Success throughout a fantasy hockey regular season does not guarantee success in an important fantasy playoff week. That’s why it’s important to work the schedule to your advantage. How many games will that player that you are looking to add be able to contribute to your roster? Remember, it’s not out of the question to drop a normally fantasy-worthy player who is injured in order to push for a league title.
Here is a list of teams that play twice over the final three days of this week (Friday, Saturday, Sunday): Anaheim, Dallas, Detroit, Minnesota, New Jersey, NY Islanders, NY Rangers, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, San Jose, Vancouver, Winnipeg.
Of those teams, Anaheim, Dallas, Detroit, Pittsburgh, and Winnipeg play on both off nights of Friday (four games) and Sunday (five games), which can potentially help fill roster gaps on otherwise slow nights. We will list a few players to target from those teams, along with other players that could also come through in the clutch for you.
Tomas Tatar, LW/RW, DET
A sleeper pick in many leagues, Tatar was discarded to the waiver wire after a slow start (seven points in 24 games). Yet he has turned it up in March, scoring seven goals and 11 points in 11 games. His seven goals in March has pushed him up to 21 goals this season, which makes it the third consecutive season that he has scored at least 20 (he has a fourth season with 19 goals). Tatar has formed a nice chemistry with Henrik Zetterberg (more line combinations here), who has experienced a recent resurgence of his own (19 points in his last 15 games).
Elias Lindholm, C/RW, CAR
With Carolina winning four of its last five games, Lindholm has been one of the league’s hottest players. With a goal on Thursday, Lindholm has scored at least a point in nine consecutive games. That streak has pushed Lindholm up to his first-ever 40-point season. We’ve been waiting for Lindholm, the fifth overall pick in 2013, to break out. In his fourth full season, he may finally be doing so. Lindholm is more likely to be unowned than his linemate Sebastian Aho, who has a five-game point streak of his own. But of course both players could be worth adding if available.
Mathieu Perreault, C/LW, WPG
If you regularly read fantasy hockey articles, this won’t be the first time you’ve seen Perreault mentioned as a possible waiver-wire pickup. When he has linemates like Mark Scheifele and Blake Wheeler, he will get points. And that he has been doing recently, scoring at least two points in each of his last three games. This is a great situation for a player to be in, yet he is unowned in far too many leagues. Perreault has been producing at over a 0.8 point-per-game pace since the new year, so there has to be room for that kind of production on just about any fantasy team.
John Hayden, C/RW, CHI
Hayden was recently signed by the Blackhawks after an impressive final season at Yale University (21 goals in 33 games). He has left a positive first impression in the NHL as well, scoring a goal and two assists in five games so far. As well, he also had a goal disallowed on Tuesday because of a successful offside challenge. The 6-foot-3, 223-pound Hayden also holds value in leagues that count hits, as he has already delivered 22 hits in five games. He should also be considered a target in keeper leagues.
Scott Wilson, C/LW/RW, PIT
Wilson is the answer to the question of which player lined up with Sidney Crosby and Conor Sheary on Thursday. With Jake Guentzel currently dealing with a concussion, Wilson received an opportunity on the top line on Thursday against Ottawa, although he could not register a point. Wilson has not recorded a point in six games and is without a goal in 11 games. But if he manages to stay on the Crosby line through the weekend, it should be a matter of time before the points come in.
Jaroslav Halak, G, NYI
It’s clear that Halak was this season’s biggest busts (3.23 GAA, .904 SV%) before he was demoted to the AHL. Halak is deserving of the recall, as he seems to have gotten his game back together during his AHL time (2.15 GAA, .925 SV% in 27 games). Thomas Greiss has started all but five games since Halak was demoted, and the workload could be getting to him (3.24 GAA and .895 SV% in February and March). So expect Halak to make a few key starts for the Isles down the stretch as they push for a playoff spot. He’s worth a flier if you need an extra goalie and the matchup looks good.
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