As talked about repeatedly for the last couple weeks in this internet space, this week is the dream for Blues players. Getting three games against Arizona and Colorado is what you hope for. The top line for St. Louis ravished the Coyotes on Monday with all three of them getting at least three points. My focus is going to be on Jaden Schwartz. Schwartz scored two goals and an assist with three shots finishing +4 in the 4-1 win. That gives him 50 points (18+32) in 71 games. Two seasons ago, Schwartz finished with 28+35 in 75 games before last season was ruined with injuries. So which player is he going forward, the one on the verge of 30+40 or this season’s 20+35? I would bet on him being closer to 2014-15 than 2016-17. He’s still only 24 years old and should continue to play with one of the best players in the game. The shot rate is average and the penalty minutes aren’t there but on the assumption he’s back in the 60-65 point range, I’ll have Schwartz right around the 100 overall mark. My guess it’s just outside that number but he’s a great target in the middle rounds because we’ve already seen the upside. Here’s what else happened around the league on Monday night:
Jonathan Huberdeau – Goal and an assist with five shots and seven PIM. I have no idea why Huberdeau got in a fight; Reid and I were at the game together and were completely baffled being down two goals in the third. Regardless, great start to the finals for Huberdeau owners getting the Gordie Howe hat trick.
James Reimer – 18 saves on 22 shots before getting pulled in the 4-2 loss to the Sabres. Reimer didn’t receive much help in this one although the fourth goal was incredibly soft. I still like him a decent amount going forward.
Jack Eichel – Two assists with two shots. That gets him up to a point per game on the season. Pretty, pretty good.
Matt Moulson – Two assists with a shot and two penalty minutes. I don’t see much use in streaming Moulson while he’s on the fourth line.
Robin Lehner – 30 saves on 32 shots getting the win. Lehner has performed admirably down the stretch. I’m beating a dead horse but I’m definitely going to want Lehner shares next season.
Andreas Athanasiou – Goal and an assist with three shots for some streamer success! Keep using him with Detroit’s heavy schedule.
Anthony Mantha – Two goals on four shots. I’m hoping Mantha slowing down in the second half of the season drives his draft stock down next season because I want him everywhere.
Gustav Nyquist – Two assists with two shots. He’s an elite streamer right now but I had higher expectations for Gus after his breakout three seasons ago.
Justin Faulk – Two goals on nine shots. I’ll be sure to talk to Reid about Faulk for Tuesday’s podcast because Faulk is extremely polarizing. I’m hesitant to buy in for next season but there’s no denying the upside.
Jeff Skinner – Goal on eight shots. Talk about finishing the season in style. Skinner has 10 goals in the past 9 games and with the schedule being loaded, Skinner should continue to make a massive difference in fantasy leagues.
Jaccob Slavin – Two assists with a shot. He’s looks like he’s going to be AAGNOF next season but that will give him a role on the bottom of rosters in 12’ers.
Eddie Lack – 23 saves on 27 shots in the 4-3 OT loss. He was stretchered off the ice after allowing the overtime winner with what appeared to be a neck issue. Best wishes to him right now. You never want something like this to happen and Lack was starting to put together a nice stretch of games. If you need starts, turn to Cam Ward.
Juuse Saros – 24 saves on 25 shots in the 3-1 win over the Islanders. For those who are new to Razzball, Saros is my favorite goalie in dynasties and I would actively target him everywhere.
Thomas Greiss – 28 saves on 30 shots taking the loss. His overall numbers aren’t great outside of wins but it’s mostly dragged down by two horrendous starts. Keep using him for the rest of this season and I expect to have him as a middling to bottom end #2 next season.
Nick Schmaltz – Two assists with a shot. I could see Schmaltz being a regular streamer next season but I don’t have any true expectations. He’s barely over one shot per game and has 2 PIM in 55 games.
Jonathan Drouin – Two goals. That gives him 20+30 in 66 games and I think this is just the beginning. Drouin just turned 21 Monday (enjoy a nice brew!) and Tampa should have better injury luck next season.
Victor Hedman – Three assists with two shots. Hedman is simply crushing everything this season as he reached the 50 assist mark in this one. At his current rate, 70 points is definitely in play. Reid and I are going to take a deeper look at the top group of defensemen on the podcast tomorrow and I’m intrigued as to where he ranks Hedman.
Nikita Kucherov – Two assists with four shots. At this point, I’m not convinced that Kucherov is human.
Ondrej Palat – Goal and an assist with three shots. Keep streaming him.
Anton Stralman – Goal and an assist with two shots. The Lightning stopped giving him the power play time to be fantasy relevant so leave him on the waiver wire.
Alex Steen – Four assists with two shots. I’ve been pretty high on Steen the past few seasons despite the injury history but I’ll probably be avoiding him next season. That shot rate simply isn’t worth dealing with.
Vladimir Tarasenko – Goal and two assists with six shots. The penalty minutes have dried up this season but Tarasenko should finish right around last season’s 40+34 mark. Gun to head, I would say he’s still a first round pick next season.
Jake Allen – 21 saves on 22 shots in the win. If you were fortunate to make the finals with Allen on your team, he should do you wonders this week with those matchups. That said, I do expect Carter Hutton to get one of those games.
Sven Andrighetto – Two goals with two PIM. I said on the trade deadline podcast that Andrighetto could be a nice deep league option for Colorado and he’s certainly been that. He now has five goals and four assists in twelve games for Colorado. I think he’s a viable streamer in 12’ers right now with his minutes and should definitely be owned in 16’ers. I’m going to like him a decent bit next year if it looks like Andrighetto will still have a top six role.
Erik Johnson – Two assists with two shots. He was decent before the injury but I would just leave him on the waiver wire for the rest of this year.
Michael Ferland – Goal and an assist with two shots. He’s a decent stream while he’s on the top line.
Sean Monahan – Goal and three assists with three shots. Monahan has been a monster for the last six weeks to get his numbers back to a respectable level. I’m still a pessimist on his future fantasy value.
Tuesday Streamers:
Andreas Athanasiou (5.3%) – He was highlighted yesterday and after a goal and an assist, I see no reason to avoid using him again tonight. Same goes with Teuvo Teravainen in the same game.
Phillip Danault (5.8%) – Danault is back centering the first line and gets a nice matchup against the Stars.
Pavel Zacha (3.4%) – This is more of a gut call but the matchup against the Jets is pretty nice. Zacha’s minutes have been going up so if you need assists, I like streaming Zacha.
That’s all for now guys. As mentioned above, there will be a podcast that goes up this afternoon so please give it a listen! As always, feel free to ask any questions or leave any comments below. Thanks for reading, take care!
