Fantasy impact of Galchenyuk-Domi trade

NHL.com examines how the Arizona Coyotes acquiring forward Alex Galchenyuk from the Montreal Canadiens for left wing Max Domi impacts each player's fantasy stock. See how each was utilized in 2017-18 and what to expect in 2018-19:

RELATED: Galchenyuk traded to Coyotes by Canadiens for Domi | NHL Trade Tracker
FANTASY: Top 250 after Galchenyuk-Domi trade | Team power ranks | Cheat sheet

IMPACT ON GALCHENYUK, COYOTES

The Coyotes significantly improved their center depth and first power-play unit by landing Galchenyuk, a two-time 50-point scorer who was frequently moved from center to wing over six seasons with the Canadiens.
The best stretch of Galchenyuk's NHL career came in the 2016-17 season, when he scored 23 points (nine goals, 14 assists) in his first 25 games at center on a line with right wing Alexander Radulov before sustaining a knee injury and missing more than one month.
Galchenyuk, the No. 3 pick in the 2012 NHL Draft, wasn't the same after returning and injured his knee again later that season. Following his regression in the second half, Montreal's confidence in Galchenyuk at center wavered.
The 24-year-old had 51 points (19 goals, 32 assists) in 82 games this season, with most of the damage coming on the power play (NHL career-high 24 power-play points). His struggles at even strength led to an NHL career-worst minus-31, and it didn't help that he shot 8.9 percent, much lower than his career average (12.4) and the rate of his 30-goal season in 2015-16 (14.9).
Galchenyuk should benefit from this change of scenery and could settle into a full-time center role behind workhorse Derek Stepan. Galchenyuk should also have every opportunity to improve Arizona's power play, which finished 26th in the NHL at 16.9 percent, on the first unit with Stepan, Calder Trophy finalist Clayton Keller and defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson.
If goaltender Antti Raanta and defensemen Jakob Chychrun and Niklas Hjalmarsson can stay healthy, Arizona could also be one of the most improved defensive teams in the NHL next season. So even though Galchenyuk departs Montreal, which has elite goaltender Carey Price and veteran defenseman Shea Weber, he could actually see better 5-on-5 fortunes next season with more lineup stability in Arizona.
If Galchenyuk, who has two seasons left on his contract, works out at center, this could be the best 1-2 scoring punch the Coyotes have had at the position since moving to Arizona in 1996-97. Given the success of the Keller-Stepan-Richard Panik line down the stretch last season, Galchenyuk is likely to center young wings Brandon Perlini (17 goals; 2nd on Coyotes) and/or Christian Dvorak (15; T-3rd). In a best-case scenario, Galchenyuk would emerge as the No. 1 center with Keller on his wing for the years to come.
Arizona has a chance to take fantasy owners by surprise, so Galchenyuk should be considered a fringe top 100 forward with greater potential to be a late-round steal than he had before the trade.

IMPACT ON DOMI, CANADIENS

The Canadiens, by acquiring Domi, made a big trade for the third straight offseason, but again failed to address their glaring need at center.
Domi played primarily left wing in his three seasons with the Coyotes, but could potentially get a trial at center with the Canadiens, who signed him to a two-year contract after the trade. He had strong fantasy coverage in his rookie season of 2015-16 (52 points, plus-3, 72 penalty minutes, 15 PPP, 156 shots on goal), but his shooting percentage dipped in each of the next two (11.5 to 8.3 in 2016-17 to 6.0 in 2017-18). He no longer had a top-line role with Arizona prior to the trade.
Unless the Canadiens make another trade, go bold with the No. 3 pick in the NHL Draft or make a splash in free agency (e.g. John Tavares) to address the position, Domi loses overall fantasy value from this trade. He will be behind left wing Max Pacioretty on the depth chart, and forward Jonathan Drouin's position instability is another lineup concern that affects Domi.
With the 2018 draft approaching and more developments still to come for these teams, Galchenyuk and Domi have swapped places in NHL.com's top 250 rankings. Domi, who still carries some bounce-back appeal if his shooting percentage improves, has moved down to 179th, and Galchenyuk has risen to 162nd (103rd among forwards).