The NHL All-Star break doesn’t mean it’s time for you to take a break in your fantasy hockey league. No, you must keep the pedal to the metal to ensure you obliterate the competition. In that vein, here are ten more players sitting on the fantasy hockey waiver wire that can help out your cause.
(only includes players rostered in 50% or less of Yahoo Fantasy leagues; stats listed are after Wednesday’s games)
Best Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Pickups: Forwards
Kevin Hayes – Philadelphia – C/LW – 50% Rostered
(15 G, 30 A, -7, 15 PPP, 146 SOG, 15 BLK)
Kevin Hayes‘s four-game point streak got snapped last game, but at least he was +2 in it. He needs the plus-minus help. With 15 goals and 30 assists already this season, he’s only nine points away from tying his career-high in points that he set back in 2018/19. He leads the surprisingly average Flyers in assists and power-play goals.
Logan Couture – San Jose – C – 44% Rostered
(19 G, 23 A, -17, 13 PPP, 119 SOG, 48 BLK)
Logan Couture enters the All-Star break on a high, registering a career-best five points (two goals, three assists) in San Jose’s last game before the break. Outside of his career-worst -17 rating, he’s improbably having a career season in Year 14 in the NHL. He’s on pace for 31 goals and 37 assists, which would leave him only a couple of points behind his best season total of 70 in 2018/19. It is highly unlikely, however, that he’ll beat his career-best +21 rating.
Best Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Pickups: Defensemen
Erik Gustafsson – Washington – D – 48% Rostered
(7 G, 22 A, +9, 6 PPP, 99 SOG, 47 BLK)
Erik Gustafsson snapped a three-game pointless drought in style last game, registering two assists as well as five shots on goal. It’s the shots on goal that have kept him relevant in fantasy hockey even during his pointless streak, as he puts a lot of rubber on the net for a defenseman, including another five-shot game recently. He continues to have his best season since 2018/19 – there’s that year again!
Mark Giordano – Toronto – D – 25% Rostered
(3 G, 16 A, +18, 0 PPP, 77 SOG, 100 BLK)
I think this is the first Maple Leaf that has made its way into this column. Mark Giordano is another guy who is having a very solid season, late in his career (Year 17). Giordano has points in six of his last eight games – an impressive feat for a blueliner, especially one who turns 40 this year. Additionally, his 100 blocked shots are 17th best in the NHL this season. He’s also not afraid to throw the puck on the net, as his 77 shots on goal is a solid number.
Best Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Pickups: Goalies
Karel Vejmelka – Arizona – G – 47% Rostered
(13 W, 111 GA, 1078 SV, 3 SHO)
If you picked up Karel Vejmelka like I suggest last week, he would have gotten a 33-save shutout for you. Nice! That makes it three clean sheets for him this season, tying him for fourth in the league. He also remains in the hunt for the most saves in the NHL this year, with his 1078 currently ranking fourth. Plus, he’s won his last two starts for the desert dogs. You could do a lot worse than picking up the 11th-best fantasy goalie this season.
John Gibson – Anaheim – G – 36% Rostered
(10 W, 124 GA, 1092 SV, 1 SHO)
Another goalie who is currently on a hot run is Anaheim’s John Gibson. He’s won two straight starts and three of his last four. His 1092 saves on the season rank just ahead of Vejmelka, third overall in the league. His 3.96 goals against and .898 save percentage? Not so good. But they are by far the worst marks in his career – maybe his play over this recent stretch of the season signals he’s reverting back to his old form.
Other fantasy hockey waiver wire players worth checking out: Andrei Kuzmenko, David Krejci, Brady Skjei, Esa Lindell
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