NHL Grind Down: Monday, February 29th - Page Two
Montreal Canadiens at San Jose Sharks – 10:30 PM EST
| Montreal Canadiens | San Jose Sharks | ||||||||
 | Carey Price |  | Martin Jones | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 30-27-5 | 32-22-6 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.68 | 2.69 | 18.10% | 83.80% | Team Stats | 2.92 | 2.68 | 22.50% | 79.30% |
Montreal finally waived the proverbial white flag on their 2015-16 season over the weekend, shipping off both Dale Wiese and Tomas Fleischmann to the Chicago Blackhawks. They may have won two straight games, but will head out of the daunted west coast road trip having posted an ugly 11-23-2 record over their last 36 games. While the matchup in the Shark Tank is not ideal, Max Pacioretty is finally starting to show some signs of life offensively as he scored two goals against Toronto on Saturday and posted three goals and two assists in his last five games. Pacioretty is slated to rejoin his former line mates of Tomas Plekanec and Brendan Gallgher on the top line and #1 power-play unit, which is a boost to the fantasy outlook for all three players. Blue-liner P.K. Subban actually leads this Montreal team in scoring with 47 points and is likely the safest cash game option considering the Sharks struggling 23rd ranked penalty kill. His defensive partner Andrei Markov extended his point streak to five games with an assist on Saturday and has posted a goal and seven assists in his last seven games. He logs a healthy dose of playing time on the #2 power-play unit and can still be found with a bargain price-tag.
The Sharks mounted a third period rally to storm past the Vancouver Canucks last night 4-1 and will head back home tonight for a quick one-game stop at the Shark Tank to battle the Montreal Canadiens. Joe Pavelski ended his five game goal scoring drought with his 27th goal of the season last night and will continue to skate alongside Joe Thornton both on the top forward line and #1 power-play unit. While Pavelski leads the team with 58 points, Thornton is just behind him at 57 and has been on fire since the All-Star break; scoring five goals and adding 11 assists in 13 games. Alternatively, Peter DeBoer recently did the DFS world a favor and paired Logan Couture and Patrick Marleau together on the second line while those two also join Thornton and Pavelski on the top power-play unit. If you’re looking for some value, former first-round pick Tomas Hertl has the luxury of skating alongside Pavelski and Thornton on the top line and has heated up lately with five goals and a pair of assists in his last eight games. On defense, Brent Burns is a fantasy stud. Not only has he already posted 51 points this season, but his 260 SOG is the second highest total in the NHL this season. Alternatively, Marc-Edouard Vlasic picked up two more assists in last night’s game and has now tallied one goal and 11 assists in 13 games during the month of February.
Montreal Canadiens
CF%: 52.6, CP60: 109.4, 5×5 Differential: 0
Elite Options: Max Pacioretty, P.K. Subban
Secondary Options: Tomas Plekanec, Brendan Gallagher, Alex Galchenyuk, Andrei Markov
San Jose Sharks
CF%: 50.9, CP60: 106.5, 5×5 Differential: 5
Elite Options: Joe Pavelski, Joe Thornton, Logan Couture, Brent Burns
Secondary Options: Tomas Hertl, Patrick Marleau, Marc-Edouard Vlasic