Welcome back to another fantasy hockey week in review. Here, I will cover the week that was in fantasy hockey, including the latest streaks, trends, and anything else that catches my attention.
Tuesday night officially marks the quarter mark of the NHL season. As we do, there is no shortage of stories to unpack.
Let’s dig in!
Fantasy Hockey Week in Review
NHL Three Stars of the Week
First Star: Connor McDavid, C, Edmonton Oilers
It is about time. Hard to believe it took McDavid seven weeks to claim his first star, any star, of the week. I say about time, but it was only ever, a matter of time.
His three goals and nine assists in four games is what we have come to expect of McDavid. You could see his frustrations growing game after game. He hasn’t looked happy all year. That anger and frustration were finally put into motion.
Expect a massive streak with multiple multi-point games through December. Once he starts rolling, he’s almost impossible to stop. Case in point, he had another three points last night.
Second Star: Nikita Kucherov, RW, Tampa Bay Lightning
Kucherov had an eight-point week anchored by his six-point game versus the Carolina Hurricanes. It marks his fifth game with three or more points already this season.
Now up to 37 points in 22 games, Kucherov leads the NHL in points and is on pace for 140 for the year. He is also on pace to break his career-high of 128 points. It’s a long season and that pace would be difficult to hold. Still, Kucherov has established himself as a top-five fantasy asset this season.
Third Star: Juuse Saros, G, Nashville Predators
And so the Predators go as Saros goes. Saros ran the table last week, going 3-0-0 with a .921 save percentage and a 2.35 goals-against average.
As a result, the Predators find themselves on a five-game win streak.
This couldn’t come at a better time for Saros. Up until this point, his season had been lackluster. Even with that strong week, his numbers are below average. He currently holds a 7-9-0 record, a 3.05 goals-against average, and a .898 save percentage, with one shutout.
Austin Matthews, C, Toronto Maple Leafs
Speaking of rounding into form, Matthews is anything but. Matthews has been propped up by his early-season hat tricks, yet he only has one goal and two assists in his last eight games.
The one saving grace, I guess, is he’s still averaging almost four shots on goal during this stretch.
He still sits second in the league with 14 goals. Usually, when Matthews breaks out of slumps it results in a goal streak and multiple-goal games. In the meantime, this is painful.
Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman, G, Boston Bruins
For the first time in over a year, there appears to be a chink in the armor of this dynamic duo. In four of the last five games, Ullmark and Swayman have given up five or more goals.
They have been alternating starts all season. There was an opportunity for one of them to take a little more control of the net and steal starts from the other. Neither has seized the reigns. Expect the alternating starts to continue.
If there’s a worrisome trend here it is that neither goal has been able to stop the bleeding. The Bruins are too disciplined a team for this to continue. It is nice to know this duo is human though.
Patrick Kane, RW, Detroit Red Wings
Well, the wait is over. The future Hall of Famer has signed with the Red Wings.
Hip surgeries can be tricky for hockey players. He’s a dynamic skater who relies on shiftiness and motion to avoid contact. There is a lot of stop-and-start to his game. It all involves his hips.
There are a ton of comments on ‘X’ (Twitter) arguing both sides of this signing. Luckily, in our little fantasy hockey bubble, we don’t care about Kane’s defensive deficiencies. All we care about and hope for is the return of the puck wizard from two years ago.
I imagine Alex DeBrincat is more than happy to see his old Black Hawks linemate join him in Detroit. It still feels weird putting Kane and Detroit in the same sentence.
Michale DeRosa is set to release an article breaking down Kane and what to expect upon his return. Stay tuned.
Corey Perry, LW, Chicago Black Hawks (UFA)
Perry was waived by the Black Hawks yesterday for the purposes of contract termination. Depending on the reason(s) for his contract termination, Perry may not be unemployed long. He could re-sign with a new team as early as Thursday.
His value is very limited in most fantasy hockey pools. In a standard 12-team, odds are Perry is a free agent. Almost no fantasy impact.
Where this gets mildly interesting is that Perry has value to contending teams. He plays with an edge and shows up in big games. He could re-sign with another team over the next few weeks on a cheaper contract.
Corey Perry at one million dollars is a lot more attractive in a salary cap league than Perry at four million dollars.
In deep leagues, he can still chip in 15 goals, and 20 assists, including a few power-play points.
Matt Boldy, LW/RW, Filip Gustavsson, G, Minnesota Wild
I’ve listed these two together because they are the two most likely to benefit from the coaching change. The Wild fired Dean Evason today and within hours had hired John Hynes as his replacement.
There were rumours Boldy wasn’t happy playing under Evason and it was directly impacting his play this year. He scored only his second goal of the season late in the third period last night against St. Louis. Here’s hoping it is the spark he needs to get going.
Gustavsson has been horrible so far. I own him in four of five pools. Needless to say, I’m last or close to last in goalie stats in each of those leagues. Again, let’s hope Tuesday night was a sign of things to come and Hynes sparks Gustavsson and the Wild. Gustavsson had his best games of the season giving up only one goal on 23 shots for a .958 save percentage.
Thomas Chabot, D, Ottawa Senators
It looks like he is set to return on Friday. He has missed the last ten games due to a hand injury.
In his absence, Jacob Chychrun and Jake Sanderson claimed primary power-play duties. Both sit with 12 points in 17 games. It should be a dogfight for time on the power play
This is easier said than done. Chabot is not the biggest stalwart on defense. He has his own warts defending.
It is only a matter of time before Sanderson becomes anointed as this team’s number one defenceman. He has the best all-around game of the trio.
I would keep close tabs on Chabot’s deployment. It might be a case of selling while his stock is still decent.
The other side of the coin though, if the Senators lose a couple more games you have to think D.J. Smith’s job will be in danger. A coaching change could flip the deployment of this trio on its head.
Adam Fox, D, New York Rangers
Fox is scheduled to return from injury reserve today. It is expected he will play in tonight’s game. This is big news for fantasy hockey owners as his absence has surely been missed. I know I have felt the impact.
This will be a big blow to Erik Gustafsson, who will relinquish his spot on the top power-play unit.
Fox is a top fantasy option on defense. Even though he has missed 10 games he could still post a 70-point season.
Thanks for reading. That’s a wrap for this week folks.
Follow me on X: @doylelb4