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David Perron had a horrible start to the season and was shaping up to being one of the biggest fantasy busts of this year.  To say things have turned for the better is an understatement.  Perron scored two goals on seven shots against the Predators before scoring a goal on seven shots against Winnipeg.  Since Perron went back on the top line, Perron has exploded.  He has eight goals and five assists in the last ten games with 35 SOG.  It's good enough across the board that Perron is a clear hold in all formats again.  He's only available in about 25% of leagues, but even in a shallow league, I wouldn't be cutting Perron to keep a stream spot.  The schedule is a little light the next couple weeks, but it really picks up in the last week of March and early April.  Let's take a look at what else happened over the weekend:
Yes, the Sabres are still a bad hockey team, but the good news for long suffering fans like me, is there are finally some signs of hope.  One of the best signs is how well the first line has performed since Tuch returned from injury after the trade.  They single-handedly won the game for the Sabres on Sunday against Montreal, and it started with their highest paid player.  Jeff Skinner was left floundering on the fourth line or scratched by Ralph Kreuger last season because, well, Krueger had no clue about coaching hockey.  Skinner had one of the games of the season on Sunday afternoon, scoring four goals and an assist on six shots in the 5-3 win over the Canadiens. That bring Skinner up to 20 goals with 14 assists in 45 games.  Is he worth his massive contract?  No, but he's proving once again that he's still a damn good hockey player.  I've had him on the fringe for a while, but I feel good about holding him now.  His shot rate is back over three per game on the season so that's plenty good enough given his contribution in points.  Let's take a look at what else happened over the weekend:
Mark Stone has been a favorite of Razzball Hockey (aka me) for a few years now.  One of the most underrated players in hockey, Stone is an above average first liner, no doubt about it.  Somebody is going to pay him a ton in the offseason as an unrestricted free agent and he'll be worth every penny.  Stone had an incredible game on Tuesday scoring two goals on seven shots while adding in three assists as well.  That brings him to 6+12 in 15 games.  He's somehow available in 25% of leagues on ESPN, which is crazy.  Stone should be owned everywhere, and while I've been clamoring for him to be traded so he's even better, it's become abundantly clear that he'll produce just fine in Ottawa this season.  Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
It's been years since Jack Campbell was the hot goaltending prospect.  Seemingly out of nowhere, Campbell has been thrown into the fire and has come out hotter than a pistol.  Campbell had his best game to date on Thursday, recording a 40 save shutout in the 3-0 win over the Canadiens.  He now has 117 saves on 121 shots over 3 games.  Jonathan Quick is week-to-week, so while it might only be a short term thing, Campbell is worth owning in virtually all leagues until Quick returns.  The Kings aren't the powerhouse they used to be, but they're still a strong possession team making their goal automatically worth owning.  Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
Jake DeBrusk was the second of three consecutive first round picks by the Bruins in the 2015 draft.  The other two players are still in the AHL developing but DeBrusk is starting to make his mark with the big squad.  In the 7-2 beatdown of the Blue Jackets, DeBrusk scored a goal and two assists with four shots and two penalty minutes.  He followed that up by scoring the only non-empty net goal against the Sabres on Tuesday.  As you can see below, snipe city: That brings DeBrusk up to 8 goals and 10 assists in 28 games with solid penalty minutes and a decent shot rate.  The crazy thing is that he's producing despite getting poor minutes (he's averaging 14 per game on the season).  DeBrusk has shown me plenty this season to improve his stock in dynasties.  He looks like a lock to be a top six player going forward while having plenty of upside from there.  In redrafts, I wouldn't hold him right now, solely because of the lack of minutes.  That said, DeBrusk is still a great streamer while he's producing.  Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights in the NHL:
Growing up, the Avalanche were always my second favorite team.  My grandpa was a huge Peter Forsberg fan and it didn't interfere with my Sabres since they were in the Western Conference.  I've always kept a close eye on them even though my rooting interests are now firmly with the Sabres and "Team Whoever I Bet In Game X."  Anyways, Gabriel Landeskog has been a personal favorite of mine in this new Avalanche era.  He became the youngest captain in the league when it wasn't cool to make your young top pick a captain.  Landeskog won the Calder and led the Avs on a massive warpath to a shocking #1 seed in 2013-14.  When I started at Razzball, things looked on the up for Landeskog at 23 years old.  Then, like the rest of the Avalanche organization, Landeskog struggled mightily.  Thankfully for all of us fantasy owners, he's back.  Landeskog had the best game of his career on Saturday scoring a hat trick and two assists with five shots against the Lightning.  Sure, the Avs lost, but it doesn't change his stat line for us!  The Kog now has 13+11 in 28 games with a strong plus-minus and solid PIM plus shots.  In fact, I'd be surprised if the penalty minutes don't jump soon.  It's amazing that Landeskog just turned 25 so he's not even in his prime yet.  Look for him to be a top 100 player for the rest of the season and for at least the next few years.  Let's take a look at what else happened over the weekend:
In Wednesday's daily notes, I said that if I could, I would be looking to buy low on all of the elite goalies.  Obviously some at different levels than others, but everyone knows my love for Devan Dubnyk and the Wild as a regular season team.  I own plenty of Dubnyk stock again this year and it's been nowhere near as fun as last season when he took the league by storm.  Dubnyk was a monster on Thursday night stopping all 41 shots he faced in the 3-0 win over the Canadiens.  Four of Dubnyk's last eight starts (yes, one has bad against Toronto Wednesday but that's Toronto) have been strong so perhaps there's something building here.  Expect things for Dubnyk, and the Wild in general, to keep improving sooner than later.  Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
Everything we talked about on the trade deadline podcast regarding Alexandre Burrows came to fruition on Thursday night. In Burrows' debut for the Senators, Burrows scored a brace (two goals for those who aren't aware) on three shots playing 14 minutes in the 2-1 win over the Avalanche. I called him a great streamer for this game (streamer success!) and he performed admirably. Do I think he's going to be a huge difference maker down the stretch? Probably not unless he piles up a ton of penalty minutes. However, I do expect him to be useful. While the next two games for the Senators are tough matchups, the Senators play the Stars, Coyotes and Avalanche next week. That is an excellent opportunity to stream Burrows. I'm even fine with grabbing him now just to make sure you have him for those games. As along as he stays on the first line, there's some fantasy value here. Here's what else happened the last two nights:
Hey everyone! Last year's trade deadline post was a hit so I'm back updating all of the latest trades and providing instant analysis. Reid will also be giving his thoughts as well that I will add into this post with mine. An hour or so after the deadline, we will record a podcast that will go up Thursday morning recapping everything in more detail. Anyways, I'll recap everything that happened before 1 AM EST now and starting around 10-11 AM later today, I will start updating this post as trades happen. As always, post any questions or comments in the section below or we will answer them. Let's get to it!
In the first half of Tuesday's game, Jack Eichel couldn't get anything going. The puck was constantly jumping over his stick and was turning the puck over constantly. Things certainly changed in the second half of the game as he willed the Sabres to a third straight overtime victory. Eichel scored twice, including an absurd overtime winner, on four shots. https://twitter.com/BradyTrett/status/824106676894638080 Eichel's shot rate is currently the best in the league over his 26 games along with 12 goals and 9 assists. Now, it's not a huge sample, but that's a 40 goal, 30 assist pace with over 320 shots. That's why I had him ranked in the top 20 before his preseason injury and while he'll probably be there at the start of next season. We'll be sure to include some dynasty talk on Thursday's podcast; in Eichel's case, we haven't seen his best yet, far from it. Here's what else happened around the league on Tuesday night:
As far as players that I've enjoyed watching hockey over the years go, Jaromir Jagr is at or near the top of the list. The adjustments he's made to his game over the years while the NHL has become a young man's game is incredible. When you look in the record books under points, now there's only one player ahead of him: Wayne Gretzky. Jagr led the way for the Panthers on Tuesday posting 3 assists and 3 shots placing him second all-time in points. It's a shame he went to Russia for 4 years because he'd probably be #1 all-time in goals. While he's nowhere near last season's 66 point pace, Jagr's shots and PIM are up quite a bit and now that the first line is picking it up over the last few weeks, it wouldn't surprise me one bit if Jagr is a top 100 player the rest of the way. We salute you, Jaromir Jagr. Let's take a look at everything that happened around the league the last two nights: