Every week, PHT will look to give you some fantasy hockey advice. This column will attempt to shed some light on the waiver wire by helping you pick up quality players that are owned in less than 50 percent of Yahoo! leagues.
Also, we’ll let you know which players owned in more 50 percent of leagues you should part ways with at this point.
As you can tell from today’s headline, Teuvo Teravainen is going to be involved in the article. But when you read the headline, I want you to read it with Arnold’s voice in mind (top).
Alright, now that that’s out of the way, we can start.
Adds:
--Teuvo Teravainen-C/LW/RW-Carolina Hurricanes (owned in 43 percent of Yahoo leagues)
Not only is Teravainen eligible to play all three forward positions, he’s also been extremely productive in 2017-18. After collecting three points in a win over the Islanders on Sunday, the ‘Canes forward now has 19 points in 19 games this season. Definitely worth an add.
--David Perron-LW/RW-Vegas Golden Knights (44 percent)
Perron is averaging close to 18 minutes of ice time per game, which means he has ample opportunity to chip in offensively. That’s exactly what he’s done in the first quarter of the season, as he leads the Golden Knights in points with 17 in 19 games. Even though he saw his six-game point streak come to an end on Sunday, he should continue to produce going forward. Like Teravainen, the fact that he can play multiple positions in fantasy also helps his value.
[Fantasy Podcast: Rotoworld on what’s going on with Carey Price]
--Mathew Barzal-C-New York Islanders (33 percent)
I’m not sure why fantasy GMs keep snoozing on Barzal, who has emerged as a legitimate Calder Trophy candidate this season. The Isles forward has registered at least one point in nine of his last 11 games. He’s already up to 19 points in 20 games in his first full season.
--Brock Boeser-RW-Vancouver Canucks (42 percent)
Like Barzal, Boeser continues to be criminally under-owned in standard fantasy leagues. The Canucks forward is currently riding a three-game point streak and he’s been able to stay on a point-per-game pace in his first full NHL season. Boeser has 17 points in 17 games right now.
--Mattias Ekholm-D-Nashville Predators (44 percent)
Ekholm has been fantastic since the end of October. Since Oct. 28, he’s accumulated nine points in nine games. As of this moment, he’s scored a goal in three straight games and he has five points during that stretch. He’s the number one defenseman to add on the waiver wire this week.
--Matt Niskanen-D-Washington Capitals (45 percent)
Niskanen is finally back from the upper-body injury that kept him out of the Caps lineup for 13 games. In three games since returning, he’s managed to pick up just a single assist, but that should change going forward. He isn’t a major point producer, but he still has value at that position.
[More Fantasy: Check out Rotoworld’s PP Report]
Drops:
--Ondrej Palat-LW-Tampa Bay Lightning (57 percent)
Palat is on pace to record a 50-point season, which is nothing to scoff at, but he’s clearly behind guys like Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov in Tampa when it comes to offensive options. Picking up one of the forwards listed above at Palat’s expense makes a lot of sense.
--Derick Brassard-C-Ottawa Senators (55 percent)
Brassard got off to a great start this season, but he’s cooled down considerably over the last few weeks. He’s failed to collect a point in each of his last three games and he’s registered just five points in his last 11 games (he has no goals during that span). Brassard might get hot in the future, but for now you can safely drop him from your lineup.
--Patrick Maroon-LW-Edmonton Oilers (56 percent)
This isn’t the first time Maroon’s been mentioned on this list. Unless you play in a league that awards points for penalty minutes, I don’t get why you’d still have him on your roster. Maroon has two points in his last eight games and both of those came in the same contest. Adding Barzal, Teravainen or Boeser would make more sense.
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Joey Alfieri is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @joeyalfieri.
