NHL Daily Plays: Wednesday, January 14th
With the All-Star break just a week away, we’re at the point of the season where each passing game is clearing the picture of who the buyers and sellers are going to be at the looming trade deadline. As typical for a Wednesday Night, the action on the ice is limited to just four games, but there are still plenty of nice options to choose from.
Goaltenders
Jonathan Quick – Los Angeles Kings – Quick has not looked sharp in any of his four starts this month, but the matchup tonight still makes him my top goaltending option. The New Jersey Devils will enter the Staples Center averaging just 2.17 goals per game on the road this season and immediately become even less of an intimidating offensive team with Jaromir Jagr not making the trip to California and Patrick Elias likely sidelined as well. Quick has been terrific on home ice thus far this season, posting a 13-4-3 record with a 2.14 GAA and .923 SV% in 21 starts. The Devils have dropped six straight road games and have won just four of their last sixteen games and I don’t expect things to change for them tonight.
Editor’s Note: Martin Jones will start in goal for the Kings tonight.
Others To Target: Frederik Anderson, Braden Holtby
Centers
Anze Kopitar – Los Angeles Kings – Kopitar’s slow start to the season is long behind him at this point, and his hot play continued on Monday when he tallied a goal and added an assist against the Maple Leafs. He’s now riding a four-game point streak that has seen him rack up two goals, six assists and a +6. He owns some of the most drastic home vs road splits in the NHL this season, posting 29 of his 34 points at the Staples Center. While his asking price is on the rise, it still hasn’t caught up to his recent production on most sites; over his last 12 games Kopitar has poured in an eye-popping four goals and seventeen assists.
Tomas Plekanec – Montreal Canadiens – The Canadiens will travel to Columbus tonight to take on a Blue Jackets team that has given up five goals in consecutive games and now finds themselves ranked 26th in the NHL in goals against per game this season (3.28). The Blue Jackets are allowing an unsightly 33.4 shots against per game and Plekanec had success against them last season, scoring a pair of goals and adding an assist in three meetings. Michel Therrien has been tinkering with his lines a bit lately, but Plekanec generally has the luxury of playing alongside Max Pacioretty on the team’s top forward line. He’s averaging nearly 19 minutes of ice-time per game and will rarely ever give you a “negative point” game, making him a solid value option for cash games.
Others To Target: Ryan Getzlaf, Jeff Carter, Claude Giroux, Nicklas Backstrom, Ryan Kesler
Wingers
Alexander Ovechkin – Washington Capitals – I know I’m way out on a limb with this pick, but I don’t think it’s wise to fade Ovechkin tonight against the NHL’s worst penalty kill. The Philadelphia Flyers are a mess defensively and not only own a dreadful 74% penalty kill but have also allowed 3.39 goals against per game on the road this season. Ovie has lit the lamp in six of the last seven games, scored a goal against Philly in their only previous meeting this season, and lit them up for three goals and two assists in four meetings last year. Ovechkin leads the NHL in shots on goal (199) and trails only Joe Pavelski in power-play goals.
Patrick Maroon/Rickard Rakell – Anaheim Ducks – If you’re going to pay up for some of the “big dogs” tonight, then you’ll need to find some value somewhere. Two of my favorite value options on the board come from the wing of the Anahiem Ducks as they host the “rebuilding” Toronto Maple Leafs. Patrick Maroon has the luxury of playing alongside Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry both at even strength as well as on the team’s # 1 power-play unit. Despite mediocre production from him, I’ll gladly take the cheap exposure to Getzlaf and Perry. Rakell, a former first-round pick in 2011, exploded for two goals and two assists against the Jets on Sunday and even got some run on the wing of the second power-play unit in that game. Pick your poison.
Others To Target: Corey Perry, Justin Williams, Marian Gaborik, Max Pacioretty, Marcus Johansson, Jakub Voracek, Phil Kessel, Eric Fehr, Daniel Winnik, Richard Panik
Defensemen
Mike Green – Washington Capitals – I touched on the Philadelphia Penalty Kill earlier and it’s for that reason that I really like Green tonight on the blue-line. He picked up a pair of assists against the Flyers when they met last week (one of which on the PP) and torched them for two goals, five assists and a +5 in their five meetings last season. Green is averaging over 19 minutes of ice-time per game this season, with over three minutes per game coming from the point of the #1 power-play unit. He can still be found for a reasonable price on many sites, making him an excellent option.
Jake Muzzin – Los Angeles Kings – His teammate Drew Doughty draws most of the fantasy attention among the King’s blue-liners and is absolutely a solid play tonight as well, but Muzzin is much more affordable and nearly as productive. Muzzin has picked up three assists over the last four games and has logged an average of 23:24 per game this season. He’s stationed alongside Doughty on the point of the King’s very dangerous #1 power-play unit and should have plenty of chances against the Devils 24th ranked penalty kill.
Others To Target: Mark Streit, John Carlson, Sami Vatanen, Cody Franson, Drew Doughty, P.K. Subban, James Wisniewski