Martin St. Louis (1 A, 2 PIM, +3) was supposed to help continued to struggle for the blue shirts, but managed to tally his third point in nine games as a Ranger. This is not the scoring boost that Rangers GM Glen Sather was hoping for when he moved Ryan Callahan to the Bolts for the veteran scoring monster. Cally, on the other hand, has four points in six games for Tampa.
Anton Khudobin (1 GA, 46 SV, W) was put right back in net after taking a 2-1 loss and did not disappoint pushing 46 of 47 shots away for a 3-1 victory. Is there any doubt that Khudobin is the guy for the Canes? The only place there might be doubt is the Canes’ front office, but judging by the two-year deal they inked Khudobin to recently, I’d say that concept is fading fast. Cam Ward had an opportunity to take his starting job back, but he failed to do that like he has doing, well, mostly anything this season, and after this game the starters gig should be his and his alone for the next 12 games.
Gustav Nyquist (2 G, 6 SOG, +1) is really the only thing keeping the Wings from tipping completely over and missing the playoffs for the first time in 22 years. He has three goals in his last two games and that gives in 35 points in 43 games since his call up earlier this year. Can Nyquist really be the only thing keeping the Wings afloat, you might be wondering. Well, have a look at the list of guys Babs had to scratch last night: Pavel Datsyuk, Justin Abdelkader, Jonathan Ericsson, Dan Cleary, Tomas Jurco, Darren Helm, Joakim Andersson and Teemu Pulkkinen. Those are the scratches, how about guys on IR? Henrik Zetterberg, Mikael Samuelsson and Stephen Weiss. So, if by some insane happenstance he’s still available in one of your leagues I think you know what to do.
Evgeny Kuznetsov Jumps To Caps’ Second Line, Worth Adding Immediately
March 17, 2014 | 2013-2014 Fantasy Hockey, Daily Rewind |by: JD
What is it with Russians named Evgeny? Is there some sort of magic in the name? Maybe it’s the Vodka? Either way, Evgeny Kuznetsov (1 A, 2 SOG, even) has arrived and y’all best take notice as the kid has four points in his last two games and now plays on the second line for the Caps alongside Casey Wellman and Troy Brouwer. I know, those names don’t exactly strike fear into the hearts of their opponents but when you consider he just left the fourth line with Tom Wilson and Jay Beagle, it starts to sound a lot better, right? Either way, the initial chemistry Evgeny has with his teammates can’t be denied after back-to-back solid games on his new line. What’s better, he’s getting time on the Caps’ second power play unit and saw time with Alex Ovechkin. The only limit on Kuzentsov is Kuzentsov, and like many young Russians he’s passionate and highly skilled but who knows what that translates to over time. His weakness as defensive liability can cost him TOI at times, but most young offensively minded players suffer there and he’s improving steadily. His playmaking skills, however, are on par with Nicklas Backstrom’s (sans the PEDs, err, allergy meds!) and his wicked fake-slapper, slap-pass to Tom Wilson for a goal a few days ago against the Stars is evidence of that. He's wildly creative with the puck, has soft hands, great vision and is an all around offensive force. He lacks strength, but that's something he can improve on over time. It’s crunch time and there’s no reason to overthink snatching up a guy like Kuznetsov, so go get while the gettin’s good! Anyway, here’s what else I saw in the world o’ fantasy hockey last night:
Karma Catches Up To James Neal, Out Indefinitely With Concussion
March 14, 2014 | 2013-2014 Fantasy Hockey, Daily Rewind | 9 Commentsby: JD
Normally I'd start one of my daily rewind posts with a blurb about a guy who is notable for his production and well worth your attention, but this struck me as far too karma conspiracy to not lead off with today, also, its actually really important news. James Neal is out indefinitely with a concussion. Yes, Neal owners, you read that right, try not to cry too much, your tears are made of salt water and that shiz can really eff up your computer/phone/tablet/whatever you damn kids are using these days. Why do I think this is karma catching up with him? Lest we forget, earlier this season Jimmy was suspended for nealing Boston's Brad Marchand in the head while he was down on fall fours trying to get back to his feet. It was a henious move by Neal's part, but he has no real history of dirty play (well, excessively dirty, anyway) so we can forgive it given the tone of that game prior to the incident. Still, it's hard not to see this as cosmic payback for the move. I won't call this a schadenfreude moment for me because I don't wish head injuries on anyone, even if they absolutely ruin my team every time they face Neal and the Pens. At any rate, this weakens the Pens significantly and fantasy owners even more. There is no way to replace Neal, so the best you can do is scope out the wire and hope perhaps one of these guys is available:
Consider Carl! Soderberg Rounding Into Form Just In Time
March 13, 2014 | 2013-2014 Fantasy Hockey, Daily Rewind | 3 Commentsby: JD
We the fantasy playoffs starting next week for most of us it's time to make those last grabs before the dance that make all the difference. Over the last week I've been pushing Anders Lee and I'll continue to do so, but if you can't get on board with Lee because he plays for the Isles (I understand, we all do) you might find some love for Bs rookie Carl Soderberg (1 G, 3 SOG, +1), or at least I think you should. Soderberg is another one of the many talented young Swedes flooding in to the league in recent years and like many of his countrymen, he's pretty damn solid! He's been labeled "explosive" by many and when you watch him play it's pretty clear that's accurate. He can do just about anything you want in the offensive zone and baby, we want it all! Carl can shoot, pass, skate and chew gum, rub his stomach and pat himself on the head all at the same time! He's a big, strong guy that moves like greased lightning with a puck taped to its stick and frankly, I'm bullish on him for next year's drafts. Overall this season he's been limited by limited playing time, but lately he's getting it done with five points over his last four games. This isn't a wholly recent phenomenon for the rookie who has been putting it home fairly often over the last month and change with 11 points over his last 12 games. So that begs the question, who do you have on your bench that’s scoring like that recently? If you’re just starting blankly at screen trying to come up with an answer the answer is probably no one, so stop drooling and staring blankly, you look ridiculous. Soderberg is owned in just ~15% of ESPN leagues and %9 of Yahoo leagues he's an easily obtainable commodity, so if you're wondering how you're going to shore up your bench for the playoffs, consider Carl! Anyway, here's what else I saw in the world o' fantasy hockey last night:
No Tavares? No Problem! Anders Lee Helps Kyle Okposo Stay Hot
March 11, 2014 | 2013-2014 Fantasy Hockey, Daily Rewind | 2 Commentsby: JD
When John Tavares blew out his knee in Sochi the fantasy hockey gods mocked us and Kyle Okposo (3 A, 3 SOG, +1) might have died a little inside. We all knew that Thomas Vanek was on his way out the door after he turned down a sizeable, long term deal from the Isles and when he was shipped to the Habs at the deadline Okie and his owners had to wonder what the hell he’d be doing for the rest of the season and who he’d be doing it with. Well, wonder no longer because he’s doing what he’s been doing and that’s scoring mad points y’all! I said trade him if you can when Tavares went down and at this point I still stand by that, but I assumed he’d dip below a point-per-game pace at best, not flirt with maintaining it. His new look like wouldn’t raise any eyebrows on paper, but on the ice it seems there’s some serious chemistry between Okie, rookie Anders Lee (1 G, 1 A, 1 SOG, +1) and veteran Frans Neilsen (1 G, 1 A, 2 SOG, +1) as they lead the way in a 7-4 whoopin’ of the Canucks. I mentioned Lee yesterday but he’s worth expanding on today because the kid just keeps on scoring, and if he’s going to spend time with Okie, that’s probably going to continue. The kid is big, mobile and fast for his size with a long reach, a big shot and a ton of grit n’ determination, Lee can also deliver some monster hits, works well along the boards and drives hard to the net. He knows how to score and does so often, don’t believe me? So far Lee has seven points in seven games played with five goals to his name. Playing with Okie and Frans is going to give him a real opportunity to keep that roll going, so grab him where you can for the playoffs! It’s guys like Lee on tears like this that win leagues. Anyway, here’s what else I saw in the world o’ fantasy hockey last night:
Late Season Diamonds In The Rough: Lee, Henrique, Anisimov
March 10, 2014 | 2013-2014 Nightly Rewind | 2 Commentsby: JD
With the fantasy season winding down it can be difficult to find value on the wire, but there are still a few gems to be had and they make all the difference come playoff time. Its not often that you win a league with the team you drafted and if you're winning late in the season you've most likely littered your lineups with guys that, to start the season, you never would have considered. If you aren't in the mindset right now, you aren't serious about winning. So who is available on the wire this late in the season that can actually help? How about Anders Lee, Adam Henrique and Artem Anisimov? Lee has just six games under his belt this season for the Isles, but with lots of room to roam after a flurry of deals left Garth Snow's roster wide open, Lee has taken advantage of his time with five points in six games so far. He's young, so it's hard to predict what he'll do, especially for the Isles, but the big (6'2" 210lbs) winger with a heavy shot and a nose for the next could offer up as many as 10 more goals and 15 more points for you going forward, and how many guys on the wire can you say that about right now? Not many, that's how many. Adam Henrique is no mystery to anyone in the know, but his five goals over the past week are a surprise to most of us. Not you? Well, aren't you special! Henrique has a whopping nine points over his last five games with a nine goal, six game goal scoring streak mixed in there. He might only have 38 points so far this season, but considering how well he's been playing lately it should be easy enough for him to notch 12-15 more and finish in the mid-50s by season's end. He's owned in ~92% of ESPN leagues, but available in an alarming 68% of Yahoo leagues, so he's out there if you need some scoring help, and who doesn't? Last, and least, is Artem Anisimov who has been underwhelming for the entirety of his short, yawnstipating career, but recently earned himself the second star in the NHL player of the week honors by scoring the game winning goal in three straight games. His 19 goals so far this season are a career high and he's probably good for another 10-12 points with a handful of goals sprinkled in before all is said and done. While there isn't much out there, you have to take what you can get when guys like Pavel Datsyuk go down with injuries, and if you're lucky, you can find one of these three to help fill the gap. Anyway, here's what else I saw in the world o' fantasy hockey yesterday:
This has to be one of the busiest deadline days that I’ve seen in a few years with 19 trades getting completed today and 32 deals going down since the Miller to St. Louis deal kicked everything off post Sochi. We saw ten goalies change hands, two captains trade places and guys like Vanek and Halak who were traded for the second time just this season! I went through the list and picked out what I thought which moves had the biggest fantasy impact and highlighted those. If you’re looking this over and think I missed a few, check out these posts from yesterday for more trade analysis;
Roberto Luongo Back To Panthers, Add Lack!
Ilya Bryzgalov To Wild, Fasth To Oilers, Penner To Caps
Ryan Miller To Blues For Halak, Stewart, Picks
Martin St. Louis (F-TB) for Ryan Callahan (F-NYR), 2014 conditional 2nd-round pick, 2015 1st-round pick
In what was perhaps the biggest deal of the day the Rangers and Bolts swapped captains moving two guys who had never played anywhere else, well, elsewhere! This move creates a few fantasy ripples and they tend to center around the return of goal scoring machine Steven Stamkos. When Stamkos broke his tibia a lot of folks though Marty’s production might slip at a bit and that’s a fair assumption to make, however, it didn’t happen. He has 61 points in 62 games with a plus-12 and 167 shots on goal and a shift to the Rangers isn’t going to slow him down either. The move could lead to a possible reunion on a line with Brad Richards, but considering how bleh Richards has been this season even St. Louis might not be able to snap him out of it. But fear not, St. Louis owners, there are plenty of places Alain Vigneault can slot in his new weapon and get the usual point-per-game production from him. Stamkos, on the other hand, may see a dip in production without Marty on his wing, and Cally isn’t going to be able to fill that gap, so expect a few fewer assists from Steve-o, but the goals should continue to pour in. In the end, both St. Louis and Stamkos are so good that their production will more or less stay the same, but Callahan becomes an intriguing option. Owned in just 44% of Yahoo leagues and ~84% of ESPN leagues, if Cally ends up playing alongside Stamkos he’s going to see a scoring boost for sure. He isn’t without offensive ability, but everyone knows he’s a grinder more than anything else. If he’s out there in your league and you need a scoring boost, you could get that on the cheap from Callahan. Anyway, here's the rest of the deals that I thought would make a splash in the world o' fantasy hockey:
BREAKING: Roberto Luongo Back To Panthers, Add Lack!
March 4, 2014 | 2013-2014 Fantasy Hockey, Goalies, Hockey News | 6 Commentsby: JD
At the end of the 2011-2012 season Roberto Luongo demanded a trade out of Vancouver and made it quite clear he wanted to go back home to Florida. The Panthers initially balked at the idea due to his sizable contract, but the Canucks kept trying to make it work and finally shipped him back to South Florida today for top goaltending prospect Jacob Markstrom and a player yet to be named. Aw, it's a dream come true for Lu! He goes from a team that was playoff bound to a team that's bound for golfing and watching the playoffs at the bar. Maybe he just doesn't want to work that hard? Who knows. What I do know is now that he's headed down to Florida it will relegate Tim Thomas to the bench and I can't be the only one who is pumped to see that. Regardless of being the undisputed starter for the Panthers Lu's value takes a pretty sizable hit here as the Panthers aren't much different than they were when he was traded a few years ago. He'll go back to getting peppered every night by opposing teams and struggling to keep his peripherals in the healthy ranges and wins? Hah, don't get me started there, you can expect his wins to fall right off the table. This might make Lu very, very happy, but it makes his fantasy owners cry in their beers. If you own Lu or Thomas, go grab Eddie Lack right this moment as he becomes the de-facto starter for the Canucks. Lack is owned in just ~34% of ESPN leagues and 21% of Yahoo Leagues so you can bet he's going to be one of the hottest wire grabs down the stretch. So go go go! Add add add!
BREAKING: Ilya Bryzgalov To Wild, Fasth To Oilers, Penner To Caps
March 4, 2014 | 2013-2014 Fantasy Hockey, Hockey News |by: JD
The Oilers started the season with Devan Dubnyk and Jason LaBarbera in net and that didn't work out so well, so GM Craig MacTavish signed Ilya Bryzgalov for the reminder of the sesaon, shipped Dubs off to the Preds, traded HannaBarbera to the Hawks for "future considerations" and traded for Ben Scrivens. After letting the dust settle a bit, Scribbles bubbled up to become the Oil's starter and that didn't sit too well with Breezy. With fears that he wouldn't resign in the offseason mounting MacTavish assured his tenure with the team was rather short and shipped him off to the Wild for a fourth round pick. Hey, it's better than nothing, right? Wrong! The Ducks quickly turned that fourth-round pick around for the Stars' Stephane Robidas. Robidas has no fantasy value and that doesn't change here, so back to the matter at hand. Considering how well Darcy Kuemper has been playing I'd be surprised to see Breezy supplant him as the Wild's starter, but it may quickly develop into a 1A / 1B situation. If you're dying for goaltending help and Breezy is available, he's worth a speculative flier add, but don't expect much until the situation with him and Kuemper becomes a bit more salient.
Mikael Granlund (2 A, 2 SOG, +1) is a rookie I haven’t mentioned yet and shame on me for that. A natural playmaker with incredibly soft hands, he was largely disappointing in his North American debut last season with the Wild, so he flew under my, and many other 'perts radar. Still, that's no excuse for overlooking a guy who before coming to North America dominated the Finnish leagues with 20 goals, 31 assists, plus-20 and 18 PIM in 45 games for HIFK Helsinki in Finland's SM-Liiga. His subpar debut with the Wild was fueled in part by a bum ankle and a log jam that kept him to third line minutes. Well, that log jam is gone and his TOI has spiked and would you look at that? So has his production! He has all the tools needed to be an All-Star in the NHL and he’s showing it this season posting 32 points in 49 games so far. He has four points (1 G, 3 A) in his last three games he’s going to give you more assists than goals, but he’s going to get his regardless, so why should you be left out? He’s only owned in 10% of Yahoo leagues and ~53% of ESPN Leagues, so grab him if you need some help at center. Then there's his brother Markus Granlund (1 A, 1 SOG, +1) who didn’t want to be left out, so I tailored this post just to include him. Not really, I actually think Mikael is a great sleeper for next season and a solid add for the stretch run this season, I just think it's cool when brothers get to play in the NHL together. Sadly Markus isn't worth owning this season or next, but hey, he tallied a helper last night and it was just his third game on the big stage, so congrats to the Granlunds for their night o' family hockey fun. Anyway, here's what else I saw in the world o' fantasy hockey last night:
Hamming It Up: Dougie Hamilton Joins Top Pairing With Chara
March 3, 2014 | 2013-2014 Fantasy Hockey, Daily Rewind | 2 Commentsby: JD
It’s not often that a second year defenseman ends up on the top pairing for a cup contending team, but Dougie Hamilton (1 G, 2 A, 3 SOG, +2, 2 PIM) broke that mold and earned a place along side Zdeno Chara (1 SOG, even) on the Bs top pairing for a few games in a row now and the results have been very positive at both ends of the ice. When asked about his new weapon on the blue line Bs head coach Claude Julien had nothing but glowing remarks for Hammy’s performance of late; “He’s been good. He’s been steady. He’s moved the puck well. He’s got good vision. He’s got good size, good reach. This is a player that with time will get stronger. He’s a big body. He’ll get stronger. He’ll probably be more impactful than he is right now. But his game has been really good. I think he’s handled it well.” All of this bodes well for his chances of staying on that pairing moving forward, and that also bodes well for his ability to give you those tasty blue line points down the stretch. “Bodes” sounds like a word a sufer would use, doesn’t? “Oh man, Hammy’s gnarly bodes rocked last night!” Come to think of it, that doesn’t sound too family safe. Hmn. Anyway, Hammy contributed in just about every way you could hope for as a fantasy owner and given his choice new home next to Chara, you can expect more of this moving forward from the rookie defenseman. So far he has 18 points in 44 games which puts him on pace for around 28 points in 66 games by season’s end and I think it’s probably that he’ll hit that mark, so look for another 10-15 points from Hammy, so if you need help on your blue line down the stretch here’s a great option as he’s only owned in 12% of ESPN leagues and 26% of Yahoo leagues. Anyway, here's what else I saw in the world o' fantasy hockey last night:
BREAKING: Ryan Miller To Blues For Halak, Stewart, Picks
February 28, 2014 | 2013-2014 Fantasy Hockey, Goalies, Hockey News | 2 Commentsby: JD
It's the trade Blues fans have prayed for, Sabres fans have dreaded and fantasy owners have been dying for; The Sabres traded Ryan Miller and Steve Ott to the St. Louis Blues for Jaroslav Halak, Chris Stewart, prospect William Carrier, a 2015 first-round pick and a 2016 third-round pick tonight. Clearly the Blues are going all in for the cup this season and this move makes a team that was a serious contender to begin with seem like a near lock for it now. So, what does this do to their respective fantasy values? Miller goes from middle of the pack to top 5 with a huge spike in value. You can expect fantastic peripherals and, finally, loads o' wins from the former Vezina winner. Jaroslav Halak's value goes in the exact opposite direction and man, it's bummersville for him as he joins Jhonas Enroth on the league's worst team. If you own Halak you shouldn't drop him, but I'd bench him to see how he handles the onslaught of shots he's going to face now. Obviously he's not going to give you many more wins, so if you're a Halak owner in a H2H league, you need to start looking at the wire and seriously considering who you're going to be comfortable streaming when Halak's numbers inevitably tumble down, down, down into the deep, dark waters of mediocrity. Man, that's some Edgar Allen Poe shiz right there! It's appropriate, can you imagine what it's like for Halak? One minute he's on one of the league's best teams, poised to be strong for years to come, and the next he's in nowheresville, New York. Ouch. Anyway, here's how the rest of the guys in this deal shake out:
