NHL Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Players to Target - Tuesday, Dec. 19

Ivan Barbashev, C/LW, VEG at CAR (48% rostered)

Barbashev will not be a secret any longer with a three-game goal streak. He’s getting back into a groove and re-establishing himself as an excellent complementary player to Jack Eichel, and though Barbashev isn’t getting a ton of minutes – he’s averaging 15 minutes per game – they’ve been very productive. No worries that Barbashev is on PP2; it’s encouraging that he can score this much at even strength, indicating that he’s not reliant on special teams to get his points.

Josh Norris, C, OTT at ARI (33% rostered)

Not sure why Norris is perennially under-rostered. Yes, Norris is second fiddle to Tim Stützle, but Norris possesses 60-point upside and he’s on track to have well over 200 shots on goal. Tack on a healthy amount of hits and faceoff wins and four goals in his past six games, Norris is a great multi-category contributor.

Matthew Knies, LW, TOR vs NYR (16% rostered)

What will Knies do for an encore after a Gordie Howe hat trick against the Pens? Auston Matthews is expected to return to the lineup after missing their previous game due to illness, and Knies will be sharing the ice with Matthews and William Nylander. That’s a high-octane offensive line, and the Rangers aren’t particularly strong at even strength. That bodes well for Knies, who generally doesn’t see a lot of time on the power play.

Brock Faber, D, MIN at BOS (11% rostered)

With Jared Spurgeon out of the lineup, Faber has stepped up in a huge way, skating over 30 minutes in each of his two previous games entering Monday’s matchup against the Pens. It’s a back-to-back, so the Wild may have to ease off on Faber’s usage, but he’s playing on the top pair and quarterbacking PP1. Faber’s production has been modest, but being on the ice is half the battle and he’s certainly getting more opportunities than any other Wild ‘D’.

Conor Garland, RW, VAN at NSH (8% rostered)

The Canucks’ third line with Garland and Dakota Joshua has arguably been their best, with Garland looking to extend his assist streak to four games. Garland’s not a good finisher but creates plenty of scoring chances, and he also plays on PP2 for some value added.

Cam York, D, PHI at NJ (7% rostered)

If you need help on defense, York is one of the better high-floor options out there. He skates a ton of minutes and often tasked with generating some offense from the blueline. He scored his fifth goal of the season Saturday against the Wings and provided at least a shot, block or hit in every game since Nov. 11. The production is modest, but you’re going to get something from York.

Yegor Chinakhov, RW, CLB at BUF (4% rostered)

There’s always quite a few mid-tier fantasy options to choose from the Jackets, and that includes Kirill Marchenko and Kent Johnson. But the player with the hot hand is Chinakhov, who’s on a four-game goal streak and played more than 19 minutes in each of his past two games. His line with Marchenko and Dmitri Voronkov has been arguably the Jackets’ top line, and in a head-to-head matchup should have the advantage against either of the Sabres’ bottom-six lines.

Zach Benson, LW, BUF vs. CLB (3% rostered)

Benson will remain with the Sabres even with the upcoming World Juniors, and he’s been playing well on the top line with Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch. He was held without a point in a shutout loss to the Coyotes, but still managed to get four shots on goal. Jack Quinn is expected to return, but it’s likely the Sabres will ease him back into the lineup, ensuring Benson’s top-six role is likely safe, for now.