In lieu of Patrick Kane’s 1000th game, Auston Matthews’ continued dominance and also the NHL’s lucrative new partnership with ESPN, it’s only right to give some love to our friends south of the border this week.
Have you had a chance to take a glance at the NHL scoring leaderboard lately? It’s littered with American talent. In fact, this was the story heading into Thursday night’s action.
By the way, it’s never too early to start pumping up the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, even if the NHL’s involvement is still very much in limbo. If the NHL does go, something tells me the U.S. men’s hockey team will be a force to reckoned with. At any rate, considering goals are worth two points in this year’s rendition of the Sportsnet Fantasy Hockey Pool, you may want to lean on one or two of these snipers moving forward.
Now to your questions:
For starters, I feel your pain. That said, you have to hang tight.
There’s a reason why Carter Hart is so highly touted, a quick glance at his play in the bubble last summer would reinforce that. Knowing his capabilities, it would be foolish to dump out on Hart right now, especially given the fact that there’s still half a season to play here.
Most young goalies battle with consistency issues, Hart is no different — easy to forget he’s still only 22. I’m sure Winnipeg Jets and Anaheim Ducks fans can sympathize. It took a while for Connor Hellebuyck and John Gibson, respectively, to turn into bona fide studs.
In this instance, patience is a virtue. In the meantime, take a look at some stopgap options until Hart can regain his form. He’ll be fine.
Good question. Because I’ve been hypothesizing on a potential career breakout even dating back to last season, I’ll go with Alex Nedeljkovic.
Weirdly, I see lots of similarities to Jordan Binnington — he’s 25, a former OHL standout and is in the midst of a make-or-break year with the organization that drafted him (second round, 37th overall, 2014). Simply put, he’s seizing the moment. It’s been a great story.
On the other two: Petr Mrazek is currently injured and James Reimer’s too inconsistent to be a full-fledged No. 1 in the league. As long as Nedeljkovic continues to produce, Carolina Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour will continue to roll him out there. In a season like no other, you can never have enough quality goaltending, that’s for sure. Carolina will ride the hot hand.
Truthfully, none of these options really excite me.
Of the three, I view Darcy Kuemper as the top dog. Having said that, the 30-year-old always seems to be banged up — he’s currently sidelined with a lower-body injury. Considering how good he is, it’s really disappointing to see this unrelenting stretch of bad luck. Keep close tabs on his injury status.
Like most teams, the Canes employ a tandem system in between the pipes, so it’s tough to quantify what Mrazek’s full season value truly is. He’s out with a thumb issue right now, anyway. Upon his return, let’s see if he can get back on track — Mrazek’s in the midst of a contract year.
Lastly, Linus Ullmark is on a bad team. When he’s able to return, I don’t expect the Buffalo Sabres to win very much. Additionally, they’ll likely sell off some pieces between now and the April 12 trade deadline. For rest-of-season purposes, in general, I’m staying away from the Buffalo Sabres.
For me, it’s a tie between Kuemper and Mrazek, no thanks on Ullmark.
I wouldn’t, no — provided there’s a slot available to you, put him on IR.
By now, fantasy owners are used to Buffalo stinking. It’s more so the fact that Eichel, a perennial top-20 fantasy file year in and year out, has struggled mightily, too, and that has left many mystified. Honestly, who knows what’s happening behind the scenes.
At this point, all you can do is hope for is a strong and productive finish. I know it’s been a tough year, but there’s still plenty of time left. Here’s to manifesting some good rest-of-season vibes for Jack Eichel.
What do I do with Mika Zibanejad....?
— Aksel Lielmanis (@akselis2002) March 11, 2021
I’d have the same type of mentality and approach for Mika Zibanejad, too — hope for the best.
Going the trade route doesn’t make sense, you can’t drop him either. Want some good news? Artemi Panarin is back in the mix, maybe that helps to finally ignite the struggling Zibanejad. We’re living on a prayer, that’s for sure.
I’m not sure Jason Robertson is your long-term solution, but I’d definitely move on from Anthony Mantha. Unsurprisingly, aside from that random beatdown of the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday night, the Detroit Red Wings have pretty much been a blackhole in fantasy hockey this season. For what it’s worth, I don’t view Robertson as much more than a daily stream. In general, it’s been a tough season for the Dallas Stars.
Don’t hesitate, do it immediately. I view Kirill Kaprizov as a top-40 fantasy talent for ROS.
Definitely.
The Ducks have been hot offensively, but I still don’t trust them long-term. That roster is flawed and that division is difficult. Rickard Rakell’s pace is unsustainable, he’s bound to cool down eventually. If you can get good value in a trade, you pull the trigger immediately.
Yes, I would definitely make that trade. Your crease depth makes this a no-brainer for me.
