NHL Waiver Wire: Pickups of the Week

It's good to take a break. Recharge your senses. And do absolutely nothing. Now I know why they call it a staycation. (I'd also like to thank the frigid weather for keeping me at home.)

But there's no rest for the NHL. I mean, other than the 4 Nations Face-Off in February. It's business as usual for fantasy. Let's look at the market for players to boost your rosters.

(Rostered rates as of Jan. 24)

Forwards

Juraj Slafkovsky, MON (Yahoo: 51%): Slafkovsky may be underperforming offensively relative to his rookie season, but he's been consistent with at least one point in 10 of his last 18 games. The shots are a little low, though he's ramped up the hits of late (32 since Dec. 31) and still gets to team up with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield. Slafkovsky also appears with the duo on the top power play and potted a PPG Tuesday. Be patient — the output will come.

Stefan Noesen, NJ (Yahoo: 39%): Net-front PP presences are sometimes overlooked in fantasy as they tend to miss out on the scoring (unless a tip or scramble is involved). Noesen has often been front-and-center on Jersey's lead man-advantage, and it's paid huge dividends so far, as he has 12 PPPs — nine of those goals. He started lower down the lineup but has since moved up to a regular place alongside Nico Hischier and Jesper Bratt. Needless to say, that's a very favorable position that should result in more points.

Pierre-Luc Dubois, WAS (Yahoo: 39%): All eyes may be focused on Alex Ovechkin's upcoming record-breaking event, yet there are other Caps who've helped in the team's amazing run. And Dubois has been the hottest of the bunch, going off for seven goals, 17 assists, 46 shots, a plus-17 and 192 faceoff wins during his last 25 contests. That's pretty amazing when you consider he doesn't skate with The Great 8 on either even-strength or while up a man. Get Dubois since he's primed to continue as a key part of a strong Washington forward unit.

Pavel Zacha, BOS (Yahoo: 23%): We're going back to Zacha the same way Morgan Geekie was first brought up during December, and it has everything to do with David Pastrnak's offensive explosion the last two months. Zacha has usually partnered his fellow Czech teammate while reaping the benefits over that stretch by posting 21 points on 19:19 a night. Even with the fantasy glut at center, it's still baffling how he's available in three of every four Yahoo! leagues. Do your job to help rectify that.

Teuvo Teravainen, CHI (Yahoo: 17%): Teravainen is similar to Dubois in that the majority of his minutes aren't shared with the team's star. That claim is slightly weakened by the fact he joins Connor Bedard on the lead power play, where 16 of his 33 points have originated. And just to prove Teravainen isn't a one-trick player, he's accumulated four goals and 16 assists from the last 17 games, with 13 of the 20 coming at five-on-five. Based on his work in all scoring situations while on a top-10 PP, he seems too good to pass up.

Jordan Staal, CAR (Yahoo: 16%): You may have heard Staal notched his first hat-trick since April 2022 two weeks ago against the Leafs, which was definitely a surprise for a forward who registered 29 goals during his first year and hasn't beaten that over the next 18. He's well ahead of his usual attacking pace thanks to 18 points across 20 matchups supplemented by 35 shots, 49 hits and a whopping 206 FW. Don't expect Staal to maintain this kind of offensive production, though he'll supply a decent haul in other areas.

Barrett Hayton, UTA (Yahoo: 8%): Since being drafted fifth overall in 2018, Hayton has become a fairly one-dimensional fantasy performer. You know what you're getting with him, and it mainly covers scoring and directing pucks on net. The problem with this is Hayton hasn't proven reliable for either due to inconsistency or injuries. Maybe he's turning a corner after posting a goal and two assists on Monday and finding the back of the net twice Thursday with a combined 16 shots through the last five appearances. Hayton's profile is further enhanced by centering Utah's second unit and PP, yet he hasn't done much with the latter this season.

Jiri Kulich, BUF (Yahoo: 1%): Ryan McLeod was mentioned last week as someone to monitor, as he scored three goals in one outing on the Sabres' first trio, though he'd soon land on IR. That left Kulich to play between Tage Thompson and JJ Peterka for the last two, and he chipped in Tuesday with a goal, two assists, three shots, and two hits on 17:47. Based on recent trends, this looks like another wait-and-see scenario. But if it holds, Kulich becomes a great pickup as a talented prospect with prime placement.

Defensemen

Seth Jones, CHI (Yahoo: 53%): Since Jones missed a month while recovering from a foot injury, he's been sufficiently active by producing 10 points on 23:23 a night. He's also reclaimed his spot on Chicago's top power play with five PPAs since Dec. 29 while posting more hits and blocks the last few weeks. As long as Jones doesn't get hurt again, he'll get you plenty of fantasy contributions.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson, TOR (Yahoo: 20%): Ekman-Larsson earned attention early this season when he took over for Morgan Rielly on the Leafs' lead PP. That eventually disappeared, and so did his offensive output, as he only managed nine points in 35 games heading into last week. Even on the backup man-advantage, OEL tallied a PPG and PPA on Saturday. He followed that with back-to-back assist efforts and has logged major minutes in Toronto's top-four while delivering enough in most relevant categories.

Darren Raddysh, TB (Yahoo: 19%): I don't usually bring a player back here after only a month, but Raddysh clearly deserves another shoutout. When last discussed, he was coming off a modest run of six assists through 11 contests. Not only has Raddysh increased his offense (six points over the last five matchups) and continues to skate alongside Victor Hedman at even-strength, he's also replaced the club captain as the quarterback on the Bolts' lethal first power play (three PPPs from four). That alone should get him on more rosters.

Justin Faulk, STL (Yahoo: 18%): Other than a couple minor issues, Faulk has been healthy throughout. The scoring seemed solid to start, but there have been multiple droughts and a recent diminished role. If we look at Faulk's last nine outings, he's recorded seven points, 12 shots and 13 blocks with three PPAs and earned time with the lead PP on Thursday. There are other blueliners in more advantageous fantasy situations, though Faulk represents a more reliable longer-term option.

Goaltenders

Spencer Knight, FLA (Yahoo: 23%): It's nice to see Knight back in the NHL this season. Sergei Bobrovsky clearly operates as the Panthers' No. 1, yet he's supplied some shaky starts of late. There have also been a couple hiccups on Knight's log, though he's looked great over the last five — including one where Bob was pulled — having posted a 1.12 GAA and .960 save percentage. Combine that with a couple stellar shutouts versus Carolina and Anaheim, and there should be enough work for Knight to pick up a few wins behind a strong attacking side.

Marcus Hogberg, NYI (Yahoo: 3%): On the topic of incumbent netminders battling brief slumps, Ilya Sorokin endured one for most of December where he registered a 3.87/.862 line across nine appearances. Semyon Varlamov has been out for almost two months with a lower-body injury, leaving Hogberg as the main backup. After three years abroad and not exactly impressing in the AHL, he was summoned when Varlamov went down. And while Hogberg initially got mop-up duty, he's impressed by only allowing one goal in each of the last three outings. Sorokin has also recently fared well, and his top job is safe, though Hogberg can still be a decent fantasy streamer.

Players to consider from past columns: Macklin Celebrini, Evgeni Malkin, Pavel Buchnevich, Bryan Rust, Logan Stankoven, Gabriel Vilardi, Dylan Guenther, Rickard Rakell, Connor McMichael, Marco Rossi, Dylan Strome, Jonathan Huberdeau, Josh Norris, Logan Cooley, Pavel Dorofeyev, Matthew Knies, Cole Perfetti, JJ Peterka, Matty Beniers, Nino Niederreiter, Troy Terry, Sean Monahan, Patrick Kane, Nazem Kadri, Jamie Benn, Elias Lindholm, William Eklund, Nick Schmaltz, Trevor Moore, Jake Neighbours, Dylan Cozens, Connor Zary, Ross Colton, Jonathan Drouin, Leo Carlsson, Casey Mittelstadt, Blake Coleman, Kyle Palmieri, Yegor Chinakhov, Michael Bunting, Brayden Schenn, Ryan Strome, Anthony Cirelli, Viktor Arvidsson, Dawson Mercer, Dmitri Voronkov, Anton Lundell, Yegor Sharangovich, Dylan Holloway, Matthew Coronato, Reilly Smith, Jake DeBrusk, Kirill Marchenko, William Karlsson, Shane Pinto, Chandler Stephenson, Jaden Schwartz, Conor Garland, Tyler Toffoli, Quinton Byfield, Mason Marchment, Ryan O'Reilly, Morgan Geekie, Mason McTavish, Jack Roslovic, Kent Johnson, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Patrik Laine, Bobby McMann, Kaapo Kakko, Alex Killorn, Eeli Tolvanen, Jack Quinn, Anders Lee, Tyler Bertuzzi, Alex Laferriere, Maxim Tsyplakov, Warren Foegele, Fabian Zetterlund, Brett Howden, Aliaksei Protas, Scott Laughton, Aaron Ekblad, Neal Pionk, Jackson LaCombe, Luke Hughes, Brandt Clarke, Filip Hronek, Lane Hutson, Bowen Byram, Jordan Spence, Travis Sanheim, Cam Fowler, Owen Power, Ryan Pulock, Matt Grzelcyk, Mason Lohrei, Ryker Evans, Samuel Girard, Dmitry Orlov, Radko Gudas, Erik Gustafsson, Jamie Drysdale, Declan Chisholm, Dante Fabbro, Alex Vlasic, Damon Severson, Ivan Provorov, Ilya Samsonov, Mackenzie Blackwood, Lukas Dostal, Kevin Lankinen, Yaroslav Askarov, Scott Wedgewood, Jake Allen, Tristan Jarry, John Gibson, Sam Montembeault, Karel Vejmelka, Jonathan Quick, Leevi Merilainen, Dan Vladar, Calvin Pickard, Joel Hofer, Elvis Merzlikins, Joonas Korpisalo, Justus Annunen