Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire: Seth Jarvis & Ryan O'Reilly are icy-cool pickups
By Evan Berofsky, RotoWire
Special to Yahoo Sports
A certain Connor has been dominating the league the last few years, but there's a youngster with the same first name looking to perform at a high level and prove that all the hype has been justified with the promise of a long and successful fantasy career.
But enough about Connor McMichael.
We're here to provide recommendations for players mainly being overlooked in Yahoo! leagues. That means no one over 50 percent coverage will be covered in this column, though a few exceptions should appear throughout the season.
Since there's only been a handful of games, there's not a lot of real-life data to assess. But if we also factor in-line situations, injuries and other news, we should be able to identify who's undervalued and offers the potential to succeed now and/or long term.
(Rostered rates on Yahoo Fantasy as of Oct. 13)
Forwards
Seth Jarvis, Carolina Hurricanes (Yahoo: 35%)
After two decent but not spectacular seasons, Jarvis could be ready to break out. He's back with Sebastian Aho on the first line and power play. He was on the ice for 21:49 in Wednesday's season opener — miles ahead of previous averages — which afforded him major responsibilities in all situations and produced an assist, four shots and seven hits. The balanced forward unit in Carolina can lead to scoring becoming more spread out, though Jarvis shouldn't have a problem maintaining a substantial fantasy role.
Logan Cooley, Arizona Coyotes (Yahoo: 34%)
There seems to be a shoo-in for the Calder, yet there are others who at least should be considered. One of them is Cooley, who was drafted third overall by the Coyotes in 2022 and just finished a dominant year in the NCAA. The knock on Arizona is its lack of offensive firepower and middling veterans who were recently added up front, similar to the situation surrounding that new kid in Chicago. That could leave Cooley with subpar stats, but you'd probably want to bet on his potential now before someone else snaps him off the wire.
Ryan O'Reilly, Nashville Predators (Yahoo: 27%)
O'Reilly's nine-year stretch of posting at least 54 points ended last season, a year he spent primarily as a secondary contributor in St. Louis and then Toronto. The Predators boast one of the league's best goalies and offensive defenseman, yet the rest of their lineup is thin when it comes to scoring. Enter O'Reilly and his immediate placement as the top center next to Filip Forsberg, which helped O'Reilly to one goal, one assist, four shots, two blocks and 11 faceoff wins on Opening Knight. Cody Glass and Thomas Novak may be up-and-comers down the middle, but O'Reilly is the pivot you're looking for.
Nick Paul, Tampa Bay Lightning (Yahoo: 22%)
This isn't a knock against Alex Killorn, but his big draw in fantasy the last seven years was being on Tampa's No. 1 power play, where he totaled 72 points across that span. And after he left for Anaheim, there was the need to fill a net-front presence. The first candidate to assume that vacancy was Paul, and he immediately succeeded with two PPGs on Tuesday. He also set up Nikita Kucherov for an empty-netter, directed three pucks on net and blocked a shot. Paul may be the Bolts' third center at five-on-five, but that other cushy spot with the stars is enough of a reason to add him.
Gabriel Vilardi, Winnipeg Jets (Yahoo: 15%)
Vilardi was on fire the first month last season and eventually leveled off with 23 goals and 18 assists over 63 appearances. He never really lived up to his draft status while in Los Angeles, but he's getting the opportunity to improve his profile with Winnipeg. Game 1 didn't result in any points for Vilardi, so it would be easy to overlook his seven-shot, 21-plus minute effort. I mean, who could complain about skating on the right side of a line with Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor?
Ryan Johansen, Colorado Avalanche (Yahoo: 14%)
While many have highlighted Jonathan Drouin as a solid Colorado pickup, Johansen can be had at half the roster rate while offering similar upside. The former has been installed alongside Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen at even-strength and supplied a helper on the captain's tally. Johansen is the Avs' second center, yet he holds the advantage by lining up with the dynamic duo on the top power play and providing a wider output variety with three shots, a hit and 12 faceoff wins.
Nicklas Backstrom, Washington Capitals (Yahoo: 10%)
Backstrom has been hampered by injuries the last few seasons and returned from major surgery in January to register 21 points across 39 outings. That type of production seems likely to continue based on accounts of his improved health and the inevitability of him reuniting with longtime linemate Alex Ovechkin in all attacking situations. Backstrom will never reclaim the scoring output from his heyday, though a solid 50-60 points, a few pucks on net and a bunch of faceoff wins should suffice for someone available in nine out of every 10 Yahoo! leagues.
Ryan Donato, Chicago Blackhawks (Yahoo: 5%)
Chicago acquired Donato during the summer to bolster the forward corps, though he was considered more of a depth piece and not someone who would automatically be considered to line up with Connor Bedard. We're two games in and he's joined forces with the phenom while already chipping in with a goal, assist and seven hits on a combined 37 minutes, including more than seven while up a man. Losing Taylor Hall on the left side of that unit will hurt the next few weeks, but there's no downside for Donato as long as he continues with Bedard.
Defensemen
Jake Sanderson, Ottawa Senators (Yahoo: 42%)
Sanderson performed well as a rookie, recording 32 points — 17 of those PPPs — alongside 132 shots and 147 blocks while skating nearly 22 minutes a night and participating on both special-teams units. Even though he didn't find the scoresheet in Wednesday's opener, he still displayed dependability with two shots, two hits and a block on a hefty 25:05 (including over seven short-handed minutes). Expect Sanderson to be a mainstay for the Senators, who can consistently collect cross-category production.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Florida Panthers (Yahoo: 13%)
With Brandon Montour and Aaron Ekblad MIA until at least December, there's a huge hole on the Florida back line. Gustav Forsling will continue to cover as he did when Ekblad was out last season, while Ekman-Larsson is set to earn the biggest boost as the lone D on the top man-advantage. If he sticks there, it could result in some strong initial offensive numbers. The Panthers were shut out Thursday, yet OEL's 26:42 — including 7:32 on special teams — with four shots and a block is very promising.
Jamie Drysdale, Anaheim Ducks (Yahoo: 12%)
Cam Fowler is penciled in to start the year as the QB on the first power play, though Drysdale — assuming he remains healthy — will eventually ascend as the lead. He probably would've already taken over were it not for a serious shoulder injury last October that only saw him appear in eight games. Drysdale will also benefit by teaming up with Fowler at even strength, though he'll almost exclusively be reliable to poolies for offensive contributions.
Arber Xhekaj, Montreal Canadiens (Yahoo: 11%)
There may not appear to be many subtleties to Xhekaj's game based on his physical highlights, though there's the potential for him to emerge as a fantasy sleeper. Consider his debut at Toronto, where he managed to rack up 17 PIM in one play while adding an assist and three hits in just over 10 minutes of ice time. Xhekaj also operated as the point man on Montreal's second power play, which would be a bonus if that holds. Just imagine what he could do with a larger workload. Doesn't something like 20ish points with a shot, block, three hits and some penalty-box time per night sound good as a lower-lineup option?
Goaltenders
Karel Vejmelka, Arizona Coyotes (Yahoo: 37%)
Vejmelka literally saved the Coyotes over the last two years, having faced 40-plus shots 19 times while winning eight of those and dropping two in OT. The club finished 2022-23 tied for 25th in goals allowed, though that could improve with the offseason additions of Sean Durzi and Matt Dumba. Connor Ingram could potentially earn more starts after ending last season on a hot run (2.98 GAA, .920 SV% across 10 appearances), but Vejmelka should once again log at least 50 games behind a young, developing core.
Anton Forsberg, Ottawa Senators (Yahoo: 4%)
One wouldn't expect a 30-year-old who suffered injuries to both knees in February to be immediately fantasy-relevant, yet Forsberg is primed to contribute after impressing in preseason by only giving up two goals from two outings, including a shutout. The Sens invested a significant amount on Joonas Korpisalo with a five-year contract, though Forsberg should get the chance to challenge for the No. 1 spot. Ottawa plays at home Saturday versus Philly and Sunday versus Tampa, with the opening matchup potentially going to Forsberg as the easier matchup — at least on paper — to ease him back in.
