This is the ninth edition of weekly roundup. In this article we take a look at the last seven days of hockey in the NHL. The article will focus on players who have been putting up solid numbers and are likely still available in fantasy pools. We also look at the stars of the game who aren’t getting on the score sheet for their team.
Putting up Points
Shane Doan – Owned in 25% of Yahoo leagues
Congrats Shane Doan! pic.twitter.com/OxBikFURjE
— The Knot-thletic NHL (@_iceties) January 1, 2016
At nearly 40 years of age, Doan isn’t putting up the same kind of numbers he had been at the beginning of his career, however his stats are still impressive. In 30 games this year Doan has 21 points and 42 PIM. Doan’s 21 points put him in fifth spot on the Coyotes, a team full of young and upcoming talent. What is really attractive about Doan’s numbers is his goal totals. He leads the team in goals with 15, a number which is also good for 21st in the league. The Coyotes captain already has more goals this year than he did in 79 games last year. He also boasts solid PIM stats, his 42 among the top 40 in the league.
If he stays healthy for the rest of the season, Doan looks to be on pace for around the 40 point mark. This isn’t the greatest number, however it looks as though a significant amount of those 40 points would be from finding twine. If your league is based on categories, then Doan’s goal scoring would be a great addition as it looks like he can reach 30 – 35 goals if he stays on his current pace, which doesn’t appear to be an issue as he has seven goals in his last five games.
Nick Leddy – Owned in 50% of Yahoo leagues
Nick Leddy was already leading the Islanders defencemen in points, but with the injury to Johnny Boychuck leaving him sidelined for 4-6 weeks, Leddy’s role will only increase for the Isles. For example, since Boychuk’s injury on December 31st, Leddy has 4 points in three games and has been seeing at least 22:00 minutes of ice time per game and in one match even had over 26:00 minutes of time on the ice.
Leddy has 15 points in 40 games this year, but with an increase in even strength and power play ice time, those numbers will increase on an upward trend. With this increased responsibility, Leddy has a chance to break into the 40-point range, something he has not yet done over his five-year career in the NHL. Leddy is worth a pick up in weekly pools as well as keeper leagues.
Jonathan Huberdeau – Owned in 57% of Yahoo Leagues
https://twitter.com/myregularface/status/684565589659136000
Huberdeau has been on a steady pace since the middle of December. The Panthers forward has 11 points in his last 10 games and has 28 on the year. That puts him on pace for a respectable 57 points. Huberdeau is a talented player who is playing on a red hot Panthers team, who are on a 10 game winning streak.
Playing with talented line mates like the ageless Jaromir Jagr and young stud Aleksander Barkov also help Huberdeau’s case as a fantasy option moving forward. The line has a combined 17 points in their last 5 games and their chemistry is sure to continue to improve as they play on the first even strength and first power play unit together. If Huberdeau is not available in your league, then Barkov is a strong alternate.
Not Producing
Jason Pominville
The star winger has been cold lately for the Wild. Pominville only has three points in his last 10 games and is a minus three rating over that span. Pominville only has 19 points in 39 games this year for the Wild, putting him on pace for 41 points.
When having played at least 70 games in a season, Pominville has never had less than 50 points. Pominville’s struggles have not gone unnoticed as he was demoted to the third line over the span of Minnesota’s most recent four game road trip. However he is still on the top power play unit.
Evander Kane
Kane has not been having the year many people (himself included) expected him to have. At the beginning of the season after the blockbuster deal that sent Kane to the Buffalo Sabres, he was quoted saying “I’ve already scored 30. So maybe I want to score 40 or 50.” A couple of lower body injuries have caused Kane to miss 10 games for the Sabres.
With eight goals and five assists in 31 games this season, it doesn’t appear Kane will reach that mark. He has shown streaks of great production over the course of the season but has not been able to maintain a solid offensive output and cannot be relied on in pools because of that.
Andrew Ladd
After come off a career high in point totals last season with 62 it appeared that Andrew Ladd had established himself as a star in the NHL. This season Ladd has struggled to find consistency. With only 23 points in 40 games this year, Ladd is on pace for around 46 points.
The Jets captain has shown he is far more capable of these numbers and fantasy owners have a right to be disappointed. However, Ladd is a workhorse who still gets a lot of PIMs and hits. With only one point in his last five games, Ladd hasn’t been able to find the back of the net, however he still has 15 hits over that span. While his offensive production is stalled right now, his value is still there in extended category pools.
Tune in next week for a new edition of Weekly Roundup.