I don’t know how many people have watched Eastbound and Down, but every time there’s a game with huge implications, I just want to yell ” a f***ing showdown!” Monday had Kings vs. Flames, a crucial battle, and the Flames had their door blown off. The Kings went up 4-0 in the first, and ended up smoking the Flames 8-2. Despite the blowout, there wasn’t a lot of headliners for the Kings, but the one was Adrian Kempe. Kempe had two goals and an assist to bring him up to 34 goals and 21 assists, ready to set a career high in both. Their schedule isn’t ideal, but Kempe has played himself into a level where he’s worth holding regardless. Let’s take a look at the last two nights:
Monday’s Games
Matthew Tkachuk – Goal and two assists with two shots. Thachuk has been unstoppable this year. Carter Verhaeghe (2G) and Sam Bennett (2A) are riding his coattails into relevancy.
Dylan Ferguson – 48 saves on 49 shots in the 2-1 win over the Penguins. Decent first game in the NHL for Ferguson, a seventh rounder. Don’t think there’s anything to see here though. Welcome to the Razzball Database!
Alexandar Georgiev – 27 save shutout in the 5-0 win over the Blackhawks. As said in these parts, Georgiev has #1 overall goalie upside. Chicago stinks so don’t take too much away from this game, but it’s top end upside.
Denis Malgin – Two goals and an assist with three shots. He’s in the top six right now which is enough to make Malgin an elite streamer.
Erik Karlsson – Two goals on six shots. Please get 100 points!
Alexander Barabanov – Goal and an assist. Barabanov is an elite streamer despite the Sharks’ problems.
Mattias Ekholm – Two goals on five shots. Ekholm is back on the fringe now that he’s on a more offensive team.
Quinton Byfield – Two assists, +3. Byfield has been going off lately on the top line. He’s set up to be a full blown post-hype sleeper next year.
Tuesday’s Games:
Luke Evangelista – Two goals and two assists with seven shots. The Smashville schedule is top end down the stretch so Thomas Novak (1+1, 4 SOG) is right there, but I think I prefer Evangelista now.
Matt Duchene – Two goals and an assist with three shots. Firmly on the fringe, but lean hold with their schedule.
Linus Ullmark – 40 saves on 41 shots in the 2-1 win over the Senators. Still in disbelief that Ullmark has come close to breaking fantasy hockey this year. Incredible season.
Nick Suzuki – Two assists with a shot. It’s been slightly disappointing this year, but Suzuki’s value next season will swing wildly on the lottery.
Filip Gustavsson – 47 saves on 48 shots in the 2-1 OT win over the Devils. I’m highly skeptical of Gustavsson in dynasties because of Wallstedt. That said, Gustavsson has been a god send this season and could be elite next year.
Joel Farabee – Goal and an assist with three shots. A Viz theory: Farabee gets traded in the offseason with a new GM, and he’s a second team guy.
Adam Boqvist – Two goals on four shots. It’s crazy that Boqvist is still 22 years old. If you don’t mind a bad plus-minus, he should be valuable the rest of the season, and I’m a fan in dynasties.
Connor Hellebuyck – 29 saves on 30 shots in the 2-1 win over the Old Jets. Bowness is ready to run Hellebuyck into the ground to make the playoffs. If I had to pick one goalie for the rest of the way, I’d rank Hellboy #1 for the rest of the way.
Brandon Tanev – Two goals and an assist. No thanks outside of a hits league streamer.
Jamie Benn – Goal and two assists with five shots and two PIM. The Benn resurrection has been a massive surprise. After years of decline, he’s turned into a top 50 player again. Wild stuff.
J.T. Miller – Two goals and an assist. Best case for Cancuks fans. The team is boosting their lottery odds and Miller is looking more like himself with Tocchet.
Tyler Toffoli – Three assists with five shots. Of course my second pick for the Three Point Challenge gets there. Damn it!
Dan Vladar – 19 saves on 20 shots in the 5-1 win over the Flames. This says more about Anaheim than Calgary.
Three Point Challenge: We will do Thursday’s games. You can’t select McDavid, Draisaitl, Pastrnak, Kucherov, Thompson, M. Tkachuk, Marner, MacKinnon, Robertson, or Pettersson. I’ll go with Point against the Senators.
That’s all for now guys. Be sure to ask any questions, leave any comments, or give any suggestions below. I’ll be back on Friday recapping the action from the next two nights. Good luck to everyone, thanks for reading, take care!
