Data and methodology
How Cracked Ice works
Where Cracked Ice's NHL data comes from, when it refreshes, how off-nights, usable games and projections are calculated, and what the numbers can't tell you.
Where the data comes from
Schedules, game results, player stats and team stats come from the NHL's public data (api-web.nhle.com and api.nhle.com). Position eligibility comes from Yahoo's public draft data, matched to NHL players by name and team. Nothing on the public pages uses your league's private data.
Your roster, scoring settings and lineup slots are only used for your own views: they stay in your browser, or in your account if you sign in.
When it refreshes
Everything refreshes once a night, around 4 to 5 AM Eastern: the schedule first (including start-time changes), then player and team stats, eligibility and injury designations. The site rebuilds after the refresh, so this week's schedule summary on the Season page is always the current week.
Late scratches, goalie announcements and lineup changes made after the refresh won't show until the next night.
Off-nights, packed nights and weeks
An off-night is a night with 8 or fewer NHL games; a packed night has 13 or more. Fantasy weeks run Monday to Sunday, and the opening days of the season (Tuesday to Sunday) count as week 1, the same as Yahoo.
Default fantasy playoffs for 2026–27 are March 22 to April 10 (weeks 26 to 28). If your league's playoffs are different, set your own weeks and every playoff number follows them.
Usable games, not just games
A game only helps you if the player is in your lineup that night. For each night, Cracked Ice works out the best legal lineup from your roster and slots, and counts a game as usable only when the player makes that lineup. The same calculation drives streaming suggestions, schedule fit and player comparisons.
Goalie starts are estimated from each goalie's share of his team's starts so far this season.
Points per game and projections
Fantasy points per game use your league's own scoring categories: goals, assists, points, plus/minus, penalty minutes, power-play and shorthanded goals, assists and points, game-winning goals, shots, hits, blocks, faceoffs won and lost, and for goalies wins, losses, overtime losses, saves, shots against, goals against, shutouts and starts. Rate categories such as shooting % or save % aren't scored per game.
Early in the season a player's rate leans on last season and shifts to this season as games pile up, weighted as if last season were worth 20 games. Players without a full NHL season behind them are topped up with a typical depth player at their position, so a hot first week can't make a rookie the top-rated player.
Recent form (last 7 and 30 days) uses the same categories, so it can be compared directly with the season rate.
What the numbers can't tell you
Projections are estimates, not guarantees. They don't know about injuries or line changes that haven't been reported, your league's waiver order or trade market, or how your opponents will manage their lineups. When you know something the numbers don't, trust it.
Who writes this
I'm Matt. I write the guides and build the tools on Cracked Ice. Canucks fan, which tells you everything about my relationship with hope.
Everything here starts from one question I kept asking in my own leagues: not how many games a player has, but how many of them I can actually use. If a number looks off, or you want a second opinion on a lineup call, find me on Reddit.
Questions or corrections
Spotted a number that looks wrong? Get in touch. Every report gets checked against the source data.