In stunning fashion, the Coyotes have won six of seven games this month, including games against the Avalanche and Maple Leafs. In their last six games, they have goal totals of 8, 9, 5, 5, and 6. Just as we all expected, an offensive juggernaut in the desert. Wait, that’s not Vegas… Arizona won both games in a back-to-back on Monday and Tuesday, winning 5-3 in Ottawa and 6-3 in Montreal. Their lead man was Lawson Crouse. Crouse had a hat trick on four shots in the win over Ottawa before scoring a goal and an assist with three shots in Montreal. That brings Crouse to 19+13 on the season, easily a career high in goals and one off his career high in assists. For the time being, Crouse is an elite streamer. You can even make a case for holding him in hits leagues given his gaudy total, and the PIM are great as well. Crouse looked on the path to being a massive bust, and while he still has a way to go, this is an incredible encouraging season from the 24 year old. Let’s take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
Nick Schmaltz – Two goals and an assist with five shots over two games. Schmaltz is over a point per game now and clearly needs to be held everywhere.
Clayton Keller – Goal and three assists over two games. That brings Keller right to a point per game. Incredible bounce back from Keller after a few down seasons.
Josh Norris – Two goals on five shots. Norris is scoring at an incredible rate. He’s clearly going to regress with his 21.6% shooting, but Norris is also having some bad luck with assists.
Brady Tkachuk – Two assists with nine shots and two PIM. While the shots are down, it’s still elite, and Tkachuk continues to crush the rest of the categories. I’m not sure how much better it will get long term, but it really doesn’t have to get better for Tkachuk to be an elite fantasy asset.
Cole Caufield – Two goals on three shots. Caufield is still available in about 50% of leagues but he’s a clear hold everywhere. He has 14 points in the last 10 games and has 3+ shots in the last nine.
Jeff Petry – Two assists with three shots. Petry has been better with St. Louis at the helm (like everyone else on the Canadiens) but I would only grab him in 14+ leagues.
Joel Armia – Two assists with a shot. And there’s your annual Armia update!
Adam Henrique – Two assists with two shots. I did not see Henrique getting his career back on track this season. He’s an elite streamer.
Artemi Panarin – Three assists with four shots. There are plenty of hot streaks around the league right now, but Panarin is up there with 16 points in the last eight games.
Adam Fox – Goal and two assists with six shots. Fox has a new career high in goals. While he’s been overshadowed by Makar, Hedman, and Josi, Fox has been incredible.
Mika Zibanejad – Goal and an assist with two shots. The shots are a bit down, but Zibanejad is over a point per game again, so it’s hard to complain.
Erik Kallgren – 35 save shutout in the 4-0 win over the Stars. How about that for a first career start? Mrazek has been so bad and Campbell is out for a couple weeks so is it possible Kallgren gets some run here? It could blow up in our faces like Toronto goaltending has for a couple months, but I don’t hate a spec add. Welcome to the Razzball Database!
John Tavares – Goal and an assist with four shots. Nice bonus for Tavares to get to play with Mitch Marner (two assists) again while Matthews is suspended.
Morgan Rielly – Two assists with two shots. A career high in assists is firmly in play for Rielly. It is crazy to look at his career stats and see a 20 goal season without a 10 goal season otherwise.
Brock Nelson – Goal and an assist with two shots. The assists are poor, but it’s hard to leave Nelson on the wire when he’s scoring at over a 40 goal pace.
Noah Dobson – Two assists with three shots. It’s been said before in these parts, but I’m going to be all in on Dobson as soon as next season. The future is incredibly bright.
Evgeny Kuznetsov – Two assists with six shots. Nice to see Kuznetsov get on another hot streak like he started the season with.
Roman Josi – Three assists with two shots. Absolutely bonkers season from Josi. He has a real chance to reach 90 points.
Colton Sissons – Two assists with two shots and two PIM. Sissons manages to have a few big games every season, but he’s a bottom end streamer at best.
Juuse Saros – 35 saves on 36 shots in the 4-1 win over the Penguins. While he might not be a Vezina finalist, it’s not completely out of the question. Either way, Saros is a solid #1 fantasy goalie and should continue to be one for at least five more years.
Kyle Connor – Goal and two assists with two shots. Connor is right there for the league lead in shots. Sure, he gives no PIM and few hits, but he’ll be in the first round pick discussion next season. He’s brought the Jets back into the playoff picture.
Blake Wheeler – Goal and an assist with two shots. After looking shot early in the season, Wheeler has regained his form again. Great to see from the 35 year old.
Mark Scheifele – Goal and an assist with three shots. Scheifele remains in the same area he’s always in, but it’s still quite ugly at even strength. I really don’t get why his line plays more than Dubois’ even if it’s marginal.
Josh Morrissey – Goal and an assist with four shots. It’s bottom end at best, but I lean towards holding Morrissey because he’s on the first power play unit.
Logan Stanley – Goal and an assist with two shots and five PIM. Offense is generally not a part of Stanley’s game. Pass.
Linus Ullmark – 19 saves on 20 shots in the 2-1 OT win over the Blackhawks. Boston dominated this game, but MAF stole a point. Ullmark hasn’t been playing as much lately, but I still lean towards holding him because I doubt there are better options available.
Taylor Hall – Two assists with four shots. Hall is firmly on the fringe depending on team needs.
Marc Staal – Two goals on four shots and two PIM. Congrats to Staal on reaching 1,000 career games. Don’t even think about it in fantasy.
Sam Gagner – Goal and an assist with five shots. A nice revenge game from Gagner, who is playing on the second line for the time being. That said, he’s a bottom end streamer at best.
Taro Hirose – Two assists. This was Hirose’s second game of the season. Moving on…
Evander Kane – Two goals on five shots. Kane has handsomely rewarded everyone who stashed him for the season. He’s been excellent for the Oilers.
Kailer Yamamoto – Goal and an assist with three shots. Yamamoto was on the first power play unit and played almost 21 minutes. I’d hold everywhere while he has this role.
Jack Hughes – Goal and an assist with five shots. He remarkably has 0 PIM on the season and the shots have jumped to 3.5 per game. He’ll be a borderline top 20 player next season and could end up a first rounder in the not-too-distant future.
Yegor Sharangovich – Two assists with three shots. Bottom end streamer.
Bo Horvat – Two goals and an assist with three shots and two PIM. Well, I’ve been on the fence on Horvat for the last week or so, but I’m definitely holding now.
J.T. Miller – Three assists with seven shots. This run is preposterous from Miller. I’ve ran out of things to say.
Tanner Pearson – Goal and an assist with four shots. The third part of this line, Pearson is an elite streamer while the other two are on fire, especially Miller.
Darcy Kuemper – 23 save shutout in the 3-0 win over the Kings. Kuemper is hotter than a pistol with one goal allowed over the last three games on 105 shots.
Valeri Nichushkin – Goal and an assist with three shots. Big Val is on the first PP unit and played over 23 minutes while on the first line. He’s an elite streamer bordering on a hold.
Mikko Rantanen – Goal and an assist with four shots and two PIM. He’s a bit behind last season’s pace in terms of points, but Rantanen has been every bit as good overall. He’s locked into being a top 10 player.
Frank Vatrano – Two goals on four shots. Vatrano played 9 minutes in this game and is a possible trade target for Florida to acquire a bigger fish. There could be some value if he’s moved, but on Florida, he’s stuck as a bottom end streamer.
Tomas Hertl – Two assists with two shots. The Hertl situation is the most intriguing to play out over the next week. I can’t wait to see if he stays, or he moves to a contender.
Three Point Challenge: We will do Thursday’s games. You can’t select McDavid, Huberdeau, Draisaitl, Gaudreau, Matthews, Kaprizov, Kadri, Miller, Ovechkin, or Connor. I’ll go with Robertson against the Canadiens.
That’s all for now guys. I’ll be back on Friday recapping the action from the next two nights. As always, feel free to ask any questions, leave any comments, or give any suggestions below. Thanks for reading, take care!
