What's the worst spot for a goaltender to start right now? Probably against Toronto on the road. Well, Matt Murray had that exact spot on Thursday, and did the exact opposite of what most expected. In a game where Toronto's expected goal total was pushing 4, Murray stopped all 38 shots he faced, shutting out the powerhouse Maple Leafs 3-0. Murray's upside is undeniable; it's just a matter of keeping him on the ice and the defense in front of him not being a total mess. For now, expect the Pens to give him the vast majority of the starts, meaning you can safely cut Casey DeSmith. The Penguins schedule is fairly soft over the next couple of weeks, so feel safe rolling Murray. Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
This is year three of me writing daily notes for Razzball, and at this point, I don't think it provides a ton of value for me to write the intro paragraph on superstars. That said, four goal games are a different animal. Connor McDavid crushed the best team in the NHL on Monday, scoring a whopping four goals on nine shots and adding an assist in the 6-2 win over the Lightning. We know McDavid is as good as it gets and he's the best player in fantasy for the foreseeable future. This is just a reminder about how good he is (let's not take him for granted) and how bad of a job Peter Chiarelli has done as a GM that McDavid isn't going to be in the playoffs this season. Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
For a team that missed the playoffs last season, there is so much on the line for the Islanders this year. The team caught a massive heater towards the end once Doug Weight took over behind the bench but it wasn’t enough. Please, blog, may I have some more?
After spending Part One highlighting the mistakes I made, it's time to give myself some credit! Today, I'm going to look at the players who I was highest on among experts on Fantasy Pros that outperformed their ranking and then the players I was lowest on that failed to meet expectations. Like Part One, I will break down each of the players discussing why my ranking was successful and what we can learn from it going forward. Let's get to it!
I call Joe Pavelski "Mr. Consistency" because every season you can make him down for 30 goals, 40 assists and solid contributions elsewhere. It's generally not flashy, just a consistent point with three shots, but at the end of the year it's good enough to justify a first round pick on him. Pavelski showed on Wednesday night that he's capable of dominating a game. Pavelski had a monster outing, scoring two goals and two assists with four shots in the 6-5 OT loss to Florida. The Sharks looked like they were dead before Pavelski scored 2 goals in the last 3:21 to force overtime. He's on pace for right around 30 goals, a small stepback, but he's compensating by playing at a career high assist rate. The shots are also over three per game, he's +9 and the PPP are coming in per usual. Expect Pavelski to provide the value you hoped for drafting him in the back end of the first round and for him to be ranked in that same ball park going into next season. Here's what else I saw around the league the last two nights:
Anyone who reads my posts knows how much I love Evander Kane for fantasy hockey. You're probably sick of me writing about him at this point. Well, I'm leading off with him again today because of the following: a) He had three more points on Thursday night (2+1, 3 SOG), b) nobody else went off because Nino and I just led off with him, c) I watched the entire Sabres game to see Kane's impact, and d) there is no D. Well, there is, watch Dwight Howard and Dennis Schroeder joke about it but not in regards to this point. Anyways, you guys know what to do with Kane at this point. For those who are new here, pick him up and play him! It's an excellent combination of goals, shots and penalty minutes at the moment. Here's what else happened over the last two nights before the All-Star break:
Evander Kane has been a polarizing player for years. The talent is noticeable on a regular basis but inconsistency and off-ice issues have plagued him during his career. Kane started off the season slowly but right now, he's on quite the hot streak. In Tuesday's game against the Red Wings, Kane scored two goals on four shots and added a fight for good measure. That gives Kane 7 goals and an assist in the last 9 games with elite shots and strong PIM. Given that he's an elite option in PIM and SOG with the potential for strong goals, I ranked Kane in my top 100 going into the season because the player raters always love him for his contributions across all categories. We're starting to see why yet Kane is still available in 59% of leagues. He's carrying the third line for the Sabres right now and the change in role has been a good thing for him. It allows him to have the puck on his stick more often and his linemates do a great job cycling the puck. I'd definitely own him in all 12'ers and I have been rolling him in some 10 man leagues as well. Here's what else happened around the league on Tuesday night:
During last season, it looked like Eric Staal's career was on a steep decline. While he's still not close to the player he was in his prime, the 39 point season he had in 83 games in 2015-16 looks to be a thing of the past. Staal moved to Minnesota this offseason on a three year deal to center the first line and it's no surprise that Bruce Boudreau has helped revitalize his career. On Thursday night, Staal led the way for the Wild scoring a goal and two assists with six shots on goal being +3 in the Wild's 4-2 road win over the Penguins. That boosts Staal's totals to 5 goals and 6 assists in 12 games with almost 3 shots per game. He's shown an amazing ability to stay healthy throughout his career leading me to believe he has a pretty good chance to reach 60 points again. As the frequent readers know, I'm a big fan of the Wild's chances of success, at least from a regular season standpoint, and Staal is a big factor in that. For now, Staal should be considered a borderline top 100 player who should remain a clear hold for the entire season; I would not try to sell high on him. Let's take a look at what happened around the league the last two nights:
There are probably a dozen different players who I could give this lede to. There were a bunch of people who hit the 3 point challenge, my love affair for the Jetse guys is paying off and there were also some shutouts. I decided to take a look at somebody who generates some talk in the comments, Max Domi. Domi finally broke and in a big way with a goal and two assists and two shots. It was shockingly his first goal of the season but he now has 9 assists in 12 games, including 8 in the last 8 games. The shots have slightly increased, not as much as I hoped, but with almost a penalty minute per game as well, he's easily a top 100 player at this point. Domi's minutes are a bit inconsistent but with how thin the Coyotes roster, I expect them to go up as the season progresses. Let's take a look at what else happened around the league the last two nights.
Halloween is always a good reminder to do a check in with your team, and in particular the rookies, to see who is the real deal and who is just a dude walking around with an ax and wearing a cheap goalie mask.
One reason to look at the rookies at this point is because of the Collective Bargain Agreement rules on entry level contracts. Essentially, once a rookie plays 10 games for the big league club, their entry level contract begins. If, however, the team decides to send them to their minor league team (or to Juniors), then the contract start slides to next year. At this point, most of the rookies have hit around eight games played, so it’s the perfect time to assess whether or not they can help your team out.
The first few guys here aren’t going anywhere, obviously. But what about those closer to the fringe…?
We are through 149 players in my rankings; I can't believe there's still 101 players to go! Thanks to a commenter, I realized that I had Tyler Toffoli ranked twice. I'm only human! Anyways, things are already getting thin at this point in drafts. There will be some guys who are here for their safety but I'm deferring to players with upside at this point in the draft. Locking in 45-50 points is fine and dandy but I'd rather shoot the moon and work the waiver wire during the season. Let's take a look at the best players who make up the second half of standard drafts:
For the first time since 2007-08, the Chicago Blackhawks were quite mediocre. Yes, they finished with 103 points but they had a negative goal differential at even strength. That's simply not going to get it done and at this point, the Blackhawks are out of the first tier of teams in the NHL. It sounds crazy to say with the stars they have but man, the roster is incredibly thin after the top few guys. For fantasy, there's not much in terms of value plays but if you're willing to spend a high pick, you'll have your choice of some studs. Let's take a look at what Chicago is working with:
