We were early on the Igor Shesterkin bandwagon when we found out in 2019 that he was going to come over to the Rangers that season. His numbers were insane in Russia and none of it looked fluky. He's been fantastic ever since, carrying flawed Rangers teams to elite levels. This season, he finally had a rough patch, although it was largely influenced by the play in front of him. The Rangers are bouncing back, and Igor is at the forefront. Shesterkin saved 33 of 34 shots in the 6-1 win over the Flyers, after having shutouts in his previous two starts. His save percentage has crossed the .915 mark now, and he's third in the league in GSAA. Hellebuyck has done enough to say that he's the top goalie in the world right now, but I'm still taking Igor second, and wouldn't be surprised to see that flip at any point soon. Given that the Rangers are in the thick of a playoff race, expect massive volume and Shesterkin to be a top five goalie the rest of the way in a worst case scenario. Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
It's not too often that a player scores four points in a game. It's even less often that it happens in a losing effort. On Monday, J.T. Miller scored two goals and two assists with three shots, only for the Canucks to lose to the red hot Canadiens 5-4 in overtime. The ongoing speculation around Miller and Pettersson is rampant, and you have to think it's taking a toll on both of them. Reports are that the Rangers were interested in getting him back, but it never reached the point where Zibanejad was asked to waive his no trade because the Canucks didn't want to make a move around those two. At the end of the day, it hasn't been Miller's best season, but he's sitting at a point per game. That shows how high his floor is, despite his shot rate really dropping. Perhaps we see a surge from him now that Quinn Hughes (2A, SOG) is back as well. I was asked about Miller in the comments recently, and I didn't think perception was that Miller's value is down quite a bit. I'd certainly lean towards the buy low side than trading to move Miller if I owned him. Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
It wasn't that long ago that Kyle Connor was coming off a 47 goal, 93 point season with over four shots per game. He was a borderline first round pick going into the 2022-23 season, and while he hasn't been a big disappointment, we haven't see him return to that level. It's only the first month of the season, but Connor is currently the #2 skater in fantasy behind MacKinnon. Connor had a goal and two assists, all in the first period, with four shots on goal in the 6-2 win over the Red Wings. Connor has had at least one point in every game so far this season, with a whopping 9+8 with 40 SOG in ten games. While he won't maintain this pace, the four shots per game is crucial. It will make up for inevitable shooting regression, especially for the Jets on the whole with regards to their power play. Perhaps this run, with Connor reaching 500 points in his career already, will lead him to get the credit he deserves for being one of the best offensive players in the league. Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
Vegas has started off the season extremely well at 6-2-1, and it's no surprise that their best forward (sorry Eichel) is at the forefront. Mark Stone continued his torrid pace over the weekend, dishing two assists against his old team, before scoring a goal and two assists with three shots against the Sharks. That brings Stone to a whopping 4+13 in nine games, a point total that actually leads the entire NHL. Obviously that won't last, but there have been seasons where Stone was above a point per game. Getting to play with Jack Eichel (1+3 over two games) has both rolling, and their incredible playmaking has Ivan Barbashev (2+1) mooching at a level that has Barbashev on the fringe. The Vegas schedule is a bit light in games coming up which isn't ideal when they're rolling, but at least they should be well rested to try and maintain this elite level of play. Let's take a look at what else happened over the weekend:
Good morning all, welcome to week 3 of the NHL season. Let’s begin per usual today with our best and worst team schedules for the week:
This week we have a total of 5 teams playing 4 games, listed here in descending order by strength of schedule we have: New Jersey, Philly, Toronto, Tampa, and Detroit. Out of the 5 only the Devils and Flyers play on two “off-nights” and with only a single game being played on either Monday or Wednesday and all 32 teams playing on Tuesday those off-nights are extra valuable this week.
Additionally, the worst team schedules for the week go to: Vancouver, Columbus, and Buffalo. Again, listed in descending order by strength of schedule. All 3 of these teams play only 2 games this week and all of those games will be played on “busy nights” in the league. As such, if you have any players on your roster that were either streams or are borderline droppable from any of these three I highly recommend you look into swapping them out if possible with a player from one of the teams with a stronger schedule above.
We keep things moving in these parts with the rest of my forward rankings. I am going to put these guys into tiers with comments on players that I think are worth discussion. For example, I'm not going to talk about Scheifele because at this point, we know he's going to be right around a point per game with his goals coming down to how effective the Winnipeg PP is. For the Top 40, you can read that here. Let's get to it!
It's coming down to the wire with two weeks left in the regular season. I'll give a quick rundown of things happening around the league that can help you on the margins. As a reminder, check out the Playoff Manifesto for all of your streaming planning. Additionally, for those of you in head to head leagues, remember that volume is key. You should be maximizing all of your moves / starts every week to get as many games played as possible from your skaters. If you plan right and get 5+ extra starts than your opponent does, it's much easier to overcome one of your guys getting cold, or one of your opponents' players getting hot. Let's get to it!
Hello everyone. Welcome to the twenty-fourth edition of JOT This Down!
This will be the final edition of the year. Thanks to everyone who read along all season. Best of luck as you close out your seasons, hopefully I was able to help some of you bring home a title!
Week 24 (March 25th-31st)
*Vancouver plays 2 games on light days (Monday and Sunday.)
Hello everyone. Welcome to the twenty-third edition of JOT This Down!
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 twenty-second edition of JOT This Down!
Keep the questions, comments, and concerns coming. I’ll be here all week to answer any and everything you may have.
With the fantasy season dwindling, the slate is what matters most this time of year. Be sure to drop fringe players if they only play 2 games, and replace them with guys that will play 4 games.
Fantasy Hockey Weekly Newsletter: Week 21
Hello everyone. Welcome to the twenty-first edition of JOT This Down!
Keep the questions, comments, and concerns coming. I’ll be here all week to answer any and everything you may have.
Fantasy Hockey Weekly Newsletter: Week 20
Hello everyone. Welcome to the twentieth edition of JOT This Down!
Keep the questions, comments, and concerns coming. I’ll be here all week to answer any and everything you may have.
