Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire: Ilya Samsonov looks like the Leafs goalie to have right now
By Evan Berofsky, RotoWire
Special to Yahoo Sports
Assessing your roster's strengths and weaknesses is something that can be done rather quickly. On the other hand, determining playoff viability often proves to be a more difficult task — especially if you're carrying a few injuries and/or on the bubble.
No matter what position you're in, there's always a need to rotate players and find new recruits. So let's provide a couple of recommendations below.
(Rostered rates as of Jan. 26)
Forwards
Jonathan Huberdeau, Calgary Flames (Yahoo: 38%)
We all know how far Huberdeau's totals fell in his first year with the Flames, but there's always a chance to bounce back. And while the first two months netted him a respectable 15 points, that was immediately followed by 12 straight scoreless efforts. That obviously scared off many poolies, as they dropped Huberdeau in droves and searched for more reliable replacements. Those who were patient with him have been rewarded the last three weeks, as he's racked up two goals and nine assists, with three of those on the power play. As Huberdeau is a proven producer who maintains a place on Calgary's first line and man-advantage, he should be on more rosters. (Note: Keep an eye on his status as he was ejected from Thursday's game after a boarding major.)
Jordan Eberle, Seattle Kraken (Yahoo: 32%)
Like Huberdeau, Eberle has alternated between really good and absent this season. Fortunately, he's in the middle of a heater where he's tallied in four consecutive games, totaling two goals and four assists. It's also surprising that this run overlaps the duration of Matty Beniers' absence, as he was Eberle's regular center. The former Oiler should keep posting points with the Kraken set to face a few weaker defensive sides over the coming weeks.
T.J. Oshie, Washington Capitals (Yahoo: 18%)
It's been a while since Oshie played a full schedule. And at 37, it's not like he's immune to injury. In fact, he only returned from another issue two weeks ago after missing 11 contests. Oshie hasn't wasted any time displaying his sniping skills with six goals, including a hat trick against St. Louis last Thursday and three PPGs on the lead unit. During that stretch, he's also fired 22 pucks on net. It's nice to see Oshie get back on track and regularly find the back of the net. Let's just hope he can stay healthy for an extended period.
Logan O'Connor, Colorado Avalanche (Yahoo: 10%)
In six seasons, O'Connor had never assumed a regular scoring role until recent developments pushed him up the Colorado depth chart. This all started after New Year's when he had points in six straight. And if that wasn't impressive enough, O'Connor would record a goal and assist on Jan. 16 and his first NHL hat trick four days later. He rarely participates on the power play but leads the short-handed crew. As long as O'Connor keeps skating elevated minutes, he's at least worth a shot.
Morgan Frost, Philadelphia Flyers (Yahoo: 6%)
Frost centers one of the league's hottest lines between previous column entries Cam Atkinson and Joel Farabee. Over the past eight games, the three have combined for 28 points (including nine while up a man) and 73 shots. Frost slightly trails the others with eight points over that stretch, though all three chipped in with three PPPs. Over that same span, he's averaged just under 17 minutes — with around two of those on the PP — while winning 50 faceoffs. The Flyers may rank 25th in goals, but they were averaging 3.5 over the last two weeks before Thursday's shutout, which bodes well for Frost and his fellow Philly forwards.
Nicolas Roy, Vegas Golden Knights (Yahoo: 7%)
Roy was referred to in last week's column when discussing Pavel Dorofeyev as someone who could inherit some of the responsibilities from the injured Jack Eichel (knee). All he's done since the star went down is register eight points and 12 shots in almost 18 minutes a night. Roy has moved up to the top six, where he's slotted next to Jonathan Marchessault and Ivan Barbashev at even strength while playing on the second man-advantage, scoring five PPPs overall. As Eichel isn't projected to return until at least mid-February, Roy will be allowed to continue an advanced workload.
Jack Quinn, Buffalo Sabres (Yahoo: 4%)
As a rookie, Quinn posted 37 points. He wasn't able to showcase his sophomore skills initially, spending the first two months recovering from offseason surgery. Quinn has made up for lost time by accumulating five goals, six assists and 35 shots, highlighted by one, two and five of each during his most recent outing. He also skates at five-on-five with fellow 22-year-olds Dylan Cozens and John-Jason Peterka while switching between power-play units. With his pedigree and surrounding talent, Quinn shouldn't be available in over 95 percent of Yahoo leagues.
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Pius Suter, Vancouver Canucks (Yahoo: 1%)
Sometimes, it's just being in the right place at the right time that gets a player some attention. You may have missed it on Wednesday when Suter ended up on a line with J.T. Miller and Brock Boeser and potted three goals in the third period. Not only that, but he scored one of those on Vancouver's elite power play and another an empty-netter to tie it up with 52 seconds left. As such, Suter could be the sneakiest fantasy add of the week — or the most overrated one should this assignment end. Either way, you may want to jump on the opportunity before it goes away.
Defensemen
Colton Parayko, St. Louis Blues (Yahoo: 31%)
Parayko is usually good for somewhere in the high-20/mid-30-point range over a full season and regularly combines that with solid efforts in other categories. That seems to be the case again this year as he's at 17 alongside 91 shots, 49 hits and 119 blocks. Parayko has been especially productive of late, having posted a goal, four assists, 17 shots and 24 blocks across seven games while averaging 24:28. He'll never be a lead fantasy performer but can definitely help in a secondary role.
Alexander Romanov, New York Islanders (Yahoo: 11%)
Teaming up with elite talent tends to boost a player's numbers. Romanov may not be racking up the offense beside Noah Dobson, though the fact that he managed points in each of his last three prior to Thursday was encouraging. He's mainly known for the physical side, recording 105 blocks and 65 hits, with 42 and 20 of those since Dec. 20. Romanov has also logged a career-high of over 22 minutes a night, leading to an increase in shots and overall attacking opportunities.
Egor Zamula, Philadelphia Flyers (Yahoo: 3%)
Travis Sanheim and Cam York got their turns quarterbacking Philly's top power play on their own. Zamula has been in the mix since late December and has totaled six PPPs, with the more recent ones coming in partnership with York. The acquisition of Jamie Drysdale could've pushed Zamula down to the second unit, yet he's remained on the lead group throughout. His ice time isn't great, but you can't ignore his four goals and seven assists in the last month combined with that prime power-play placement.
Darren Raddysh, Tampa Bay Lightning (Yahoo: 1%)
Raddysh toiled in the minors for five years before getting his first taste of the NHL right before the end of 2021. Fifty-one points from 50 AHL matchups last season earned him a longer look in Tampa later on, including a goal and assist during the playoffs. Finally in a full-time role, Raddysh has benefited from being beside Victor Hedman at even-strength and from the absence of Mikhail Sergachev (lower body) to register his first two PPAs while accumulating seven points, 13 shots, 14 hits and eight blocks the last three weeks. Even when Sergachev returns, Raddysh should get enough minutes to continue contributing.
Goaltenders
Ilya Samsonov, Toronto Maple Leafs (Yahoo: 52%)
Samsonov fared decently during his first season in Toronto before getting hurt in the playoffs. Expectations were similar for year two, though inconsistency and injury would see him produce a 3.94 GAA and .862 save percentage over 15 appearances before a brief demotion. Samsonov returned to the Leafs' lineup on Jan. 14, where he gave up three goals against Detroit. After winning in Seattle on Sunday, he was given a second straight start Wednesday and turned back all 32 shots to beat the Jets. Martin Jones has dropped four of the last five and Joseph Woll (ankle) is projected to be back on the ice sometime next month, so the club will probably ride Samsonov's hot run for now.
Laurent Brossoit, Winnipeg Jets (Yahoo: 18%)
Brossoit was in the Winnipeg net Wednesday opposite Samsonov and only allowed an OT clincher from Auston Matthews. That type of performance has been the norm for him this season based on a 2.07/.926 line through 12 outings. Connor Hellebuyck is the clear No. 1 and has so far compiled Vezina-worthy stats, yet he'll need the occasional game off. And that's where Brossoit will be able to add some action on a team that boasts the league's best GAA and an attack that will soon welcome back Mark Scheifele and Gabriel Vilardi.
Players to consider from past columns: Pavel Zacha, Seth Jarvis, Ryan O'Reilly, Troy Terry, William Karlsson, Wyatt Johnston, Johnny Gaudreau, Quinton Byfield, Cam Atkinson, Gustav Nyquist, Jake DeBrusk, Josh Norris, Robert Thomas, Nazem Kadri, Joel Farabee, Cole Perfetti, Nikolaj Ehlers, Chandler Stephenson, Adam Fantilli, Mason McTavish, Dylan Strome, Brayden Schenn, Ivan Barbashev, Charlie Coyle, Jonathan Drouin, Marco Rossi, Dawson Mercer, Nick Paul, Trevor Moore, Sam Bennett, John-Jason Peterka, Blake Coleman, Morgan Geekie, Yegor Sharangovich, Sean Couturier, Eeli Tolvanen, Ross Colton, David Perron, Kirill Marchenko, Rickard Rakell, Dakota Joshua, Michael Bunting, Matias Maccelli, Alex Kerfoot, Alex Killorn, Daniel Sprong, Jake Sanderson, Owen Power, Mike Matheson, Brock Faber, Filip Hronek, Scott Perunovich, Noah Hanifin, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Thomas Harley, Jamie Drysdale, Cam Fowler, Neal Pionk, Travis Sanheim, Ivan Provorov, Simon Nemec, Will Borgen, Connor Ingram, Martin Jones, Alex Lyon, Joey Daccord, Samuel Ersson, Lukas Dostal, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Anthony Stolarz, Petr Mrazek, Charlie Lindgren
