Stick a fork in the San Jose Sharks. They’re done.
With team captain Logan Couture still out indefinitely with a broken ankle, the final nail in San Jose’s coffin may have come on Wednesday night against Vancouver in the form of Tomas Hertl’s season ending knee injury. The NHL’s 26th ranked offence just lost its second ranked goal scorer (16). You can do the math.
Undeniably, this is unchartered territory for general manager Doug Wilson. Since replacing Dean Lombardi in May of 2003, the Sharks have missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs just once – in 2014-15 — under the 62-year-old’s watch. That said, all good things come to an end. Just ask the Detroit Red Wings.
Embracing the rebuild in Northern California isn’t as easy as one may think. At this point, only stay at home defender Brenden Dillon is all but a certainty to be shipped out of town. Remember the Erik Karlsson trade? The Senators do. That’s because Ottawa has unprotected ownership of San Jose’s first rounder this season. Suffice it is to say, Wilson may have to swallow some pride here.
From a fantasy scope, clearly, now’s a good time to jump out on any Sharks ownership. Yes, that includes Evander Kane, Brent Burns and Erik Karlsson. Put them on the trade market immediately and gauge interest. When it comes to the Sportsnet Fantasy Hockey Pool, stay away as well. The Sharks currently rank 26th of 31 in offence. Now without Hertl too, that number may drop even further.
Now to your questions:
Yup, that’s an easy decision. I’d do that in a heartbeat.
Considering Kapanen is no longer in Toronto’s top-six, there’s no debate to be had here. I’d rather own Drouin and it’s not even close. Don’t forget, at the time of his injury, the 24-year-old was playing some of the best hockey of his career, not just with the Canadiens. The Quebec native has seven goals and 15 points in 19 games. There’s sneaky value to be had here.
Meantime, Kapanen should be viewed as no more than a waiver stream amidst a busy week for the Maple Leafs. He’s playing on the third line, nowhere near Toronto’s big boys.
Drouin pour moi.
Drop Ristolainen or Ekman-Larsson. Quite frankly, neither defender contributes often enough to be a roster mainstay. From a fantasy perspective, they’re both supremely overrated, especially Arizona’s captain.
In addition to that opinion, I find it difficult to deviate from proven players. For example, I know Pavelski has been nearly non-existent pointwise in Dallas. Even with that, I’m holding out hope for a late season push. He’s far more superior than anything you’ll dig up on the waiver wire. Just my thought.
Nope, I’d sit tight for now. Maybe it’s just wishful thinking but I’m forecasting a strong finish for the veteran Pavelski. Of course, your decision should be made based on a variety of factors including current standing.
Keep Little Joe.
https://twitter.com/nooch99/status/1222332081306468353
Never said this before – tough times in Buffalo. In general, it’s been a tough season for Skinner. He’s currently mired in a 13-game goalless drought. Truthfully, I haven’t been feeling this file from the beginning of this season.
Skinner finished off Thursday night’s embarrassing loss against Montreal skating with old line mates Jack Eichel and Sam Reinhart. We’ll see how long that lasts with super rookie winger Victor Olofsson set to return in the next couple of weeks. Again, that’ll leave Skinner in no man’s land once again. The Sabres lack series forward depth, an issue they’ll have to rectify if they want to take the next step in their process.
You can find better options elsewhere.
Does Blais go back to top 6?
— MrKo (@CroWarrior1978) January 29, 2020
Initially, I think Craig Berube will ease Blais back into the lineup.
As witnessed last spring, the Blues possess an abundance of depth up front. Right now, Jordan Kyrou is playing well and so is St. Louis. There’s no reason to make drastic line changes. Blais will have to wait again for his turn. Drop Blais. He won’t be much use to you right now.
https://twitter.com/Zajarism/status/1222292392436490242
Rest assured, they won’t be a sleeper this time around but, yes, I do like the Hurricanes going forward this season.
Similar to the Blues, the Canes have extensive roster depth, even with the unfortunate injury to Dougie Hamilton. I’m all about Aho and Svechnikov. You should be too. I’m curious to see what they do between now and the Trade Deadline.
Samsonov, Lehner, Stalock, Saros, Jones, Mrazek or Reimer ROS 2nd goalie.
— DeePee (@domineecha) January 29, 2020
Great question – I’ll go with Samsonov.
As a Braden Holtby owner, I’ve seen nothing over the last two months to suggest he’s firmly the No. 1 guy in D.C. right now. By far, Samsonov has been the better option of the two. And, that’s been a thing for a while now too. Weirdly, this situation draws many parallels to that of Pittsburgh’s a couple years back between Matt Murray and Marc-Andre Fleury. I can easily see Samsonov steal the starting job from Holtby. At this rate quite frankly, that may happen sooner rather than later. Stay tuned.
https://twitter.com/BostonDiGiorgio/status/1222908406022967297
It’s hard to believe it, but Nurse is still just 24. From an offensive standpoint, there’s still plenty of room for him to grow. With a strong finish, the Hamilton native could achieve career highs across the board this season. It’ll be intriguing to see if he finally puts pen to paper on a long-term deal with the Oilers.
To answer your question, I don’t think he’s reached his fantasy ceiling just yet. Be patient.
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