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It wouldn't be the first time that a Sabres trade acquisition got off to a hot start before flaming out, but this one looks different.  Bowen Byram was a monster again on Tuesday, scoring two goals on four shots finishing +4 in the 7-3 win over the Red Wings.  They'll have to win their next two games against the Islanders and Red Wings again, but the Sabres are creeping back onto the fringe of the playoff race.  Byram's workload in his three games as a Sabre are that of a #1 defenseman, even if that honor goes to Dahlin.  There's no doubting Byram's ability, and he's looking like a guy who can be a huge difference maker down the stretch this season and beyond.  He's clear must own everywhere.  Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:

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While Friday was mostly quiet, there were a couple big moves along with some nice depth acquisitions.  I'm going to cover those moves and give some first impressions on players with their new teams.  Let's get to it! Winnipeg acquired Tyler Toffoli from the Devils for second and third round picks.  Toffoli didn't play on Saturday so we don't know exactly where he'll slot in, but I love this move for Winnipeg.  With a healthy Toffoli and Vilardi, it's a loaded top six with good depth behind them.  Toffoli is owned almost everywhere, so saying that he's a hold everywhere doesn't really change anything.  The upside is undeniable, whether he plays with Scheifele and presumably Connor, or with Ehlers and Monahan.  Going from the team with the worst goaltending to arguably the best should fix the plus-minus and the shot rate should stay at 3+.  What will swing his value the most is whether he goes on the first power play unit.  They have Connor, Scheifele and Morrissey as locks.  Then you have two spots for Toffoli, Vilardi, Ehlers and Monahan.  We should find out on Monday, although Vilardi being out increases his chances, especially because Bowness hates Ehlers for reasons unknown.  I would bet on a big finish from Toffoli.
The NHL Trade Deadline is Friday afternoon, and boy, did we have it kick into full gear on Wednesday.  While the biggest name on the block wasn't moved (Guentzel), most of the other big names already moved.  We also had a massive one for one hockey trade that makes a ton of sense for both sides.  I'm going to look at all of the recent moves and talk about the impacts for both teams, from both the short term and long term.  Let's get to it!
Oh, the irony of the timing.  Right as Ryan Smith, owner of the Utah Jazz, puts out a release saying that he's ready to bring a hockey team to Utah, the Arizona Coyotes go on a 14 game losing streak.  Over the weekend, they managed to right the ship.  The Coyotes snapped their skid on Friday, beating Ottawa 5-3, before defeating the Capitals 5-2 on Sunday.  The featured performance was their former 9th overall pick Dylan Guenther.  Guenther had a goal and an assist with two shots on Friday before scoring a goal and two assists with five shots and two PIM against the Capitals.  Guenther playing over 18 minutes on Sunday was extremely encouraging.  With Clayton Keller out, Guenther moved to the point on the first power play unit, and delivered three PPP over the two games.  I've been a fan of Guenther's as a prospect and it looks like he's finding his game in the NHL.  He's an elite streamer for the time being who you can hold for this week if you'd like.  Arizona has four games, including two against the Blackhawks.  In dynasties, I see a guy that eventually becomes a hold in all formats.  I think he'll be a guy who gets three shots on goal per game on average, resulting in 25ish goals with upside for more with a good shooting percentage.  Let's take a look at what else happened over the weekend:
A rare cold patch left Sam Reinhart sitting on 39 goals for almost three weeks.  On Thursday, he reached the 40 goal mark for the first time in his career, and found another to get back to second in the league in goals.  Reinhart scored two goals, one on the power play and one shorthanded, while also adding an assist with five shots in the 4-3 SO win over the Canadiens.  Is this season sustainable for Reinhart?  Definitely not while he's shooting over 25%.  That said, he's in the perfect situation to be a point per game player going forward, assuming he stays in Florida.  It seems likely he stays in free agency, but you never know if someone takes top dollar.  Regardless, Reinhart certainly won't be in my top 20 next season like he is so far this year, but I expect him to be around 50th overall for me if he stays.  He can counteract the crazy shooting percentage a bit by getting back to his usual shot rate, and Reino should remain elite on the power play.  Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
As a change of pace from my usual daily notes, I'm going to focus on one player on each NHL team whose value has changed recently, or could as the trade deadline approaches.  Let's get to it! In his last four games, Mason McTavish has four goals and three assists.  His line has dominated despite Anaheim's overall struggles.  McTavish is still available in over 50% of leagues, and if anything, his minutes should increase down the stretch once Henrique is moved out.  I have confidence in McTavish becoming a top 50 player sooner than later, potentially next season.  For now, I would definitely own him if your league doesn't have plus-minus.  If it does, he's on the fringe.
There was a lot of craziness around the NHL on President's Day, but nothing topped the game in Minnesota.  At one point late in the second period, the Canucks looked in complete control up 5-2.  Two minutes and seventeen seconds of game time later, Minnesota was up 6-5.  And if that wasn't enough, there were still six more goals!  The Wild beat the Canucks 10-7, and to wash it down, they played a paltry 6-3 game on Tuesday, a loss to the Jets.  Nothing like 13-13 aggregate over two nights.  On Monday, it was all of the stars for the Wild, as those four goals in a 2:17 span were all on the power play, three of which were 5 on 3.  Joel Eriksson Ek and Kirill Kaprizov had three goals and three assists... each!  Mats Zuccarello and Matt Boldy had a goal and three assists... each!  On Tuesday, Kaprizov had a goal and an assist, while Marco Rossi had two goals on five shots.  Both goalies were shelled, and right now, it's hard to trust either of them.  For the moment, the Wild look like a four star team, Faber is a clear hold, and Brodin is on the fringe.  Rossi is a solid streamer, and gamble if you'd like on their goalies.  Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
Two division rivals exploded on Saturday, both winning in dominant 9-2 fashion.  Not too often nowadays that you see two 9-2 scores.  For Toronto, a 9-2 win against the Ducks certainly wasn't expected, but isn't actually shocking either.  On the other hand, Florida blowing Tampa Bay out 9-2 after falling behind in the first 30 seconds of the game qualifies as jaw dropping.  Florida is arguably the best team in the league right now, dominating in multiple ways.  Matthew Tkachuk is fully back, scoring two goals and two assists with ten PIM in the victory, giving him 13 points in the last five games.  Carter Verhaeghe scored two goals and an assist with six shots and two PIM against his former team.  He's back on the point of the top unit and with Barkov, making him a top 50 player.  Sam Bennett had two goals and two assists iwth three shots and ten PIM.  Bennett is firmly on the fringe right now as long as he's with Tkachuk.  For Toronto, Auston Matthews had a hat trick and two assists with four shots as he scores goals at an unprecedented rate.  Bobby McMann had two goals and an assist with four shots, although I'm still not buying in with his workload.  He's bumping up to decent streamer for the time being.  Also, if you need short term defensemen help, Timothy Liljegren is on PP1 and dished three assists with Rielly still suspended.  Let's take a look at what else happened over the weekend:
It's been a long road to recovery for Artturi Lehkonen.  With Big Val in the player assistance program, it couldn't have happened at a better time.  After being eased back into the lineup, Lehkonen moved onto the top line the game before Tuesday night.  While he went to the second line to open the game, Lehkonen blew up against the Capitals, scoring two goals and adding two assists putting five shots on goal in the 6-3 win.  There's a few encouraging things here.  One, Lehkonen was on the first power play unit.  That alone is massive for his value.  Additionally, it was Lehkonen, not Drouin, closing the game for the Avs, as Lehkonen scored an empty netter with a minute left from MacKinnon and Rantanen.  Even in this role, Lehkonen received 18 minutes, which is plenty to succeed.  This puts him right back on the fringe.  Gun to head, I lean towards holding, but his schedule in the near term is heavy on busy days, so I see the case for leaving him as an elite streamer.  Let's take a look at what else happened the last two nights:
After his big breakout last season, Martin Necas has had a rough go of it this season.  Much like his team, he's started to turn his game around over the last month.  Since coming back from a two week injury on January 19th, when Necas had 9 goals on the season, he has seven goals in seven games, culminating with a natural hat trick in the first period against the Avalanche on Thursday.  On top of the goals, Necas has been taking a ton of shots.  He's averaging five shots on goal per game in the past seven, with 4+ in six of the last seven games.  If you're lucky enough to be in the 20% of leagues that Necas is available in, grab him immediately.  If you've held onto him, here's to hoping he keeps up this form to make up for the poor first half.  Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
Out of the top ranked goalies in the preseason, only Hellebuyck has played at an elite level.  This is a big reason why I don't take goalies in the first two rounds, if not longer, because the variance is too high.  My #1 goalie going into the season was Jake Oettinger.  He didn't play well in the first half and also missed time due to injury.  The All-Star break proved to be a good reset, as Oettinger was out of his mind on Tuesday.  Oettinger made 47 saves in the 2-1 win over the Sabres, stealing the game for the Stars.  After tomorrow, there's only two back-to-backs in the next four weeks for the Stars.  We should see Oettinger get plenty of action, and I'd bet on him finishing the season strong.  I don't do midseason rankings because I don't see a lot of value for the time it takes.  You have the team you have, and if you are making trades, you need to target your weaknesses to improve.  That said, if I was ranking for the rest of the season, Oettinger would still be a top five goalie.  I'm not betting against him.  Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights: