FANTASY HOCKEY – James van Riemsdyk Replacements

No James van Riemsdyk for the Toronto Maple Leafs? No problem. Value for certain players sky rocket with JVR down. When Florida comes back down to earth, are any players worth owning? You can bet your Barkov that some Panthers have season long value. Falling behind in the goalie category week to week? I answer the age old question “To Stream? Or Not to Stream?”

Add

Leo Komarov – C/LW – Toronto Maple Leafs

Y! 50% Owned

Nobody on the Leafs will see their value rise more than Leo Komarov with JVR down for 6-8 weeks. Leo has already surpassed all of his career highs (15G, 13A) and continues to pile up the hits (185). He may not be on the top line when it’s all said and done but with the way Mike Babcock coaches – he’ll receive a lions share of the minutes going forward.

Aleksander Barkov – C – Florida Panthers

Y! 51% Owned

Nobody is having a better time on the Panthers right now than Aleksander Barkov. Taking over top line duties for Nick Bjustad has paid off largely for Barkov. He’s on a four game point streak (1G, 3A) during the Panthers stretch of 12 in a row. If you pick Barkov up right this second – you can have him in your lineup for the three games that Florida plays this week (VAN, CGY, TBL).

Ryan Spooner – C/LW – Boston Bruins

Y! 24% Owned

Prior to the 9th he was on a 4 game point streak where he racked up 6 points. Spooner fires the puck a ton. Averaging 3.4 shots per game across his last 5 games. He’s getting quite the opportunity on the second line with Loui Eriksson and Matt Beleskey. He’s getting an even bigger opportunity on the first power play unit. Take advantage of the Bruins schedule this week. They play four times against some easy opponents (NYR, PHI, BUF, TOR). Yes, NYR is considered easy right now (4-5-1 record in their last 10).

Bo Horvat – C – Vancouver Canucks

Y! 4% Owned

Don’t you hate it when you find a guy in your league that’s tearing it up.. on someone elses team? This time, be the guy that has the guy that’s come out of nowhere. Quickly pick up Bo Horvat. The 20-year-old who was selected 9th overall in 2013 is starting to live up to his promise. The youngster has 4 goals in his last 4 games played to go along with an assist. He’s on the second line with Radim Vrbata and Sven Baertchi. Speed = opportunity; and that’s exactly what that line is. He’s also getting a steady dose of time on the second power play unit, too.

Drop

Seth Jones – D – Columbus Blue Jackets

Y! 39% Owned

Are you done with the “he got traded, he’ll have a big game” narrative now? Until he shows he can do something in Columbus it’s the same “wait and see” situation that it was in Nashville. He’s shooting 0.14% right now and is on pace for 2 goals. Jones is not worth the roster spot despite all the promise. You’re better off rostering Justin Braun (SJS – 4% owned – 11 points in his last 15 games)

Boone Jenner – C/RW – Columbus Blue Jackets

Y! 33% Owned

It’s not that I think CBJ has nobody worth rostering… I just think there are several people out there that are worth owning more than Boone Jenner. If he’s not scoring, he almost holds zero fantasy value and guess what? He’s not scoring. He plays the wing so even though he’s center eligible – he’s not winning draws. Until anyone shows a breath of life on the Blue Jackets – I would stay away.

Trade

Jaromir Jagr – RW – Florida Panthers

Y! 65% Owned

I can’t think of a player you could sell higher than Jaromir Jagr right now. He has two things going for him. He’s on a team with a crazy winning streak & he also has major name value (All-Star game selection & his twitter feed). He’s also putting up some points (15G, 16A). But let’s get real… Once the Panthers lose (Which will be very, very soon..), Florida will no longer be a cinderella story and Jagr will just be “the old dude on Florida”. Get some value for the old dude now while you can.

To Stream or Not to Stream?

Jonas Gustavsson – G – Boston Bruins

Y! 4% Owned

Jonas Gustavsson has been a solid backup for the Bruins this year. 7 wins with a 2.44 GAA, .909 SV% is pretty good. Boston draws a back to back matchup with Buffalo on Friday and Toronto on Saturday. If you can sneak him into your lineup on Friday night – he’s a good play against the Leafs on Hockey Night in Canada.

Phillipp Grubauer – G – Washington Capitals

Y! 3% Owned

The Capitals are just unstoppable. It doesn’t matter who they have in net – it’s almost a for sure win. Grubauer has a 2.23 GAA and a .922 SV% this year to go along with 5 wins. The Capitals have a back to back on Saturday starting with Buffalo and then on Sunday with the Rangers. Feel confident slotting him in against the Rangers, but his start will most likely come against the Sabres.

If you have any DFS or season long questions – feel free to tweet at me @BESTofMATT!

*All percentage owned based off of Yahoo!