Here is the list of teams that have 0 or 1 loss so far (overtime included): Colorado, Winnipeg, Carolina, New Jersey, and Detroit. None of the first four come as a surprise at all. However, Detroit reeling off five in a row after a dreadful opener is a huge surprise. They’ve been better defensively than expected, but the big thing so far is Dylan Larkin carrying the top line. No Raymond for a couple games, no Kane today, no problem. Larkin had a goal and an assist on Friday, including the overtime winner against Tampa, before scoring two goals and two assists in the 4-2 win over Edmonton Sunday. That brings Larkin to a whopping 5+6 in six games to go along with 20 shots and a +9 rating. Despite playing with a recent seventh round pick and a bottom six guy in Appleton while Raymond was out, Larkin has at least one point in every game so far. It’s early to predict career highs from Larkin, but I’m not ruling out his first point per game season. With his elite shot rate, we could see his first top 50 season in three years. Let’s take a look at what else happened over the weekend:
Friday’s Games:
Logan Thompson – 13 saves on 14 shots in the 5-1 win over the Wild. Slow down the Wild PP and they really don’t have much happening to start the season. Very good start to the season for Thompson with a 1.72/.922 in four games.
Dylan Strome – Two goals and two assists with six shots. I was shocked how low Strome was going in drafts this season. He just had a point per game season after 65+ the previous two years, and has stayed healthy his entire Capitals tenure. Easy hold everywhere.
Alex Ovechkin – Goal and an assist with three shots. It’s bene somewhat of a slow start from Ovie, but I’m not really concerned.
Tom Wilson – Goal and an assist with three shots. I can’t really explain how Wilson is doing it, but he’s a clear hold at this point with the huge offensive burst to open the season.
Martin Fehervary – Two assists with six shots and four hits. He’s off to a big start in hits and blocks, making him a consideration for the bottom of your roster in banger leagues.
John Gibson – 31 saves on 32 shots in the 2-1 OT win over Tampa. One horrendous start, one great start, and one mediocre start that was good enough for a win. I’m still out on Gibson, and it’s clear that McLellan will go with the hot hand, as Talbot started three games in a row before this one.
Jeff Skinner – Goal and an assist with two shots. He has three goals in five games and should be in elite streamer range despite low minutes.
Macklin Celebrini – Goal and an assist with three shots and two PIM. He hasn’t been his dominant self from last season, and the shot rate is starting to be concerning. That said, there’s nothing we can really do but hope for a turn around.
Nick Schmaltz – Hat trick and an assist with six shots. His linemate Clayton Keller had a goal and three assists with Keller assisting on all of Schmaltz’ goals and Schmaltz on Keller’s. After years of a mediocre shot rate, Schmaltz is gunning to start the season. He’s on the fringe with a strong lean towards holding while he’s a hot schmotato.
Saturday’s Games
Alex Lyon – 32 save shutout in the 3-0 win over the Panthers. Lyon has been fantastic so far and is clearly must own everywhere.
Josh Doan – Two goals on six shots with two PIM. Although a lot of people hated the Peterka trade for the Sabres, I was a fan of it. I really liked it for Kesselring and thought Doan would be a nice third liner, but I really undersold him. He’s been a monster on a regular basis and has revamped the Sabres power play. He’s on the fringe right now as he finds chemistry with McLeod and Tuch.
Anders Lee – Two goals and an assist with four shots. Lee’s playing time is way down, and these were his first points of the season. He’s a middling streamer.
Thomas Chabot – Two assists with a shot. I still lean towards Chabot being a bottom end hold despite Sanderson clearly passing him at this point.
Drake Batherson – Two assists with a shot. Batherson should be a bottom end hold now that he’s healthy.
Tim Stutzle – Goal and an assist with three shots. The shot rate being up so far is very encouraging. The Sens are desperate for Stutzle to play like a superstar while Tkachuk is out.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Two goals on three shots, both assisted by Connor McDavid. RNH has massive variance, perhaps the most of any forward. If he’s played with McDavid and the Oilers PP is clicking, he can be a point per game player. If he’s playing with neither of the top two and he’s not doing much on the PP, he’s in the 55 point range and on the fringe. I like to gamble on the upside so I’m holding RNH.
Jack Hughes – Two goals and an assist with four shots. Just stay healthy!
Jesper Bratt – Goal and an assist with two PIM. Bratt has at least one point in every game to start the season as he quietly continues being a point per game player.
Nico Hischier – Two assists with four shots. Hischier isn’t the most exciting, but he’s clearly plug and play.
Connor Hellebuyck – 30 saves on 31 shots in the 4-1 win over the Predators. It was a rough opener for Hellebuyck, but everything has been back to normal since then.
Jonathan Toews – Two assists with a shot. Not interested in fantasy yet, but good for Toews to work his way back into the league after his battle with long COVID.
Nino Niederreiter – Goal and an assist with two shots, as did Vladislav Namestnikov. Both are nice middle sixers in real life, but I can’t go past middling streamer for Nino and bottom end for Namestnikov. The minutes are too low.
Chandler Stephenson – Two assists with two shots. Stephenson has two shots per game which is actually a huge jump from the previous two seasons. He does have four points in five games, so for now, middling streamer. It could go south quickly if he stops shooting again.
Mason Marchment – Two assists with two shots and two PIM. He’s playing with Shane Wright (1+1, 5 SOG) which puts both on the radar. Marchment looks like a middling streamer, while Wright has some higher upside. After three games with zero shots, Wright has eleven in the last two. He’s still only 21 and has real upside if the minutes are there. For now, he’s a higher end streamer.
John Tavares – Two goals, both assisted by William Nylander. The shots are down quite a bit for Tavares, but the points have been great so far Nylander’s start has been even better with 11 points in six games, although he got chewed out by Stolarz publicly after his overtime defensive debacle. We don’t care about that for fantasy though.
Jordan Binnington – 18 saves on 19 shots in the 3-1 win over the Stars. Quite the defensive performance from the Blues. Binnington has bounced back after a rough opener against the Wild. He’s a bottom end #2, ideally your #3.
Dan Vladar – 15 saves on 16 shots in the 2-1 OT win over the Wild. Vladar has been very good in three starts, with two against the Panthers before this one. Ersson had two brutal starts, so if you’re in need of goalie help, Vladar could be a decent option. Tocchet’s system has brought value to worse goalies.
Artemi Panarin – Goal and three assists with three shots. That’s one way to erase a slow start. Panarin has a massive pay day coming next summer.
Mika Zibanejad – Goal and an assist with three shots. It’s been a slow start for Mika, but he does have a whopping 27 shots in seven games. For that reason, I’m still holding.
Adam Fox – Two assists with two shots. Business as usual for Fox so far.
Scott Wedgewood – 13 saves on 14 shots in the 4-1 win over the Bruins. Great start to the season from Wedgewood with the Avs dominating regularly. Blackwood is about to return, but I’d still hold Wedgewood for the short term in case they ease Blackwood back into the lineup.
Nathan MacKinnon – Two goals on eight shots with two PIM. MacKinnon is playing like he wants to win another Hart trophy. Incredible dominance.
Artturi Lehkonen – Three assists with three shots. Lehkonen is a clear hold in all formats right now, even though he’s temporarily dropped off PP1. The top line is doing so much damage that it doesn’t matter.
Jordan Staal – Two goals on four shots. Congrats to Staal for reaching 300 career goals. His time of fantasy relevance is in the past.
K’Andre Miller – Two assists with three shots playing over 27 minutes. The minutes are insane while Slavin is out. I’m not sure he’ll stay as a hold after Slavin’s return, but he sure as hell is now.
Adrian Kempe – Two assists with two PIM. Like Panarin, Kempe is due for a massive pay day. While the team is off to a rough start, both in record and injuries, Kempe has been fantastic with seven points in six games.
Adin Hill – 26 saves on 27 shots in the 6-1 win over the Flames. It’s been a rough start to the season for Hill despite how good Vegas has been. Also, the signing of Hart puts a cloud over his value starting in December. If you have Hill and are able to stash Hart, I would. If you can’t, then I’d just hold and see what the plan for Hart is when the time comes.
Mark Stone – Two goals and two assists with four shots. Another great start for the captain preaching about the core values of Vegas (disgusting) and another injury, this time to his wrist. We haven’t received an update yet so it could have been the score, but he hasn’t stayed healthy for years, so all you can do is hold Stone while he plays and hope he stays relatively healthy.
Jack Eichel – Four assists with three shots. Clearly the better player in the first two weeks of the season. Puke.
Tomas Hertl – Goal and an assist with three shots. Hertl is playing with Mitch Marner (two goals on three shots) now which is a huge boost to Hertl. With how well the Vegas PP is going too, Hertl is a clear hold everywhere.
Ivan Barbashev – Goal and an assist. The shot rate is so bad, but the points are going to be very good mooching off Eichel. That puts him on the fringe depending on team needs and scoring format.
Tristan Jarry – 31 save shutout in the 3-0 win over the Sharks. He’s had two good starts, although his games have come against the Isles, Ducks, and Sharks, not exactly good competition. I’m still extremely skeptical of the Pens going forward and don’t want to have Jarry.
Sidney Crosby – Goal and an assist, as did Evgeni Malkin. Business as usual for Crosby so far, but I’m more surprised with Malkin’s start. It’s hard to say whether it’s something real, or it’s because he has energy early in the season and it’s going to wear off. For now, Malkin is probably a bottom end hold, but I’m still not buying it.
Sunday’s Games
Tyler Myers – Goal and an assist with three shots, two hits and two blocks playing over 26 minutes. That Myers even played more than Hughes is insane. He’s nice in deep leagues for hits and blocks, but he could end up having a bit more value if he continues to get 25+ minutes.
Conor Garland – Two assists with four shots. Garland played over 22 minutes on the first line and top power play unit. That puts him firmly on the fringe with a lean towards holding.
Tom Wilson – Two assists, as did Dylan Strome. See them above under Friday as this only reinforces what I said before.
Brett Kulak – Two assists. Nice depth player, but Kulak doesn’t carry any fantasy value.
Emmitt Finnie – Two goals and an assist with four shots. It’s not often that a seventh rounder makes the league as a 20 year old, let alone on the first line. He blew up for Kamloops after he was drafted and surprised everyone making the roster. He seems to be a pest that does the dirty work that helps a line work. He’s a solid streamer for now despite the lack of PP time, especially in hits leagues. Welcome to the Razzball Database!
Lucas Raymond – Two assists. Nice to see Raymond get back in the lineup quickly, although he really needs to start shooting the puck again. Four shots in four games isn’t going to cut it.
David Pastrnak – Two goals on five shots with two PIM. No surprise, Pasta is off to a great start.
Clayton Keller – Goal and an assist with two shots, as Nick Schmaltz had two assists with a shot. The top guys on Utah continue to roll, especially Schmaltz, who played almost 23 minutes in this one.
Spencer Knight – 38 saves on 39 shots in the 2-1 OT win over the Ducks. Knight is off to a fantastic start. It’s great to see after the struggles he had. The trade resetting his career is the best thing to happen to him. He’s a hold in all leagues right now, although there’s no denying that it can turn for the worse with a young Blackhawks team.
Ryan Donato – Goal and an assist with two shots and two PIM. Donato has a goal in three straight, although he’s down on the third line and off PP1. That leaves Donato as a middling streamer, although he has clear upside.
Three Point Challenge: We’re bringing back the Three Point Challenge for Tuesday’s games! Since I won’t be back until Friday this week too, we will also do Thursday’s picks as well, although you can do one at a time. I will make my Thursday pick later. As a reminder of the rules, you can’t pick anyone in the top 10 in points. For now, we will use last season’s totals, so you can’t select McDavid, Draisaitl, MacKinnon, Kucherov, Pastrnak, Marner, Connor, Eichel, Makar or Crosby. I’ll go with Rantanen against the Blue Jackets.
That’s all for now guys. MarmosDad will be back on Wednesday, while I’ll be back on Friday with a post to be determined. If you have any suggestions, let me know in the comments below. I’m debating doing my first hold/stream list, although that could be in another week or next Monday. As always, feel free to ask any questions or leave any comments below. Thanks for reading, take care!
