NHL Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Expected Starters - Saturday, Jan. 27

Saturday, Jan. 27. 14-game slate. 

* = confirmed or probable

Linus Ullmark, BOS at Samuel Ersson, PHI* (12:30 p.m. ET)

Darcy Kuemper, WSH at Jake Oettinger, DAL (2 p.m. ET)

Juuse Saros, NSH at Stuart Skinner, EDM* (4 p.m. ET)

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, BUF at Kaapo Kähkönen, SJ* (4 p.m. ET)

Connor Ingram, ARI at Pyotr Kochetkov, CAR (7 p.m. ET)

Jonathan Quick, NYR* at Joonas Korpisalo, OTT (7 p.m. ET)

Jake Allen, MTL* at Tristan Jarry, PIT (7 p.m. ET)

Vitek Vanecek, NJ at Andrei Vasilevskiy, TB (7 p.m. ET)

 Ilya Samsonov, TOR* at Connor Hellebuyck, WPG (7 p.m. ET)

Anthony Stolarz, FLA* at Ilya Sorokin, NYI* (7:30 p.m. ET)

Logan Thompson, VEG* at Alex Lyon, DET (8 p.m. ET)

John Gibson, ANA at Filip Gustavsson, MIN (9 p.m. ET)

Petr Mrazek, CHI at Jacob Markstrom, CGY (10 p.m. ET)

Elvis Merzlikins, CLB at Thatcher Demko, VAN (10 p.m. ET)

Streaming Options

( < 50% of Yahoo leagues, ranked by matchup)

Kaapo Kähkönen, SJ vs. BUF (3% rostered)

Kahkonen has been quite impressive lately with two straight quality starts and four in his past six. He has a .901 SP since Jan. 1, and while it may not seem impressive, it's miles better than what it was from October to December. 

With some added momentum from Logan Couture's return to the lineup, I give the edge to the Sharks. The Sabres offense can be terrifying so a good save percentage is not guaranteed, but I don't mind taking a risk on Kähkönen this time. 

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, BUF at SJ (43% rostered)

Luukkonen has lost two straight games and the Sharks have won three straight so this isn't exactly a slam-dunk decision. That being said, all three wins were by one goal (Tomas Hertl's insurance marker against the Ducks was an ENG). 

The Sabres won all three of their previous matchups, including Luukkonen's shutout on Jan. 15 when he stopped all 28 shots in a 3-0 win. For a revenge game on home ice, I think the Sharks take this one but Luukkonen could still post a very nice save percentage. 

Anthony Stolarz, FLA at NYI (11% rostered)

Stolarz has been exceptional on the road this season (5-2-1, .930 SP, 1.81 GAA) but the Isles are also very strong at home. I think the Panthers are a top-two team in the East and certainly have the edge here, though keep in mind they're also playing the second game of a back-to-back albeit with almost no travel.

The hiring of Patrick Roy hasn't quite had its intended effect yet, and I would lean on the Panthers in this matchup. A win seems very likely. 

Jonathan Quick, NYR at OTT (36% rostered)

Since Jan. 1, Quick is 0-2-1 with a .896 SP. This is not unexpected; his play was unsustainably good in the first half of the season and there wasn't really ever a scenario -- barring injury, of course -- that he would take over for Igor Shesterkin.

That being said, the Rangers are struggling, and even waived trusted veteran Nick Bonino to find the right mix. With the Sens winning three of their past five, finally icing an (almost) healthy lineup and facing the Rangers on the second half of a back-to-back, I think the advantage should go to them.

Samuel Ersson, PHI vs. BOS (46% rostered)

I've been firmly on the Ersson train but the Flyers' recent play gives me pause. They've lost four straight, lost one half of their surprisingly effective tandem with Carter Hart taking a leave of absence, and they've been punching above their weight for much of the season. 

Is this the John Tortorella second-half fade or just a mid-season lull? He pushes his teams so hard that they can run out of steam before the end of the season. I'm wary of this matchup and would wait to see if Ersson can get hot before starting him again. 

Jake Allen, MTL at PIT (8% rostered)

The Pens' offense has sputtered on home ice for much of the season, but Allen is still a dicey play. He had an .833 SP in his lone start against the Pens last season and .880 throughout his career. Is there upset potential? Yes, because I don't think the Pens can be trusted, but in the best-case scenario, you're looking at a win but with a low SP.