Week 5 NHL Fantasy Hockey Report

The NHL has entered week 5, so here is my week 5 Fantasy Hockey Report. My analysis is based largely on Yahoo and ESPN Standard Leagues where your roster of players competes head to head in several categories (in my league it is G, A, PTS, +/-, PIM, PPP, SHP, GWG, Shots, Hits, Blocks, Faceoff Wins) against another roster of players. I look at ownership percentages and determine which players are owned too much, and which are not owned enough. Also, I never pump or dump the same player in back to back reports.

HOT

LAST WEEK: Tyler Toffoli, Vladimir Tarasenko, Brock Nelson, Tyler Johnson, Damon Severson, Tanner Pearson, TJ Brodie, Tommy Wingels, Jaden Schwartz, Adam Henrique 

ADD, ADD, ADD!

Elias Lindholm, Car –(14% ESPN, 11% Yahoo)  It’s tough to say how many PTS he’ll get once all the top forwards are healthy, but he’s been really good. Over his last 9 GP he has 7 PTS.

Boone Jenner, Nsh –(3% ESPN,7 % Yahoo)  He is healthy again, and has 4 PTS in 4 GP. He is a very physical player on a top scoring line, so he’ll get PTS, Hits, and PIMs.

SELL HIGH! (these players are hot and good candidates to dangle in trade offers)

Jori Lehtera, STL –(83% ESPN, 38% Yahoo)  He’s on fire right now, but I’m not sure how much longer that will continue. At the very least he could be very appealing trade bait for somebody who wants to buy stock in the Tarasenko magic.

Andre Burakovsky, Wsh –(16% ESPN, 16% Yahoo)  Most people thought the Caps best rookie would be Kuzneztov this season, but so far it’s this guy. 12 PTS in 15 GP is impressive. Can that continue? I’d try packaging him into some trade offers, see if anyone wants to pay a premium.

 

The 99% (these players should be 99% owned, an add in all leagues)

Justin Abdelkader, Det –(82% ESPN, 37% Yahoo)  When he is on a line with Zetterberg and Datsyuk, he should be owned in all leagues, even the shallow variety. When that’s not happening, he’s only ownable in deeper leagues.

Antoine Vermette, Pho –(63% ESPN, 23% Yahoo)  He is scoring at a high enough pace to be owned in shallow points leagues, but if your league counts face-offs, he is a must own.

The 1%  (these players are 0% owned and should be at least 1% owned, or deep sleepers for deep leagues).

Jimmy Hayes, Fla –(0% ESPN, 0% Yahoo) He has 4 PTS in his last 5 GP, and is back in a groove in Florida. I owned him for a few weeks last season during a similar hot streak, and was not disappointed.

Zach Boychuk, Car –(0% ESPN, 0% Yahoo)  5 PTS in 12 GP isn’t spectacular, but it does warrant better than 0% ownership. He should be owned in deep 20 team leagues until he stops getting quality minutes.

Mattias Ekholm, Nsh –(0% ESPN, 0% Yahoo)  As far as defensemen go, he’s been better than a lot of guys, even Seth Jones.

 
Tuomo Ruutu, NJ –(0% ESPN,0% Yahoo)  He is healthy and has a fresh start in New Jersey. He still scores Goals and collects Hits, which gives him value in a lot of leagues.

COLD

LAST WEEK: Alex Semin, Cody Hodgson, Tomas Tatar, Nathan MacKinnon, Dion Phaneuf, TJ Oshie, Christian Ehrhoff, Joffrey Lupul, Tomas Hertl, Evgeni Kuznetsov

 


Come On Man! (“I was expecting the Rocky Mountains to be a little rockier than this.  I know, that John Denver is full of shit man! – Dumb and Dumber)

Dustin Brown, LA –(6% ESPN, 44% Yahoo)  The only way you can own Dustin Brown is if your league counts Shots and Hits. Otherwise he is not providing you any value.

Steve Ott, STL –(0% ESPN, 2% Yahoo)  Most people have given up on the Steve Ott experience. Still, if Hits, PIMs, and Faceoff Wins count in your league, he’s not completely droppable.

Chris Stewart, Buf –(11% ESPN, 10% Yahoo)  He is really good in Shots on Goal, good for Penalty Minutes, above average for Hits. If those categories don’t count in your league, drop him. 17 GP, 2 PTS, -11, isn’t helping anybody.

 

Old Yellers (these players should be taken out behind the shed and shot, metaphorically speaking)

Danny Briere, Col –(18% ESPN, 1% Yahoo)  Mr Healthy Scratch is off no use to you watching games from the bleachers. He may have put up numbers for you in past seasons, but now it’s time to put yourself out of this misery.

Olli Jokinen, Nsh –(5% ESPN, 3% Yahoo)  The best thing I can say about Olli right now is that he is slightly above average in shots on goal. That’s about it. He is struggling in every other category.

Rene Bourque,Mtl –(0% ESPN, 0% Yahoo)  Bourque has not been ownable for a while, but now even more so that he has cleared waivers and has been sent to the minors. AHL PTS don’t count in many NHL fantasy leagues.

Ales Hemsky, Dal –(2.5% ESPN, 26% Yahoo)  With all that talent in Dallas, Hemsky has just 1 assist and is a -7. He has played every game and ranks 574^th in my player rankings. Ouch.

 

BUY LOW! (these players are owned in many leagues and off to a slow start, and may be a prime trade acquisitiontarget.)

 

Shea Weber, Nsh –(100% ESPN, 99% Yahoo)  You need more from Weber than 2 PTS in his last 9 GP, depending on the level of desperation the Weber owner in your league might be feeling.  Weber will get better. Take that to the bank.

Anze Kopitar, LA –(100% ESPN,99 % Yahoo)  If the Kopitar owner is frustrated that one of his stars has just 5 PTS in 12 GP, he may be suckered into a low ball offer. It’s worth a shot.

Paul Stastny, STL –(100% ESPN, 72% Yahoo)  He is back in the line-up and has no PTS in those 3 GP. If you can grab him in your league, he’s going to get better.