It's a busy 15-game slate for Saturday. Here are your roster notes for the first six games.
Red Wings at Senators, 1 p.m. ET
It’s too bad this game isn’t prime time because this is a litmus test for two teams in the hunt for a playoff spot, and both of their odds look good so far. Dylan Larkin and Alex DeBrincat have formed an excellent duo, and Larkin’s going to outplay his ADP since he finally has a top-tier winger to play with.
With four games this week – the Wings are playing back-to-back this weekend – Daniel Sprong (7% rostered) was setting up to be a great streaming option, but instead it’s been Andrew Copp (15% rostered) who has been incredibly productive with three goals, nine shots, nine hits and plus-3. The joke was the Wings spent too much on third-line players, but Copp and J.T. Compher (37% rostered) have formed a nice pairing so far and shouldn’t be dismissed as bottom-six players in fantasy. I’m fan of both in 12 or 14-team banger leagues.
Shayne Gostisbehere (62% rostered) still doesn’t get enough attention. He’s scored a point in every game so far this season while playing PP1 with Moritz Seider, and he’s contributing in multiple categories. If defensemen are hard to come by in your league, Gostisbehere should be rostered.
The back-to-back games means we’ll see James Reimer (8% rostered) again on Sunday. (I’m not sure when Alex Lyon will play, but he’s clearly the third-string). He had a shutout in his first game and with Ville Husso’s save percentage trending below .900 again, Reimer could demand more playing time. In leagues short on goalies, Reimer is worth stashing because the Wings are winning games.
Thomas Chabot was not at Friday’s skate but he’s expected to play. He’s taken a backseat now with Jake Sanderson quarterbacking PP1, but the upshot is PP2 didn’t look bad either with Chabot and Jakob Chychrun. Which defenseman to take depend on your league settings, but it looks like Sanderson has the most value right now.
Josh Norris (49% rostered) scored two goals in his season debut and he’s immediately worth rostering since he should’ve been taken in drafts. He’s only overlooked because he missed almost all of last season due to shoulder surgery. He’s on a line with Drake Batherson, with whom he’s played plenty, which also leaves Ridly Greig (3% rostered) with the red-hot Vladimir Tarasenko. Greig is streaming material with three assists in four games and broad category coverage.
Last note: Anton Forsberg (2-0, .933 SP, 1.51 GAA, 16% rostered) is outplaying Joonas Korpisalo (1-1-0, .894 SP, 3.56 GAA) and this is turning into a timeshare. Based on Korpisalo’s big contract, he was assumed to be the starter, and he’s expected to start. Stash Forsberg just in case this really turns out to be an equal timeshare, or even something bigger for Forsberg.
Ducks at Coyotes, 4 p.m. ET
Leo Carlsson (12% rostered) scored in his NHL debut Thursday and played on a line with Trevor Zegras and Troy Terry. He finished with two shots in 19 minutes, and though he went 1-for-7 in the dot – typical of rookies – the general takeaway is that this kid’s really good. Roster Carlsson now if you have space because it’s difficult to get high-upside players like him. In a top-six role flanked by offense-first players, Carlsson has a lot of upside.
An injury to Jamie Drysdale (14% rostered) should’ve led to more power-play time for Cam Fowler (51% rostered), but once again 19-year-old Pavel Mintyukov (3% rostered) led on special teams, edging Fowler in ice time 3:45 vs. 2:08. Mintyukov’s scored two points in three games, and if you’re looking for some power-play points, Mintyukov’s worth a speculative add as a potential season-long hold. He’s been that good.
Barret Hayton’s (12% rostered) point drought has reached four games but I preach patience. He’s still the top center, he’s getting shots on goal, winning faceoffs and averaging 19 minutes per game. Logan Cooley being rostered in only 49 percent of leagues is a bit of a travesty, though that’s jumped 9 percent since Thursday.
Islanders at Sabres, 7 p.m. ET
Anytime the Isles don’t start Ilya Sorokin, I get nervous. They head into enemy territory and the Sabres offense has woken up. There’s not much to say (ever) about the Isles in fantasy, but I must recommend Kyle Palmieri (5% rostered) as a streamer/season-long hold once again. Playing L2 and PP1, Palmieri had his first multi-point game of the season Friday against the Devils. He fills categories.
Meanwhile, there’s significant changes to the Sabres lineup. Zach Benson and Devon Levi missed Friday’s skate, which means that Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (5% rostered) or Eric Comrie (1% rostered) will get the start. It’s about time; I feel like they’ve already played Levi too much, and now’s a chance for UPL or Comrie to grab a chunk of the timeshare if they play well.
Up front, the top line has been broken up and now Tage Thompson centers Jordan Greenway (0% rostered) and Dylan Cozens, while Casey Mittelstadt (13% rostered) centers Jeff Skinner and Alex Tuch. Greenway’s worth streaming on this line playing with two excellent players, while Mittelstadt’s fantasy value gets a boost as well, though Mittelstadt’s usually only valuable in points leagues.
Canucks at Panthers, 7 p.m. ET
Quinn Hughes (43) battles against Aleksander Barkov (16)The Canucks have lost two straight after winning two straight, which is more on par with what we should expect. Filip Hronek (45% rostered) scored an assist with six shots and two blocks against the Lightning, and on the top pair with Quinn Hughes deserves to be rostered. Hronek fills multiple categories on an excellent top pair for the Canucks.
No changes expected with the Panthers lineup, which means Evan Rodrigues (43% rostered) deserves another mention playing on the top line. He’s a good volume shooter and showing excellent chemistry with Sam Reinhart. Oliver Ekman-Larsson’s (16% rostered) even-strength play may still be a mixed bag, but with his power-play usage, he possesses excellent upside in fantasy. He’s scored a point in consecutive games and averaging over 25 minutes per game. Both Rodrigues and Ekman-Larsson are worth rostering in their current roles.
Capitals at Canadiens, 7 p.m. ET
Is Alex Ovechkin… cooked? Ovechkin has always done extraordinarily well against the Habs, but the Caps don’t look very good at all. They’re old, slow and don’t have any elite playmakers to set up Ovechkin, who has already gone two straight games without registering a shot. That’s just unheard of.
I am not sure I’d sell Ovechkin now because I’d be selling low, but it’s certainly difficult to justify his ADP right now, and note both his shooting and hitting volume had been declining even prior to this season. I’m instead more intrigued by their younger players as streaming options, including Matthew Phillips (0% rostered), the Flames’ top minor-league scorer over the past two seasons who is now playing on the top line opposite Ovechkin, and Connor McMichael (1% rostered), who’s been playing well on the second line with Evgeny Kuznetsov. Against the Habs, I think the Caps offense should have an easier time scoring; personally, I’d stream Phillips over McMichael.
All indications are that the Habs will leave their lines intact except for Justin Barron (0% rostered) drawing in for the injured Kaiden Guhle. Barron’s got some sneaky offensive upside (15 points in 39 games last season), but we’ll leave him on the waiver wire since Mike Matheson (32% rostered) is readily available and should be rostered in all leagues as the team’s top defenseman.
Rafaël Harvey-Pinard (2% rostered) remains on the top line and he’s an underrated banger. He’s a feisty player who hits a lot, and the points he can score are a nice bonus. The only drawback is limited ice time because he does not play on the power play at all.
Maple Leafs at Lightning, 7 p.m. ET
This might be the game of the night in a rematch of last year’s opening round. If last playoff was a toss-up, the Leafs have the clear edge now with better depth. I think this is the game Matthew Knies (17% rostered) finally gets his first point; he’s been playing well and showed well against the Lightning. Fellow rookie Fraser Minten, meanwhile, is expected to sit, and it’s looking like he may return to junior.
Knies might also get more minutes because Tyler Bertuzzi (54% rostered) hasn’t been that great on the top line. He’s averaging far fewer minutes than his linemates though Sheldon Keefe did mention that Bertuzzi’s not 100 percent healthy. Bertuzzi’s upside wasn’t that high to begin with, anyway, and in 10-team leagues he’s very borderline material.
Special teams could be the deciding factor in this one, which means John Klingberg (57% rostered) needs to be rostered. He’s been excellent on the power play even if he continues to get caved in at even strength.
Alex Barré-Boulet (0% rostered) gets another spin on the top line and, honestly, if it doesn’t work for him in this spot, it’s never going to. He’s been a tweener for eons, and with zero points and a minus-3 rating through three games, he hasn’t proven enough to be a streamer despite the juicy assignment.
If you’re really looking for a streamer on the Lightning, check out Nick Paul (28% rostered), who gets power-play minutes, hits, scores and wins draws, and it’s also time to get back on Tanner Jeannot (21% rostered) in banger leagues after registering four hits in three straight games and picking up the pace after a slow start.
