NHL Daily Plays: Wednesday, January 7th
Happy Hump Day, Grinders. Wednesdays are typically rather light schedules in the NHL, and today’s no different, as just eight teams will lace up their skates.
However there are some interesting story lines to follow tonight, as we’ll get our first look at the Randy Carlyle-less Maple Leafs and get to watch two of the most successful teams over the last few seasons from the Eastern Conference do battle.
Goaltenders
Frederik Andersen – Anaheim Ducks – I’m not enamored with any goalie in particular tonight, but Anderson wins out as my favorite cash game option. He owns an impressive 12-4-2 record with a 2.15 GAA and .925 SV% in 19 starts at the Honda Center and has posted a 12-2-1 record over his last 15 starts. The New York Rangers are no easy foe, but they’ve been much less effective away from Madison Square Garden and this game kicks off a tough three game California road trip for them. Anderson was terrific in his only start against the Rangers last season, turning away 33 of the 32 shots thrown his way. If I don’t decide to save some money between the pipes tonight, then he’ll be my pick.
Authors Note: UPDATE: Ilya Bryzgalov will start for Anaheim. He is not a recommended option.
Others To Target: Petr Mrazek, Marc-Andre Fleury, Henrik Lundqvist
Centers
Pavel Datsyuk – Detroit Red Wings – Datsyuk was the hero for Detroit in Edmonton last night and has now scored 30 points in his 29 appearances this season. Calgary had no answer for Datysuk last season as he torched them for one goal and four assists in their two meetings. He’s routinely logging right at 20 minutes of ice-time per game with a healthy dose of those minutes on Detroit’s #1 power-play. With Calgary sporting an ugly 76.5% penalty kill, he should have plenty of opportunities to use his offensive creativity to get his name on the scoresheet.
Tyler Bozak – Toronto Maple Leafs – Bozak finds himself in a mini, three game scoring streak, but things are looking up for him tonight. He’s the owner of some fairly drastic home vs road splits, so he’ll be pleased to welcome the Washington Capitals into the Air Canada Center where he’s posted 9 goals, 11 assists and a +2 in 22 home games this season. He’s found a home on the Leaf’s top scoring line and #1 power-play unit as the center for James van Riemsdyk and Phill Kessel. He lit the lamp on two occasions in his only other meeting against Washington this season and can still be found for a very reasonable asking price.
Others To Target: Sidney Crosby, Ryan Getzlaf, Evgeni Malkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Ryan Kesler, Josh Jooris, Derek Stepan
Wingers
Jiri Hudler – Calgary Flames – Hudler enters tonight’s game riding a six game scoring streak that has seen him amass eight assists while skating at a +8. He’s clearly developed a very nice rapport with the very talented rookie Johnny Gaudreau and the duo has finally given Calgary a scoring line that opposing teams must account for. After four full days off, he’ll welcome his former team to the Saddledome tonight who were tested for 60 minutes in Edmonton last night. Hudler’s asking price has started to rise, but he’s still far too cheap on several sites and is a great option tonight in those cases.
David Perron – Pittsburgh Penguins – Needless to say, the move from Edmonton to Pittsburgh to play alongside Sidney Crosby has greatly improved the fantasy outlook of David Perron. This is a former first round pick of the St. Louis Blues who has produced offensively pretty much everywhere he’s gone and even quietly scored 28 goals last season for the Oilers. We’ve seen what playing alongside Crosby has done for many wingers (Dupuis, Kunitz, Hornquist, etc) and Perron wasted no time getting in on the action (as he lit the lamp on his first shot in a Penguins uniform).
Others To Target: Henrik Zetterberg, Johnny Gaudreau, Alexander Ovechkin, James van Riemsdyk, Phil Kessel, Corey Perry
Defensemen
Mike Green – Washington Capitals – I feel most comfortable targeting this Washington/Toronto game tonight as I expect both teams to open things up and get back-and-forth. These types of games play perfectly into Mike Green’s strengths, so he comes in as one of my favorite defensemen to target tonight. Green QB’s the Capital’s very dangerous #1 power-play unit thus giving you some fairly reasonable exposure to the more expensive Ovie/Backstrom tandem and is always a threat to jump into a play offensively. He’s turned things on recently, posting one goal and seven assists over the last eight games, so be sure to give him a look tonight.
Sami Vatanen – Anaheim Ducks – Vatanen’s production has started to slow down a bit, but it hasn’t been due to a lack of opportunities. He’s still consistently logging over 20 minutes of ice-time per game and leads the Ducks in average power-play ice-time (3:37/game) where he’s already racked up five goals and nine assists on the young season. Despite a season that’s seen him tally 9 goals and 17 assists, he’s still moderately priced on most sites ($4,300 on FD, for instance) and offers a great source for cheap exposure to Getzlaf/Perry.
Others To Target: Cody Franson, Niklas Kronwall, Kris Letang, John Carlson, Ryan McDonagh