The Coyotes are stuck in a continual rebuild, but acquiring Shayne Gostisbehere has been one of the bright spots. Inexplicably, the Flyers gave a second round pick for Arizona to take Ghost Bear, only to give up a first and other assets to get Risto from the Sabres. Woof. Now, the Desert Dogs have rebuilt Gostisbehere’s value. He scored two goals and an assist with four shots in the 6-3 win over the Blue Jackets on Tuesday. that gives him 4+4 in six games this season. In five of those games, he has at least four shots on goal. Yes, the plus-minus is bad, but those PPP are excellent. Even if Chychrun returns and play games, I can’t imagine Gostisbehere losing his PP1 spot. Unless your league puts a big priority on plus-minus, he needs to be held everywhere. Let’s take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
Monday’s Games
Dylan Strome – Two assists. He played over 18 minutes, and he’s put up some decent assists so far. That said, the shot rate is dreadful so he’s only a middling streamer..
John Marino – Two assists with a shot. Solid player in real life, but no fantasy value here.
Thomas Chabot – Goal and an assist with seven shots. The points haven’t been great yet, but the shot rate is excellent. It should only get better.
Brady Tkachuk – Goal and an assist with two shots and two PIM. That’s four straight multi-point games for Tkachuk who is easily playing the best hockey of his career.
Jason Zucker – Two assists with two shots. Decent streamer in general, but Zucker did miss Tuesday’s game due to injury, so keep an eye on that.
Rickard Rakell – Goal and an assist with two shots. Rakell hasn’t blown up like I hoped, but the shot rate is there, and the Pens are cruising at even strength. I’m still holding.
Leon Draisaitl – Goal and two assists with four shots. It’s only a matter of time until more pucks find the back of the net with Draisaitl taking 3.5 per game.
Evander Kane – Goal and an assist with nine shots and two PIM. Kane has been everything we could have hoped for. Like Draisaitl, the goal rate will go up if the shot rate maintains. And Evander sure loves a bad shot.
Zach Hyman – Goal and an assist with four shots and two PIM. Hyman has been good across the board. Easy hold for me.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Goal and an assist. RNH has played his way into the hold discussion with 7 points in 6 games. For now, he’s on PP1 which makes me want to hold him, but it should be a fluid situation.
Connor Hellebuyck – 25 save shutout in the 4-0 win over the Blues. This game was an excellent performance by the Jets in general. Hellebuyck is sitting with a .929 despite playing a brutal schedule to start. You love to see it.
Josh Morrissey – Two assists with two shots. Morrissey is a hold in most formats at the bottom of your roster.
Logan Thompson – 22 saves on 23 shots in the 3-1 win over Toronto. Vegas is the best defensive team in the early going. Thompson has a real chance to be a #1 goalie this season.
Brent Burns – Two assists with four shots. He hasn’t scored yet, but Burns is piling up the shots, and the plus-minus is bound to fix itself playing with Slavin. I’m still expecting big things.
J.T. Miller – Two goals. It’s been a disastrous start in Vancouver, but at least Miller is scoring his share of goals. One assist in seven games on the other hand isn’t going to cut it. It should only get better for the Canucks, but there’s a chance their plus-minuses become an issue as long as Hughes is out.
Tuesday’s Games
Linus Ullmark – 30 saves on 31 shots in the 3-1 win over the Stars. Ullmark has been fantastic so far, becoming the clear #1. If that volume continues, he’ll be a #1 goalie, no doubt.
David Pastrnak – Goal and an assist with three shots. Pasta started the season on fire and hasn’t cooled down one bit. He’s looking like the borderline top five player he was in 2019-20.
Dominik Kubalik – Goal and an assist with two shots. Hotter than a pistol! I covered Kubalik extensively in Monday’s post.
Jesper Bratt – Two goals and an assist with four shots. Bratt has a point in every game so far this season. He’s turned into one of the best play drivers of the league and that’s going to do wonders in fantasy.
Dougie Hamilton – Two assists. Decent start to the season across the board for Dougie. Here’s to hoping he can keep it up because we know the upside is massive.
Ryan Graves – Two assists with a shot. Solid player in real life, but no fantasy value here.
Jack Hughes – Goal and an assist with three shots. Hughes’ shot rate is so good right now that if he keeps it up, we’re going to be looking at an incredible season. Hughes hasn’t blown up yet which is a good sign for the Devils going forward.
Marc-Andre Fleury – 26 saves on 27 shots in the 3-1 win over the Canadiens. It’s been a nightmare start for the Wild and specifically MAF. I’d expect his numbers to get closer to the 2.8/.910 range but with quality wins, making him a #2. I wouldn’t consider cutting him or anything rash.
Joel Eriksson Ek – Two goals on five shots playing over 20 minutes. JEEK is an elite streamer that you could hold depending on team needs or if your league includes faceoff wins.
Brandon Duhaime – Goal and an assist with three shots and two PIM. Don’t see much here for fantasy unless some big line changes happen.
Clayton Keller – Three assists with a shot. Five game point streak for Keller. He’s on the fringe for me because he’s shooting the puck a lot less than last season and again, plus-minus.
Jake Bean – Two assists with two PIM. I really wish I could see Columbus roll Bean and Boqvist big minutes just to see what they can do. Nobody needs to see Peeke play a ton of minutes not being able to get out of his own end and blocking a ton of shots. For now, Bean is a deep league option at best.
Alexandar Georgiev – 44 saves on 46 shots in the 3-2 SO win over the Rangers. Georgiev was excellent, as was his old teammate Igor Shesterkin (42/44). Georgiev has been very good so far and the wins should get better.
Barclay Goodrow – Goal and an assist with two shots. And there’s your annual Goodrow update!
Patrick Kane – Goal and an assist with four shots. Kane has been okay so far, but it also feels like he’s in a holding pattern. I’m much more interested in Kane in H2H leagues where he can be a massive difference maker in your playoffs.
Nazem Kadri – Two goals and an assist with four shots and two PIM. It’s been the best start possible for Kadri, with a point in every game and elite shots. The PIM aren’t there yet, but it’s only a matter of time until he gets into it with somebody.
Jacob Markstrom – 32 saves on 33 shots in the 4-1 win over the Penguins. It’s been a slow start for Markstrom, but I have no concern at all. If anything, I’d try to buy low, but I’d assume people have enough patience for a guy like Markstrom.
Gabriel Vilardi – Goal and an assist with four shots. I still lean elite streamer because the minutes are low, but the longer he stays on PP1 and keeps producing, the more I have to debate Vilardi’s status.
Shea Theodore – Goal and an assist with four shots. I cannot understand at all why Vegas would have Pietrangelo on PP1 and Theodore on PP2. To be blunt, Theodore is simply much better in that role. That said, Theodore is still going to produce plenty because he has that offensive ability.
Three Point Challenge: We will do Thursday’s games, and you can’t select McDavid, Gaudreau, Huberdeau, Draisaitl, Kaprizov, Matthews, Stamkos, M. Tkachuk, Miller, or Marner. I’ll go with Nylander against the Sharks.
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!
I’ll take the over due Reinhart getting the points.
Sounds good!
My opponent owns Gotisbehere and this has been the trends for 11+ years of doing 4 sport fantasy sports. I win cause I’m skilled LOL.
Viz! It’s been a week but I have an. My league started in week 2 and I’m in 3-4th but like a game out of first. Early, but you never wanna fall behind. Down a tad this week as my opponent already has a SO and is destroying it offensively. It’s extremely irritating, especially since I lost Guentzel and Ehlers and everyone else has sucked.
Anyhow, I own Frederick Andersen and my 2 has been awful, Quick. I regret drafting him, but the waiver wire wonders huh. I own Husso whose Bebe fantastic on 2 of 3 and I believe on him. I streamed Reimer for his SO Sunday and had the balls to play him against VGK where he had a mediocre showing.
Someone dropped Fluery which I think is crazy unless I don’t know something. Would you drop any not names Andersen AND I don’t keep 4 Goaltenders but and hesitating to drop to see where I’m at this week in Goalie stats.
1 more question. I like to use 1 or 2 stream sports, so you hesitate to drop defense? I own Forsling, Trouba, Shea, and Sergachev. Im comfortable with them all except Sergachev, but do you like to stream D?
Thanks for reading my questions and answering them.
I would grab Fleury, you’re right there. I would drop Reimer; I don’t love Quick either, but the Sharks are really bad and the wins are going to be brutal for Reimer.
No, I almost always stream a forward. It would have to be an extreme circumstance for me to stream a defenseman.
Thanks guy !!
Ain’t no need to roster four goalies. Quick and Reimer can go…I would straight drop one of them and replace the other with MAF.
D streaming is probably best used for getting your hits/blocks up to snuff each week, but if there’s a PP1 guy who happens to play four games in a given week or two days on a given weekend then that’s very streamable imo.
Sergachev is a hold if it’s a categories league that counts H+BLK, but otherwise I’m not in love with what he has to offer.
Thanks Viz and JKJ
I will do just that! I put a nice bud down for MAF so hopefully I get him.
Thanks !
Viz !
Happy hump day man, these posts are simply the best to start your day with.
The last placed team in my league went Zero G and is wearing it early on.
He offered me these two trades last night, wondering which you prefer (if at all):
Elias Lindholm, Boldy and Swayman or Jack Hughes, Hyman, and Fred Andersen ?
or
Lindholm, Boldy, and Swayman for Jack Hughes, Fiala, and Binnington ?
I’ll have to stream my second and third goalie slot but I’m up for the challenge I’m very on top of things
Appreciate the kind words, means a lot.
I assume you’re giving up the Andersen / Binnington side if he went zero goalie? Assuming that’s the case, I think you get the worst of both of these trades by a mile. In the first trade, Andersen > Swayman, Hughes > Lindholm, Hyman = Boldy, clear value loss. In the second one, Binnington > Swayman, Hughes > Lindholm, Fiala > Boldy, you get worse at every spot. These would both be disastrous for you. You need to get a lot better players back if you’re giving up a #1 goalie and Hughes.
That’s exactly what I’m thinking, I’m also from a position of bargaining power since every night he has to soak an Allen or even Sabres Andersen potential blow up. He’s on borrowed time if he wants to compete this year.
Cheers !
Yep, might as well hold out for something better.
I’m Hughes side on both of these by a good margin, so if that’s your side then tell him to kick rocks.
Appreciate your insight as well JKJ. I guess I’m just a homer for Boldy and Lindholm !
YNWA indeed Viz!
Need your advice here,
Was offered AM34, Bucnhevich for my Khucherov, Caufield and Husso.
League settings are categories. Already have Marner as my other RW so I have the depth.
I guess it depends how much you need Husso, I’m more worried about the G depth than RW, there are plenty of wingers but only so many viable goalies. If you can afford to lose Husso without getting a goalie in return, then it seems like a pretty fair offer and comes down to your personal preference.
So I currently have Hellebuyck and Thompson as my one at two so I have a good foundation.
Agree with JKJ, having those two, you can pull the trigger here.
Easy accept if you ask me. AM34 >>>>>>>>>>>
Hey Viz!
Thanks for the recap and all the info. The week has started out pretty well with Kadri and Hughes leading the charge and Ullmark and Markstrom getting good wins last night.
So my D-Men right now are Dougie, Trouba, Bouchard, Byram and Power. Byram was drafted after Power but I think I’m holding the former. I know you mentioned giving Power another week or so last time, but would you drop for any of these guys? We count HITS and D-Men points (DEF) as additional categories.
Pulock (71.8% owned)
Lindell (58.5)
Dunn (47.7)
Clifton (8%)
Dunn looks like he’s chipping in on the power play but playing for a SEA team that might ship some goals. Could give Dunn a shot and ride the hot hand if it doesn’t work out? No SOG for Power in the last two games. Do we give Power a couple more games still? TIA!
Thanks Jake! That’s definitely a great start. The only one I would consider dropping Power for is Dunn. The other guys are what they are, solid guys on the waiver wire you can use in a pinch. There is some upside with Dunn. The only thing with Dunn is that his hits are poor too, and while his shots aren’t as bad as Power’s have been, it’s still below average. DEF as a category makes me a little less patient Dunn’s producing on the PP so if you want to make that swap, I get it.
None of those names do anything for me. Byram isn’t a hold to me now that Toews is back, so I’d just stream that spot with off-night players each week.
Drop Sergachev for Gotisbehere or Montour? Standard points, no hits or blocks, but we have plus/minus
Gotta be Ghost even with the horrid plus-minus. I’d add him and then try to trade him before long if he keeps it up. In the long run that plus-minus will cap his upside.
Hmm, this is tough. I think I’d go Gostisbehere in H2H and Sergachev in roto where the bad plus-minus can really sink you over the full season.
I’ll go with cold Kyle Connor for 3 pnt!
Sounds good!
I’ll take Burakovsky and hope Vancouver is going to keep bleeding goals.
oct 18th: panarin
oct 20th: kucherov
oct 25th: barkov
oct 27th: pasternak vs DET for 3 pt thurs (and 2 week window reopens by tues, so these names above can be chosen again, if i’m reading this right, unless obv they turn into part of the 10 that cannot be by then)
if only this was that rat’s 2nd game back so we could’ve seen his ice time i might’ve gone marchand too. seems odd not 1 of the BOS big 3 were top 10 in last year’s points (i’m forgetting how much they might’ve been injured though)
still got 17 minutes for 1 more pasternak point though right now.
only had to wait 1:39 too. i got husso in one spot though, notta so good that DET D. got destroyed and i thought husso might come in yesterday too.
ok, i might not know of some rasmussen history on this stuff vs kuznetsov’s, but we know how bad that kuznetsov intentional high sticking he got 1 game for, and rasmussen just got 2 for far less, here are the 2 instances so anybody can see these:
kuznetsov’s: https://www.nhl.com/video/kuznetsov-suspended-one-game/t-277440360/c-13211444
rasmussen’s: https://www.nhl.com/video/rasmussen-suspended-two-games/t-277440360/c-13414431
they even say the 2nd was “reckless” but the 1st not that. i don’t get how the first isn’t unless they meant the 1st was some word worse than reckless. the only thing different is the injury caused by the 2nd. so really bad intent isn’t worth as much as the level of injury is seemingly the only lesson here.
rasmussen had no prior fines/suspensions, kuznetsov (over a much larger sample size) had 1.