGE tracking.
- How have Hertl and Nylander done against each other?
- In 12 games against each other in our data, Hertl's team went 5–7. Hertl had 5 points (2 goals) and Nylander had 17 (5 goals).
- Who wins more faceoffs, Hertl or Nylander?
- Against each other, Hertl has won 6 and Nylander 3 of their 9 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 →