This article is part of our The Man Advantage series.
The Man Advantage
Mark McLarney, RotoWire.com
Hi folks, and welcome back to another edition of The Man Advantage, where we try and keep you abreast of the latest developments in the ever-changing world of NHL power play squads. This week, we start out with three players who are receiving more time on the PP than they usually would, as a result of serving as a replacement for an injured teammate. Remember, in the world of fantasy hockey, knowing that a guy on your squad is receiving extra ice time, especially with the extra attacker, could be enough reason to move him from your bench to your active roster. After that, we finish off by looking at three other guys who are currently playing second-line power play, but who are currently producing like first-line studs.
Anton Stralman, D, TAM: With the Bolts' regular PP quarterback Victor Hedman out until early December with a broken hand, Stralman has been seeing more ice time lately, both at even strength and on the power play. Stralman's total ice time has risen by roughly three minutes per game this season (22:37 vs. 19:25), and by over two minutes with the man advantage (2:48 vs. 0:24). So far, he has nine points in 12 games, and is well on his way to eclipsing the career-high 34 points he registered five seasons ago with Columbus. And although only one of those points have come on the PP this season, as long as he continues to
The Man Advantage
Mark McLarney, RotoWire.com
Hi folks, and welcome back to another edition of The Man Advantage, where we try and keep you abreast of the latest developments in the ever-changing world of NHL power play squads. This week, we start out with three players who are receiving more time on the PP than they usually would, as a result of serving as a replacement for an injured teammate. Remember, in the world of fantasy hockey, knowing that a guy on your squad is receiving extra ice time, especially with the extra attacker, could be enough reason to move him from your bench to your active roster. After that, we finish off by looking at three other guys who are currently playing second-line power play, but who are currently producing like first-line studs.
Anton Stralman, D, TAM: With the Bolts' regular PP quarterback Victor Hedman out until early December with a broken hand, Stralman has been seeing more ice time lately, both at even strength and on the power play. Stralman's total ice time has risen by roughly three minutes per game this season (22:37 vs. 19:25), and by over two minutes with the man advantage (2:48 vs. 0:24). So far, he has nine points in 12 games, and is well on his way to eclipsing the career-high 34 points he registered five seasons ago with Columbus. And although only one of those points have come on the PP this season, as long as he continues to line up alongside the likes of Steven Stamkos, Ryan Callahan, Valtteri Filppula and Ondrej Palat, the points will come. Just monitor Hedman's expected return to the lineup and be prepared to make a change if it looks like Stralman's ice time will suffer as a result.
Dougie Hamilton, D, BOS: Hamilton has been the top dog on the B's blue line lately, given the recent injuries to Zdeno Chara (knee) and Torey Krug (finger). He's currently averaging about the same amount of PP time compared to last season (2:15 vs. 2:17), but as long as he continues to be the first Bruins' d-man over the boards for the PP, that will change. Furthermore, his overall minutes have gone up by over three minutes per game (22:47 vs. 19:06), and he's shooting the puck more, currently on pace for almost 200, compared to a 150-SOG pace last season. True, with just one PP assist to his credit so far this year, he is still finding his way when it comes to quarterbacking the PP. However, he has never enjoyed this prominent a role in the lineup before either, so the adjustment could take some time. We consider him to be a good "buy-low" PP candidate in medium to deeper formats right now.
Benoit Pouliot, LW, EDM: Back at the start of the season, Pouliot was seeing only second-line PP minutes, usually less than two minutes per game. All that changed on November 1st when Taylor Hall went down with a knee injury against the Canucks. Later that game, and the following game (Nov. 4) against the Flyers, Pouliot was moved to the top PP unit, skating alongside the likes of Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Pouliot has just four points in 12 games this season and has yet to record a point on the power play, but it's hard to imagine a greater opportunity than the one he has now. He skated a season high 17:11 in his last game against the Flyers, with 4:10 of that coming on the PP - also a high water mark for the season thus far. For those of you in deeper formats, he represents a good waiver wire acquisition target at the present time.
Steve Downie, RW, PIT: With 19 PP goals in just 46 chances so far this season, the Pens are running at a ridiculous (and, frankly, unsustainable) 41.3% success rate. It's not hard to see why, given the wealth of offensive talent the team posseses. In fact, four of the NHL's top five PP producers so far this season hail from Steel City - Evgeni Malkin (11 PP points), Sidney Crosby (10), Patric Hornqvist (8) and Chris Kunitz (8). However, for those of you looking for a shrewd waiver wire pickup, good luck finding these guys still available in your leagues. That said, how about a guy like Downie? The Pens' bad boy hasn't done too badly for himself lately, registering a goal and four assists over his past seven games, with three of those points coming with the man advantage. He's currently averaging just under two minutes per game on the PP, skating with Pascal Dupuis and Brandon Sutter. On a team filled with high-priced talent, Downie is often overlooked but represents good fantasy value in deeper formats.
Joel Ward, RW, WAS: Similarly in Washington, where the Caps' first PP line is dominated by the likes of Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom, the team's best performer over the past two weeks has actually been second-liner Ward, who has three PP goals and a helper in his last six games. Ward doesn't see much by way of extra-man ice time, averaging just 1:38 on the second line, however he is making the most of what few minutes he gets right now. He usually skates with Andre Burakovsky and Evgeny Kuznetsov, and with eight points in 12 games, he is currently on pace for the first 50-point season of his career. Grab him while you can and enjoy the hot streak while it lasts.
Tommy Wingels, RW, SAN: Wingels has been a revelation so far in San Jose this season, with nine points in his first 13 games. Four of those points have come on the PP, three of which he's registered in his last four games (2G, 1A). His scoring aside, Wingels is a guy who will deliver for you in other stat categories as well. He loves to shoot the puck (he recently fired a whopping 10 pucks on net against the Ducks) and his 47 shots have him tied for eighth in the league. He also loves to throw his body around, and is currently fourth in the league in hits with 48. Wingels first broke in with the Sharks four seasons ago (2010-11) but since then has quietly progressed up the depth chart and now sits as the team's No. 2 right winger behind Joe Pavelski. He sees less than two minutes per game on the second-line power play, but like the aforementioned Ward, makes the most of what little PP time he sees. Don't wait too long to snap him up, as he's slowly making his way onto the radar screens of hockey poolies everywhere.
