Fantasy Hockey Head-to-Head Primer: Add Thomas and Eriksson Ek

It’s starting to get weird. The NHL schedule always has minor quirks, but seeing those rare two-game sets is always interesting. The Caps and Flyers play a traditional home-and-home set on Wednesday and Saturday, but it’s always intriguing to see the ones that don’t have any travel, such as the Flames playing the Blues on Tuesday and Thursday with both games in St. Louis. The other quirk is the Islanders and Rangers face the same opponents this week, with the Stars, Wild and Habs’ road trips rolling through New York in succession.

Nine teams are playing a league-high four games this week, though I would generally avoid players from the Coyotes, Habs, Preds and Canucks. They’re all playing poorly and/or facing tough matchups. Meanwhile, the Ducks, Bruins, Hawks, Knights and Caps have an easy week with just two games. For the Capitals, this will give them a chance to give Nicklas Backstrom and Tom Wilson, who returned to the lineup on Sunday, two days’ rest between each of their next two games.

Here’s your Week 14 breakdown.

Legend:
P% = season points percentage
Opp. P% = opponents’ season points percentage
Diff. = difference between P% and Opp. P%

Pick players from teams at the top of the schedule matrix to maximize games and matchups. Green is good. Red is bad. All advanced stats courtesy naturalstatrick.com. All positions and rostered percentages are courtesy of Yahoo fantasy.

Top 10 Weekly Banger Picks (< 50 percent rostered on Yahoo, on teams with four games this week):

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Goalies:

Marc-Andre Fleury, Wild

The big surprise from the weekend was Fleury stepping away from the team for personal reasons. The Wild had to go with Filip Gustavsson and Zane McIntyre against the Blues on Sunday. Fleury’s expected to re-join the team Tuesday in New York, but it was clear that whatever was bothering him affected his play against the Sabres, who are admittedly an excellent offensive team. It’s good that Gustavsson has played so well, but he’s also been battling a flu bug.

The Wild’s goaltending has been really good over the past few weeks, but you wonder if this is the week to shy away from them to see how the recent developments have impacted their play. It will not be an easy schedule until Friday, when they host the Coyotes.

Collin Delia, Canucks

Spencer Martin has not played well lately, forcing the Canucks to play Delia, who got the start on Sunday against the Jets. It was his fourth start in the past seven games, though Delia got pulled. There’s no saving Canucks goalies until they fix that defense (among other things), and with Martin taking a backseat, they’re firmly in a territory where both of their goalies will be low-quality streaming options.

Thatcher Demko is not expected back until February at the earliest. The poor goaltending means the Canucks’ playoff hopes are probably shot, and if there’s no hope for the playoffs, it will make sense for the Canucks to start hosting a firesale. It remains to be seen if ownership will approve it, but the Canucks – amidst the toughest schedule of their season – are quickly losing grip of whatever slim playoff hopes they previously had.

Martin Jones, Kraken

Jones is back to his shenanigans again, going 4-0-0 with a .921 save percentage in January. I say shenanigans because there’s never really any telling which Jones the Kraken will get in any game or month. His season has been a hell of a rollercoaster ride. One thing’s for sure, though: Philipp Grubauer is no longer relevant in fantasy.

Grubauer was given a chance to regain the starting job upon his return, but he’s won just three of his 12 starts with a .881 save percentage. He would have to possess incriminating photos of Dave Hakstol, or something like that, for Hakstol to keep playing him, especially during a season where the Kraken have a real chance of earning a playoff berth. I don’t trust Jones, but I think the Kraken’s balanced offense can overcome many of their weaknesses (defensive and center depth) and excel in a weak division. It gives opportunities for fantasy managers to pick up wins. Roster Jones, be careful with the starts and cross your fingers.

Casey DeSmith, Penguins

There are no updates on Tristan Jarry, meaning DeSmith will be the starter for now. They host the Canucks on Tuesday before getting a two-day break, which gives Jarry some time to heal up, but with a back-to-back on Friday and Saturday, look for DeSmith to get at least one more start in Week 14. Neither will be easy – they host the Jets, then visit Carolina the night after – but fantasy managers looking for a streaming option should consider DeSmith even though he’s a fairly average backup.

Pyotr Kochetkov, Hurricanes

Not good if you’re rostering Kochetkov. He hasn’t been good in his past two starts, allowing eight goals on 54 shots (.852 SP). It’s opened the door for a possible demotion to the minors upon Frederik Andersen’s return. The key question for the Canes is which goalie gives them the best chance to win now. Only Kochetkov is signed beyond this season, and he’s waiver-exempt, meaning he’s the most logical choice to cut if the Canes want to preserve their roster. However, Kochetkov’s also been their best option for long stretches this season. Demoting him for the sake of an inconsistent Antti Raanta and injury-prone Andersen doesn’t seem like a sound plan. That’s especially considering the pressure they’re under as one of the league’s two best teams. A three-man rotation is doable but unwieldy, and if not for Kochetkov, the Canes may not have advanced past the first round.

Kochetkov’s still a smart hold for now, but it’s precarious. If you have room on your roster, Raanta’s an excellent insurance policy. If Kochetkov gets demoted, it automatically kills his fantasy value, but I wouldn’t rule out a call-up down the road. Nevertheless, fantasy managers must have quick fingers and keep track of Kochetkov even when he’s with AHL Charlotte.

Short-Term Streamers (< 50 percent rostered on Yahoo):

Paul Stastny, C/LW, Hurricanes

The more Stastny plays in the top six, the more likely he will stay in that spot. The 37-year-old now has four points in four games in January, averaging 16:20 minutes per game, compared to a season-low 9:47 in 13 games in November. As long as Stastny stays in that spot between Andrei Svechnikov and Martin Necas, he will be productive in most fantasy leagues. The signing of Jesperi Kotkaniemi, who has now been bumped to the fourth line, has borne new fruit, but not the way anyone expected.

Kirill Marchenko, RW, Blue Jackets

Marchenko had a hat-trick performance with eight shots against the Hurricanes, and it was undoubtedly the best game of his young career in the NHL. He was held without a shot in a 1-0 loss to the Caps, but Marchenko’s hat trick showed his potential. He’s up to eight goals now on the season and could provide some scoring in deep leagues. If he keeps performing like this, he will not return to the AHL.

Mid-Term Holds (< 75 percent rostered on Yahoo):

Robert Thomas, C, Blues

Shockingly, Thomas is rostered in only 60 percent of Yahoo leagues. With Ryan O’Reilly and Vladimir Tarasenko injured, this is Thomas and linemate Jordan Kyrou’s team. They will be the pillars of the franchise in the future, and this is just a glimpse of their future. As the team’s top center with Kyrou and the underrated Pavel Buchnevich on the other wing, Thomas is getting close to 20 minutes per game and offering up points, shots and faceoff wins. He should be rostered in most fantasy formats, even when O’Reilly returns.

Joel Eriksson Ek, C, Wild

Like Thomas in St. Louis, Eriksson Ek is the emerging No. 1 center in Minnesota if he isn’t already. It’s just flown under the radar because they’re doing it quietly and consistently rather than having huge spikes in production. Eriksson Ek has four points in his past four games and now has a modest 31 points on the season, with 116 shots and 333 faceoff wins. At even strength, the Wild still prefer to play Frederick Gaudreau with Kirill Kaprizov, but Eriksson Ek does get some of the upsides as the center on PP1.