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, I break down the teams and skaters with the most streamer-friendly schedules over the weekend.
This weekend features six games on Friday, 11 on Saturday, and eight on Sunday. There are a whopping eight teams rocking the Friday/Sunday schedule this weekend, giving us plenty of streaming options to consider. After combing through the wire, I’ve narrowed down the top options at each ownership range in Yahoo! Fantasy leagues, starting with 40% – 31%. Good luck, and happy streaming!
40% – 31%: Jake DeBrusk (LW/RW – 39% Owned)
Elias Pettersson‘s lack of availability this weekend certainly hurts DeBrusk’s upside, but his usage and shot volume still makes him a very attractive play. DeBrusk is averaging over 18 minutes of ice-time and four shots on goal in his last three games. While he’s been unfortunate not to find the back of the net in that time, he has managed to tally three assists. Although he doesn’t have the benefit of skating alongside Pettersson this weekend, DeBrusk has formed a formidable trio with Pius Suter (who makes for a strong streaming play in his own right) and Brock Boeser.
The three of them are averaging a respectable 28 scoring chances and 12 high-danger chances per 60 at 5v5 together this season. While Sunday’s matchup in Winnipeg poses a difficult challenge for Vancouver’s makeshift first line, they are a good bet to combine for a line goal or two against the Blue Jackets on Friday. Given the amount of run they’re seeing at 5v5 and on the power-play right now, I’m happy to squeeze as many pieces from this line into my lineup as I can this weekend.
30% – 21%: Troy Terry (C/RW – 25% Owned)
I try to pay as much mind as I can to the matchup spreads when identifying viable streaming options, but at the end of the day, I’m a sucker for a lot of minutes and good shot volume. The Leafs and Rangers aren’t the most enticing matchups, but it’s hard not to love the stable floor you’re getting off the wire from Terry. Anaheim’s shoot-first winger has 17 shots in his last four games while playing just under 19 minutes a night.
The Ducks’ first line of Terry, Frank Vatrano, and Ryan Strome are one of the most common combinations in the NHL this season. They’ve played over 650 minutes together at 5v5, building up plenty of chemistry in the process. You’d never confuse the three of them for a shutdown line, but they create as much as they give up. They average 33 scoring chances and 14 high-danger chances per 60, which should leave Terry with plenty of opportunities to find the back of the net this weekend. If the Ducks’ struggling power-play finds a way to wake up, then you could be looking at a matchup winner off the wire in Terry.
20% – 11%: Taylor Hall (LW – 17% owned)
Lost in the fallout of the Mikko Rantanen trade fiasco is Hall, the auxiliary piece acquired in that original trade, quietly regaining his Hart Trophy form. Okay, maybe we shouldn’t go that far – but nobody has more points on the Hurricanes since the (second) Rantanen trade than Hall. The former MVP turned journeyman has six goals, three assists, and nine shots on goal in eight games since the trade. The only thing missing right now is some exposure to Sebastian Aho at 5v5, but Hall has made a home for himself alongside Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Jack Roslovic.
The three of them are dominating the puck at even strength, which should continue to afford Hall plenty of opportunity to continue to create high-danger chances in the offensive zone. On top of that, Hall is cementing his role on Carolina’s top power-play unit. Even with Andrei Svechnikov‘s impending return from a lower-body injury, Hall maintained his spot on that first unit at practice on Thursday. Look for Hall to stay hot this weekend in a pair of favourable home matchups against the Canadiens and Islanders.
10% – 0%: Jackson Blake (RW – 1% owned)
We’re staying in Raleigh for this weekend’s deep league target. Available in 99% of leagues, Blake may not have the hot run of production that his teammate Hall is bringing into the weekend, but he has seemingly locked up a spot on Aho’s wing at even strength, and it’s affording him plenty of shooting opportunities. The 21-year-old winger has three assists and is averaging over three shots a game in his last five contests. Full disclosure: Blake has not scored a goal in over two months, but I expect that dam to burst sooner than later if he continues shooting the puck at this rate. Like Hall, Blake also maintained a spot on the top power-play unit at Thursday’s practice. I like his odds of getting the monkey off his back and ending that prolonged drought this weekend, but he should be a safe source of assists either way.