This article is part of our The Man Advantage series.
As we head into the final weekend of NHL regular-season games, we look at seven of the hottest power-play performers over the last few weeks. Specifically, we will focus on players from teams who are playoff bound, and who will be entering the postseason on a PP hot streak. Give these guys a good look when it comes to your playoff drafts the next few days.
Kris Letang, D, PIT: Letang owners would have been worried -- and understandably so -- during the early part of this season, as the Penguins' No. 1 blueliner recorded just four points in his first 11 games. Then, after potting 10 points in his next 13, a wrist injury in December caused him to miss nine of his next 11 contests. Since Dec. 31, however, Letang has been absolutely phenomenal with 51 points in 44 games, a plus-22 rating and 18 PP points. He may not play in Saturday's regular-season finale against the Flyers, which would halt his consecutive points streak at eight games (2G, 10A), but no matter. He's already has a career-high 67 points (eclipsing last season's high-water mark of 54). On the power play, he's registered a goal and three helpers in his last five games, which has pushed his PP point total to 27 on the season -- also a personal best.
Derek Stepan, C, NYR: You have to feel for Stepan, who has 53 points with just a single game left on the schedule and likely will
As we head into the final weekend of NHL regular-season games, we look at seven of the hottest power-play performers over the last few weeks. Specifically, we will focus on players from teams who are playoff bound, and who will be entering the postseason on a PP hot streak. Give these guys a good look when it comes to your playoff drafts the next few days.
Kris Letang, D, PIT: Letang owners would have been worried -- and understandably so -- during the early part of this season, as the Penguins' No. 1 blueliner recorded just four points in his first 11 games. Then, after potting 10 points in his next 13, a wrist injury in December caused him to miss nine of his next 11 contests. Since Dec. 31, however, Letang has been absolutely phenomenal with 51 points in 44 games, a plus-22 rating and 18 PP points. He may not play in Saturday's regular-season finale against the Flyers, which would halt his consecutive points streak at eight games (2G, 10A), but no matter. He's already has a career-high 67 points (eclipsing last season's high-water mark of 54). On the power play, he's registered a goal and three helpers in his last five games, which has pushed his PP point total to 27 on the season -- also a personal best.
Derek Stepan, C, NYR: You have to feel for Stepan, who has 53 points with just a single game left on the schedule and likely will fall just shy off the career-high 57 points he posted two seasons ago. Were it not for the rib injury he suffered in late November that cost him 10 games, he would no doubt be finishing the season with a career high. Regardless, Stepan has been lights out the last few weeks, with 15 points in his last nine games, with six points coming on the power play (3G, 3A). He's centering the Blueshirts' first PP line alongside Derick Brassard, Chris Kreider, Mats Zuccarello and Keith Yandle.
Niklas Kronwall, D, DET: Kronwall pretty much fell right off fantasy poolies' radar screens this season, after suffering a knee injury in January that kept him out of the lineup for four weeks. And prior to that, he wasn't exactly lighting the world on fire either, with just 17 points in his first 45 games. While he was out, Mike Green stepped in and assumed the mantle of the Wings' No. 1 power play defenseman, but since his return, Kronwall has re-assumed that role, and he's been producing. In his last 10 games, he has six points -- all assists -- and four have been of the PP variety. The Wings may just barely squeak into the playoffs this season -- and assuming they make it, Kronwall will surely have trouble keeping up with the playoff grind given his injury history this season. But he makes for a good sleeper pick in most formats, if he's still available in the later rounds of your draft.
Keith Yandle, D, NYR: For the last few seasons, Yandle has proven one of the elite PP defensemen in the league. In 2013-14, he tied with Erik Karlsson for most PP points for a blueliner with 31 (and most assists with 28). Last season, he finished with 29 PP points, just one back of Karlsson and Mark Streit for the same honors. So, when Yandle got off to a (for him) relatively slow start this season, with just one PP goal and three helpers in his first 20 games, followed by a baffling two-month, 26-game PP point drought from Dec. 9 to Feb. 10, many poolies began wondering what the heck was going on. Well, wonder no longer, as Yandle has looked much more like his old self the last several weeks, with 18 points in his last 27 games -- 14 of which have come with the man advantage. In the midst of his slump, there were rampant trade rumours that had Yandle being shipped out of town at the deadline. But that never happened, and the reports now are that the Rangers may try to re-sign the pending UFA after all.
Joe Thornton, C, SAN: What a season it's been for Jumbo Joe. The 36-year-old continues to turn back the clock this year, fifth overall in NHL scoring with 81 points in 81 games. How consistent has he been recently, you ask? Good question. Since Dec. 15 -- a span of roughly four months and 52 games -- Thornton has been held off the scoresheet just six times, and never for longer than one game. On the power play, Thornton has 28 points, his highest output in five seasons, and is a huge reason why the Sharks are tied for the second-best power play in the NHL this year (22.7 percent success rate). Over the past 10 games, seven of Thornton's 12 points (2G, 5A) have come with the extra attacker. He continues to skate alongside Joe Pavelski, Patrick Marleau, Logan Couture and Brent Burns on the Sharks' deadly dangerous No. 1 unit.
Artemi Panarin, LW, CHI: OK, first thing's first. Panarin is an absolute lock to win the Calder this season, right? Right. This we know. Tied for 11th in the league in scoring with 74 points, Panarin's closest rookie competition is Buffalo's Jack Eichel, a full 20 points behind him. However, it's interesting to note that despite Panarin's dominance this season, he's been largely inconsistent when it comes to power-play scoring. Oh sure, about a third of his total points have been scored on the PP (23 to be exact), but he tends to score in multi-point bunches, which means he disappears for long stretches at a time. Take his last four games for example -- 10 points, five of which were of the PP variety. Prior to that? Just three points in 10 games, none scored on the PP. But there's no question he's heading into the playoffs on a hot streak, and the fact that he plays on the same line as the NHL's reigning scoring leader -- Patrick Kane -- doesn't hurt.
Torey Krug, D, BOS: If you were a Krug owner this year, you enjoyed a season of multi-category record highs by the 24-year-old. And with one game left on the schedule, he still has a chance to add to his career highs in assists (40), total points (44), power-play assists (18), average ice time (21:34), PP minutes (3:16) and shots on goal (240). Even better, he's finishing the season on a strong note, with seven points in his last four games (1G, 6A), three of those points coming on the power play. If the B's can squeak into the playoffs by nudging out either Philadelphia or Detroit this weekend, Krug will be one of the point men for the NHL's seventh-best power-play team (20 percent), lining up alongside the likes of Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, Loui Eriksson and Ryan Spooner. Given his late-season surge, he should be a top pick among defensemen in playoff pools.
Well, that's it for this year. Thanks for reading, and good luck in your playoff pools.
