Fantasy Hockey Roundup: Stars Break Through, Celebrini Injury Casts Shadow Over Sharks

Monday night's NHL slate was a brief four-game card, but it still packed some heavy punches when it came to excitement. The Dallas Stars finally got the monkey off their back, winning their first game of the season in a 5-0 rout over the San Jose Sharks, who may have lost Macklin Celebrini to injury. 

The Ottawa Senators also put together an impressive showing, beating the Boston Bruins 4-1 behind a three-point night from star forward Tim Stützle. Oddly enough, each of the four games on the card finished with exactly five goals in total, with some players enjoying major breakout performances while others still haven't hit their stride. 

Here are some of the biggest fantasy hockey highs and lows from Monday night.

Dallas dropped its first two games in surprising fashion and entered Monday without a single goal from a forward. The offense broke out against a Sharks team that was among the league's weaker defensive clubs last season.

Defenseman Miro Heiskanen opened the scoring in the first period and now owns Dallas' first two goals of the year. In the second, the Stars shook off the rust with surprising goals from bottom-six forwards Joel Kiviranta and Jamie Benn. Jason Robertson and Mikko Rantanen closed out the scoring with the trio of Benn, Robertson and Roope Hintz each finishing with multiple points. In between the pipes, Jake Oettinger completed a relatively sweat-free 14-save shutout and his second win of the season.

Not everyone joined the bounce back party, however, as Wyatt Johnston and Tyler Seguin were again held off the scoresheet and remain pointless this season. Seguin had looked like a potential late-round draft gem, but that hasn't materialized. 

Johnston, a top-20 pick in most fantasy drafts, hasn't yet delivered on that upside. Defenseman Thomas Harley, expected to be a solid source of points on a loaded Dallas roster, also has yet to record a point.

The Sharks may have suffered a bigger loss than the score as new team captain Macklin Celebrini, who carries much of San Jose's production nearly every night, was a late scratch with an apparent lower-body injury. With the pressure on him to not only perform but stay in the lineup, the setback is a concerning one.

Celebrini, a consensus top-five fantasy pick in most leagues, is coming off a historic 115-point season at just 19 years old. Many were eager to see what he would do in his age-20 campaign and the injury does cause some major concerns. The severity of the injury and any potential absence is not yet unknown, but fantasy managers who built their teams around Celebrini may be without their anchor this week.

When the Senators traded captain Brady Tkachuk in the offseason, some worried about the impact on Stützle's production. Early returns suggest he's fine on his own. Stützle posted two goals and an assist in Ottawa's win over its Original Six rival, giving him four points through two games. 

A player who has typically produced between 80 and 90 points a season, he looks poised to take another step forward. the 24-year-old was going outside the top 40 in most drafts but currently ranks inside the top 25, making him an early-season draft steal.

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