<p>Identifying the players with four games each week and filling your roster with those players can increase your chances of winning your fantasy hockey matchup. That’s why our&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/nhl-weekly-schedule/" rel="noreferrer noopener">Weekly Schedule tool</a>&nbsp;is so helpful!</p>



<p>I combined that weekly schedule with a Team Defense Score I created using key defensive metrics to find which teams/skaters have the best schedule this week. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>How it Works:</strong></h2>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Team Defensive Ratings are given on a scale of 0-100, with 0 being the best possible defensive team and 100 being the worst.</li>



<li>SCORE: The sum of all the Defensive Ratings the team will face this week.</li>



<li>AVG Opponent: The Average Defensive Ratings that the team will face this week. </li>



<li>The strength of the Schedule is determined by the sum of defensive ratings because we want players who play the most games but also have the easiest matchups.</li>



<li>Light Nights: A night in the NHL with eight or fewer games. </li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-week-26-strength-of-schedule"><strong>Week 12 – Strength of Schedule</strong></h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Screen-Shot-2024-12-23-at-7.38.24-AM.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="812" src="https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Screen-Shot-2024-12-23-at-7.38.24-AM-1024x812.png" alt="" class="wp-image-190658" srcset="https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Screen-Shot-2024-12-23-at-7.38.24-AM-1024x812.png 1024w, https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Screen-Shot-2024-12-23-at-7.38.24-AM-300x238.png 300w, https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Screen-Shot-2024-12-23-at-7.38.24-AM-768x609.png 768w, https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Screen-Shot-2024-12-23-at-7.38.24-AM-1536x1218.png 1536w, https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Screen-Shot-2024-12-23-at-7.38.24-AM-150x119.png 150w, https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Screen-Shot-2024-12-23-at-7.38.24-AM-600x476.png 600w, https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Screen-Shot-2024-12-23-at-7.38.24-AM-696x552.png 696w, https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Screen-Shot-2024-12-23-at-7.38.24-AM-1392x1104.png 1392w, https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Screen-Shot-2024-12-23-at-7.38.24-AM-1068x847.png 1068w, https://publish.dailyfaceoff.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Screen-Shot-2024-12-23-at-7.38.24-AM.png 1596w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px"></a></figure>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-css-opacity">



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Week 12 Streaming Targets</strong></h2>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>New York Islanders</strong></h2>



<p>The Islanders have the friendliest schedule this week, with games against the Sabres on Monday and then a home-and-home with the Penguins on Saturday and Sunday. The Islanders have plenty of streaming options to choose from:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Anders Lee (LW – 41% Rostered)</strong> – Lee is currently skating on a line with Mathew Barzal and J-G Pageau and the second power-play unit. He’s cooled off recently, with no goals in his last four games, but he still has 14 points (6G / 8A) and 33 SOG (2.5 per game) in his last 13 games.</li>



<li><strong>Kyle Palmieri (RW – 23% Rostered)</strong> – Palmieri has become a fixture on a line with Brock Nelson but hasn’t been overly productive lately. Palmieri has just five points (1G / 4A) and 20 SOG (1.7 per game) in his last 12 games. Before that, he had 19 points (10G / 9A) in his first 22 games.</li>



<li><strong>Jean-Gabriel Pageau (C – 9% Rostered)</strong> – Pageau was bumped up the lineup while Barzal and Anthony Duclair were out and now he remains on a line with Barzal and Lee, as well as on the top power-play unit. Pageau has eight points (2G / 6A) and 23 SOG (2.1 per game) in his last 11 games.</li>



<li><strong>Maxim Tsyplakov (LW/RW – 8% Rostered)</strong> – Tsyplakov continues to be a solid banger-league option, having recorded eight points (5G / 3A), 18 SOG (1.5 per game) and 26 hits (2.2 per game) in his last 12 games. He’s currently on a line with Bo Horvat and Simon Holmstrom, and PP1.</li>



<li><strong>Anthony Duclair (LW – 7% Rostered)</strong> – Duclair returned to the Islanders lineup after a two-month absence on Saturday and had one assist in 15:14 TOI. We haven’t seen much of Duclair this season, but has four points (2G / 2A) in his first six games with the Islanders. He’s on a line with Nelson and Palmieri, and PP2.</li>



<li><strong>Simon Holmstrom (RW – 1% Rostered)</strong> – Holmstrom has been a point-per-game player since the end of November, with 11 points (6G / 5A) in 11 games. He’s shooting 35.3 percent during that time, so the goal-scoring isn’t sustainable, but he’s on a line with Horvat and Tsyplakov, so he should continue to see strong usage this week. a</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Boston Bruins</strong></h2>



<p>The Bruins have the second-easiest schedule this week, with games against the Capitals on Monday and then a home-and-home with the Blue Jackets on Friday and Saturday.</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Elias Lindholm (C – 34% Rostered)</strong> – Lindholm has started to turn things around recently, with two goals and two assists (four points) in his last four games. The shot volume during that time has been encouraging, firing 3.3 SOG/gm.</li>



<li><strong>Pavel Zacha (C/LW – 11% Rostered)</strong> – Zacha has gone pointless in his last three games but has a pair of three-point games in the last month, posting nine points (5G / 4A) in his last 12 games. Skating on a line with David Pastrnak and PP1, Zacha is in a good spot to take advantage of the cushy schedule this week.</li>



<li><strong>Morgan Geekie (C/RW – 2% Rostered)</strong> – Geekie is the third member of the Bruins’ top line with Pastrnak and Zacha and the hottest of the Bruins’ streamers right now. Geekie has scored in three of his last four games and has nine points (6G / 3A) and 29 SOG (2.4 per game) in his last 12 games.</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Vegas Golden Knights</strong></h2>



<p>Vegas has the third-easiest schedule this week with games against the Ducks, Sharks and Flames.</p><div class="injected-ad injected-video" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="0" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="137"></div>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Willam Karlsson (C – 21% Rostered)</strong> – Karlsson is known more for his two-way game, but he enters the week on a three-game point streak, scoring two goals with one assist and 11 SOG. Karlsson could be a terrific streamer if he maintains that kind of shot volume this week. He’s currently centring a line with Tomas Hertl and Keegan Kolesar and is being deployed on PP2.</li>



<li><strong>Pavel Dorofeyev (LW/RW – 12% Rostered)</strong> – Dorofeyev has cooled off considerably, going goalless with just one assist in his last nine games. His usage (third line) has much to do with his recent performances, but his shot volume remains strong (2.9 SOG/gm during that stretch) and makes him a goal-scoring threat each night, even if they haven’t been going in recently.</li>



<li><strong>Victor Olofsson (LW/RW – 11% Rostered)</strong> – Olofsson is the hottest of the Golden Knights’ streamers right now. The Swedish winger has scored four goals with three assists and 17 SOG (2.4 per game) in his last seven games. He’s not in the top 6, but he is on PP1, and the Golden Knights face the 28th, 19th, and 29th-ranked penalty kills this week.</li>



<li><strong>Brett Howden (C/LW – 3% Rostered)</strong> – Howden makes an interesting deep-league target. He’s currently filling in for Ivan Barbashev on the Golden Knights top line with Jack Eichel and Mark Stone, and that’s led to 18:01 ATOI over his last three games. Howden has three goals and two assists (five points) in his last four games, so he may chip in. As soon as Barbashev is back and Howden is off L1, he should be dropped. </li>
</ul>
