The fantasy hockey playoff races are heating up. Goalies Nico Daws and Anton Forsberg, and forwards Tyler Bertuzzi and Tommy Novak highlight those whose fantasy values are trending up.
Following the Stadium Series, there are no other special event games on the schedule. That means the upcoming trade deadline on March 8 and the playoff race will be the main focus.
Perhaps the most interesting part of Week 20 is the extra day in February in a leap year, which happens to fall on a Thursday. The 12 games scheduled on Thursday are tied with Feb. 29, 2020 for the most games ever on Leap Day, per NHL Public Relations.
Otherwise, it's business as usual; Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday will feature the most games, with only two on Wednesday and three on Friday.
The Devils have the easiest schedule as they make their way through California, playing the Sharks and Ducks, and they're also a good team to target since they play on Friday and Sunday off-days along with the Capitals, Coyotes and Ducks.
The Isles have the toughest schedule with road dates in Dallas on Monday and Detroit on Thursday, and then host the Sabres on Saturday. On a related note, the Bruins have an odd schedule with a single home date on Thursday sandwiched between two road games right after a four-game road trip through western Canada. The Sens, too, have a Friday home game sandwiched between two road games, including a road game in Philadelphia on Saturday; as do the Jackets, who go home-road-home during their three-game week.
The Oilers, Caps and Flyers also have the same thing but in reverse, where they have a road game sandwiched in between home stands. It's a weird scheduling quirk, especially for the Oilers, who play two home games, travel to another time zone and play in Seattle on Saturday but then immediately return to Edmonton in time to host the Penguins on Sunday.
It would not be surprising to see plenty of upsets in Week 20.
A question I get often at this time of the season is: What do you think of player/team X's schedule during the playoffs in Weeks 23-25? That can be difficult to answer because so much can change between now and then, but my first response is to always just focus on the week at hand and ensure you make the playoffs first. Unless you're well ahead in the standings, planning so far ahead can be like putting the cart in front of the horse.
Schedule
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. Points percentages as of Saturday.
Weekly Bangers
(< 50% rostered on Yahoo, on teams with 4 games this week)
Hits/GP
Kyle Burroughs, D, SJ - 3.12
Brenden Dillon, D, WPG - 2.98
Jack McBain, C, ARI - 2.98
Beck Malenstyn, LW, WSH - 2.96
Jani Hakanpää, D, DAL - 2.89
Blocks/GP
Mario Ferraro, D, SJ - 2.90
Matt Roy, D, LA - 2.22
Jacob Middleton, D, MIN - 2.09
Jani Hakanpää, D, DAL - 2.02
Ryan Graves, D, PIT - 1.96
Season-long adds
(< 25% rostered on Yahoo)
Mikael Granlund, C/RW, SJ (12% rostered)
Granlund and the Sharks played just two games in Week 19, so it's tough to gauge just how bad they will be the rest of the season. But, as expected, Granlund play a ton of minutes in their most recent game, scoring a goal and playing 23:27 against the Preds. The Sharks' offense has very little upside, but it's unlikely they'll be shut out every night. What Granlund lacks in quality and efficiency, he will make with quantity, just as he did prior to his injury. He's an under-the-radar option who will get all the opportunities to score for the Sharks.
Mid-term holds
(< 25% rostered on Yahoo)
Nico Daws, G, NJ (19% rostered)
I'm unconvinced the Devils are comfortable with Daws as their No. 1 for the rest of the season. He's too inexperienced and inconsistent to give them much hope in the playoff run, and remember last week the Devils were reportedly thisclose to acquiring Jacob Markström. Still, if you're looking for volume starts, Daws is really your only choice in the free agent pool.
Josh Norris, C, OTT (22% rostered)
Norris has four points in two games and the deployment has been good, playing PP1 for added upside. The Sens run one scoring line with Tim Stützle and then essentially two second lines with Norris and Shane Pinto; between the two, I think Norris' upside is higher.
Cam York, D, PHI (3% rostered)
Jamie Drysdale left Sunday's game with an apparent upper-body injury, which opens a spot on the power play. The Flyers have played Drysdale as the lone 'D' on their top unit, but without him that leaves York and Travis Sanheim to act as quarterbacks. We shall wait for Drysdale's prognosis, but if he misses any time, look for York to pick up some of the minutes.
Short-term streamers
(< 25% rostered on Yahoo)
Anton Forsberg, G, OTT (6% rostered)
Maybe this becomes something bigger or maybe it doesn't, but Forsberg has started three of the past four games for the Sens and demanding a bigger share of the playing time from Joonas Korpisalo. Forsberg has won 11 games in 19 starts; his strong play may continue with an easier schedule coming up with the Caps, Preds and Coyotes, only one of whom (Preds) are really in playoff contention.
Max Domi, C/LW, TOR (22% rostered)
Tyler Bertuzzi, LW, TOR (13% rostered)
I'm not enamored with Domi in fantasy because his offensive production often relies on his linemates' ability to score. He's in a good situation right now with William Nylander and Bertuzzi -- coming off a hat-trick performance in Colorado -- on his wings, and he's also been putting shots on net with some regularity.
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Tommy Novak, C, NSH (4% rostered)
Novak is on a four-game points streak and scored nine points in nine games. This is a nice bounce back after a tough start to the season, and he's become a trade chip for the Preds. Should Novak move to a new team, it might give him a modest fantasy boost. His play has certainly been trending up as a middle-six center who plays PP2 with Cody Glass and even-strength linemate Luke Evangelista.
Connor Zary, C/RW, CGY (3% rostered)
Zary's worth a gander playing with the red-hot Nazem Kadri and on the power play with Jonathan Huberdeau. Zary can be streaky; he's scored three points in his past two games, so it's nice to take advantage with a three-game homestand coming up for the Flames.