Friday, November 25, 2022

Fantasy Hockey 2022/23 Week 8 Waiver Wire Report

Welcome to my 2022/23 Week Eight Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Report for those competing in head-to-head categories or rotisserie leagues. There are both standard and deep league acquisition targets. This report focuses on the best options among those who are 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. Some of these are only short-term targets, while others you may want to keep permanently.

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Best Standard League Adds (25% to 65% Yahoo ownership):

1) Filip Hronek, Det, (66% Yahoo ownership): Moritz Seider may have recaptured his spot on the top power play, but that hasn’t slowed down Hronek’s torrid scoring pace, with 10 PTS in his last 6 GP. Detroit plays 4 games this week. You might remember Hronek from my preseason draft bargains list, back when he was only 9% owned. I certainly didn’t think he would be pacing for 70 PTS by the end of the first quarter, but I’ll still happily take the W. You could also stream Owen Power, who doesn’t have impressive numbers, but he plays a lot (including 2nd power play) and Sabres have 4 games this week.

2) Jeff Skinner, Buf, (44% Yahoo ownership): You probably don’t want Jeff Skinner in salary cap formats where his NHL salary counts against your fantasy salary cap, but in normal formats he’s an excellent streaming target next week. He’s still playing top line and top power play in Buffalo, scoring 9 PTS in his last 6 GP, including a 5-point night against Montreal. Also, Lucas Raymond is playing 2nd line, 2nd power play in Detroit and has scored 8 PTS in his last 8 GP and it’s going to be a busy week for the Red Wings.

3) Stuart Skinner, Edm, (52% Yahoo ownership): If you’re in one of the 48% of Yahoo leagues where Stuart Skinner is available, you should strongly consider him for an add if you need some help in goal. The Oilers have been struggling, losing 7 of their last 10 while Skinner’s own SV% has started to regress, down to .911 in the last two weeks. The good news is that Skinner has established himself as the #1 guy and the Oilers play 4 games next week. John Gibson is also improving with the Ducks playing a desirable schedule.

4) Tomas Hertl, SJ, (59% Yahoo ownership): Tomas Hertl has earned another recommendation for the 2nd consecutive week, as the Sharks have another 4-game slate. If you added him on my advice, you’ve had a good week and now is not the time to sell. It’s time to double down. That top line with Meier and Labanc continues putting goals on the scoreboard. Three of the Sharks four games are against non-playoff teams, so you may also want to roll the dice with Logan Couture who has been on a nice heater (and earned an honorable mention here last week).

5) David Perron, Det, (63% Yahoo ownership): Nobody is surprised that David Perron is a productive player with his new team. That’s what he does. Right now he’s playing top line and top power play, and the Wings have a 4-game week, including matches against Columbus and Buffalo. Perron is on a 69-point pace, which includes 8 PTS in his last 6 GP, with 15 shots and 11 hits. It’s also worth taking a shot on Perron’s teammate Tyler Bertuzzi, who is playing 2nd line 2nd power play and has scored 3 PTS in his last 3 GP.

 

Honorable Mentions: Logan Couture, Lucas Raymond, Tyler Bertuzzi, Owen Power, John Gibson

Last Week: Mathew Barzal, Jordan Kyrou, Jake Sanderson, Tomas Hertl, Matt Murray

 

Best Deep League Adds (under 25% ownership):

1) Cam Fowler, Ana, (15% Yahoo ownership): Cam Fowler was also my deep league D of choice last week, and the Ducks have another favorable schedule ahead. Fowler is still listed on the Ducks top power play unit and has scored a very impressive 8 PTS in his last 6 GP (adding 13 shots). I’m certainly not confident that he’s going to hold that deployment on a permanent basis, but you may as well strike while the iron is hot. Or you might want to try K’Andre Miller, whose scoring hasn’t impressed, but the Rangers have a juicy schedule.

2) Dylan Cozens, Buf, (11% Yahoo ownership): We may finally be witnessing the Dylan Cozens breakout, as he’s pacing for 61 PTS at the end of the first quarter (after scoring 38 PTS last season). He’s playing on the top power play and centering the 2nd line, where his winger Jack Quinn is also heating up. Cozens has scored 7 PTS in his last 8 GP and was featured on my deepest league sleepers list prior to the season. Quinn has scored 4 PTS in his last 5 GP and was also one of my deep league sleepers before the season. Nice to see my boys waking up.

3) Alex Killorn, TB, (24% Yahoo ownership): Killorn is currently playing on the 2nd line (with Steven Stamkos and Nick Paul) plus 2nd power play in Tampa and has scored 14 PTS in his last 12 GP. He’s getting some big deployment and the Lightning play 4 games this week, including matches against Buffalo and Philly. You may also want to add his aforementioned linemate who also plays on the 2nd PP unit, Nick Paul, who has scored 7 PTS in his last 6 GP. Paul is the better option if you’re looking for hits with decent shot numbers too.

4) Craig Anderson, Buf, (16% Yahoo ownership): The Buffalo Sabres will be playing 4 games next week, so Craig Anderson should be able to get you 2-3 starts. I’d be a little nervous starting him against Tampa or Colorado, but comfortable against Detroit or San Jose. If he ends up starting the two harder games, I might rather have the other Buffalo goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who has played 2 games with an ugly loss to Toronto and an impressive win against St. Louis. He’s available in 95% of leagues. You may even want to add the tandem.

5) Alexander Barabanov, SJ, (2% Yahoo ownership): The Sharks have another 4-game week ahead and Barabanov is playing top power play and 2nd line with Logan Couture. The pair has been on a heater, with Logan earning an honorable mention in my last 2 reports. Barabanov is dual-wing eligible and only 2% owned on Yahoo despite scoring 8 PTS in his last 10 GP. You could also try Kevin Labanc, who continues to play on that Sharks top line and was recommended here last week (with an honorable mention today).

 

Honorable Mentions: Kevin Labanc, Jack Quinn, Nick Paul, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, K’Andre Miller

Last Week: J.G Pageau, Cam Fowler, Tomas Tatar, Kevin Labanc, Akira Schmid

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