Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canadians and Happy Columbus
Day to my fellow Americans.
This is the first time in h2h leagues we’ll get a full week
of play, and as a result, no team will play more than four games or fewer than
three. It’ll be much easier to manage than Week 1, where I imagine managers
were scrambling to fill out their rosters for a last-ditch effort on Sunday with
only one game (Capitals at Rangers) and making difficult roster decisions on Thursday
(14 games) and Saturday (16 games).
If you want to maximize games played in Week 2, stream
players from teams that play twice from Monday to Wednesday (Panthers, Preds,
Sens, Wild, Mammoth, Wings, Leafs, Hawks, Lightning, Blues, Flames) and three
times from Thursday to Sunday (Bruins, Oilers, Canucks). If you want
multi-category coverage with some offensive upside, you might consider
streaming Shane Pinto for the first part and Evander Kane for the second part,
for example.
If you’re all about streaming players on off-nights (M/W/F/Sun),
it’s a pretty good week to do so with the Mammoth, Red Wings and Blackhawks
doing just that. I think the Mammoth have a really favorable schedule and the
Hawks have looked much better than expected. At a minimum, the Hawks should be
able to split the week and win at least two games. The Ducks are normally great
for off-nights, but note they’re playing Tuesday and Thursday this week, which
is somewhat unusual considering they’re playing at home as well.
We shouldn’t overreact to Week 1, but there are a few things
that have already happened, or haven’t happened yet, that I will outline in the
recommended pickups below. There are a players worth noting and the list will
inevitably get shorter as we move through the first month, but a reminder this
is a great time to pick up a potentially season-altering player at a minimal cost.
All positions and rostered percentages are courtesy of
Yahoo Fantasy.
Schedule
Pick players from teams at the top of the schedule matrix
to maximize games and matchups. Green is good. Red is bad. Points percentages
are as of Saturday evening.
Season-long adds (< 50%
rostered on Yahoo)
Will Smith, C/RW, SJ (43% rostered)
Smith and Macklin Celebrini didn’t get off to a great start
but provided three helpers each in a 7-6 overtime loss to the Sharks. The
scoring may be sporadic but the upside is immense with Smith and Celebrini
playing together.
Elias Lindholm, C, BOS (38% rostered)
Even if the Bruins don’t keep up this pace, Lindholm’s hold
on L1 and PP1 is near-unassailable. His shot volume is up, which is a good sign
that his scoring pace can be maintained for the next little while and he’s
always been of the league’s best for face-off wins.
Jared McCann, C/LW, SEA (31% rostered)
I think the fantasy community is down on the Kraken because
they’re a very mid offensive team, but we shouldn’t over look McCann as one of
the more reliable 30-goal, 200-shot players out there. He should be rostered in
nearly all standard leagues for his offense.
Marco Rossi, C, MIN (28% rostered)
I still wouldn’t rule out the occasional benching but the
Wild are an offensive machine when Rossi’s line with Matt Boldy and Kirill
Kaprizov are on the ice. They have a 62.75 percent of the shot share and generate
87 shots per 60 minutes at 5-on-5. I’ve seen enough of Rossi to recommend him
be rostered in all leagues for his upside in points.
Frank Nazar, C, CHI (27% rostered)
If Connor Bedard used the naysayers as jet fuel, then Nazar
has used it as rocket fuel. He’s up to a goal and five points in three games
this season and taken a load off Bedard’s shoulders and emerged as legitimate
No. 2 center. This is shaping up to be a huge breakout season for Nazar.
Sam Rinzel, D, CHI (39% rostered)
Do not be surprised if the Calder race is an all-defensemen
affair this season with Rinzel joining Matthew Schaefer and Zeev Buium. Rinzel
skated just 19:03 against the Bruins because he took a hard hit from Nikita
Zadorov and took a few shifts off, but he was right back at it next game
skating 25:58 and scored his first goal of the season. If you’re still looking
for a defensemen, Rinzel’s one of the few top-pairing players available.
Mid-term holds (< 50%
rostered on Yahoo)
Brock Boeser, RW, VAN (45% rostered)
Evander Kane, LW, VAN (35% rostered)
Both Kane and Boeser play PP1. Boeser has a bit more upside
playing L1 but considering Adam Foote is a big proponent of more physical play –
both as a coach and definitely when he was playing – I think he’s taken a
liking to Kane because he’s got an edge that the other Canucks wingers don’t. I
think Boeser and Kane offer just modest offensive upside – think 60 points – but
the Canucks play a league-high four games in Week 2.
Logan Stankoven, C/RW, CAR (38% rostered)
I think the Canes have found their No. 2 center. It’s early still,
but if this continues, Stankoven will have plenty of value going forward
considering how Rod Brind’Amour likes a lot of familiarity with his lines and
spreading out the minutes.
Zachary Bolduc, RW, MTL (21% rostered)
That’s now a goal in three straight games for Bolduc, and
with increasing ice time, I think Martin St-Louis has his new favorite player. There’s
good shot volume and I get the feeling Bolduc will start pushing for power play
time soon.
Matty Beniers, C, SEA (13% rostered)
… maybe? Beniers has scored three points in two games and we’ve
been waiting for his offense to come alive. I’m still not sure if this is real
or not, but it does look like Beniers has a bit more explosiveness to his game.
McCann is the Kraken’s best goal-scoring winger so that’s a good setup for
Beniers.
Filip Hronek, D, VAN (36% rostered)
Hronek is a very reliable depth defensemen in multi-category
leagues. He skated over 27 minutes Saturday against the Oilers and through two
games has five hits and four blocks. He’s averaging over 24 minutes per game
and along with Quinn Hughes are the only two Canucks defensemen to average over
20 minutes.
Short-term streamers (<
50% rostered on Yahoo)
Evan Rodrigues, C/LW/RW, FLA (8% rostered)
Lundell and Bennett are the immediate beneficiaries of the
ice time left by Aleksander Barkov, but Rodrigues has picked up some of the
slack, too. He’s scored three points in three games and his ice time has
continued to creep up. The perfect 3-0-0 Panthers have four games on the road
with at least two opponents – Sabres and Flyers – who don’t defend very well.
Barrett Hayton, C, UTA (5% rostered)
Word is that Hayton’s return is imminent, and he’ll likely
resume his 1C duties with Clayton Keller on his left wing as has been the case
for most of last season and training camp. He scored career highs in points
(46) and power-play points (15) last season and he’s generally quite good for
face-off wins.
Kevin Lankinen, G, VAN (15% rostered)
With the way Thatcher Demko is playing and with the way the
Canucks have used him so far, Lankinen might be used like a traditional backup,
spelling Demko only if he needs rest – what an expensive one, too, at $4.5
million. Target date is Friday in Chicago where Lankinen might face his former
team. He’s never lost to them with a career 3-0-0, .934 SP, 2.00 GAA record.
Jesper Wallstedt, G, MIN (3% rostered)
The Wild have a pair of b2b coming up which means we might
see Wallstedt twice in Week 2. He’s a highly-touted goalie coming off a very
poor year in the AHL and his NHL career has not gone to plan so far with a .877
SP and 3.44 GAA in five starts. This will be his first real test and the best date
for streaming him is Saturday in Philly if he gets that start. The one thing I
am confident is the Wild’s offense – it looks like it could be top-five this
season – which means plenty of goal support. Wallstedt will need it.