Jori Lehtera – The Fantasy Sports Coach

Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Week 24

With playoffs underway for most leagues, it’s important now more than ever to maximize on weakness of schedule and the amount of games played per week. What you want to stay away from is players with a low number of games this week as well as tough matchups which would limit their fantasy value. Below in my Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Week 24 outlook, I’ll break down who you should pick up and who you should drop for your playoff matchups.

Must Add:

Charlie Coyle – C,RW – Minnesota Wild
13% Owned
OPP: OTT/NJD/CAR/CHI

Charlie Coyle has seemingly cemented himself on the first line and first powerplay unit with Mikko Koivu and Zach Parise. The 24 year old has shown tremendous growth this year and has almost doubled last years goal output with 23 games left to play. Coyle is a perfect play up until Sunday night when the Wild face the Blackhawks. For the other three opponents, you need Coyle on your roster.

Jori Lehtera – C – St. Louis Blues
8% Owned
OPP: CGY/EDM/VAN

Jori Lehtera has got to be the biggest beneficiary of the linemate lottery. For most of the last two years he’s played along side Jaden Schwartz and Vladimir Tarasenko to form the “STL” line. Playing with those two, Lehtera has massive potential this week to snag you some points. He’s also produces on the faceoff dot (Over 400 wins). The Blues boast one of the easiest schedules this week and Lehtera is someone you can use to exploit that.

Ben Hutton – D – Vancouver Canucks
2% Owned
OPP: WPG/COL/EDM/STL

You might be thinking, Ben who? That’s perfect. Ben Hutton is a player nobody is even focusing on and I can’t figure out why for the life of me. Hutton is getting every opportunity to show Vancouver he can be the go-to guy at the backend for years to come. He’s gobbled up a ton of minutes (20:36 has been his lowest TOI dating back to February 15th) and he’s producing offensively (six points in his last seven games). He’s on the first pairing with Luca Sbisa and is on the backend of the first powerplay unit. Hutton is a converted forward playing defence and has the potential to chip in some serious points as a blueliner.

Reilly Smith – LW,RW – Florida Panthers
26% Owned
OPP: NYI/MTL/TOR/DET

What’s better than being on a hot streak? Being on a hot streak and getting the opportunity to play Montreal and Toronto in the same week. Reilly Smith has been more successful lately because he’s actually been firing the puck on net a lot more (12 shots over his last three games) compared to the rest of the season. He already has 23 goals but look for him to add to that tally against some weak teams this week.

Drops:

Louis Domingue – G – Arizona Coyotes
24% Owned
OPP: NJD/NYR/BOS/WPG

First of all, don’t roster a goalie from Arizona if you want wins. Second of all, Mike Smith is back and looks excellent after posting a 44 save shutout. With the former Olympian back in the crease, it looks like Domingue’s days of carrying the load between the pipes is over.

Jordan Staal – C/LW – Carolina Hurricanes
30% Owned
OPP: WSH/PIT/MIN

People are still holding onto Staal hoping that he’ll gobble up all the offence left behind by his brother Eric. That hasn’t happened since he left and it’s definitely not going to happen against Washington and Pittsburgh. Cut ties with Staal fast.

Thanks for reading! If you have any questions regarding Fantasy Hockey or DFS Hockey, feel free to reach out to me via Twitter @BESTofMATT

Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Week 20

With the NHL Trade Deadline fast approaching, it’s usually around this time players are being auditioned in hopes to raise their value. Other players are seeing their production rise because of new (or old, depending on how you look at it) line-mates & a D-man wearing blue and white is providing most of the offence for the 30th place team in the league. Below I’ll discuss some important names for the fantasy hockey waiver wire for week 20.

Must Add

Benoit Pouliot – LW – Edmonton Oilers
21% Owned
OPP: ANA/MIN/COL

Nobody is safe in Edmonton. Nobody. Well, unless your name is Connor McDavid. If that’s not your name – you’re more than likely on the trading block. Pouliot has been hot as of late. Five points in his last three games is nothing to ignore. He’s on the top line with McDavid and Eberle and should reap the benefits.

Blake Comeau – LW – Colorado Avalanche
7% Owned
OPP: MTL/EDM/VAN

Blake Comeau is getting the perfect opportunity in Colorado to showcase his skills. Whether GM Joe Sakic intends to move the 29 year old is yet to be seen. For now – Comeau is lighting it up on the first line and first powerplay unit. 11 shots on goal over his last three games to go along with three points is perfect fantasy value. Slide Comeau into your roster now.

Jori Lehtera – C – St. Louis Blues
10% Owned
OPP: DAL/L.A./ARI

The STL (Schwartz/Tarasenko/Lehtera) line is re-uniting in St. Louis. Lehtera found most of his success last year playing with Vladimir Tarasenko and Jaden Schwartz. Lehtera has been underwhelming this year but that’s mostly because of Schwartz’s asbence in the lineup. With Schwartz back – Lehtera’s fantasy value should see a boost.

Jake Gardiner – D – Toronto Maple Leafs
4% Owned
OPP: CHI/NYR/PHI

The Leafs don’t have much offence. At all. Their first line consists of Michael Grabner, Leo Komarov and Peter Holland. Since there’s not much offence up front, Toronto is going to rely heavily on their mobile D-men. Jake Gardiner has been hot as of late. Four points in his last three games including a pair of goals is supreme production for a blue liner. He’s paired with the rugged Roman Polak so Gardiner has a bit more freedom to play his offensive minded game. The Leafs might not be relevant right now but Jake Gardiner is.

Drops

Mike Condon/Ben Scrivens – G – Montreal Canadiens
29/20% Owned
OPP: ARI/COL/PHI

Montreal is a tire fire. Early on in the year Condon gave Price owners a solid short-term replacement between the pipes. Condon has never played more than 48 games at any professional level before and just doesn’t have the endurance to be a long-term replacement for Montreal. Ben Scrivens is a backup goaltender who is streaky at best. Unfortunately his hot streak came to an end. You’re safe to drop either of these Montreal goaltenders

Tyler Myers – D – Winnipeg Jets
29% Owned
OPP: CAR/TBL/FLA

This is just a friendly reminder to drop Tyler Myers if you have him on your roster. He’s 6’8” and has three hits in his last seven games. To make matters worse – he has no points in those seven games. The 2009-2010 Calder Trophy winner has certainly fallen from grace.

Thanks for reading! If you have any questions or comments regarding NHL Fantasy or NHL DFS, feel free to reach out to me on Twitter @BESTofMATT