Since Dougie Hamilton went down with a broken jaw, the Devils have been in a massive tailspin. It got much worse over the last two nights as Toronto beat them 6-4 and 7-1 going into the All-Star Break. The hope is that Hamilton will be back after the break, and it’s obvious that they need him on the blue line. Toronto was led by Mitch Marner, who had three goals and four assists with nine shots between the top games. Marner has multiple points in six of his last seven games, including a goal in all seven games. I wrote a couple weeks ago that Marner was about to get hot and get past the point per game mark, but he did it much faster than I anticipated. It helps that he moved to the top line again, as Auston Matthews had four goals and two assists between the two games. When these two are clicking, it’s as dangerous of a combo that there is in the league. Let’s take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
Monday’s Games
Mason Marchment – Two goals and four assists with six shots and two PIM. The third line absolutely destroyed Columbus, as Anton Lundell dished five assists and Sam Reinhart had a hat trick plus an assist. To be honest, I wrote the intro after Tuesday’s games and forgot how much these guys killed it Monday, or I’d have started with them. Didn’t want to delete what I already wrote, so I’ll more on these guys here. Reinhart remains an easy hold as he sits at a point per game. Amazingly, Marchment is now above a point per game. I have him more elite streamer than hold, but I don’t mind holding while he’s a hot schmotato, even though he was pointless on Tuesday. Lundell is also in the elite streamer category now; I think he deserves a bump.
Patrik Laine – Two goals on three shots. For all the crap Laine gets, he still scores plenty of goals and points. The shot rate is down from his peak in Winnipeg, but he’s still an easy hold.
Jaroslav Halak – 20 saves on 21 shots in the 3-1 win over the Blackhawks. I feel good about streaming Halak in most matchups given the strength of Boudreau coached teams, but his volume is so low that he’s nowhere near a hold.
Dylan Larkin – Goal and an assist with seven shots and two PIM. Career highs across the board are firmly in play for Larkin. He should obliterate his previous career high in goals.
Alex Nedeljokvic – 14 saves on 15 shots in the 2-1 OT win over the Ducks. He’s a bottom end #2 as the numbers are all a bit below average, but the volume is decent enough. Love him in dynasties though.
Thomas Chabot – Goal and an assist. After Chabot’s second season, I had high hopes for him. I mean, 55 points in 70 games is elite. He hasn’t matched tat or come close in recent years, but this season has been a step in the right direction. I’m still a believer that he can get back to that level when the team continues to improve around him.
Brady Tkachuk – Two assists with five shots. It’s already damn good, but it could get better if Tkachuk has a year with good shooting luck.
Jesper Boqvist – Goal and an assist with three shots. Boqvist is in a fourth line role so nothing to see here for now.
Morgan Rielly – Two assists with three shots. Same story for Rielly. He’s a solid #2 because of the elite assists and PPP.
Alex Kerfoot – Two assists with two shots. Middling streamer who gets a small bump up now that he’s back on the second line in place of..
Ilya Mikheyev – Goal and an assist with six shots. He’s a solid streamer, but he does take a hit moving down to the third line. Hopefully that changes back, but I’m not counting on it.
Tuesday’s Games
Max Pacioretty – Two assists with a shot and ten PIM. He’s gone a bit cold in the goal department, but it was bound to happen with that hot start. He’s not going to stay a top 10 player on a per-game basis, but it should be damn good.
Mark Stone – Goal and an assist with three shots. I wish the shots were better, but Stone is still an animal. No reason to worry.
William Karlsson – Two assists with three shots. Solid streamer, but Karlsson isn’t close to being a hold right now.
Jonathan Marchessault – Goal and an assist with two shots. Marchessault is on pace to easily set a new career high in goals. The assists aren’t great, but with the shot volume, he’s an easy hold.
Brett Howden – Goal and an assist with two shots. He’s on a decent run of form, but Howden is only a deep league option.
David Pastrnak – Two goals and an assist with three shots. Massive run from Pasta has him with more goals than last season in five fewer games. The shot rate is pushing 4.5 as well. The slow start is well in the past.
Taylor Hall – Goal and an assist with five shots. The minutes are keeping Hall from becoming a hold. He’s an elite streamer, but it’s not quite enough.
Brad Marchand – Two assists with three shots. Marchand being at exactly three shots per game only strengthens his position as a top five player.
Jack Campbell – 31 saves on 32 shots in the 7-1 win over the Devils. He was pulled early on Monday so nice to see Campbell bounce back right now.
Michael Bunting – Goal and an assist with three shots. The third wheel to Matthews and Marner, Bunting is firmly in the elite streamer category.
Pierre Engvall – Goal and an assist. I like Engvall as a player, but he’s blocked by so many guys in Toronto that he’s only a bottom end streamer.
David Kampf – Goal and an assist. And there’s your annual Kampf update!
Chris Kreider – Two goals and an assist with three shots. The Panthers have been taking a ton of penalties lately which is a bad recipe against the Rangers. Artemi Panarin had a goal and two assists with five shots, while Mika Zibanejad had a goal and an assist with three shots. Kreider has maintained this torrid pace to stay atop the league lead in goals. Absolutely remarkable.
Carter Hart – 32 saves on 33 shots in the 3-1 win over the Jets. Hart has been decent with a .913 save percentage. Given the team in front of him, it’s fairly impressive. However, the wins are dreadful. I’m still holding because of the volume, but it’s bottom end #2 / top end #3 range.
Dmitry Orlov – Two goals on three shots. Orlov has some nice deep league value because he hits all of the categories fairly well. He should set a new career high in points, and a career high in goals isn’t out of the question. If you’re in a 12’er that has hits and blocks, Orlov is on the fringe if you want a guy at the bottom of your roster that is decent enough across the board.
Jake Guentzel – Three assists with five shots and four PIM. The Penguins power play kept them in the game as all three of their goals came there. Bryan Rust had two goals on nine shots, while Sidney Crosby dished two assists with five shots. This line is going as well as any in the league.
Logan Couture – Goal and an assist with five shots and two PIM. Meier is off his line for the moment which hurts Couture’s value, but I’m still holding.
Victor Hedman – Goal and an assist with three shots. There’s a good chance Hedman tops 60 assists this season for the first time in his career. He’s crushing across the board and looks like he’ll battle for the #1 defenseman spot all season long.
Scott Mayfield – Two assists with a shot. He’s an okay option in super deep leagues for hits, blocks, and PIM, but that’s about it.
Ilya Sorokin – 26 saves on 27 shots in the 4-1 win over the Senators. The GAA and SV% are both elite. Even with the Islanders disappointing, their goalies have not. Sorokin looks locked into a split for now, but he has to be held. In dynasties, he’s a slam dunk #1.
Filip Forbserg – Two goals on five shots. It’s a shame that Forsberg hasn’t been able to stay healthy for a full season. Back up the Brinks truck though, as he has 24 goals in 33 games. Incredible stuff.
Elias Lindholm – Two assists with three shots. Lindholm hasn’t been producing at the same rate as his linemates, but he’s still a no-brainer hold.
That’s all for now guys. If there’s enough to write about after the five game slate tomorrow, I’ll have a short post up on Thursday morning. Otherwise, I’ll have some post looking ahead at schedules the next few weeks with all of the makeup games on the docket. The scheduling disparity in terms of volume will be massive for certain players which will have a big impact on us in fantasy. As always, feel free to ask any questions, leave any comments, or give any suggestions below. Thanks for reading, take care!
