3 days agoDallas Stars center Justin Dowling buried the first goal of his NHL career on Wednesday in a 3-1 road victory over the Calgary Flames. Skating in his 14th NHL regular-season game (34 games including playoffs), the minor-league journeyman beat Flames netminder Cam Talbot with a toe-drag move on an odd-man rush in the third period - a tally that ended up being the game-winning goal. After nine years of battling in the ECHL and AHL, Dowling finally broke through and made the Stars out of training camp this season and has been a fixture in the lineup ever since. While the 29-year-old doesn't hold much long-term fantasy appeal, he's currently centering Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin and should be considered a player to monitor over the short-term. The Stars make the trip to Vancouver for another game on Thursday.
--Chase Davis - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
3 days agoDallas Stars forward Joe Pavelski registered two goals as his team defeated the Calgary Flames 3-1 on Wednesday night. Playing center for the first time since the first week of the season, Pavelski was all over the scoresheet in this one - also registering a power-play point, a plus-one rating, two penalty minutes, five shots and two hits in 17:02 of ice time in the contest. It's been a bit of an adjustment for the 35-year-old in his first NHL season outside of San Jose but he's starting to showcase his notorious renown scoring ability with seven points (three goals, four assists) over his past six games. Perhaps it was just a matter of time until Pavelski started to roll. He'll be back in action against the Canucks on Thursday.
--Chase Davis - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
3 days agoNew York Islanders left wing Anthony Beauvillier scored a power-play goal and an even-strength goal during Wednesday's 5-4 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. He fired five shots on net across 17:03 of ice time. The 22-year-old has been relatively productive for the Islanders this season. He has four goals, six assists, and 34 shots while primarily playing on the team's second line. Beauvillier is an afterthought in shallow fantasy formats, but he is a worthy fringe asset in deeper leagues. The Islanders will look to stay hot in their next game on Saturday night against the Philadelphia Flyers.
--Raymond Harrison - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
3 days agoToronto Maple Leafs right wing William Nylander scored with a skilled redirection during the second period of Wednesday's 5-4 loss to the New York Islanders. The Swedish forward is on fire lately, producing five goals and two assists over his last five games. Nylander's disappointing performance from last season is in the distant past now, as he has eight goals and eight assists through 20 games. The 23-year-old is deserving of ownership in all fantasy formats as the Maple Leafs prepare for a date with the Boston Bruins on Friday.
--Raymond Harrison - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
3 days agoToronto Maple Leafs center John Tavares tallied a goal and added an assist during Wednesday's 5-4 loss to the New York Islanders. Much to the chagrin of Islanders' fans, Tavares pulled the Maple Leafs within a goal with just 38 seconds remaining in the game. The 29-year-old now has four points in his last two games and 13 points in 13 games on the season. He is a top-tier fantasy asset playing alongside a plethora of skilled players. Tavares and the Maple Leafs will be back in action on Friday night against the Boston Bruins.
--Raymond Harrison - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
3 days agoPittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby will miss at least the next six weeks after having surgery to repair a core muscle injury on Thursday. The 32-year-old sustained the injury in the third period of a 3-2 shootout victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday and did not return to the game. The news comes as a major loss to both the Penguins and Crosby's fantasy owners as the three-time Stanley Cup champ had produced 17 points (five goals, 12 assists), three power-play points and 46 shots on goal in his first 17 games on the campaign. The team will look to Evgeni Malkin to step up and take on a lead role in their generational talent's absence.
--Chase Davis - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
3 days agoPhiladelphia Flyers center Claude Giroux scored the team's only goal in Wednesday's 2-1 shootout loss to Washington, netting on a power play in the third period. Jakub Voracek and Ivan Provorov provided the assists for the Flyers captain, who now has five goals and 13 points for the season. He has nine points in nine home games. The Flyers play three of their next four games on the road, so it's not a good time to rely on Giroux at the moment. However, there's still a long way to go, and he'll surely improve his away form before the season is done and dusted.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
3 days agoWashington Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby extended his winning streak to five games on Wednesday, finishing a 2-1 shootout win over Philadelphia with 30 saves. He had a very slow start to the season, but an eighth win in nine starts has pushed Holtby's record to 9-1-3. His goals-against average at 3.06 still needs some improvement and he's recorded a mediocre .903 save percentage for the season, but Holtby has allowed more than two goals just once this month to register a .938 save percentage, so his form looks to be improving.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
3 days agoWashington Capitals defenseman John Carlson reached the 30-point mark on Wednesday, registering an assist in a 2-1 shootout win at Philadelphia. Nic Dowd also recorded a helper on Brendan Leipsic's second goal of the season. Carlson has been in incredible form ever since the season started, finishing pointless in only four of his 20 appearances. He, of course, tops the scoring list among defensemen, and it's not even close, as Dougie Hamilton occupies the second spot with 19 points. Only five defensemen in league history have managed to record a 100-point season, and with Carlson keeping up his scoring form for so long, he now looks to have a realistic shot at joining the list.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
3 days agoOttawa Senators center Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored his first regular-season hat trick on Wednesday in a 4-2 win against the Devils. Connor Brown had two assists and Mark Borowiecki also scored for the Sens, who notched their seventh victory of the season. Craig Anderson had 21 saves in his third W of the year. Pageau has quietly been one of the league's best goal-scorers over the last few weeks, netting nine goals across his last 10 appearances. He has 11 goals for the season, which puts him just behind the league's top-five. The 27-year-old is killing it in the plus/minus category as well, boasting a league-best plus-19 rating through 18 games.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
4 days agoColorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon recorded two goals and a pair of assists as his team defeated the Winnipeg Jets 4-0 on Tuesday. In addition to figuring into all four Avalanche goals, the 24-year-old also posted a power-play point, a plus-three rating, six shots and five hits in 20:40 of ice time in the contest. While many expected MacKinnon's production to falter after losing both of his linemates (Gabriel Landeskog & Mikko Rantanen) to long-term injury, the team captain has instead rattled off 11 points (five goals, six assists) in seven games in their absence. With 26 points in 18 games thus far, MacKinnon looks primed to eclipse the 100-point mark for the first time in his career in 2019-2020. The electrifying center will look to come up big yet again in Edmonton on Thursday.
--Chase Davis - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
4 days agoNew York Rangers right wing Kaapo Kakko scored twice, including the overtime winner, during Tuesday's 3-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. The second-overall pick from the 2019 NHL Entry Draft is starting to come into his own, with four goals over his past five games. Kakko now has six goals and two assists through 16 games this year. If someone in your league dropped the 18-year-old, ensure you pick him up. The Rangers will be back in action on Thursday against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
--Raymond Harrison - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
4 days agoAnaheim Ducks center Adam Henrique picked up two even-strength assists during Tuesday's 4-3 overtime loss to the Detroit Red Wings. The veteran pivot has enjoyed a surprising start to the 2019-20 campaign with eight goals, five assists, and 44 shots in 19 games. Despite playing on the top power-play unit, the 29-year-old has not recorded a power-play point yet this year. Henrique is a valid option in deeper formats, but he is still an afterthought in deeper leagues. The Ducks will face the San Jose Sharks on Thursday night.
--Raymond Harrison - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
4 days agoDetroit Red Wings center Dylan Larkin scored a power-play goal with 37 seconds left in the third period of Tuesday's 4-3 overtime win against the Anaheim Ducks. The 23-year-old has been relatively productive to start the season with six goals, nine assists, and 62 shots through 20 games. Andreas Athanasiou, Filip Hronek, and Dennis Cholowski also scored in the contest. The Red Wings' young core continues to carry them offensively, and the majority of them are fantasy relevant. They will continue their road trip on Thursday night against the Los Angeles Kings.
--Raymond Harrison - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
4 days agoNashville Predators left wing Filip Forsberg netted a power-play goal during Tuesday's 5-3 loss to the Vancouver Canucks. The Swedish forward has scored in each of his last four games. Forsberg has been highly productive this season, despite missing some time due to injury, as he has nine goals and five assists in 12 games. The 25-year-old has scored at least 25 goals and 50 points in each of the past five seasons. The Predators will look to bounce back on Saturday night against the Chicago Blackhawks.
--Raymond Harrison - RotoBallerSource: NHL.com
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