Our Weekend Streamers series aims to help you steal your matchup by getting the most value possible out of the limited transactions in your fantasy league. Every Friday, we break down the teams and skaters with the most streamer-friendly schedules over the weekend.
This weekend features just one game on Friday, 15 on Saturday, and five on Sunday. Luckily, there is one team playing on both Friday and Sunday this weekend. It’s time to race to the wire and pick up all the Canes you can. Happy streaming!
Carolina Hurricanes-vs. OTT (Fri), vs. CBJ (Sun)
The sooner you can check your free agency pools the better, because with Carolina being the only team in action on Friday and Sunday this week, all of these owned percentages are going to rise steadily over the weekend. While the Hurricanes’ primary point producers are well rostered, some of their complementary pieces are worth taking a shot on this weekend.
Kicking us off at 25% owned is an underrated banger league asset in Dmitry Orlov. Orlov has quietly put together a productive season from the Canes’ blue-line despite seeing very limited power-play time. The 33-year-old defenceman is up to three goals and 11 assists on the season and can give you category coverage across the board if you’re in an extended scoring format. He’s a good bet to find the score sheet this weekend and can also pad your totals in hits, shots, and blocked shots.
In more traditional scoring formats, Jack Roslovic (13% owned) will be one of this weekend’s top commodities. Roslovic has excelled in a limited role with the Hurricanes this season, registering 13 goals, four assists, and 60 shots on goal across 28 games despite playing less than 14 minutes a night. This production has earned him some extended looks alongside Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov on Carolina’s first line, and that’s exactly where Roslovic found himself at Friday’s morning skate.
In over 160 minutes at 5v5 this season, the Hurricanes are averaging over 38 scoring chances and 14 high-danger chances per 60 when Aho, Svechnikov, and Roslovic are on the ice. I’m expecting this line to dominate the Sens and Blue Jackets at 5v5 this weekend, which will provide Roslovic with plenty of opportunities to return on your investment.
Deep League Darlings
If you’re beat to the punch on Roslovic, then I’m fine taking a roll of the dice on Eric Robinson (3% owned) or Jesperi Kotkaniemi (4% owned). The two of them are projected to skate alongside Martin Necas on Carolina’s second line this weekend, and generally speaking getting as much exposure to Necas as you can has been a pretty fruitful strategy this season.
Kotkaniemi has a very reduced role on the second power-play unit and Robinson doesn’t see any time on the man advantage at all, so all of their production this weekend is going to have to come at 5v5. The good news is this trio tends to dominate the puck when they’re out there together, averaging 31 scoring chances and 15 high-danger chances per 60. Think of them like Carolina’s first line except less ice time, finishing ability, and power-play time. Which admittedly, doesn’t sound great, but when you’ve only got one team to work with you’ve got be a little flexible with your streaming options.
Given the matchup spread and their ability to drive play at even strength this season, I’d expect this line to find the back of the net at least once this weekend. Deciding between the two of them is splitting hairs, but if you’ve only got room for one, I’d side with the guy who actually has a chance of seeing some power-play time and opt for Kotkaniemi.