20 Fantasy Thoughts: Take advantage of the Sabres' untapped potential

Twenty-six days.

Believe it or not, that’s all that remains in the 2021/2022 NHL regular season.

Before the dust settles, however, fantasy owners undoubtedly have championship aspirations in mind as the marathon will become a sprint over the next few weeks.

Kudos to those of you who prevailed in the opening round of your playoffs and good luck to the many others just starting your journey.

1. The upcoming week (Apr. 4-10) in the NHL is tentatively slated to feature 53 games.

Monday: 4 Games

Tuesday: 10 Games

Wednesday: 5 Games

Thursday: 10 Games

Friday: 5 Games

Saturday: 12 Games

Sunday: 7 Games

2. For schedule manipulation purposes, there are 12 four-game teams to target this week when it comes to waiver adds (BOS, BUF, CGY, CAR, CBJ, DAL, NSH, OTT, PIT, STL, TBL, TOR).

2. From a strength of schedule standpoint, I like these three slates the most:

Boston Bruins: Mon (@CBJ), Tues (@DET), Fri (@TBL), Sun (@WSH)

Waiver Looks: Erik Haula, Jake DeBrusk

SN Fantasy: David Pastrnak 3, BOS Goalies 3

St. Louis Blues: Mon (ARI), Wed (SEA), Fri (MIN), Sat (NYI)

Waiver Looks: Robert Thomas, Justin Faulk

SN Fantasy: STL Goalies 3, Vladimir Tarasenko 2

Tampa Bay Lightning: Mon (TOR), Wed (@WSH), Fri (BOS), Sun (BUF)

Waiver Looks: Brandon Hagel, Anthony Cirelli

SN Fantasy: Nikita Kucherov 4, TBL Goalies 4

4. Furthermore, stay away from Chicago and Vegas. Each team will play just twice, so it’s unlikely they’ll provide you with much value.

5. Even though Jack Campbell’s back in the mix for the Maple Leafs, I wouldn’t sleep on Erik Kallgren. With Petr Mrazek on the shelf for the foreseeable future, it’s Campbell or bust for Toronto this season, so it would be wise not to overwork him down the stretch. Monitor closely.

6. Provided that he continues to skate on line two with John Tavares and Alex Kerfoot, Ilya Mikheyev continues to be a cheeky streamer option. The Russian winger has five goals and seven points in the past nine contests.

7. Scoop up Victor Olofsson. The dual-eligible Sabres winger has been quietly heating up lately with six goals and nine points over his past 11 outings.

8. In general, there’s tons of untapped value in Buffalo right now. Tage Thompson, Jeff Skinner, Alex Tuch and Kyle Okposo should also firmly be on your radar, especially this upcoming week with the Sabres playing four times.

9. After missing nearly a month with a lower-body injury, Anton Lundell returned to the Panthers lineup Saturday afternoon in Newark. Have a look.

10. Drop MacKenzie Weegar. The Cats blueliner has registered just one point in the past 12 games. Yikes.

11. Ditto for Neal Pionk in Winnipeg. He has just two measly points in the past 10 games.

12. The in-house replacement in Columbus for the injured Zach Werenski is Adam Boqvist.

13. Additionally, Josh Morrissey, Brett Pesce, Chris Wideman, Damon Severson and Gustav Forsling have been providing some semi-decent category coverage lately.

14. Also, put Colorado’s Bowen Byram on your watch list. The 20-year-old blue-chip defenceman, who’s been on personal leave and hasn’t played since Jan. 11, is currently on a conditioning loan in the AHL. He could be back in the NHL very soon. Be alert.

15. If you own any stock in Arizona, I’d cut bait immediately. Clayton Keller is done for the year, and it sounds like Lawson Crouse is too. To be blunt, I don’t expect much from them moving forward. How dare they do Trevor Zegras and Troy Terry dirty like that.

16. With rookie Matt Boldy banged up for the Wild, Tyson Jost has moved up to skate with Frederick Gaudreau and the red-hot Kevin Fiala. Stream away!

17. On Broadway, in the absence of Ryan Strome (lower body), Andrew Copp has been filling in at centre on the second line alongside Artemi Panarin and Dryden Hunt.

18. Some Strome/Nazem Kadri centre-eligible injury replacement options: Brock Nelson, Trevor Zegras, and Nico Hischier.

19. I know I mentioned him earlier in passing when discussing the Blues schedule, but I really felt like Robert Thomas deserved his own thought this week. He’s on fire again; his latest point streak is now up to five games and nine points. Add him!

20. It goes without saying, but I’d avoid Detroit’s and New Jersey’s crease at all costs for the rest of the season. For the better part of the second half, those two teams have been a train wreck defensively. Stay away!