Frozen Fantasy: And the Winner Is…

I did an awards article at the quarter pole. But things are getting clearer, so let's do a quick run-through. 

There are no rules to say I can't. Besides, it's fun to speculate.

I live in the shadow of Toronto, so I'm starting with the Rocket Richard. Come on – Auston Matthews (100 percent Yahoo!) has been otherworldly. He's on a 76-goal pace. Like I said last week, this is something we need to stop and pay attention. Once the Ovie watch ends, we could be on one for Auston in another decade.

And 50 in 50? I'll be happy to find out. And not because he's in blue and white. 

The Hart is next, and it's more wide open. Connor McDavid (100 percent Yahoo!) is coming on. Nikita Kucherov (100 percent Yahoo!) is stunningly underappreciated for what he's doing right now. Nathan MacKinnon (100 percent) has been absolutely awesome of late. 

But I'm calling it here. Quinn Hughes (100 percent Yahoo!) is going to be the first defender since Chris Pronger in 1999-2000 to win the Hart. He impacts the game almost as much as Bobby Orr did, the last defender before Pronger to win it. So Hughes also gets the double-double with the Norris. And probably the sugary goodness of a Pearson in the trifecta. 

A Conn Smythe will make it four. And the Cup, five. But let's not get ahead of ourselves… yet. 

The Calder is Connor Bedard's (96 percent Yahoo!), but there's someone below who will give him a run. His name rhymes with saber. 

The Selke will come down to Aleksander Barkov (95 percent Yahoo!) and the great Anze Kopitar (86 percent Yahoo!), who is a timeless wonder. My money is on Kopitar. But don't ignore Joel Eriksson Ek (89 percent Yahoo!), who might be the most underrated 200-foot NHLer of this era.

The Vezina? Easy. Thatcher Demko (97 percent Yahoo!) is back to being the goalie we all drooled over two years ago. And who knows – that Conn Smythe convo might revolve around him too. 

If he wins, Demko would be the first Canucks goalie to ever bring that hardware home. They entered the league in 1970. That's a long time. 

Lastly, the Jack Adams as top coach. Well, it's not D.J. Smith or Craig Berube. Sorry for rubbing that in, although I think fans in both cities are happy. I love what John Tortorella has done in Philly. I was a doubter, but I'm sold. But this trophy belongs to Rick Tocchet in Vancouver.

It's a long way from the TNT postgame panel, isn't it Tocch? Well done. 

Have your trophy targets changed in the last month? Let's discuss. After we take a look at who caught my eye this week, of course.

Teddy Blueger, C, Vancouver (1 percent Yahoo!) – Streamer alert. Blueger heads into the break on a six-game, eight-point streak (two goals, six assists). Seriously. I was as stunned as you are when I realized that. It won't last. But Blueger is the kind of player who can prop up your roster when someone better is asleep. And the Canucks are sizzling. 

Jonathan Drouin, LW, Colorado (5 percent Yahoo!) – Drouin is one of two first-round picks from 2013 on this list (Anthony Mantha, below). And yes, he's been here before. Drouin carries the dreaded flop tag along with the NHL's record for the forward with the highest point total before getting a goal in any season (37 games in 2022-23). But glorious hands and vision like his don't disappear because you were overdrafted. Drouin had a five-game, six-point streak (one goal, five assists) snapped Saturday, but it has made me curious about his post-break potential. I'm not ready to jump yet – there are rumors the Avs are kicking tires on scoring forwards, and he could lose his second-line job. But maybe not if he comes out hot. 

Brock Faber, D, Minnesota (24 percent Yahoo!) – Faber has been a revelation this season. I passed over him in a keeper draft, and I've been kicking myself ever since. I thought he'd be a Ryan Suter (1 percent Yahoo!) type. Not that there's anything wrong with 45 points and some snarl. But I thought that wasn't as valuable in today's NHL. Wrong. Faber is being seriously discussed in the Calder race. He's as deserving as Connor Bedard (96 percent Yahoo!) right now. Faber had a three-game, four-point (one goal, three assist) streak snapped Saturday. But he's still on a 40-point and 100-plus block pace. As a rookie. He's also averaging more than 24 minutes of ice a game, and he's recently delivered a couple of 30-plus games. Stud. 

Thomas Harley, D, Dallas (14 percent Yahoo!) – Harley is the defender I took at draft instead of Faber (above). I don't regret that choice as he's finally showing off the offensive chops I need in that league. I wish I had both. Harley saw a four-game, five-point streak (three goals, two assists) end Saturday, but those nine goals on the season? Consider this – on Saturday, Rasmus Dahlin (100 percent Yahoo!) became the first blueliner to hit double-digit goals this season. Yup. Harley is right there. Games will get tight, and his job will get harder. But doesn't every fantasy manager lust over 20-plus goal defenders? Go get him. Now. 

Joel Hofer, G, St. Louis (4 percent Yahoo!) – Hofer threw down an impressive showing Thursday against the Panthers, one of the league's deepest teams by only allowing one goal on 38 shots and looked more confident than he'd been in a month. That's how long it'd been since he'd picked up a win. Hofer is the Blues' goalie of the future, but who knows how soon his time might come. Jordan Binnington (77 percent Yahoo!) is being his consistently inconsistent and largely volatile self. Not that I don't enjoy a fiery guy on the ice. Just not in my net. Hofer might turn back into an 0-for-a-month guy again. But I have him stashed, just in case. 

Dakota Joshua, LW/C, Vancouver (12 percent Yahoo!) – I flagged Joshua a few weeks ago, and I should have taken my own advice. He's probably never been higher on the Yahoo! player rater than he is heading into the break at eighth overall (seventh-best skater) the last seven days where he's posted three goals, one assist, six shots and 16 hits over four games. And in his last six, Joshua has racked up five goals, two assists, nine shots and 22 hits. And a plus-8 rating. He's on a career 35-point, 250-hit pace. That's worth rostering. 

Alex Kerfoot, LW/C, Arizona (6 percent Yahoo!) – Kerfoot spiraled into a five-game slump after I last recommended him to you. Sometimes that happens. But he turned up the jets Thursday with a three-point effort to stretch his current streak to four games and six points - including four assists. And he's won 21 faceoffs (.600), eight shots and four hits during that stretch. Arizona currently sits in a Wild Card spot, and Kerfoot is their 1C between Clayton Keller (95 percent Yahoo!) and Nick Schmaltz (25 percent Yahoo!) while on PP1. Surely that – and a 50-plus point pace – is enough to boost his coverage. 

Anthony Mantha, RW, Washington (1 percent Yahoo!) – I scooped Mantha off the wire right before Thursday's two-goal game. Lucky? Maybe. After all, Matthew McConaughey in Failure to Launch had always come to mind with this guy. But maybe Mantha has finally climbed out of his parent's basement. He's registered 11 points - with seven of those goals - and 25 shots in his last 13 games. It includes a goal and assist on the power play. I'm willing to take a chance on Mantha to see if this really is his McConaughey moment. 

Josh Norris, C, Ottawa (34 percent Yahoo!) – Norris heads into the holiday on a five-game goal streak (five goals, two assists). And he's potted seven goals from his last nine appearances. Norris has always boasted great puck touch, and he's not afraid to work down low or drive the net. His goal pace right now over a full season would deliver 37 goals. I say that because a lot of managers think he missed a lot of time to start the season. But the reality is that the Sens have only played 29 games so far, and that makes their scorers prime fantasy targets. Norris is the most-overlooked man in the world right now. Snap him up. Unless you don't want 35 goals and 70 points, a hit-a-game and solid power-play production. 

Juraj Slafkovsky, LW, Montreal (5 percent Yahoo!) – For all the naysayers out there, remember this – Slafkovsky is just as productive as Jack Hughes (100 percent Yahoo!) was at this point in his career. The big Slovak is NOT Hughes as they play a different game. But my point is simple – give the teenager a break. Slafkovsky has put together back-to-back two-point performance with a goal in each. He has five shots, three hits, one PPP and a GWG over that sample. And in his last four, Slafkovsky has five points, 10 hits, six blocks and seven shots. He's not going to be super consistent, but I can't ignore this spurt. Even a few more like this are a great boost, especially in head-to-head formats. 

Back to awards. 

I'm also calling this here. And you know this breaks my heart. Team USA is going to take the gold at the World Juniors. 

Lift your jaw and hear me out. Besides, you know that it pains me to put that in pixels. 

Team USA is the class of this tourney. Canada is great – that Macklin Celebrini kid is as advertised. But the Americans have 13 forwards who could play on the top line of EVERY team in this tourney. 

Every team. No lie. 

I will wear my jersey. And jump out of my chair while looking for one of my best friends in the stands. She is on the trip of a lifetime and will be among about 3,500 other Canadians in Gothenburg for the whole tourney. 

I'm so jealous. We went to the 2015 tourney in Toronto together, and she vowed then she and her hubby were going to this one. 

I know I'm going to lose my bet with another amazing friend and owe him a box of Canadian candy. It's a friendly wager, and I know he likes the things that are uniquely ours. 

Like ketchup or all-dressed chips. Or Hickory Sticks. Or Kit Kat and Crispy Crunch. Or Mr. Big. I could go on forever. Look them up. You might be opening up a world you never knew existed. 

Until next week.