This is my 2021 Week Fifteen Fantasy Hockey Report for those competing in head-to-head categories or rotisserie leagues. There are both standard and deep league acquisition targets. This is more of a “waiver wire” report, looking for your best options among those who are more likely to be available in your league as opposed to the universally owned players. There are 10 recommendations in total, 2 goalies, 2 defensemen, and 6 forwards.
Best Standard League
Adds (25% to 65% Yahoo ownership):
1) MacKenzie Weegar, Fla, (60% Yahoo ownership): Weegar was the 2nd most added player in the month of March, scoring at a 50-point pace on the season (his average ownership last year was 2%). He was dropped in a bunch of leagues while missing a few games with an upper body injury, but if you scooped him up after his return (or never dropped him) you were rewarded on Saturday with a 4-point night that included 4 shots and 7 hits. The Panthers play 4 games this week, and Weegar is at the top of my wish list.
2) Sam Bennett, Fla, (44% Yahoo ownership): For years Sam Bennett struggled to get good deployment in Calgary, then was traded to Florida at the deadline and was placed on a line with Jonathan Huberdeau. Sammy has been outstanding in the 5 games he has played for Florida, scoring 6 PTS, while also accumulating 16 shots, 19 hits, 17 penalty minutes, with a +7. Florida has a bad schedule during the fantasy championship, but Bennett can at least help you get there, as they play 4 times in the semis. He was 1% owned on March 31st.
3) Yanni Gourde, TB, (64% Yahoo ownership): Gourde has been a beneficiary of Tampa’s injury struggles this season, earning regular deployment in Tampa’s top 6. In his last 15 GP, Gourde has netted 11 PTS with 30 shots and 15 hits. The Lightning will be a popular streaming target for their weekend series against Detroit, so you might be able to wait until later in the week to make your move. I have streamed him into my roster a few times this season, and he can be very useful when they’ve got a good schedule.
4) Alex Nedeljkovic, Car, (52% Yahoo ownership): While I’m nervous about the 3-headed monster in the Carolina net, Nedeljkovic has been among the best goaltenders in the NHL this month (.932 SV% in the last 30 days). Carolina is going to play 4 games this week against teams not currently sitting in a playoff spot, and Alex has started 4 of their last 5 GP. If you want to go for a bigger volume play, you could try John Gibson in Anaheim, who will face the LA Kings 4 times. Devan Dubnyk is also worth considering, though Grubauer is off the Covid list.
5) Jakub Vrana, Det, (49% Yahoo ownership): Vrana was acquired by Detroit at the trade deadline, and scored 4 goals with his new team in his 2nd game in a 7-3 blowout of the Dallas Stars. Three of Detroit’s 4 games this week will be against teams that are tough to score on, but you can still expect Vrana to get every opportunity to succeed with his new team to finish the season. All the forwards above (and Vrana) were already owned in my head-to-head league, so my waiver targets last night were Jordan Staal and Dustin Brown, who are also solid options.
Honorable Mentions: Jordan Staal, Jason Robertson, Dustin Brown, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, John Gibson,
Last Week: Jason Robertson, Craig
Smith, Rasmus Dahlin, Jared McCann, Jake Oettinger
Best Deep League Adds
(under 25% ownership):
1) Anthony Duclair, Fla, (26% Yahoo ownership): The 3rd piece on that red-hot Huberdeau-Bennett line has been Anthony Duclair, who has posted some outstanding stats over the last 2 weeks since returning from the injured list. Over those 7 GP, the winger has scored 9 PTS with 14 shots, 7 hits, and a remarkable +13. If you missed out on Bennett but still want to cash in some Huberdeau residuals when the Panthers have a great schedule, Duclair is an attractive consolation prize. He’s also getting looks on the power play.
2) Erik Cernak, TB, (16% Yahoo ownership): Cernak is not a big point producer, but what he’s going to give you is solid peripheral stats. In his last 8 GP, Cernak has scored 3 PTS with 15 shots and 19 hits. The Lightning are going to play 4 games this week against non-playoff teams, and Cernak is absolutely worthy of your consideration. You will see a spike in his ownership ahead of the Lightning weekend set against Detroit. They’ll be the only 2 teams playing on Sunday, so you might want a stake in that game.
3) Max Comtois, Ana, (21% Yahoo ownership): This has been a breakout season for Comtois on a bad Ducks team, scoring at a 50-point pace in 2021. Their upcoming 4-game series versus the Kings will be a fantastic opportunity to invest in either team. One advantage to Comtois is the physicality, as he’s going to help your hit total. Over his last 7 GP, Maximus has scored 5 PTS with 12 shots and 11 hits, averaging just under 15 minutes per game of ice time. You may also want to try Rickard Rakell, who has been playing on Anaheim’s top line.
4) Calvin Petersen, LA, (23% Yahoo ownership): Depending on who is on your waiver wire, you may want to pick up Calvin Petersen even in standard sized leagues, as he’ll be facing the Anaheim Ducks 4 times this week. Cal has posted a .907 SV% over the last 30 days, while Jonathan Quick has an abysmal .864 SV% over that same window. You are hoping for Petersen to get 3 of the starts, but either way, Anaheim sucks. Granted, LA isn’t much better, so the Ducks goalies have some value too. In really deep leagues, you may want to consider Stolarz (Gibson got a mention above).
5) Alex Iafallo,
LA, (11% Yahoo ownership): As previously mentioned, it’s going to be a great
week to invest in Southern California. Iafallo has produced at a similar pace
to Comtois on the season, but with more shots and fewer hits. He’s been playing
on the Kings top line for most of the year with Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown.
Iafallo would be even higher on this list had his production not slowed down in
April, scoring 5 PTS with 26 shots and 3 hits in his last 13 GP. Still, I love
the Kings match-up this week, so let’s just say he’s due.
Honorable Mentions: Rickard Rakell, Brett Pesce, Adrian Kempe, Anthony Stolarz, Marcus Johansson
Last Week: Colin Blackwell, Mike
Reilly, Jonathan Bernier, Adam Erne, Casey Mittelstadt
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