Fantasy Hockey Puck Drops: Why Hampus Lindholm shouldn't be on so many rosters
By Michael Finewax, RotoWire
Special to Yahoo Sports
It was a fun weekend in Toronto for the All-Star break, but now it's back to reality and the final 20-to-25 games of the regular fantasy hockey season. Let's consider some players who are rostered in ample Yahoo leagues and could be easily dropped for the stretch run.
Pierre-Luc Dubois, C/LW, Los Angeles Kings (38% rostered)
The Kings are being vilified for their trade with the Jets, with Dubois coming over to LA in exchange for Alex Iafallo, Rasmus Kupari, Gabriel Vilardi and a 2024 second-round pick. Dubois inked an eight-year, $68 million contract in conjunction with the trade and it has been nothing but a disaster in LA. Dubois was expected to be the second-line center this season and eventually take over the top spot when Anze Kopitar retired.
Instead, Dubois is the third-line pivot and has only 10 goals and 20 points in 48 games, after back-to-back 60-plus point seasons in Winnipeg the last two years.
Hampus Lindholm, D, Boston Bruins, (56% rostered)
Lindholm has five assists in his last six games, which is nice for the 56% of players who have him on their team, but his strong showing of late still gives him only one goal and 19 points in 49 contests. Lindholm was great last season with 10 goals and 43 assists in 80 games, including 17 points on the power play. This season Lindholm has taken a big drop in shots on goal, going from 158 to only 62 thus far, and his power play time has been cut in half as Charlie McAvoy — who missed 15 games last season — has taken some of his role. While Lindholm has a good plus-17 this season, that isn't enough to keep him on your roster.
Neal Pionk, D, Winnipeg Jets (52% rostered)
Pionk has slumped of late, picking up only a goal and an assist with an even rating in his last nine games. Overall, the 28-year-old defenseman has four goals and 18 points in 47 games, which places him in 54th place in scoring among NHL defensemen. He has 110 hits, which is 25th in the NHL and seventh among blueliners. That's a good stat for Pionk, but his lack of offense makes him a poor fantasy choice in all but the deepest of leagues.
Rickard Rakell, RW, Pittsburgh Penguins, (32% rostered)
Rakell was worth having on your team when he was playing on the top line alongside Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzel. This is no longer the case, as Rakell is now languishing on the third line with Lars Eller and Jesse Puljujarvi, having been replaced by Bryan Rust on the top unit. Rakell is seeing time on the second power play but has only two goals and four points in 34 games. Overall, Rakell has just five goals and 13 assists with 82 shots on goal this season, which isn't close to being fantasy-worthy.
Trevor Zegras, C, Anaheim Ducks (33% rostered)
Unless you're in a dynasty pool — and even then, it better be a deep one — I don't understand why poolies are holding on to Zegras. He has a broken ankle that will likely keep him out of action until early March, and there's no guarantee that he'll come back at full strength. He was good the last two campaigns, picking up 61 and 65 points respectively, but he took a huge step back this season, managing just four goals and seven points in 20 games. This is a lost season for the 22-year-old, and there is no reason to hold onto him at this stage of the season.
