NHL Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Expected Starters - Sunday, Feb. 25

Sunday, Feb. 25. Seven-game slate.

* = confirmed or probable

Jonas Johansson, TB* at Akira Schmid, NJ* (1 p.m. ET)

Cal Petersen, PHI* at Tristan Jarry, PIT* (3:30 p.m. ET)

Spencer Martin, CAR* at Ukko-Pekka Luukkkonen, BUF* (6 p.m. ET)

Jonathan Quick, NYR*at Elvis Merzlikins, CLB* (6 p.m. ET)

James Reimer, DET* at Petr Mrazek, CHI* (6 p.m. ET)

Connor Ingram, ARI* at Connor Hellebuyck, WPG* (6 p.m. ET)

Kevin Lankinen, NSH* at Lukas Dostal, ANA* (8 p.m. ET)

Streaming Options

( < 50% rostered on Yahoo, ranked by matchup)

Kevin Lankinen, NSH at ANA (4% rostered)

Lankinen hasn't been great but this should be an easy matchup even though the Ducks won both of their previous meetings. Both teams are playing the second half of a back-to-back and the Ducks were heavily outplayed by the Kings on Saturday while the Preds have won four straight. There's no question the momentum is on the Preds' side. 

Spencer Martin, CAR at BUF (5% rostered)

I think we've seen enough of Martin to be convinced that he could have a good start. He's been perfect for the Canes so far; 3-0-0 with a .920 SP, and he gets another start while the Canes have been rolling and the Sabres offense sputtering, scoring just 11 goals in their past five games. I wouldn't mind streaming Martin in this spot but note the back-to-back for the Canes with the matinee starting time does carry some risk. 

James Reimer, DET at CHI (23% rostered)

Obviously, Connor Bedard is the biggest threat to a good start for Reimer, but the Wings are playing well on a four-game winning streak. Reimer's also coming off a ridiculous 38-save shutout win against the Flames, so there's good vibes all around. The Wings have won the past two matchups by a combined 9-4 score, and I think they'll try to make good on Patrick Kane's return to Chicago. 

Petr Mrazek, CHI vs. DET (35% rostered)

The Hawks allow a ton of shots, which gives Mrazek a ton of saves to boost his fantasy value. While there will be a lot of commotion with Kane's return to Chicago, note the Hawks are also retiring Chris Chelios' No. 7. Expect both Original Six teams to battle hard, but the Wings are favored it'll take another superhuman performance from Mrazek to secure the win. I just think the Wings' offense is too strong right now for the Hawks to overcome with only one reliable scoring line. 

Cal Petersen, PHI at PIT (1% rostered)

Petersen is 2-1-0 this season and coming off a win against the Kraken on Feb. 10, but he's also faced just 100 shots in four appearances. He's been better this season, but relies heavily on the Flyers limiting shots to win games and the Penguins have had the upper had in their matchups lately. I don't have a lot of confidence Petersen will put up good numbers.

Jonas Johansson, TB at NJ (12% rostered)

Johansson is among one of the most unreliable goalies in fantasy, and note the sportsbooks are slightly favoring the Devils. I'm not necessarily sure I agree; the Devils have only won three times in their past 13 meetings and their own goaltending has been incredibly shaky. It would not surprise me if this ended up being a high-scoring affair, and the result is close to a coin toss. 

Akira Schmid, NJ vs. TB (14% rostered)

Schmid was just called by from AHL Utica, meaning we won't see Isaac Poulter make his NHL debut in a key game where the Devils sit five points behind the Lightning for the final wild card spot. Schmid saw a little action with Utica, stopping 17 of 19 shots in a loss against Syracuse, but this will be his first appearance since Dec. 21. Schmid might be rusty and his play overall this season has been subpar.