It's a big 13-game slate which means plenty of players to sort through. Cole Perfetti and Alexis Lafrenière's breakouts, Eeli Tolvanen's hot streak, Connor Brown playing with Connor McDavid and more.
I can’t imagine a better morning than some eggs, bacon, potatoes and coffee to go with my hockey. The Global Series in Stockholm continues with an 8 a.m. PT/11 a.m. ET start with the Wild at Senators.
The rest of the 12-game day of fun features staggered starts at 1 p.m. ET, 2 p.m. ET, and 4 p.m. ET before the usual primetime starts.
Expected Starters
(ranked by matchup)
Arvid Soderblom, CHI at NSH (3% rostered)
Soderblom definitely has a chance in this one. The Preds have lost six of their last seven and scoring goals will be a problem going forward with Tommy Novak injured. Beyond Ryan O’Reilly and Colton Sissons, Juuso Parssinen is the only other center to have scored a goal. Soderblom can be hit-or-miss, but this being the first game of a back-to-back for the Hawks, they should be fresh.
Karel Vejmelka, ARI at WPG (36% rostered)
The Coyotes get the Jets on the second half of their back-to-back, and Vejmelka has been surprisingly good against them in his career – 2.29 GAA and .935 SP – but it has not translated to a winning record with only one win in seven games. I’d be wary of this start even with Vejmelka’s excellent numbers given the Jets’ recent scoring binge. The Coyotes will also be without one of their top centers in Barrett Hayton to provide goal support.
Laurent Brossoit, WPG vs. ARI (3% rostered)
The Jets have used Brossoit very sparingly this season despite Connor Hellebuyck’s struggles. Perhaps the thinking is to play Hellebuyck until he snaps out of his funk, but it’s also left Brossoit ice-cold, and he’ll be making just his fourth start of the season. To be fair, Brossoit hasn’t been particularly good, either, and it’s just difficult to trust him given his performances and the Jets playing back-to-back.
Elvis Merzlikins, CLB at WSH (27% rostered)
The Jackets are playing back-to-back Saturday and Sunday, which means Merzlikins and backup Spencer Martin will split the starts. Either way, the Caps will be a difficult opponent considering they’ve won three straight and seven of their last nine. Meanwhile, the Jackets are having a ton of trouble finding their identity and have lost seven straight and 11 of their past 12 despite adding a ton of new players in the off-season.
Forwards (Add/Hold)
Alexis Lafrenière, LW/RW, NYR at NJ (38% rostered)
This truly feels like a breakout season for Lafrenière. Thanks to a four-game point streak, he’s now on pace for 64 points, which would obliterate his previous career high of 39 points. He’s incredibly streaky – which young player isn’t – and the Devils are ripe to be picked apart with a porous defense and mediocre goaltending. Lafrenière’s worth adding and holding just to see if he can keep this up because he’s got some long-term (and keeper league) value being just 22 years old.
Owen Tippett, RW, PHI vs. VEG (34% rostered)
Grab Tippett while he’s hot before it’s too late. The headache with John Tortorella’s teams is that you never know who’s going to get ice time, but Tippett’s definitely been the most productive with four goals in three games. He offers very good shooting volume (52 shots) and provides a low floor.
Logan Cooley, C, ARI at WPG (32% rostered)
This is a speculative add since we don’t know for sure what lines the Coyotes will roll out with Barrett Hayton injured long term. The most logical solution is to promote Cooley to the top line, putting him between one of the league’s best duos in Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz, and that will certainly give Cooley’s fantasy value a huge boost. However, there’s also a chance that Schmaltz moves to center and another winger gets promoted instead, such as Jason Zucker or Alex Kerfoot. Either way, Hayton’s injury opens up opportunities beyond just PP1 upside for Cooley.
Cole Perfetti, C, WPG vs. ARI (26% rostered)
He’s on a five-game goal streak. We talk up Alexis Lafreniere and Quinton Byfield’s potential breakout seasons, but Perfetti’s getting lost in the shuffle despite putting up really good numbers. Add him now.
Dawson Mercer, C/RW, NJ vs. NYR (25% rostered)
It’ll be interesting to see what the Devils do with Mercer with Jack Hughes’ impending return. In Hughes and Nico Hischier’s absence, Mercer was given the task of carrying the offense and he did it admirably; four points in his past five games and 17 shots on net after going four games without registering a single shot at the beginning of the season. It’s still worth taking a chance on Mercer as a season-long add because there’s a chance Hughes provides synergy and pushes Mercer’s offensive production to a higher level even if his ice time is cut back.
Forwards (Stream)
Eeli Tolvanen, LW/RW, SEA at VAN (27% rostered)
Tolvanen’s been tearing it up and has scored at least a point in eight of his past 10 games. Coming into Vancouver where the Canucks are unbeaten in regulation is a difficult matchup, but Tolvanen’s points streak, shot volume and usage on PP1 makes him an enticing streamer. The Canucks PK doesn’t defend all that well, ranking 22nd in the league at 75.9 percent. The Kraken-Canucks matchup tends to be high-scoring with 60 goals scored in eight games, an average of 7.5 per game.
Mathieu Joseph, RW, OTT vs. MIN (8% rostered)
That’s now six points in five games for Joseph, who continues to be under-rostered across all leagues. Even if the scoring spike is unsustainable – keep in mind he shot just 4.5 percent last season – the hot streak is still worth taking advantage. Joseph is playing L2 and PP2 and the Wild are allowing the second-most goals per game at 4.20.
Connor Brown, RW, EDM at TB (4% rostered)
Brown returns to the lineup after missing six games and he’ll be plugged onto Connor McDavid’s right wing on Kris Knoblauch’s new-look lines. Note Knoblauch was both McDavid and Brown’s coach in the OHL, so if there’s a coach that’s familiar with how they would work together, it’s Knoblauch. The Lightning may be without their top defensive center Anthony Cirelli after he failed to finish the last game against the Blackhawks due to an injury.
Philipp Kurashev, C, CHI at NSH (2% rostered)
Kurashev has been Connor Bedard’s linemate since returning from injury and that’s about all you need to know. He’s up to seven points in eight games this season with plenty of assists on Bedard’s goals, and the Preds are not getting good goaltending from Juuse Saros this season. However, note it’s usually an assist or nothing for Kurashev, who doesn’t shoot very often.
Michael Amadio, C, VEG at PHI (1% rostered)
The upside may be modest, but it’s there. DFS players might consider Amadio because he can be had for a really cheap price, and he’s scored three assists in three games. Playing with elite linemates such as Mark Stone certainly helps.
Dmitri Voronkov, LW, CLB at WSH (1% rostered)
With four assists in five games and 12 hits in 11 games this season, Voronkov’s got some sneaky banger league value. The big Russian forward isn’t just getting lucky; he’s got some legitimate offense and showing good chemistry with linemates Adam Fantilli and Kirill Marchenko despite the language barrier. Last season with Kazan in the KHL, Voronkov finished third on the team with 18 goals as a 22-year-old on a veteran-laden team.
And check out this cool clip of Fantilli talking Marchenko and Voronkov through some plays and how much he likes playing with them.
Defensemen (Add/Hold)
Erik Gustafsson, NYR at NJ (30% rostered)
Adam Fox is not close to returning and Gustafsson remains curiously under-rostered. He’s on a four-game point streak with a goal and five assists, and his fantasy value might not be higher than it is right now. Once Fox comes back, Gustafsson’s usage on the power play will decline.
Defensemen (Stream)
Jared Spurgeon, MIN at OTT (19% rostered)
With the Wild running five forwards on the top unit, it’s pushed Spurgeon down to PP2. However, history has shown that five-forward units typically don’t last very long, and the Wild’s 22nd-ranked power play is simply just trying different things. This gives Spurgeon some room to move up to PP1 should the Wild switch things up, otherwise Spurgeon can at least be a source of blocked shots with three in each of the past two games. Keep in mind the Sens’ defense has been a major weakness and this might be a high-scoring matchup.
