October preview: Use the NHL schedule to your advantage
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Victoria Matiash, Fantasy Hockey
Setting the benchmark at six games — when another 20 teams, at minimum, are idle — we charted which clubs are booked to compete on so-called slower nights, from Oct. 10 to Oct. 31. Here’s a quartet of teams to recognize in that respect, when deciding which available players to stream, all else being equal. Obviously you’re not shuffling in a fourth-liner over a scoring star just because of how the schedule plays out.
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Colorado Avalanche
No other team in the NHL earns greater amplitude of the viewing spotlight this October than the Avalanche, playing on six so-labelled lighter nights. That’s a sizable chunk for only a three-week span — one that could pay tangible fantasy dividends in all H2H competition.
Beyond the team’s fantasy heavy hitters, Jonathan Drouin is again slotted on a top unit and power play with Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen. While that configuration should change once a gaggle of prominent forwards — Artturi Lehkonen, Gabriel Landeskog, and Valeri Nichushkin — return, not one of the aforementioned is expected back until November, at earliest. Stashing any one of the three on IR, while rostering Drouin in the meanwhile, is one strategy. If the IR option isn’t in play, the veteran winger still merits an immediate whirl in deeper competition. Once settled in alongside MacKinnon last year, Drouin earned 48 points — more than a third of them on the power play — in his final 53 contests, including 16 goals.
Second-line center Casey Mittelstadt appeals as (again, likely for the time being) a member of the Avs’ top power play. And keep an eye on Nikolai Kovalenko, who enjoyed an excellent camp with Colorado. The 24-year-old rookie is immediately, if temporarily, slated to launch 2024-25 on Mittelstadt’s wing and has extensive KHL experience of competing with, and scoring against, grown men. On the blue line, Samuel Girard, rostered in only 5% of ESPN Fantasy leagues, boasts value as a solid all-around fantasy performer.
Winnipeg Jets
In company with the Penguins and Ducks (featured below), Winnipeg is one of only three squads to play on five occasions when a maximum of six games pepper the NHL slate. So give Gabriel Vilardi a good, long look in deeper leagues and/or those where players are easily swapped in and out. Rostered in only 16% of ESPN Fantasy competition, the winger is skating on a top Jets scoring line and power play with Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor. If available, Nikolaj Ehlers serves as another intriguing candidate as a power-play asset and second-line winger. Defender Dylan DeMelo has value in fantasy leagues that reward blocked shots, and, unlike fellow Winnipeg defenders Josh Morrissey and Neal Pionk, is likely there for the grabbing.
Anaheim Ducks
There’s a lot to appreciate about the productive potential of the Ducks’ new top line, including sophomore center Leo Carlsson, veteran winger Alex Killorn and rookie Cutter Gauthier. Not one of them is overwhelmingly rostered in ESPN Fantasy leagues. Killorn and his 65-point potential, plus a good number of shots and hits, is likely available in yours.
Sophomore defender Jackson LaCombe is one to watch as a potential breakout candidate, and not just in dynasty competition. The University of Minnesota alum is launching 2024-25 on the top power play and partnered with Radko Gudas at even-strength. While hardly a permanent configuration, it’s a promising start. The 23-year-old is certainly worth monitoring through Anaheim’s first few games. Gudas, on the other hand, is a proven performer in leagues that count hits and blocked shots. The Ducks’ new captain averaged 2.0 fantasy points/contest in standard ESPN Fantasy games this past season.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Due back soon after missing the season opener, Bryan Rust certainly merits stashing on your roster for the rest of this month. Top-line and power-play sidekick to Sidney Crosby, Rust pitched in 28 goals and 28 assists in only 62 games this past season. When healthy, the veteran winger is capable of performing as a near-point/game player.
Second-line winger Michael Bunting is another fantasy operator worth considering in leagues of reasonable size. Following his trade from Carolina to Pittsburgh last winter, Bunting earned 19 points in 21 games, including a handful with the extra skater. Defenseman Marcus Pettersson blocks shots regularly and pitches in enough production to remain fantasy-relevant in deeper competition.
Then there are those teams that play most often when everyone else is also active. For the remainder of this October, 10 teams compete on only one night when fewer than six games are scheduled: Buffalo Sabres, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Florida Panthers, Minnesota Wild, Nashville Predators, New York Rangers, Seattle Kraken, St. Louis Blues and Washington Capitals. A little food for fantasy thought if considering adding one player over another, all else being perceived as equal.
