Following Tuesday’s explosive action, including a total of 78 goals plus four shutouts, we’re in for a much more modest fantasy evening this Wednesday. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t valuable points to be accrued or Daily League competitions to be won.
The three-game slate launches with the Canadiens playing the Senators for the first time this season, followed by an interconference match-up featuring the Wild and (tired?) Red Wings in Minnesota. Leaning on the latest reports, it seems both Ottawa and Detroit will be without their respective top centers in Tim Stutzle and Dylan Larkin. Calgary too? More on those developments below.
The limited, but still riveting, action wraps up with another first divisional meeting of the year, this one between the travelling Canucks and Flames in Alberta. We’ll see if one particular goalie is offered the opportunity to stand tall against his former club of several years. Fingers crossed, because that’s more fun.
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All times Eastern.
Favorable scoring match-ups
10 p.m. ET at Scotiabank Saddledome, TNT
Shouldering the bulk of the workload with Thatcher Demko on the injured shelf, Spencer Martin is unquestionably doing his best out there. Still, Martin’s record since essentially taking over — 2-2-0, .862 SV%, 3.98 GAA — doesn’t exactly sing. After running into a smoking hot Jake Allen in Montreal on Monday, the Flames are due to erupt for a bucket of goals, back home, against the third-worst defense in the league. Specifically, consider enlisting off-radar forward Mikael Backlund — rostered in only 5.9% of ESPN.com leagues — if he’s once again pegged to sub in for center Elias Lindholm on Calgary’s top line. Right now, Lindholm remains listed as day-to-day. Regardless of lineup spot, Backlund has been piling up the assists of late.
Mid-tier fantasy forwards
Andrew Copp, Detroit Red Wings (36.5%): No Dylan Larkin for the Red Wings means Copp will be called upon to play a more significant role up front. The former Jet/Ranger has been one of the more productive skaters for a Detroit side that hasn’t scored a lot of late, collecting six points in seven games (mostly assists). If you feel the Wings can successfully pepper Marc-Andre Fleury (projected) and the Wild, give Copp an extra fantasy thought.
Deep league/Daily Fantasy value forwards
Shane Pinto, Ottawa Senators (8.8%): The young center’s gig in Ottawa just became more prominent. With Tim Stutzle unofficially expected to miss his club’s tilt with Montreal after suffering an upper-body injury against the Ducks Monday (we’re expecting an update on the 20-year-old’s’s condition later Wednesday, but initial reports don’t sound great). Pinto is expected to fill in on the top scoring line alongside a sizzling Brady Tkachuk. This would blow the door wide open for the rookie, who already has nine goals on the year. At bare minimum, expect a ton of minutes and good number of shots from the gifted youngster.
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Mid-tier fantasy defensemen
Noah Hanifin, Calgary Flames (70.8%): Does Hanifin still qualify as mid-tier? I’m not so sure. Regardless, ensure the Calgary defenseman is working for your fantasy team, if at all possible. He’s served as an absolute gem, particularly this past month.
Deep league/Daily Fantasy value defensemen
Joel Edmundson, Montreal Canadiens (8.0%): Seeing a mild increase in minutes with both David Savard and Mike Matheson out of the lineup, the Montreal defender is blocking an impressive number of shots these days. Precisely 37 total in 11 recent games, which helps account for his average of 2.2 fantasy points/contest in standard ESPN.com leagues. (That number would be even higher if the 29-year-old hadn’t spent 17 minutes in the box against the Oilers on Dec. 3.) If your league rewards blocked-shots, Edmundson has value.
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Goalies
Jacob Markstrom (projected), Calgary Flames (86.2%): While I’m in no position to tell Darryl Sutter what to do (really Victoria?), there’s a strong argument to be made in favor of starting Markstrom against the Canucks on Wednesday. The ex-Vancouver netminder appears to be emerging from his early-season fog, coming off two solid performances against the Blue Jackets and Canadiens, respectively. He was flat-out fantastic, stopping 37 of 38 shots in Monday’s squeaker of a shootout loss in Montreal. A win against his former club would undoubtedly help in further growing the veteran’s confidence. However, if Sutter opts to give Dan Vladar his turn instead, I’m also on board with starting the Flames other netminder against the visiting Canucks.
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Bench ’em
I’m wary of activating whoever’s starting for the Red Wings against Minnesota, be it Alex Nedeljkovic or Magnus Hellberg — who was recently recalled from the AHL. Coming off a deflating 1-0 loss to the Hurricanes the previous evening, as mentioned, Detroit now has to manage without their top center in Dylan Larkin. The Wild appear the clear favorites to emerge with the victory from this match-up.