Ramblings: Wilson Suspended Six Games, Canes and Capitals Score Goals, Benn, Schmaltz, Weekend Streamers (Mar 23) – dobberhockey.com

Tom Wilson has been suspended six games for high-sticking Noah Gregor during Wednesday’s game. Wilson’s track record and the fact that he was offered an in-person hearing meant that the length of the suspension was no surprise. Barring a successful appeal (which I don’t see happening but you never know with the Department of Player Safety), Wilson will be able to return on the Capitals’ Thursday April 4 game.

Unfortunately, this suspension comes right in the middle of the fantasy playoffs for many. Because leagues generally don’t allow a suspended player to occupy an IR spot, you might have to drop Wilson unless you’re in a dynasty format or you have a very high number of bench slots. Even if your team is guaranteed to play next week, Wilson will be unavailable all of next week. A suspension is always an inherent risk of rostering a player like Wilson or Brad Marchand, even if they have plenty to offer fantasy teams when they are in the lineup. And even if they claim that they’ll clean up their act after the latest suspension.

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If you like goals, goals, and more goals, the Carolina/Washington match was your cup of tea. It featured one hat trick per team: Sonny Milano for the Capitals, and Sebastian Aho for the Hurricanes. After the teams combined for six goals each in regulation, the goals suddenly dried up in overtime and in the shootout. In the fifth round of the shootout, Dylan Strome scored the only goal of the shootout to win it for the Caps.

Aho is delivering for fantasy teams at the right time with 10 points in his last five games. Over those five games, Aho has three 3-point games along with a plus-11. Aho’s plus-30 ranking overall is among the top 10 in the league.

Jake Guentzel registered three primary assists, giving him 11 points in his last six games. He has been held without a point in just two of his seven games as a Cane, one of which was his first game. Guentzel has acclimatized himself quickly to his new team.

Playing on the Aho/Guentzel line, Seth Jarvis scored a goal for the sixth consecutive game. Jarvis has seven goals over that span. He’s an absolute must-start while he’s on the Canes’ top line.

Evgeny Kuznetsov was playing in his first game in Washington since being traded from the Capitals. Kuznetsov was held without a point, which means he has recorded five points in nine games as a Hurricane.

Darcy Kuemper was playing in just his second game out of the Capitals’ last 11 games. He didn’t exactly make a case for more playing time over Charlie Lindgren, as he was pulled after two periods after allowing four goals on 22 shots. Kuemper has not earned a quality start since February 8 and has a quality start percentage of just 38.7%. Although Kuemper is rostered in 45% of Yahoo leagues and 59% of Fantrax leagues, go ahead and drop him if you haven’t already, since he will lose more starts to Lindgren.

After underwhelming (by his standards) for much of the season, Alex Ovechkin is heating up again. Ovechkin scored another goal on Friday, giving him six goals in his last four games and at least a goal in all four of those games. Ovie also has multiple points in three consecutive games. To update the all-time total, Ovechkin is only 48 goals away from Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record.

Dylan Strome assisted on three goals, giving him six points over his last three games. The times are changing in Washington, as Strome is currently leading the Caps in scoring with 57 points, one ahead of Ovechkin.

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As we get to week-by-week or even game-by-game decisions as opposed to rest-of-season decisions, matchups become that more crucial. Earlier in the week, I had to decide whether to add Jamie Benn or Nick Schmaltz as I try to win a head-to-head fantasy playoff round. Both Benn and Schmaltz had the benefit of Wednesday and Friday light days, which is why I mention them in particular. Although Schmaltz has scored a little more this season, Benn offers more hits in a league that counts them. As well, the Coyotes have to face the Stars twice, while the Stars get to face the Coyotes twice. On top of that, my son recently bought a Benn t-shirt (shirsey). So I went with Benn. Makes sense, right?

Benn delivered for me on Friday, scoring a pair of goals with three shots, three hits, and two blocked shots. That ability to fill multiple categories is why I still consider him a Top 100 roto player. Benn has goals in three consecutive games and also has 14 points in his last 10 games. He’s rostered in about 70% of both Yahoo and Fantrax leagues, so maybe I lucked out in finding him.

By the way, I later added Schmaltz when I had another opening on my team. I figured two games of Schmaltz this week (as of Friday) would be more productive than one game of Alexis Lafreniere. Finding creative ways to maximize your games played is the name of the game right now.  

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If you were expecting easy points from Avalanche players against Columbus, then you probably weren’t disappointed, as Colorado cruised to an easy 6-1 victory. Mikko Rantanen led the Avs with two goals and an assist, while Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar each scored a goal and added an assist. Jonathan Drouin also chipped in two assists.  

The two hottest players in the league over the past 10+ games are the league’s two leading scorers. MacKinnon has 34 points over his past 17 games, while Nikita Kucherov has 28 points over his last 12 games. Yes, that’s over two points per game for each over those spans.

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The final game of the night was a complete contrast of the Capitals/Hurricanes game above. The Kraken and Coyotes didn’t score any goals over the first two periods, then each scored a goal in the third period before Dylan Guenther scored the overtime winner for the Coyotes.

Schmaltz, who I mentioned earlier, assisted on Clayton Keller‘s game-tying goal with just over a minute left in regulation. Schmaltz now has six points over his last four games and 18 points over his last 14 games. He’s only rostered in one-third of Yahoo leagues.

For Seattle, Ryker Evans scored his first career NHL goal. With Vince Dunn out of the lineup, Evans is receiving regular icetime and power-play time, having recorded three points (two on the power play) over his last four games. Evans has also received 20 minutes of icetime in each of his last three games. He’s a possible late-season deep league add, and he is also worth consideration in keeper leagues. For more, see his Dobber Prospects profile.

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Yes, we’re already thinking about the real playoffs. So it’s a good time to mention that Dobber’s 2024 Interactive Playoff Draft List can now be purchased. You can make your own picks for series winners, or go with Dobber’s picks if you’re not sure. Purchase yours here. Keep in mind that the actual spreadsheet will be available for use in early April.

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Being involved in a fantasy playoff round in a head-to-head league means that you’re probably referring to the Schedule Planner more often in order to maximize every game played. Wait, you’re not doing that? If it’s not too late, go to the Schedule Planner on Frozen Tools and set your date range.

If you’re looking for weekend streamers, you’ll ideally want players playing on both Saturday and Sunday.  Those teams are Calgary, Edmonton, Florida, New Jersey, NY Islanders, Ottawa, Philadelphia, Tampa Bay, Toronto, and Winnipeg. Alternatively, you may already have enough players on Saturday and just have a hole or two to fill on Sunday. With 10 games on a busier Sunday than normal, there will be plenty to choose from just for Sunday as well.

Here are some possible streamers for the teams listed above.

Yegor Sharangovich – Calgary hasn’t played since Monday, so a few decent scorers might be available from the Flames. From the under-50% rostered options, Yegor would be my preference because he’s the most reliable option from that group (9 PTS in last 7 GP). After that, it might be something like Jonathan Huberdeau (despite his Monday nothingburger in my multicat league), then Mikael Backlund (5 PTS in last 3 GP), then Andrei Kuzmenko. The Flames play a Thatcher Demko-less Canucks squad in Vancouver on Saturday before jetting over the Rockies to meet Buffalo at home on Sunday.

Kyle Palmieri – I’ve used Palmieri as a streamer at least a couple times this season, and I still like him in that spot. He’s receiving top-6 minutes and first-unit power-play time, scoring 8 PPG and 17 PPP. In addition, he’s avoided the injury bug unlike past seasons. Palmieri also averages over 2.5 SOG/GP, further helping his cause. Teammate Anders Lee might be a better option in bangers leagues, but Palmieri (17%) has been a better scorer and is more readily available in Yahoo leagues than Lee (28%).

Morgan Frost – I’m not sold on many Flyers beyond Travis Konecny and Owen Tippett as reliable season-long options, given how John Tortorella likes to evenly distribute his lines. Frost also hasn’t been immune to Torts’s healthy-scratching ways this season, although his recent production (7 PTS in last 5 GP) should keep him in the lineup in the near future. Frost has also found himself on the top power play, even logging 19 minutes total in his last game. At 2.5 PTS/60 this season, Frost is also showing similar productivity to the likes of Konecny, Tippett, and Joel Farabee.

Cam York – Only 14% rostered, York is playing like he should be on a much higher percentage of fantasy teams. The five points over his past five games only scratches the surface. Over his past six games, York has averaged over 25 minutes of icetime per game, including 29 minutes against Carolina on Thursday. And yes, he has also grabbed first-unit power-play minutes. Over his past nine games, York has also blocked over five shots per game. He won’t be healthy scratched anytime soon either.

Anthony Duclair – Since being traded to T-Bay, Duclair has seven points in five games. Going back even further, The Duke has 12 points over his last seven games. His even-strength deployment on its own is a major upgrade from anything he could have received in San Jose, as Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point are now his linemates. His overall icetime with the Bolts isn’t amazing, as he averages under 15 minutes per game. As well, Tampa’s second power-play unit is a major downgrade from its first unit.

Tyler Bertuzzi – With Mitch Marner out of the lineup, Bertuzzi has received some cuts on the top power play. Although he hasn’t responded specifically on the power play, Bertuzzi has five points over his last four games. If Bertuzzi isn’t available (he missed Friday’s practice due to illness), you could look up Max Domi, who had four assists in his last game (Wednesday against Washington). I was surprised to learn that Domi (24%) is rostered in more leagues than Bertuzzi in Yahoo (21%).  

Timothy Liljegren – If you need a blueliner that can score, Liljegren might provide what you need. He has four points over his last four games and has also logged over 50% of the Leafs’ available power-play minutes over the last two games. His fourth-quarter icetime is up over two minutes per game over his first-quarter icetime, helping his situation. Liljegren has also been contributing in peripherals lately, including six blocked shots on Wednesday.

Sean Monahan – Many players lose value when being traded to a stronger team midseason, but not Monahan. Since being traded to Winnipeg, Monahan has a very respectable eight goals and 15 points in 21 games and has maintained top power-play minutes. He’s actually become one of the season’s top comeback players, as his 50 points and 20 power-play points are both his highest since the 2018-19 season. Monahan is also valuable in leagues that count faceoffs, as he has won nearly 600 draws with a winning percentage of nearly 55%.

Other possible two-day waiver wire pickups: Adam Henrique, Sam Bennett, Darren Raddysh.

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