Welcome back to the weekly Fantasy Hockey waiver wire article highlighting the best pickups and adds off waivers for Week 5 of the 2023-24 NHL season!
The NHL is back to its normally scheduled programming this week. The light nights are Monday (4 games), Wednesday (3), Friday (6), and Sunday (5). Meanwhile, there are double-digit games on Tuesday (10), Thursday (11), and Saturday (12)
In this article, we’ll be highlighting a few teams that play on lighter nights in order for you to maximize your roster for any given week. The Fantasy Hockey waiver wire is key!
Optimizing your lineup is crucial in any fantasy sports league, and fantasy hockey is no different. Given the NHL’s weekly scheduling, there are certain teams that have better schedules on certain weeks throughout the year.
If you are in a shallower or deeper league –– or just have a question or comment –– feel free to reach out to me on Twitter (@RGilbertSOP) or in the SGPN Discord!
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Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Week 5 Schedule
A pair of heavy hitters line up well with a good schedule this week. The Florida Panthers play on all four light nights this week, while the Maple Leafs play thrice on light nights and four times overall.
Florida Panthers
- Monday vs. CBJ
- Wednesday @ WSH
- Friday vs. CAR
- Sunday vs. CHI
The Panthers have seven players rostered in more than half of leagues, but there are still a few players worth adding this week.
Evan Rodrigues (C, LW, RW – 49% Rostered)
Rodrigues is a versatile forward who can slot in at all three positions in your fantasy hockey lineup. He’s also off to a pretty good start this season.
E-Rod is settling in nicely with the Panthers. He has eight points (two goals) in 10 games after putting up 39 points (16 goals) in 69 games with Colorado last season. Perhaps most importantly, he has 30 SOG through those 10 games.
The veteran forward is playing on the top line with Aleksander Barkov and Sam Reinhart and on the top power-play unit as well. Add him off the fantasy hockey waiver wire if he’s available in your league.
Anton Lundell (C – 3% Rostered)
Lundell is available in almost all leagues, and it’s easy to see why. He only has three points and 17 shots in 10 games. However, all three of those points have come in the last five games, with his first goal of the year coming on Thursday night.
This is an opportunity pickup for Lundell. He centers the second line with offensive dynamos Carter Verhaeghe and Matthew Tkachuk. He’s also on the second power-play and penalty-kill units, so he has a chance in all situations to fill out the stat sheet.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson (D – 16% Rostered)
Look, I don’t like recommending OEL as a fantasy hockey add just as much as you won’t like picking him up off the waiver wire. But there is a good opportunity here for the veteran defenseman.
Ekman-Larsson is on the Panthers’ top pair and power-play unit as Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour recover from their injuries. It’s a talented power play, too, with the likes of Tkachuk, Barkov, Rodrigues, and Sam Reinhart.
The Swedish defenseman only has four points in 10 games, but he’s playing over 24 minutes a night and can hopefully pick up a few points this week.
Toronto Maple Leafs
- Monday vs. TBL
- Wednesday vs. OTT
- Friday vs. CGY
- Saturday vs. VAN
The Leafs are a very top-heavy team with five players rostered in 87% of leagues or more, and then it drops down to 37%. Let’s take a look at a few of those lesser-rostered players.
Matthew Knies (LW – 15% Rostered)
Rookie forward Matthew Knies entered the season with Calder Trophy hopes — at least for some Leafs fans. However, Knies has only really had one strong game in terms of points. He scored two goals and added an assist in the fifth game of the season. Outside of that, he’s put up one assist in his last six games.
So why is he worth a fantasy hockey add?
It appears that Knies is finally getting a crack on the top line with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. If he can get to the right areas and complement the dynamic duo, those points will pour in.
Tyler Bertuzzi (LW – 32% Rostered)
This is more of a “keep an eye on” than anything. There are rumblings that Bertuzzi has been playing through an injury.
He had three points (two goals) in the first seven games of the season. He’s been held off the scoresheet in the last four games, though.
Bertuzzi is still getting a crack in the top six with John Tavares and William Nylander as the Leafs hope he can find his form — he put up 62 points (30 goals) in 68 games in the 2021-22 season.
John Klingberg (D – 37% Rostered)
Klingberg is on the power play with Matthews, Marner, Tavares, and Nylander. If you need points out of your defensemen, give the tall righty a look.
