Kucherov Grabs Points Lead

Even for Nikita Kucherov, the start to this season is on another level.  Kucherov scored two goals and two assists with five shots and two PIM against the Maple Leafs, and then followed it up with a goal and an assist with six shots against the Canadiens.  That brings Kucherov to 10+12 in 13 games, including 11 in the last three games.  He also has 5+ shots in the last five games, and seven of the last nine.  This game pushes him past Pettersson for the league lead in points.  The top guys on Tampa look so much better, and I can’t help but think that being eliminated in the first round of the playoffs helped them for this season.  So many long playoff runs for the Lightning that a real offseason had to do them wonders.  We can’t expect this level, but Kucherov looks poised to give his 128 points from his Hart Trophy season a run for his money.  Let’s take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:

Victor Hedman – Goal and four assists with three shots over two games.  Hedman is over a point per game and has a firm grasp on PP1 over Sergachev right now.  That makes him a clear #1.

Brandon Hagel – Goal and three assists with three shots and two PIM over two games.  Even without PP1 time, Hagel looks to be a hold due to his spot with Kucherov and Point.

Mitch Marner – Goal and three assists with three shots.  Auston Matthews had two goals and an assist with six shots, while Matthew Knies had a goal and two assists with two shtos and two PIM.  Knies moved to the top line, with all three of them finishing +4.  Knies won’t get the full minutes Marner and Matthews do, but he’s an elite streamer while he’s there.

Calle Jarnkrok – Two goals on three shots.  Solid player in real life, but hard to see Jarnkrok as more than a middling streamer.

Morgan Rielly – Two assists with a shot.  Hopefully you were able to take Rielly late in your drafts because of the Klingberg hype.  He’s even getting shifts on PP1 which is great to see.

Erik Gudbranson – Two assists with two shots.  Don’t even think about it.

Alexandre Texier – Goal and an assist with two PIM.  It’s been a slow start for Texier, so he’s off my radar for now.  It’s nice to see him back after leaving for Europe during last season.

Sam Reinhart – Two assists with two shots.  Monster start to the season for Reinhart, who is over a point per game and over three shots per game.  He still goes under the radar compared to his peers.

Miro Heiskanen – Two assists with eight shots.  It’s been a really slow start for Miro, so it’s nice to see him control a game against one of the best teams in the league.  The shots are also extremely encouraging as he had been very poor to this point.

Quinn Hughes – Goal and three assists with five shots.  Hughes is completely lapping the field for #1 defenseman through the first month.  Just a crazy turnaround to go from a guy always around two shots per game to pushing towards four.

J.T. Miller – Goal and an assist with two shots and two PIM.  Hughes and Pettersson are getting the publicity, but Miller has 18 points in 12 games.  Elite stuff.

Brock Boeser – Two goals on three shots.  Nice to see Boeser get back to the player that he was a few years ago.  His shooting luck won’t continue, but he looks excellent.

Filip Hronek – Two assists with a shot.  A lot of it is plus-minus driven, but Hronek is the #2 overall defenseman right now.  Craziness.

Brady Skjei – Goal and an assist with two shots.  Skjei is a great value in deep leagues.  In 12’ers, he’s fringe and comes down to the categories you have plus what you need.

Sebastian Aho – Two assists with two shots.  Ten points in ten games for Aho a.k.a. right on pace for what he always does.

Pat Maroon – Goal and an assist.  Maroon has been shockingly good for the Wild, with nine points in twelve games.  There’s deep league value there, but only a bottom end streamer for standard leagues.

Joel Eriksson Ek – Goal and an assist with three shots.  JEEK has been fantastic, and he should benefit from Zuccarello being on his line, although who knows how long it lasts.

Ben Chiarot – Two assists.  Don’t even think about it.

Erik Gustafsson – Two assists with two shots.  With Adam Fox on LTIR, Gustafsson is must own in all formats.

Vincent Trocheck – Two goals on three shots.  It’s been a slow start for Trocheck, but he played 21 minutes in this game, mostly with Artemi Panarin (2A) on his wing.  That alone puts him on the fringe.

Chris Kreider – Goal and an assist with three shots.  Great start for Kreider with 9 goals.  Even by his lofty standards, his shooting percentage has to regress.

Alex Iafallo – Four assists with a shot.  The top line went off for the Jets, as Mark Scheifele had a goal and two assists with three shots, while Kyle Connor had two goals and an assist with seven shots.  Iafallo is on the fringe depending on team needs.

Josh Morrissey – Two assists with two shots.  Most were expecting Morrissey to regress this season, but it really hasn’t happened yet, at least in his overall play.  The goals were always going to come down, but the assists are still there.

Nazem Kadri – Goal and an assist with eight shots.  Four game point streak for Kadri, who is well over three shots per game.  It’s on the fringe because the plus-minus is ugly, but I’m still a believer.

Yegor Sharangovich – Two assists with five shots.  Sharangovich can have big games from time to time, and now he’s with Kadri.  I have him as a bottom end streamer who is a reasonable DFS punt.

Nick DeSimone – Two assists with a shot.  He’s a 28, soon to be 29 year old, who has barely played in the NHL.  Nothing to see here except that he grew up in Western New York like me!  Welcome to the Razzball Database!

Eeli Tolvanen – Goal and an assist with four shots.  Tolvanen has looked really good of late, making him a solid streamer.

Matty Beniers – Two assists with three shots playing over 21 minutes.  We’re starting to see signs of life from Beniers, but he’s far from an easy hold.  I kind of lean towards streamer, but the upside is undeniable.

Clayton Keller – Goal and an assist with two shots.  Nick Schmaltz dished two assists, adding two shots.  Both of these guys have proven to be matchup proof and worthy of being held in all formats.

Tristan Jarry – 21 saves on 21 shots in 38:15 before leaving the game due to injury.  Magnus Hellberg came in and stopped 11 shots in relief, getting the Penguins a shutout victory.  Here’s to hoping it’s not too serious for Jarry.  Stream Hellberg at your own risk.

John Gibson – 34 saves on 35 shots as the tough luck loser.  The save percentage is solid for Gibson, who has yet to allow more than three goals in a game.  It’s on the fringe because Dostal is playing plenty.

Tyler Toffoli – Goal and an assist with four shots.  Nice to see Toffoli have a solid game without Hughes or Hischier.

Dougie Hamilton – Goal and an assist with four shots and two PIM.  Hamilton has been very good, and while I don’t think his centers missing helps his fantasy value, it should help his shots in the short term.

Mikko Rantanen – Two goals and an assist with five shots and two PIM.  Cale Makar had three assists with two shots, while Nathan MacKinnon had a goal and an assist with three shots.  All of them playing 24+ minutes.  Safe to say that Bednar wanted this game, and the Devils had little answer for them.

Miles Wood – Goal and an assist with two shots.  There’s nothing here for fantasy, but it’s always nice to see a revenge game.

MacKenzie Blackwood – 38 saves on 39 shots in the 2-1 win over the Flyers.  Win!  The Sharks have done it!  Blackwood has actually been good, but he’s unusable because his numbers are a disaster being on this team.  He’s a viable DFS tournament punt though.

Anthony Duclair – Goal and an assist with twelve PIM.  I don’t have any interest using Sharks right now.  That’s two straight games with 1+1 for Duke, but they’ve been so bad that I need a stretch of semi-competent play first.

Three Point Challenge:  We will do Thursday’s games per usual.  For the first few 4-6 weeks of the season, we will use last season’s top 10.  That means you can’t select McDavid, Draisaitl, Kucherov, Pastrnak, MacKinnon, Robertson, M. Tkachuk, Rantanen, RNH, or Pettersson.  I’ll go with Hyman against the Sharks.