Marv: Quarter Pole! Totally joking. Do you guys remember that one from last week? I’m honestly still dying laughing over here. I shouldn’t be so hard on Pesos, rubbing salt in his wounds, especially after I carved him up nicely last week.
Pesos: A lot of talk for someone who’s in last place in Gordon Bombay’s Champions fantasy league. Winning your pool takes more than savvy waiver wire work. You have to make a few trades to get where you want to be. Even if you’re leading your pool there’s always a trade that could make you better.
Marv: Let’s run with the idea of not dwelling on the past and look to some players who have let you down but might be back (the booty call buy’s). I will be including some guys on my list that aren’t typically on your radar, or at least were at one time and have fallen out of favor. Let’s try and not focus so much on the past but dream of a continued hot streak or resurgence these players are having in the near future.
Justin Abdelkader LW/RW [50% Owned]
Marv: Over the last two weeks Abdelkader has 18 shots where he’s been lucky to grab 5 goals, 1 assist with 3 points on the powerplay. He has thrown his fantasy owners a Holiday bonus of 13 PIM’s. He’s playing on a line with Henrik Zetterberg so you have to think as long as he stays there he will keep the goals coming.
Pesos: Side note, why are PIM’s a good thing? One of the odder things in fantasy. Carry on.
Jeff Skinner LW/RW [48% Owned]
Marv: Yes, the hat trick will likely have fantasy owners scooping him up in some leagues, but if he is available he might be worth snatching up. Over the past 14 days Skinner has 6 goals, 1 assist and two of those goals have been game winning (kind of nice if you have that category in your leagues). People will pass on Skinner as he didn’t live up to the potential he showed in his rookie season (combined with his slow start this season) but the talent is there. If he can feed off this recent resurgence he might be able to regain some of the previous fantasy respect he has had in the past.
Pesos: Skinner was on the top of my list this week. To me, Skinner seems like a guy whose probably going to regress back to the low producer he was at the start of the season (likely because the Hurricanes just aren’t very good). Hopefully he can keep up scoring for a couple more weeks. Time will tell.
Jonathan Huberdeau C/LW [47% Owned]
Marv: With 2 goals and 2 assists in the last two weeks, if Huberdeau could somehow just stay on the first line with Aleksander Barkov and Jaromir Jagr, he’s definitely worth more than 47% ownership. Word of caution this is also hoping that Jagr can stay somewhat healthy and Barkov can regain his start to season hotness. I hope he does, I have him in most my pools.
Marian Gaborik RW [43% Owned]
Marv: Sometimes I see names that qualify for this list and I’m perplexed. I stop whatever train of thought I’m on and reset in shock, with a blank expression and probably resemble close to what Pesos looks like when he’s thinking. We’ve talked about him before, but it’s still not going to stop me from saying please still keep a watch on this guy. Yes, he’s 33 but has massive talent and I think he would be able to turn things around quick. I think most people are thinking the same, if he gets anywhere close to 3 game point streak or 2 or 3 consecutive great games, grab him quick as he won’t last long. I wouldn’t drop Gaborik.
Pesos: Ten points in 30 games? Averaging 15:35 a night. I don’t think he’s what you think he is Marv. His top linemate has been Anze Kopitar. He’s been playing with the team’s best player yet hasn’t produced much offense. Don’t waste your time. At 33 he’s past his prime and on the decline. Move on.
Victor Rask C [28% Owned]
Marv: In the past 2 weeks he’s got 1 goal, 6 assists, 4 powerplay points and a game winning goal to boot. Take a look at his stat sheets, not too many zeroes for the Carolina centerman. I know the C position doesn’t ooh and awe but you can’t argue with production.
Jason Pominville RW [24% Owned]
Marv: We have definitely talked about Pominville before. Ok fine, you don’t want to listen to some of the weekly picks, but when you see a name re-appear multiple times on a buy list (3 times I believe), there seems to be a trend forming. I’m not saying he should be universally owned but he should be at least over the 50% mark. 2 goals, 3 assists, +6 and still hungry with 23 shots over the past 2 weeks, please take a hard look. Oh and did I mention he was moved up to the first line power play?
Leo Komarov C [21% Owned]
Pesos: Definitely didn’t see this coming. He leads the Leafs in goals (yeah I know, it’s the Leafs blah blah blah). I repeat, LEADS THE LEAFS IN GOALS! No one expected him to get top line minutes with Nazem Kadri and James Van Riemsdyk yet here we are and he’s making the most of his opportunity. I also don’t see it stopping anything time soon. Pick him up for some quality depth.
Marv: I’m resisting the urge to go off on this pick, all I will say is he’d be worth scouting in deeper leagues, but come on, he’s a Looser Leafer.
Matt Beleskey LW [11% Owned]
Marv: Who? Honestly, Beleskey plays on a line with David Krejci and Loui Eriksson. Oh and their line, along with the Whole Boston bruins team, has been doing better than their awful start to the season. He has 5 points in his last 6 games on this line. In deeper leagues, while he’s on that line, I’m buying for sure.
BUY’ing in trades.
Pesos: Your ability to be able to target players on opposing teams in your pool is a key piece in winning any fantasy pool. I don’t think I’ve ever been in a pool where the winner didn’t make some sort of trade. The waiver wire is all fine and dandy, but getting that piece to put you over the edge almost always comes via trade. Here are some guys you should be targeting to help push your team over the bump.
Evgeny Kuznetsov C
Pesos: Nine goals, 28 points in 29 games. Unless something insane happens, Kuz is going to surpass career highs in both categories. This guy has been a stud for the Capitals and he’s only going to get better. If he’s available, grab him. I would even target him in a trade, especially if you’re in a keeper league seeing as he’s only 23. Although I wouldn’t part with too much in the way of talent to get him.
Artemi Panarin LW
Pesos: How is Chicago managing to deal pretty good talent and replace it with possibly better talent that’s MUCH younger? The scouting staff there deserves some sort of award. Panarin is my odds on favourite to win the Calder. He has been cool as of late, only netting 3 points in his last 5 games yet he still has 29 points in 31 games this season. It helps to be playing with Patrick Kane who is having an outstanding season thus far.
Mats Zuccarello LW
Pesos: With a career high of 59 points in 2013-14, all indications are that Zucc is going to finally break the 60 points barrier this season. A couple years ago, 60 points wouldn’t seem all that major but seeing as only 53 players hit it last year, it’s kind of a big deal.
Marv: I agree with what Pesos is saying, I just need to chime in for a second. Too much Pesos.
Mike Hoffman C/LW
Pesos: Hoffman is well on his way to setting career highs in both goals and points having produced 17 goals and 27 points through 27 games. He’s fifth in goals!
Loui Eriksson LW
Pesos: Loui is a long way away from resembling the player who had three straight season of 70+ points, but this year he’s showing glimpses of what he once was. He’s coming off of two poor seasons for the Bruins but has managed to net 9 goals and 20 points through 20 games, half of which have been on special teams. Like most of the guys on this list, he would be a welcome addition to you bench should he be available.
Bryan Little RW, WIN
Pesos: He’s been a little cold lately, only 2 points in his last 5, but Little has quietly put together a nice offensive season. Nine goals and 20 points through 25 games while averaging nearly 20 mins a game. Depending on what you have depth wise, Little could be a great option on your bench.
SELL’em to the Masses
Jonathan Bernier G [25% Owned]
Pesos: Holy moly, how bad has he been? Like most, I didn’t expect to see this. I tried to give him time but he’s just gotten worse and worse as the season progresses. Dump him, he might come out of this funk but I would be kicking him to the curb and replace with an average starter/back up since they’ll provide exactly what Bernier is or more. When it comes to making changes in net, do so at your own risk. Goalies are voodoo. It’s the most difficult position in hockey to predict. Who saw James Reimer going on a run while Bernier has been a tire fire? If you put up your hand, you’re either a Reimer fanboy or you’re lying.
Marv: Agreed. I had him and I sold him. I am now very happy, you can be too.
Dougie Hamilton D [69% Owned]
Pesos: Most considered Hamilton to be one of the best young defenders in the league at the end of last year. Most were also shocked at what the Bruins received from the Flames when he was dealt there in the offseason. Hamilton isn’t considered an offensive defender but he did put up 42 points in 72 games last year. With 5 thus far this season, it’s going to take a lot for Hamilton to even break 30 points. Sure the Flames are hot garbage piled on-top of a tire fire, but more was expected of Hamilton, especially playing with Brodie and Gio. Your position in your pool will ultimately determine whether you give up on Hamilton. It’s something I would look into if you’re at the top and looking to make a hard run at the championship.
Marv: I had high hopes for Hamilton myself. The real unfortunate thing about him playing so poorly is you won’t get anywhere near the value of where you drafted him in any trade.
Mikko Koivu C [40% Owned]
Marv: If you can find someone who believes his start to the season production, I’d let him go. I think he will pick things back up but there are better options out there. I’d rather take the risk on Gaborik bouncing back big than Koivu getting back to start of season numbers.
Nazem Kadri C[24 % Owned]
Pesos: Although Kadri has flourished under Babcock from a playing style stance, he hasn’t been able to produce much in the way of points. Sure, he’s up near the top of the league in shots (7th with 94 total shots) but not much is going in. Kadri currently has 3 goals in 24 games. That’s not good enough if you’re playing on the top line and averaging 18+ mins a night. The Leafs are 6-3-1 in their last 10 games so it’s not like the team is playing extremely poorly and not winning. In all likelihood, Kadri will start finding the back of the net but at this point, it doesn’t appear to be happening anytime soon.
Marv: All I will say about this player is I would rather have Kadri on my team than the earlier mentioned Komarov. Sorry, I meant to say I don’t want either player.
Pesos: Jumping on streaky players early is a great way to drive yourself up the standings. If you were early on Skinner you’re laughing. Now it’s time to try and get a read on the next guy about to go on a run. Keep an eye out for guys who appear to be dominating but not getting any luck. At some point, the luck’s going to flip in their favour and things are going to start going in, unless you’re Nazem Kadri. I’m not sure what’s going on there. Hopefully Marv and I have given you some food for thought. Marv should probably start taking some of his own advice because he needs all the help he can get in the Commenter League.
Marv: Man that was a tough article to read, way too much of Pesos’ opinions. Could be worse I guess, I could’ve skipped editing his grammar. Until next time 3 guys and 1 girl who read our articles. Hit us up in the comments below, but make sure to be specific about your team / league size / settings. Can’t really help you if we aren’t given any facts.
