The Utah Mammoth have been struggling lately, with four consecutive losses and only two wins in their last ten. They snapped that streak in a big way on Wednesday, winning 7-0 in Anaheim. Leading the charge for Utah was J.J. Peterka, their big offeseason acquisition. Peterka scored two goals and two assists with six shots. It hasn't been the best start in Utah for Peterka, who was down on the third line for a couple weeks recently. Besides the obvious of it being a big game, this was notable for Peterka for a couple reasons. One, he was on the first line with Keller and Schmaltz. That's always a help. The other big boost is that Peterka was on the first power play unit. One of his goals came with the top unit. The Utah power play has been atrocious for the last few weeks, so it wouldn't surprise me if Peterka gets an extended look there. The goals have been there, but that's because of a high shooting percentage. The assists have also dried up significantly compared to where they were in Buffalo. My hope is this boost in role can cancel out the inevitable shooting regression, which can get Peterka back into clear hold territory. For now, Peterka belongs on the fringe, although I lean towards bottom end hold for the upside. Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
Despite seeing nearly a month of games in our NHL schedule, it was a season debut last night that spoiled the Rangers’ modest 3-game winning streak. Pyotr Kochetkov was recalled from the AHL (Chicago) for his first game of the year on Tuesday evening, after getting the green light to return from a lower-body injury. The 4th year backstop made 25 saves on 25 shots and held off the Rangers’ offense for a 3-0 win at NYR. After winning 27 games last year, Kochetkov looked like he hadn’t missed a beat, and is worth an immediate pickup if an impatient manager needed some roster space and cut him loose in a shallow league. Check the FA list as soon as possible, or float out a trade offer before the 26-year-old goes on a run.
One way to prove last season's breakout wasn't a fluke? Get an early hat trick. Kirill Marchenko did just that, scoring three times on four shots in the 7-4 win over the Wild. Yes, Marchenko didn't get any points in the Columbus opener, but the eight shots on goal also goes a long way. I was neutral compared to consensus on Marchenko going into the season, but I already kind of regret not being bullish. Columbus is playing a wide open, attacking style, and their best forward will continue to benefit from it. Let's take a look at what else happened over the weekend:
Happy Wednesday, Razzball faithful!
I’m back again this week with another Divisional Preview.
Last week, we checked in on the Atlantic Division. If you missed it, you can open that up here.
This week, we’re headed to the Big City to check out the Metropolitan Division.
Can the Capitals charge their way to another divisional title?
Is Jet Greaves going to leave Elvis Merzlikins “All Shook Up” in the Blue Jackets’ crease?
What the heck are we supposed to call Sid “The Kid” Crosby now that he’s 38 years old?!
I might not answer all of these burning questions today, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be checking out the goods in...
Going into Wednesday's game against the Sabres, the Red Wings were at the bottom of the cluster of teams battling for a wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. They have the hardest remaining schedule in the NHL, so it was as close to a must win that a game could be for them with five weeks left in the season. After falling down 1-0, they took control of the game, with their future Hall of Famer leading the way. Patrick Kane had three points in the first period and finished with five, totaling two goals and three assists with five shots. I can't lie, I completely whiffed on a potential Kane turnaround. You can split his season into two parts: with Lalonde as coach and McLellan as coach. Since the coaching change, Kane has turned back the clock and found a level that we haven't seen in three years. He's a clear hold in all formats as the Red Wings try to snap the second longest playoff drought in the league. Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
Back to back wins for the Devils against the defending champions, both in Florida, is quite the accomplishment. Throughout my preseason rankings, I repeatedly stated that I was basically throwing last season out of the window for all of the Devils, and that has proven to be prudent. All of the injuries and horrific goaltending had no bearing on this season, and they look back to the team from two seasons ago. On Thursday, the Devils won 6-2, with Jesper Bratt scoring a hat trick on five shots. In 20 games, Bratt has 8+16 with almost exactly three shots per game. It's a bit skewed because the Devils have played the most games in the league to this point, but Bratt is a top five forward on the season. His teammates, Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes, who each dished three assists in the victory, are both pushing top ten forwards. We've seen superstars in Toronto play at their best under Keefe, and now we're seeing it with the Devils. None of this looks fluky. Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
I’ll be honest, I don’t have a good open for the weekend post. But “The Wire’ is indisputably the best TV show of all-time. I can watch it every time through and see something I didn’t before. Please, blog, may I have some more?
Hello everyone. Welcome to the fifth edition of JOT This Down!
Thank you to everyone who provided feedback in volume four. I appreciate it. Keep the questions, comments, and concerns coming. I’ll be here all week to answer any and everything you may have.
Hello everyone. Welcome to the fourth edition of JOT This Down!
Thank you to everyone who provided feedback in volume three. I appreciate it. Keep the questions, comments, and concerns coming. I’ll be here all week to answer any and everything you may have.
We know that Jack Hughes has dominated the first three weeks of the season, but his older brother has started off extremely well, while his teammate and younger brother is starting to get going as well. Let's start with Quinn Hughes. On Friday, Hughes scored two goals on four shots, adding two PIM. Against the Rangers, he had three shots on goal, which sounds disappointing, but it illustrates a large change in Quinn's game. The one thing that has been holding Quinn back for years in terms of fantasy value is his shot rate. This was his sixth straight game with 3+ shots, and 7th in eight total games. It signifies a huge chance in his game, one that does fantasy owners wonders. He has eight points in eight games and certainly can come close to repeating last season's 76 points in 78 games, if not topping it. He was always an elite #2 with flaws, but now, he's a #1. Sure, the hits are dreadful, but everything else is magical.
Hello everyone. Welcome to the second edition of JOT This Down!
It was so nice to have hockey back on the screens after so long without it. The NHL is in a really good place in terms of the level of talent in the league right now. In almost every game, you will see a jaw-dropping play or an unbelievable stat line, sometimes from someone you would have never expected it from. Take Brock Boeser for example (add him if he is somehow available), nobody could have predicted that on opening night, but you never know what will happen in the NHL. That’s why in a sport with a lot of luck and volatility, never get too upset if things don’t go your way. It’s a long season, and there’s always next week to bounce back. Treat it as a hobby and have some fun.
We've reached the final week of the season with every team having 2-3 games left. Hopefully you're all still in contention in your leagues so these games matter to you. In this post, I'm going to take a look at each day to see how you can plan accordingly to maximize starts and stream the best players possible. Let's get to it!
