As championship week in fantasy hockey wraps up, it's the last chance to stream a goalie. Jesper Wallstedt is expected to make his second start of the season for the Wild, and a key matchup awaits between the Avalanche and Stars.
Sunday, April 7. Nine-game slate.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, BUF* at Alex Lyon, DET* (1 p.m. ET)
Jesper Wallstedt, MIN* at Arvid Söderblom, CHI (3:30 p.m. ET)
Malcolm Subban, CLB at Frederik Andersen, CAR (5 p.m. ET)
Connor Ingram, ARI* at Mackenzie Blackwood, SJ (6 p.m. ET)
Joonas Korpisalo, OTT at Charlie Lindgren, WSH* (6 p.m. ET)
Juuse Saros, NSH at Kaapo Kähkönen, NJ (7 p.m. ET)
Cayden Primeau, MTL* at Igor Shesterkin, NYR* (7 p.m. ET)
Jordan Binnington, STL at Lukáš Dostál, ANA* (8 p.m. ET)
Jake Oettinger, DAL at Alexandar Georgiev, COL* (10 p.m. ET)
Streaming Options
(ranked by matchup)
Jesper Wallstedt, MIN at CHI (3% rostered)
Wallstedt is a very, very intriguing option. Considered one of the league's best prospects in net, Wallstedt will be making just his second start of the season. His first start didn't go very well, allowing seven goals with a .794 SP. He has a .908 SP with a 21-19-3 record in the AHL this season, and while it doesn't look particularly noteworthy, it's actually quite impressive considering AHL Iowa were not good and provided Wallstedt with little goal support.
This is the second game of a back-to-back for both teams, and the Hawks will likely be going with their backup in Arvid Söderblom. The Wild should be able to provide more goal support than they did against the Jets last night, and that bodes well for Wallstedt. This is a risky start because Wallstedt is inexperienced and his debut casts a lot of doubt about his readiness, but if you have nothing else to lose on Sunday, I don't mind taking the gamble here due to Wallstedt's potential upside in both the matchup and his talent.
Connor Ingram, ARI at SJ (46% rostered)
I like the way the Coyotes have been playing and the way their offense has been scoring. The Sharks have been playing spoiler lately, including Saturday's win against the Blues, but there's also no pressure on the Coyotes right now, either. Both teams are playing free, and based on talent, the Coyotes should have this one in the bag. Ingram is coming off three pretty strong starts with at least 31 saves in each of them.
The downside between two teams playing free, however, is that defense may be optional. This could end up being a high-scoring game, which will surely hurt Ingram's goals against and save percentage. If you don't mind that, I think Ingram's a pretty good bet to earn a win.
Justus Annunen, COL vs. DAL (16% rostered)
Depending on who gets the start, this may be the Avs' most pivotal decision of the season. I'm not exaggerating; this is an important game against a divisional foe with the loser potentially facing the Jets in the first round rather than the weakest wild card, and also potentially a small hint of a significant goalie change.
The Stars opted to start Scott Wedgewood on Saturday against the Hawks, meaning they're saving Jake Oettinger, with his six-game winning and two-game shutout streak, for the Avs. The Stars are treating this like a statement game and the Avs should view it that way, too, after getting blown out by Connor McDavid and the Oilers.
Do the Avs go with Alexandar Georgiev here? (Note I have him listed as the expected starter above). No one will fault them if they do; Georgiev's been their No. 1 all season, and in spite of his performances has still at least managed to win a lot of games.
Or do the Avs start Annunen here? It would certainly be a spicy decision, and just last week Jared Bednar pulled Georgiev after taking a misconduct minor. Annunen has excellent stats and in his previous start stopped 44 shots in a 5-2 win against the Wild.
(I would also counter-argue that Annunen's stats are skewed because he's only faced two good teams, the Lightning and Preds, and it's still a risk to go with him).
If Annunen starts, it would also mean the Avs might be toying with the idea that it's possible they go with Annunen more often down the stretch to see if he's really the better option over Georgiev. The stats say so, but more importantly it has to convince the coaches. If Annunen continues to play well, who is your Game 1 starter? The decision could affect playoff pools, and Georgiev is no longer a slam-dunk pick just because he plays for the Avs.
More starts means Annunen now has considerably more fantasy value the rest of the season. He'll get volume, at the very least, because the schedule is super tough: Stars, Wild, Jets, Knights, Oilers.
Kaapo Kähkönen, NJ vs. NSH (5% rostered)
The sample size is small and the record (1-3-0) isn't good, but Kähkönen has actually been pretty good with the Devils, much like Jake Allen was immediately after his trade from the Habs.
The Devils have beaten the Preds just once in the past six years (!) and note Juuse Saros is at the other end of the ice. I'm not saying the Devils can't win, but I'm saying it could be very difficult. I actually like Kähkönen in this spot for saves and wouldn't worry too much about the past history. They're very different teams from then and now, and the Preds offense has suddenly started to sputter having been shut out in both of their previous losses.
Charlie Lindgren, WSH vs. OTT (57% rostered)
I trust Lindgren more than I trust Joonas Korpisalo, which is why I have Lindgren ranked higher but the difference may be marginal. Both teams are on losing streaks and both are playing the second half of a back-to-back. The difference is Lindgren has been the better goalie this season, and Korpisalo saw action Saturday night in a relief appearance.
The danger with Lindgren this late into the season is workload. The Caps are playing their third game in four nights, which involved travel back and forth out of D.C. in between, and his performances have been fading. I still like the Caps' chances, but I think the odds of this being a quality start is low.
Joonas Korpisalo, OTT at WSH (52% rostered)
Korpisalo will actually be making an appearance for the second straight night after Anton Forsberg was pulled in the first period. Fatigue may be a factor, and with the Sens losing their third straight, once again they are showing what a streaky and unreliable team they can be.
There is a case for Korpisalo: The Caps aren't doing any better with five straight losses, and his career numbers (.919 SP, 2.44 GAA) against the Caps are actually surprisingly good. I think there's a chance for an upset here but I'm not confident this doesn't divulge into a track meet and feature a ton of goals.
Mackenzie Blackwood, SJ vs. ARI (10% rostered)
I don't normally back any Sharks goalies, but Blackwood is on a heater with a save percentage above .903 for four straight games, including strong starts against the Kings and Wild even though they resulted in losses.
There is a chance for an upset here, but the Sharks have to contend with a strong Coyotes offense. Blackwood can only win if the Sharks provide enough goal support; otherwise, you're looking at just saves and perhaps a good save percentage in this start.
Alex Lyon, DET vs. BUF (40% rostered)
This is obviously a huge game for the Wings, who can move into a wild card spot with a win. I think Lyon can put up a good save percentage but you really have to be wary of teams playing spoiler here, and the Sabres have done a good job of that defeating the Caps and Flyers in their past two games even though their own playoff odds are very small.
The Wings have lost five of their past six with very inconsistent goal support, including two shutout losses. I'd be wary of starting Lyon in this spot but he can still provide plenty of saves if you need it.
Cayden Primeau, MTL at NYR (4% rostered)
Sam Montembeault was pulled Saturday against the Leafs, and it bodes well that Primeau stopped all 18 saves in relief, but now he's facing an even better team, and on the road, too. If you need saves, maybe Primeau's an option, but the Habs are already huge underdogs and will likely face Igor Shesterkin at the other end.