NHL Grind Down: Thursday, October 22nd - Page 2

by Max Ernst (maxeernst) Last Updated 2015-10-22 20:56:19

Florida Panthers at Chicago Blackhawks – 08:30 PM EDT

Florida Panthers					Chicago Blackhawks
			Roberto Luongo					Corey Crawford
			Record					Record
			38-29					48-28
Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%	Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%
Team Stats	2.41	2.60	16.30%	80.00%	Team Stats	2.68	2.27	17.60%	83.40%

The Florida Panthers travel to Chicago to take on a Blackhawks squad that will play their first game without blue-line anchor Duncan Keith tonight. Keith suffered a right knee injury that required surgery and is projected to be out 4-6 weeks. With Keith out of the lineup, the matchup improves significantly for a young Panthers team that has looked solid in numerous starts this season. Jaromir Jagr continues to produce at a high level into his 40s, playing alongside Aleksander Barkov and Jonathan Huberdeau. Jagr has 7 points in 6 games while Barkov has 6. Huberdeau has yet to make a significant impact on the scoresheet following a dynamic preseason, but his numbers should come up if Florida keeps this group together. This line will likely be shadowed by Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa, which really hurts their value. Pivoting to the second line, centered by dynamic player Nick Bjugstad, may be the best move in tournaments. Florida’s defense corps has yet to get involved substantially on the offensive end of the ice this year, but Aaron Ekblad will continue to get plenty of opportunities on the top power-play unit.

Playing their first game without their star defensive player tonight, Chicago’s depth is sure to be tested against Florida. The Blackhawks are undoubtedly looking back fondly at the Patrick Sharp trade, as newcomer Trevor Daley will look to fill the hole left by Keith’s absence. Patrick Kane and impressive Russian import Artemi Panarin pace the Blackhawks offense to start the year, each recording 7 points over 6 games. Panarin was an all-star playing in the KHL last year and his immediate production in the NHL is no a fluke—-this kid is a stud. While the Panthers play a defensively stout brand of hockey, Chicago has the match-up advantage at home and coach Joel Quenneville will constantly look to put Kane and Panarin in positions to score. Daley is projected to take over as the top power-play quarterback and he provides immense value, coming in at a reasonable price across the industry. Vegas has Chicago as a -165 favorite in this game and Corey Crawford is a reasonable play in net, particularly if you are confident that Toews and Co. can shut down Florida’s top line.

Elite Plays

FLA: Jaromir Jagr, Aleksander Barkov
CHI: Patrick Kane, Artemi Panarin, Trevor Daley

Secondary Plays

FLA: Jonathan Huberdeau, Nick Bjugstad, Aaron Ekblad
CHI: Jonathan Toews, Marian Hossa, Brent Seabrook, Corey Crawford

Washington Capitals at Vancouver Canucks – 10:00 PM EDT

Washington Capitals					Vancouver Canucks
			Braden Holtby					Ryan Miller
			Record					Record
			45-26					48-29
Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%	Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%
Team Stats	2.89	2.43	25.30%	81.20%	Team Stats	2.88	2.68	19.30%	85.70%

The Washington Capitals head to Vancouver tonight to face the Canucks in what should be a highly competitive game. Both of these teams have winning records to start the season and project to make the playoffs come April. The Capitals handily beat the Flames last time out in a lopsided victory. Washington has welcomed the return of top center Nicklas Backstrom with open arms, as Backstrom already has 5 points in his first 2 games of the season, both of which were victories for the Caps. Capitals coach Barry Trotz has seen dividends from his decision to have Backstrom center the second line, while leaving the top line of Alex Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and T.J. Oshie intact. The match-up for the Capitals on the road isn’t ideal, as Vancouver is allowing under two goals a game, but look for Washington’s dynamic power-play to make an impact in this game. The Caps have been clicking at over 30% with the man advantage and the return of Backstrom to that unit makes it drastically more deadly. John Carlson is also worth rostering if you have the salary to afford his high price tag.

The Vancouver Canucks will be reuniting sniper Radim Vrbata with the twins Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin tonight in an effort to help Vrbata find his scoring touch. Vrbata is scoreless to start the season, but led the Canucks last year with 31 goals. Vancouver faces a tough matchup tonight against the Capitals, who have substantially improved their defensive hockey over the last few seasons, but the Canucks do have the advantage of getting the last change at home. The Vancouver power-play has been abysmal to start the year (only converting at a 5% rate), but is bound to improve over the course of the season. Brandon Sutter is fitting in quite well in Vancouver, centering the second line and playing the point on the top powerplay. Sutter leads the Canucks with 5 points n 6 games and is a nice value play that should come at low ownership across all sites. While Ryan Miller has been studly to start the season, target him cautiously tonight, as the Capitals are averaging almost 4 goals a game.

Elite Plays

WSH: Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, T.J. Oshie
VAN: Daniel Sedin, Radim Vrbata

Secondary Plays

WSH: Evgeny Kuznetsov, John Carlson, Marcus Johansson
VAN: Henrik Sedin, Alexander Edler, Brandon Sutter

Los Angeles Kings at San Jose Sharks – 10:30 PM EDT

Los Angeles Kings					San Jose Sharks
			Jonathan Quick					Martin Jones
			Record					Record
			40-27					40-33
Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%	Stats	GF/GP	GA/GP	PP%	PK%
Team Stats	2.66	2.40	19.00%	80.90%	Team Stats	2.73	2.76	21.60%	78.50%

The Los Angeles Kings travel to San Jose to face the Sharks tonight in a rivalry game featuring two solid Western Conference clubs. LA has bounced back from their slow start to the year, recording two one-goal victories in their last two games in classic Kings fashion. Despite the offensive talent the Kings possess, this team rarely will light up the score sheet with a lot of goals, instead preferring to grind it out and play solid defensive hockey. Jeff Carter has yet to score a goal this season, but has been getting plenty of opportunities alongside Tyler Toffoli both at even strength and on the second power-play unit. Marian Gaborik and Anze Kopitar have been joined on the top line by captain Dustin Brown, who has been impressive to start the year. Brown only managed two post 27 points each of the last two seasons, but looks more like the player that posted totals in the 50s from 2008 to 2011. The Sharks are only allowing two goals against per game so far this season, so perhaps another tough one goal victory is in the cards for LA.

The San Jose Sharks were shut out by the Rangers on Monday in New York, playing their first game without star center Logan Couture. While the Sharks didn’t look particularly impressive in the game, one could argue that Monday’s loss was more attributable to the solid play of the Rangers than deficiencies on the Sharks end. The Sharks appear to have moved Matt Nieto up to the top line to play with Joe Pavelski and Joe Thornton. The second line will feature Patrick Marleau, Tomas Hertl, and Joel Ward. Brent Burns continues to anchor this club on defense and is constantly involved in the attack as well. Burns continues to quarterback the top power-play unit and I would firmly put him in the category of top-5 offensive defesemen in the league at this point. Playing against the Kings, an elite puck possession team, is never an easy task and I don’t like the matchup for San Jose. The Sharks do have the benefit of playing at home, but I would not expect this game to become a shootout as the Kings appear to have found their stride.

Elite Plays

LAK: Anze Kopitar, Jeff Carter
SJS: Joe Pavelski, Brent Burns

Secondary Plays

LAK: Marian Gaborik, Tyler Toffoli, Drew Doughty
SJS: Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau, Matt Nieto

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