20 Fantasy Thoughts: Zegras proving he’s more than just flash during dominant stretch 

The situation with the Vancouver Canucks is coming to a head.  

It sounds like the Canucks will finally make a coaching change and rumblings in recent days noted that trade talks around Bo Horvat are heating up. This brings up some fantasy considerations in both the short and long term. Where Horvat goes is obviously going to impact his value, but if you’re rostering him, also consider that Horvat could potentially be scratched for a game or two if a trade is imminent.  

Vancouver could decide to sit Horvat to protect their asset as the final details of a trade are being worked out, which wouldn’t be ideal for your fantasy team next week. The Canucks have a friendly schedule coming up, too. Favourable matchups against the Chicago Blackhawks and Columbus Blue Jackets next week would be games you wouldn’t want Horvat to miss.  

I’m not saying it’s going to happen, but it’s something to consider as you plan out your roster for the coming week.  

1. I have a list of players, like Jonas Brodin, Thomas Chabot and Mark Stone to name a few, that I consider “much better in real hockey than in fantasy.” K’Andre Miller also firmly held a place among this group, but his play of late might have me changing my tune. A recent seven-game point streak has already seen Miller exceed his career high for points with still about half a season to go.  

Miller has always been decent for hits and blocks, but below average for shots on goal and provided little offence. He’s been a good defensive defenceman that any NHL team would want, he just wasn’t an ideal fit on a fantasy roster. If he can become a 40-point player and eventually work his way up to the New York Rangers top pair, Miller will definitely be worth rostering in multi-cat leagues.  

2. Has there been a more disappointing team for fantasy this season than the New York Islanders? We talked a bit about Noah Dobson’s struggles last week and you can extend that to Mat Barzal as well. Barzal has been held pointless in seven straight, with a three-game stretch in there where he managed only two shots. The Isles as a whole have only scored more than two goals twice in 12 games.  

3. On a more positive note, Kirby Dach has picked up his game. The Montreal Canadiens forward was dropped in a lot of leagues after having a quiet December, though Dach has now recorded five points in his past six games. He’s also got eight penalty minutes over this stretch, which is a category he’s surprisingly been very productive at this year. Dach is now up to 36 PIM in 47 games.  

4. It sounds like Gabriel Landeskog isn’t even set to begin skating until after the All-Star break. Realistically, in a best-case scenario, maybe he gets back in time for the entire fantasy playoffs, but even that seems very uncertain. If you’re holding onto him and you need the roster or IR space, you’ve got a tough decision on your hands. Even though it sounds like no one expected Landeskog to miss this much time, it’s always a gamble when you stash a player. Injuries are unpredictable. 

5. Ryan Graves recently put together a very unexpected five-game point streak. It’s always nice to capitalize on players that are typically only valuable for things like hits and blocks when they have an unusual surge of offence.  

6. Ty Smith got an opportunity for an extended look with the Pittsburgh Penguins in January as Jeff Petry and Kris Letang were out of the lineup. This look included some power play time for Smith, who delivered three points with the man advantage in eight games. With Petry back, though, and Letang on his way, I don’t think Smith will have much value the rest of the way until the Penguins blue line is banged up again.  

7. A lot of folks were asking if I thought Martin Jones could stabilize his numbers in the second half. Jones has probably been the most remarkable and perplexing goalie in fantasy this season. He’s 22-6-3 but owns just an .895 save percentage. That is essentially right on the mark of his save percentage over the past five seasons, as Jones has posted marks of .896, .896, .896, .900 in his previous four campaigns. If you’re rostering him, it should be for volume and wins, and nothing else.

8. Lucas Raymond has 16 points in his past 16 games and is on pace for the same number of points he had last year. Many were frustrated with Raymond earlier in the season and wanted to move on, but you usually don’t come out ahead in fantasy writing off young players early.

9. It’s been a frustrating year if you’re rostering Morgan Rielly. He hasn’t scored yet and is on pace for a significantly lower point total than last season. Now, part of that is he’s been injured and the Toronto Maple Leafs have been playing a more defensively conscious game this year. That said, Rielly doesn’t look as dangerous as he did in recent seasons and is also currently a minus-3, after being a plus-57 over the previous four campaigns. I don’t think you can even make an argument he’s been a top-20 fantasy defenseman in 2022-23.  

10. Kudos if you kept the faith and held onto Jack Campbell all this time. If you did, you’re getting to enjoy this five-game winning streak that has produced five quality starts. It’s not time to celebrate Campbell stealing the net back just yet, but if he can even work his way back into a time share with Stuart Skinner, that’s a huge win from the way things went in the first half of the season.  

11. Tyler Seguin couldn’t have done a better job filling in for an injured Roope Hintz on the Dallas Stars top line, with five goals and eight points in seven games. With Hintz back soon, it might be a good time to try and sell high on Seguin. 

12. If you’re looking to add a forward to replace Cole Caufield, who is now out for the season with a shoulder injury, Anton Lundell might be a fit. He’s been moved up to the top line with Aleksander Barkov and although he isn’t taking faceoffs anymore, Lundell has a four-game point streak that includes three goals. He’s also only 22% rostered and the Florida Panthers play four times next week. Lundell won’t match the production of Caufield, but he’s as good a bet as any on thin waiver wires.  

13. Yanni Gourde now has 11 points in his past 12 games and has been very effective for the explosive Seattle Kraken. I was concerned Gourde would lose value when he left the Tampa Bay Lightning, but he’s on pace for the second highest point total of his career. He’s also tremendous for faceoffs and not bad for hits either. Gourde is a great depth option in multi-cat leagues.  

14. What to do with Matt Dumba? He’s been scratched for a couple of games now and may be on his way out of town in a trade. His numbers have not been great in any category outside of maybe blocks. So, unless you’re using Dumba as a specialist there, it's probably time to move on.

15. At some point the Minnesota Wild are going to have to start playing Filip Gustavsson more. His numbers of 11-7-1 with a .922 save percentage have been far superior to Marc-Andre Fleury’s this season, yet Fleury still gets most of the playing time. Dan Vladar is in a similar situation in Calgary, where he’s been the much better goalie of late but the team keeps playing Jacob Markstrom regularly. I’d target either if you need a third goalie for quality starts.  

16. I’d keep tabs on Jakob Pelletier. He played his first game for the Calgary Flames on Saturday and didn’t look out of place in limited action. You might remember Adam Ruzicka capturing lightning in a bottle for a good stretch earlier in the season when he was moved up in the top six. Perhaps Pelletier can do the same.  

17. Justin Faulk hasn’t been able to capitalize with Torey Krug out of the lineup. Faulk has just two points in eight games and hasn’t scored a goal since late December. With Krug due back shortly, Faulk may be in tough to hold onto his spot with the first power play unit.  

18. I often think Trevor Zegras gets a little overlooked in fantasy because of all the fancy moves he does. Some likely feel he’s more flash than substance. The Anaheim Ducks forward is more than just a flashy player, though, and he’s starting to prove it. Zegras has 15 points in his past 12 games and is looking much more confident and poised in his third season.  

The Buffalo Sabres had no answer for Zegras on Saturday, as he notched two goals and three points, putting him on pace for 70 points on the campaign. I don’t think Zegras has even come close to reaching his full potential yet either and if you are debating on using a keeper spot on him for next season, consider this. What if the Ducks land the first overall pick and welcome Connor Bedard into the fold for 2023-24? Zegras’ value would go through the roof in that scenario.  

19. Brutal news for Max Pacioretty, who tore his achilles again this week. He had been a great stash all season and started scoring immediately when he returned. Maybe Teuvo Teravainen, who has six points in his past six games and 11 shots in his past four, will finally be able to turn his season around, as he shifts back to the top line.  

20. It might be time to get a little concerned about Pheonix Copley. He’s been pulled in back-to-back awful starts and he gave up three goals in each of his two games prior to that. The Los Angeles Kings are a good team, but not as strong and structured defensively as a group like the Hurricanes, who were really able to help Pyotr Kochetkov adjust to the NHL. It’s going to be a lot tougher for someone like Copley to sustain his value. I’m not saying it’s time to drop Copley yet, but having a contingency plan in case things don’t get better is probably a good idea.