The Man Advantage: Worth Keeping an Eye On

In the not too distant future, an NHL player is going to reach the double-digit power-play point threshold. It could be Claude Giroux, who has nine points with the extra man, but it could also be Alexander Wennberg. Wennberg was mentioned in an earlier iteration of this column, and he has not slowed down. Despite this fact, he's still available in most leagues. Sure, his lack of big-time success in the NHL might make people skeptical, but the Blue Jacket is looking like a promising young playmaker. Here are some more guys worth keeping an eye on…

Patrick Eaves, RW, DAL – Eaves is not an exciting player. He's often been hurt, or just a straight up healthy scratch, in his career. However, right now he has five power-play points and is averaging 3:47 per game with the extra man. Dallas has been dealing with injuries, which has assuredly been a reason for his uptick in ice time. Until the Stars are healthy, though, Eaves seems like he has a real opportunity to shine.

Brayden Schenn, C, PHI – Schenn missed some time earlier this season which hurt his fantasy stock, but he's healthy now and playing pretty well. He's got five power-play points, and he had 22 last season and 19 the year before that. The 25-year-old is smack dab in the middle of his prime and has a lot of offensive talent around him. There's no reason to think his power-play success won't continue.

Jonathan Marchessault, C, FLA – Marchessault has been a hot name early this season, but because he came into the year as an afterthought he's still available in some leagues. That should be amended, in part due to his five power-play points. Even last year in Tampa when he wasn't such a commodity, he had seven power-play points in 45 games while averaging 2:54 on the man advantage.

Nick Foligno, LW, CLM – The Blue Jackets are a good source of under-the-radar
players, particularly in the power-play department. Foligno has six points with the extra man. Last year, he had 13 — all assists — but Foligno had bad luck all season long with difficulty putting the puck in the net. In contrast, he had 26 power-play points in the campaign prior, which gives you a sense of his ceiling.

Anton Stralman, D, TAM – Stralman has been an analytics darling for driving puck possession, although possessing the puck is not necessarily an issue for most power plays. He hasn't scored this season but has six assists, four of which have come on the power play. Stralman's power-play minutes are slightly down this season, but he's still seeing 2:30 per game there, and he's had double-digit power-play points in the last two campaigns.

John-Michael Liles, D, BOS – Liles has power-play assists in his last two games but only four total points on the season, perhaps in part because he's only taken 10 shots on goal. He hasn't had double-digit power-play points since 2011-12, so there's no reason to get all that excited about Liles, even though he's averaging more than two minutes per game with the man advantage so far.