On the most recent podcast, I talked about how the Stars were going to start riding Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn for big minutes with their depleted depth. I stated that it was only a matter of time until they broke out and despite the tough matchup against St. Louis, they were elite options in the Three Point Challenge. Well, I wish I went with my first thought because Seguin got there and then some while Benn reached it with an empty net point. Seguin finished with 4 assists, 4 SOG and +3 while Benn had 3 assists, 6 PIM, +4 and a shot. Obviously this doesn’t come as a shock, both were top 10 players with ease the last two seasons and should continue to say so barring health issues. Look for them to carry the Stars in the next week or so as they have 6 games in 9 nights starting Saturday. Next week, they get Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver. As someone who has both of those guys in multiple leagues, I’m licking my lips thinking about what they can do. Let’s take a look at what else happened the last two nights around the league.
Wednesday’s Games:
Canadiens 3, Canucks 0 – Carey Price was a monster posting a 42 save shutout. He has to be considered the #1 goalie right now given that he’s healthy. Alex Galchenyuk and Brendan Gallagher each dished two assists and added two penalty minutes; they’re easily top 100 players at the moment as I expected. The regression fairies have found Vancouver who has lost 7 games in a row, the last 6 in regulation. They did have double the shots as Montreal which is encouraging but they’re going to struggle scoring goals. Ryan Miller was decent in the loss saving 19 of 21 shots.
Flyers 4, Red Wings 3 (OT) – A bit of controversy in this one as the Flyers tied up the game with 1:04 after a pile in front of the net. Petr Mrazek was hit during the play but it was deemed by the officials that it was caused by his own player. He played well saving 36 of 40 shots but tough for his owners that the game was blown late. Henrik Zetterberg scored his first of the season but as I expected, he’s having a pretty poor season. The shots have been better lately but he’s fringe even in 12’ers. Dylan Larkin is starting to pick it up scoring a goal on five shots. For Philly, Brayden Schenn had two assists, two shots and two PIM giving him 8 points in 8 games before their Thursday game. Mark Streit scored a goal and added an assist with three shots; he’s played his way into a hold. The stud forwards for Philly each had a point.
Penguins 5, Ducks 1 – No surprise at all that this one was a blowout. Matt Murray made his season debut and saved 32 of 33 shots. It’ll be interesting to see how the games are distributed going forward between him and MAF. Kris Letang returned from injury and had a goal and an assist with six shots. Just stay healthy! Otherwise, a ton of players had one point for Pittsburgh without much a fantasy impact. For Anaheim, Ryan Getzlaf missed the game with a minor injury. Cam Fowler scored the lone goal from Sami Vatanen. We’ve talked about these two at length in recent podcasts because of the impending return of Hampus Lindholm. Unless you can sell pretty high on them, I’d hold tight and see how things shake out.
Thursday’s Games:
Maple Leafs 2, Sabres 1 – Frederik Andersen stole the show again making 42 saves on 43 shots, including some amazing point blank saves, to escape Buffalo with a win. I still don’t trust this Toronto team. I’d pick Andersen up if he’s available just to ride the hot streak but I’d cut bait when things go cold and would try to sell high if possible. Mitch Marner was the other star of the game scoring both goals on four shots. He’s been getting points in bunches, when the consistency comes in a few years it’s going to be unreal. For now, I’d hold him if I had the space. Not much to see from Buffalo’s POV. Sam Reinhart dished an assist and added three shots to stay on the fringe of holding while Robin Lehner was solid again saving 27/29.
Flyers 3, Islanders 2 (SO) – Another game where the Flyers tie it very late, this time with 58 seconds left, before they won in the shootout. Travis Konecny scored a goal on four shots to remain a bottom end hold in standard leagues. Despite talks of the Islanders making him available for trade, Jaroslav Halak received the start tonight and was dynamite saving 40 of 42 shots being the tough luck loser. It’s so hard to say with any certainty how this situation is going to play out. John Tavares scored again while Josh Bailey had an assist to remain an elite streamer.
Rangers 5, Oilers 3 – In some big time streamer success, Kevin Hayes scored a goal and two assists with two shots and two PIM. That’s what I’m talking about! I think he’s another Ranger to add to the list of holds. Michael Grabner had 1+1 with four shots and he’s even working his way onto the fringe now. J.T. Miller continued his heater with a goal and an assist with four shots. Nick Holden and Brady Skjei each had two assists; Holden is a decent deep league option while Skjei is a nice dynasty player for when his role expands in the future. Connor McDavid had a power play assist but his line was absolutely destroyed going -3 while Jordan Eberle was -4, although he broke his pointless streak with an assist. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored a goal on three shots t0 get his first of the year.
Capitals 4, Jets 3 (OT) – The Caps stormed out to a 3-0 lead in this one before the Jets scored three in the third to tie things up. Alex Ovechkin won this game in overtime finishing with two goals and an assist with eight shots. Nicklas Backstrom also had three points with a goal and two assists. That means my podcast partner Reid got on the board in the Three Point Challenge while Vic is the first person with two correct! You lucky bastards with the overtime points! Well done. John Carlson dished two assists as he starts to breakout of his early slump. Dustin Byfuglien played over 31 minutes again totaling an assist, +2, 4 SOG and 2 PIM. Long time readers know how much I like Marko Dano; he finally was recalled and scored a goal in this one. Don’t give up hope for him in dynasties.
Senators 1, Canucks 0 – Another loss for Vancouver being shut out in back to back nights. Craig Anderson left the team to be with his wife; best of luck to them with her cancer. Mike Condon filled the void after being acquired from Pittsburgh and he was terrific in his first game for the Sens stopping all 27 shots. He’ll play until Anderson comes back so Condon fits into the “desperate for starts” category. We saw him get extended action in Montreal last season and it did not go well. Mike Hoffman scored the lone goal of the game and added five shots total. He played over 22 minutes so if you can buy low, do it.
Bruins 4, Lightning 3 (SO) – It was his worst game so far this season but Tuukka Rask maintained his perfect record with 27 saves on 30 shots. Patrice Bergeron tallied two assists with five shots; he’s been in a bad downswing so it’s nice to see the turnaround. I’m sure he’ll be fine. Also, Torey Krug finally has a point! Wooooo! <Ric Flair voice> He had an assist with four shots; buy low if you can. David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand also had a point each. Tyler Johnson scored twice on three shots; I talked about him looking good on yesterday’s podcast. I think a hot streak is on the horizon.
Panthers 4, Devils 3 (OT) – For the Devils, Damon Severson had two assists and a shot and should be owned in 12’ers right now. Pavel Zacha scored a goal on three shots and added two penalty minutes. I’d probably leaving him on the waiver wire to stream right now because it’s not quite good enough but it’s going to be electric in a couple years. Vincent Trocheck buried two goals on six shots playing almost 23 minutes. Right now, the second line is getting more minutes than the first because of how much better they’re playing. Trocheck is up to 6 goals and right at 3 shots per game. Colton Sceviour had an assist to remain on the streaming radar. Keith Yandle is officially heating up with another assist, two shots and two PIM while Aaron Ekblad scored a goal on four shots with two PIM. How he still doesn’t have an assist in 11 games is beyond me. I don’t own him anywhere because I had him lower than consensus but is worse than I imagined. I’m not convinced a breakout is coming either so I’m not looking to buy low.
Blackhawks 4, Avalanche 0 – While it looks like the same old Colorado based on the score, they actually dominated play outshooting Chicago 38-21. Semyon Varlamov laid an egg making only 17 saves while Corey Crawford was a monster again for the shutout. Marian Hossa scored twice and while I don’t expect it to keep up, he’s a clear hold right now in all leagues. Artemi Panarin dished two assists with four shots and two PIM to stay hotter than a pistol while Duncan Keith also had two assists. He’s great for the assists and plus-minus but the lack of production elsewhere keeps him as a #2D as expected.
Stars 6, Blues 2 – Another rough outing for Jake Allen so I’d look to buy low if possible. At the Rangers and at a desperate Stars team are both atrocious matchups, I’m confident he’ll get back on track sooner than later. Paul Stastny and Alex Pietrangelo each had 1+1 to remain bottom end holds. Outside of Benn and Seguin, John Klingberg scored two goals on four shots. He now has four points in his last four games and the shots are starting to uptick. I’m a bit surprised he only played 21:26 but it was the most on the team. With their bunched up schedule, it makes sense to ease the big guns in game one. Jason Spezza scored again while Antti Niemi was solid making 28 saves on 30 shots.
Coyotes 3, Predators 2 (SO) – Brutal loss for Nashville who carried the play and had a 4-3 PP in overtime for the last 1:30 but couldn’t solve Louis Domingue. Domingue saved 35 of 37 shots and has officially, by my own ruling, become a hot schmotato. I’m not sure if he’ll start tonight on the back to back but he’s not a bad option against the Ducks. Max Domi looked good finished with an assist and three shots giving him 5 assists in the last 5 games. Anthony Duclair scored a goal but right now, I’d cut bait in a 12’er if you still have him. He just hasn’t shown enough through 10 games to warrant holding. I talked about Matt Irwin and Yannick Weber on the podcast and how much I like how they’re playing; Irwin scored again with Weber assisting. It’s only relevant for deep leagues but they should be owned. P.K. Subban had an assist with four shots while Craig Smith scored his fourth in four games. He’s on the fringe of 12’ers at the moment.
Flames 3, Sharks 2 – Sam Bennett had an assist with two penalty minutes. All of these minors are clearly getting on Hartley’s nerves as he only played 11:16. Matthew Tkachuk scored twice on three shots with two PIM to give him 5 points in the last 5 games. It’s bottom end for holding overall but he’s certainly played his way into being a streamer. Michael Frolik is on fire right now with two assists and five shots. That gives him 5+4 in 12 games with solid shots. It won’t keep up but if you want to ride the streak, go ahead and pick him up. After I ripped him, Deryk Engelland had two assists. He’s still pretty bad at the hockey game but when you get two points, you get a mention in this space. Brent Burns did his thing scoring a goal on seven shots while Joe Pavelski and Joe Thornton each had an assist.
Kings 3, Penguins 2 (OT) – Alright, I don’t want to shit on the Kings getting a big win in this game, but good lord, they still don’t have a regulation win! Anyways, Peter Budaj bounced back getting the win making 21 saves on 23 shots while Jeff Carter had an assist and two shots. Nothing else to see here for the Kings. Sidney Crosby scored both goals for the Pens while Kris Letang assisted both. Just stay healthy!
Friday Streamers – There are only three games tonight making streaming a great option. Here are my top three choices:
Alexander Wennberg (11.6%) – Going back to the well here. It’s a brutal matchup against Montreal but at least they are on a back to back while Columbus is fresh. Options are limited so taking the best player can’t be wrong and that’s Wennberg.
Antoine Vermette (9.1%) – This isn’t contingent on Getzlaf being out but it would certainly help. Regardless, Vermette has 4 points in his last 5, the minutes are solid and the Coyotes will be on a back to back while Anaheim didn’t play Thursday.
Radim Vrbata (13%) – He’s cooled off a bit but the minutes are still there for him to produce.
That’s all for now guys. In case you missed it, Matt’s newest article about rookies is out so be sure to give that a read here. As always, feel free to leave any comments or questions below. I’ll be back on Monday recapping all of the weekend’s action. Have a great weekend, take care!
