If Black Friday didn’t provide you with the deals that you were looking for, there’s always your fantasy hockey league’s waiver wire.
In stock this week are some bargain players that happen to be available in most fantasy leagues. Included are a variety of proven commodities and up-and-coming players for your fantasy hockey shopping needs.
Jake Guentzel, C, PIT
Would a player that has been playing on a line with Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel interest you? Although he was held off the scoresheet on Wednesday, Guentzel scored two goals in his NHL debut on Monday.
His AHL stats this season (17 points in 16 games) suggest that he is worthy of a call-up.
Chris Kunitz is currently week-to-week with a lower-body injury, meaning Guentzel should stick around for at least a few more games. With possible power-play time on the horizon, he’s a decent short-term pickup.
Sam Gagner, C/RW, CBJ
We’ve seen this before from Gagner: an out-of-nowhere hot stretch followed by a long stretch of nothing that results in him losing ice time and getting moved to another team.
The latest example has Gagner riding a six-game point streak, which was snapped on Wednesday.
Gagner’s ice time isn’t favourable (under 14 minutes per game), as Columbus’ scoring attack is deeper than you think.
But that also works in his favour, as the Blues Jackets have the second-best offence in the league (3.11 goals/game). Add Gagner in deeper leagues, but drop him at the first sign of a dry spell.
David Perron, LW/RW, STL
Perron was dropped in many leagues after a slow start to his second stint with the Blues. However, you may want to rethink his omission from your roster.
Perron is currently on a six-game point streak in which he has two goals and six assists. These totals are no doubt aided by the first-unit power play minutes he is receiving and his chemistry with linemates Paul Stastny and Jaden Schwartz (view more line combinations here).
Added bonus if your league counts penalty minutes: Perron has picked up a minor penalty in each of his last four games and six of his last eight games.
Valtteri Filppula, C/LW, TB
Last week we mentioned Vladislav Namestnikov as a player to target because of the Steven Stamkos injury.
Namestnikov’s ice time has been all over the map, while Filppula has been filling in with major minutes (over 20 minutes in two of his last three games).
Filppula’s ice time total might be deceiving due to a significant penalty-killing role, where he has been leading Lightning forwards lately. But he is also pulling his weight offensively, recording points in four of his last five games. A total of 14 points in 20 games isn’t that bad either.
Ryan Ellis, D, NSH
Your window of opportunity to acquire Ellis is closing fast, thanks to a Monday game that saw him fill the stat sheet.
In that game against Tampa Bay, Ellis recorded three assists with a plus-2 rating and 15 minutes in penalties resulting from an altercation with J.T. Brown.
Ellis doesn’t normally rack up the penalty minutes, but he has blossomed into a nice secondary scoring blue line option for both the Predators and fantasy teams. With nine points in 19 games, Ellis is on pace for the first 40-point season of his career.
Oscar Klefbom, D, EDM
We’ve been waiting for Klefbom to show his full offensive upside, and he may have given us a glimpse of it recently.
Prior to Wednesday’s game, Klefbom had scored goals in three consecutive games. He may not be taking the ball and running with it, but he is the one defenceman on the Oilers’ first-unit power play.
We all know the Oilers have a potentially scary-looking power play, and no one else on their blue line seems like a natural fit as that puck-moving power-play defenceman. So Klefbom is worth taking a chance on as long as he can hold onto that spot.
