This article is part of our Frozen Fantasy series.
I'll make this quick. Sunday was a frenetic day – not just generally, but for NHL general managers who made a lot of "top-nine" trades. And then the Timo Meier deal dropped.
No one's left for trade deadline day.
Yah, yah – Patrick Kane is still out there, but not if the Rangers are his only wish.
Friday was already going to be anticlimactic. Now it's going to be empty, with a week filled with weird moves based on panic. And a few more moving to new towns for almost nothing.
One person's poison could just be another person's delicacy. At minimum, these so-called "no-risk" players are going to get opportunities they weren't given with their other teams. At best, at least for fans? I think we're going to see a lot of sloppy hockey coming up. So many bodies shifting around, and new systems take time to learn.
We all love more offense. I'm looking forward to this.
Now let's take a look at who caught my eye this week.
Forward Category Coverage
Mikael Backlund, C, Calgary (41 percent Yahoo!) – Backlund is on fire. His four-game goal streak and five-game point streak (four goals, four assists) ended in Denver on Saturday night, including 23 shots and 43 faceoff wins. Over the last month and a bit, he's racked up 17 points (12 assists) in 14 games. Add on 114 faceoff wins (49.6 percent), 47 shots and 23 hits, and Backlund's a valuable addition for an end-of-season run.
I'll make this quick. Sunday was a frenetic day – not just generally, but for NHL general managers who made a lot of "top-nine" trades. And then the Timo Meier deal dropped.
No one's left for trade deadline day.
Yah, yah – Patrick Kane is still out there, but not if the Rangers are his only wish.
Friday was already going to be anticlimactic. Now it's going to be empty, with a week filled with weird moves based on panic. And a few more moving to new towns for almost nothing.
One person's poison could just be another person's delicacy. At minimum, these so-called "no-risk" players are going to get opportunities they weren't given with their other teams. At best, at least for fans? I think we're going to see a lot of sloppy hockey coming up. So many bodies shifting around, and new systems take time to learn.
We all love more offense. I'm looking forward to this.
Now let's take a look at who caught my eye this week.
Forward Category Coverage
Mikael Backlund, C, Calgary (41 percent Yahoo!) – Backlund is on fire. His four-game goal streak and five-game point streak (four goals, four assists) ended in Denver on Saturday night, including 23 shots and 43 faceoff wins. Over the last month and a bit, he's racked up 17 points (12 assists) in 14 games. Add on 114 faceoff wins (49.6 percent), 47 shots and 23 hits, and Backlund's a valuable addition for an end-of-season run.
J.T. Compher, RW/C, Colorado (34 percent Yahoo!) – Compher is thriving as the Avs' 2C. He stretched his point streak to three games on Friday and recorded six points, including four assists, during that span. The run was snapped Saturday, but Compher will give you a bit of category coverage in shots, blocks and even power play points.
Mikael Granlund, RW/C, Nashville (15 percent Yahoo!) – Granlund has stepped up this week with Ryan Johansen (lower body) out for 12 weeks. He heads into Sunday night with four points, including three goals, in his last two games. Sure, this came against lowly Vancouver and San Jose, but that doesn't diminish the success. Granlund and the Preds play Arizona twice, Chicago, Vancouver and Pittsburgh once each over the next six games (starting Sunday). Granlund won't bring you faceoff wins, but will give you some power-play help along with shots. He offers a chance to shine against that competition.
Forward Scoring
Max Domi, LW/RW/C, Chicago (42 percent Yahoo!) – Guess the Hawks' top scorer, at least for now? No, I'm not lying to you. Domi is on a six-game, 12-point streak (four goals, eight assists) heading into Monday with 47 on the season. He's also fired 21 shots during this streak while delivering a couple PPPs and four blocked shots. Domi could have his ticket punched to a new destination this week. Take advantage of this streak for now and then trade him to someone giddy to get him in his new lineup. Domi won't be a first-liner anywhere else. Or have PP1 run through him. But you can count on greed from a fellow manager, and that could get you a boring, yet productive player who gets you the categories you need.
Vitali Kravtsov, RW, Vancouver (1 percent Yahoo!) – Two words: Hail Mary. Kravtsov didn't fit on Broadway, but he's uber talented and out to prove the Blueshirts wrong. Especially after they pretty much gave him away in this past weekend's trade. Kravtsov should receive major minutes for the Orcas, and his elite hockey sense and scorer's talents should start to emerge. He hasn't played much, so he could be rusty to start. I'm happy to pick up Kravtsov and wait for the offense.
Dawson Mercer, RW/C, New Jersey (33 percent Yahoo!) – On Saturday, Mercer became the youngest player in franchise history – and that includes the Kansas City Scouts and Colorado Rockies eras – to post goals in six-straight games (eight). And he's already played more consecutive games (141) to start his career than Devils great Scott Gomez. Short-term, Mercer is a great gamble. Long-term? Even better. As long as he stays in Jersey. His value will take a hit if he was included in the Meier deal, at least for this season and the next few. But who knows? I've been waiting for more than three hours to file this article and still don't know.
Philip Tomasino, RW, Nashville (3 percent Yahoo!) – Nino Niederreiter's move to Winnipeg on Sunday is nice and all, but I'm looking at Tomasino instead of El Nino for fantasy. Don't get me wrong – Niederreiter could move into the Jets' top-six, but he's better suited to the third line (don't ignore him, though – I got Ryan O'Reilly's usage wrong last week). But Tomasino, who's on a two-game, three-point streak heading into Sunday, is suddenly on the top trio. He's quick and fast with great offensive instincts and a fearless nose for the net. Nashville is retooling and this is Tomasino's big audition. I expect him to rise to the opportunity. And you could get similar (or better) fantasy output as El Nino, without the panic to the wire for the new Jet.
Defense Scoring
Sean Durzi, D, Los Angeles (37 percent Yahoo!) – Durzi managed a five-game, six-point streak (five assists) before it being snapped Friday. But that doesn't change the fact he's a top-30 scoring defender. And he runs PP2 for a playoff team. Durzi should be rostered in just about every league, unless you run a six-team standard format. So go get him.
Mike Matheson, D, Montreal (17 percent Yahoo!) – Matheson is on fire right now. He heads into Tuesday on a four-game, five-point streak (two goals, three assists, 12 shots), and has nine points - including three goals - from his last nine outings. Matheson's also running PP1 and somehow managed to be plus-7 in those nine games. On the Canadiens. There are lots of reasons to stay away from those on bad teams, but I'm willing to take a chance on Matheson. Maybe this opportunity is his moment to finally consolidate his first-round skills.
Blocks
Dmitry Kulikov, D, Anaheim (1 percent Yahoo!) – Kulikov is a top-40 contributor for blocks who's not really known for offense. But he somehow has five points, including four assists, across six games. The scoring won't continue for long, but Kulikov will keep sacrificing his body. And that could help you in that single category.
Hits/PIM
Ivan Barbashev, LW/C, Vegas (14 percent Yahoo!) – Barbashev is worth a fantasy gamble. His move to Vegas on Sunday could pop him onto the second line. And my gut says he'll do more of what he's good at – hitting and irritating people while getting a point here and there. And especially as Barbashev adjusts to a new system. It's human nature – try harder at what you already do to prove you're worth the move. By the way, he dished out 22 hits in his last four games as a member of the Blues. The potential is pretty tantalizing.
Sam Carrick, RW/C, Anaheim (0 percent Yahoo!) – Carrick has led the NHL in PIM (24) since the All-Star break. If you can't get Ryan Hartman (35 percent Yahoo!) - who is second on that list and a better scorer - then Carrick is a single-category slayer.
Michael Pezzetta, LW, Montreal (1 percent Yahoo!) – Since the All-Star break, Pezzetta has delivered 37 hits in only eight games, and that's good enough to be tied for the league lead. He also tallied a goal and two helpers over that stretch, but that's really gravy. Pezzetta is a soon-to-be 25-year-old rookie who is finally living his dream and working to earn a spot for 2023-24. Expect a lot more hits the rest of the way.
Goalie
Antti Raanta, G, Carolina (44 percent Yahoo!) – Goalie grabs at this point in the season are almost always based on desperation. You could roll the dice and hope on available high-start guys on bad teams – like Arturs Silovs (1 percent Yahoo!) or the combo of Petr Mrazek and Jaxson Stauber (5 and 3 percent Yahoo!, respectively). Or you can invest in Raanta, who is getting every third start on one of the best teams. And who'll become the starter when Frederik Andersen (93 percent Yahoo!) gets his next hangnail. Which we both know could happen in an hour or two. I know exactly where my money's going.
Back to trades.
Now that Meier is off the table, I think teams are going to turn to players like James van Riemsdyk (3 percent Yahoo!). Sorry, but JVR's BBF date has passed, though he might help on the power play. His wheels sure haven't gotten any faster as he's aged, and that matters a lot in today's game.
Brock Boeser (43 percent Yahoo!) and Jakob Chychrun (72 percent Yahoo!) are still out there. At least for now.
All I know is that Friday isn't going to be worth hanging on Twitter. Maybe I'll just go fat biking and check Elon's toy later. I will be looking to move Max Domi, though. Takers??
Until next week.
