NHL Grind Down: Tuesday, November 17th - Page Two
Colorado Avalanche at Toronto Maple Leafs – 07:30 PM EST
| Colorado Avalanche | Toronto Maple Leafs | ||||||||
 | Semyon Varlamov |  | Jonathan Bernier | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 7-9-1 | 5-9-4 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.88 | 2.65 | 19.70% | 82.10% | Team Stats | 2.22 | 2.83 | 15.10% | 78.70% |
The Avalanche have opened their brutal seven-game road trip with three straight wins (including a 6-1 victory against Montreal on Saturday) but they’ll head to Toronto tonight in what just feels like a trap game. I’m not completely convinced that Patrick Roy has suddenly figured things out for the 7-9-1 Avalanche, and with Gabriel Landeskog suspended for this one, I won’t be targeting them heavily at all even in a perceived solid matchup against the Maple Leafs. Colorado is easily the worst team in the NHL by Corsi standards this season and just don’t have the forward depth to easily deal with the Landeskog suspension. However, Matt Duchene has been on an absolute tear lately and the Landeskog absence has him, at least temporarily, playing alongside the very talented Nathan MacKinnon. Duchene has tallied goals in three straight games and has posted right points during that span and Nathan MacKinnon leads the Avs with 19 points in 17 games; both are elite options tonight. On the blue-line, Tyson Barrie doesn’t seem to garner much attention, but he now quarterbacks the team’s #1 power-play and has racked up 10 assists in 14 games.
The Maple Leafs saw their three-game winning streak snapped in New York on Sunday, but Mike Babcock finally looks to have this team headed in the right direction. The Leafs have averaged just 2.18 goals per game on the young season, but with the Avalanche really struggling with puck possession, this is a somewhat evening where there’s some fantasy appeal to this lineup. Dion Phaneuf and Morgan Rielly actually lead this team with 11 points on the young season, and both players are terrific options on the blue-line tonight. Up-front, Nazem Kadri may only have one goal on the season, but his 74 SOG is actually ranked 3rd among all skaters in the NHL; he’s averaged 19 goals per season over the last three years and it’s only a matter of time before he starts finding the back of the net with more regularity. He’s joined by James van Riemsdyk and Leo Komarov on the Leafs top forward line and all three look like very nice value options this evening.
Elite Plays
COL: Nathan MacKinnon, Matt Duchene, Tyson Barrie
TOR: Nazem Kadri, James van Riemsdyk, Dion Phaneuf, Morgan Rielly
Secondary Plays
COL: Mikhail Grigorenko, Jarome Iginla, Erik Johnson, Francois Beauchemin
TOR: Joffrey Lupul, Leo Komarov, Tyler Bozak, P.A. Parenteau.
Anaheim Ducks at Nashville Predators – 08:00 PM EST
| Anaheim Ducks | Nashville Predators | ||||||||
 | Frederik Andersen |  | Pekka Rinne | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 5-8-4 | 10-3-3 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 1.65 | 2.59 | 15.70% | 90.00% | Team Stats | 3.00 | 2.31 | 21.80% | 80.00% |
The Ducks rolled to a 4-1 victory in Carolina last night, but they’ll head to Bridgestone Arena tonight with a very disappointing 6-8-4 record to start the season. Facing the Predators and their physically demanding style of hockey is never easy, but it’s particularly difficult on the second half of back-to-back games. I’m not high on Anaheim at all in this one and therefore I’ll get straight to the point; Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry are clearly the top two offensive weapons on this Anaheim team, but this is not the time to pay the premium price needed to get them into your lineups. The Predators have allowed just 2.31 GA/G this season, have allowed the third fewest shots against per game this season (27.2) and embarrassed the Ducks in their only previous meeting this season.
The Predators will put their 6-1-2 home record on the line tonight when they welcome the Anaheim Ducks to the Bridgestone Arena. Nashville is fresh off of a 7-0 beat down of the Winnipeg Jets and have not managed to win back-to-back games since they defeated this Ducks team on October 22 (5-1 victory). Both of these hockey clubs have played very strong in their defensive zone this season and this doesn’t figure to be the most fantasy friendly game on the board tonight. With that said, Nashville enters as a -170 favorite by Vegas standards and several of their top offensive weapons remain underpriced across the industry. Nashville has the luxury of rolling out two very dangerous scoring lines. James Neal leads the way with eight goals and six assists through the first 16 games and his linemates Mike Fisher and Colin Wilson will be a handful for the Ducks. Conversely, Filip Forsberg is an emerging star in this league, and with Mike Ribeiro centering him and Craig Smith, they might just be more threatening. The Predators are stacked on defense, and Shea Weber, Roman Josi, Seth Jones and Ryan Ellis are all fine plays despite the mediocre matchup.
Elite Plays
ANA: None
NSH: James Neal, Filip Forsberg, Roman Josi, Shea Weber
Secondary Plays
ANA: Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf, Carl Hagelin, Sami Vatanen
NSH: Colin Wilson, Mike Fisher, Mike Ribeiro, Seth Jones, Ryan Ellis
New Jersey Devils at Calgary Flames – 09:00 PM EST
| New Jersey Devils | Calgary Flames | ||||||||
 | Cory Schneider |  | Jonas Hiller | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 10-6-1 | 6-12-1 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.47 | 2.29 | 22.00% | 82.10% | Team Stats | 2.37 | 3.74 | 16.00% | 75.50% |
In a battle of two very different playing styles, the Devils take their slow and disruptive defense approach into Calgary to face the Flames and their pace-pushing (112.0 CP60) offensive attack. New Jersey enters tonight’s game on the heels of back-to-back impressive wins over Chicago and Pittsburgh and are now 10-3-0 since their ugly 0-3-1 start to the season. While there isn’t an abundance of offensive talent to be found in this Devils lineup, the Flames have allowed an NHL worst 3.72 GA/G this season, making it tough to overlook them in this matchup. Mike Cammalleri once again leads this team in points, and with 17 points over the first 17 games, he needs to be on your radar. Adam Henrique and Lee Stempniak both benefit from playing alongside Cammalleri both at even strength and on the Devil’s top power-play unit, and they’ve combined for an impressive 12 goals, 16 assists and +16 on the young season. Defensively, Damon Severson has already dished out seven assists and logs big minutes as the point-man on the #1 power-play unit, making him the only appealing option.
Smashed between a pair of meetings against the Chicago Blackhawks, the Calgary Flames desperately need to get things turned around quickly if they want to make it back to the Western Conference playoffs this season. The Flames have been a disaster in their own defensive zone to start the season and have only managed to win back-to-back games on time this season. With Chicago coming to town on Friday before the Flames embark on a tough three game road trip, they desperately need two points in this one. It’s pretty simple to break down the Flames now that Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan and Jiri Hudler have been reunited on the top line as that trio has been responsible for such a large percentage of their offense. However, with that top line getting nearly all of its oppositions attention, Mikael Backlund, Michael Frolik and Sam Bennett have been heating up and their emergence would really make a huge impact on this hockey club. The Flames are stacked on the blue-line, but despite several offensively gifted defenseman, we just haven’t seen a ton of production just yet. Regardless, Mark Giordano is a top-tier option this evening, with Dennis Wideman, Dougie Hamilton, T.J. Brodie and Kris Russell all worth consideration as well.
Elite Plays
NJD: Mike Cammalleri, Adam Henrique, Lee Stempniak
CGY: Johnny Gaudreau, Jiri Hudler, Sean Monahan, Mark Giordano
Secondary Plays
NJD: Kyle Palmieri, Travis Zajac, Damon Severson
CGY: Michael Frolik, Sam Bennett, Dennis Wideman, T.J. Brodie, Dougie Hamilton