Frozen Fantasy: Change the Game

Two great teams faced off in Toronto Saturday night. The Leafs and Oilers are a great rivalry - it's one good thing that came from the COVID years. And they always put on a great show.

Until 2:51 of the second period. Hockey needs to change. Now. 

Ryan Reaves (0 percent Yahoo!) blindsided Darnell Nurse (59 percent Yahoo!), driving his shoulder up and through the defender's jaw. It was hard to see Nurse's head snap at full speed. And see a man that big flip over and smash his face on the ice. 

Five games doesn't seem to be enough, does it?

Hockey needs to change, but the current Collective Bargaining Agreement doesn't allow for it. There's an opportunity for the NHL and NHLPA to come together in 2026 and negotiate much stiffer fines. And a major repeat offender scale that gets the bad actors to tuck in.

It's a bit like speeding here in Ontario (Canada). Yes, the fines go up the more you speed. But it's the stunt driving fine for 50km over (or 40 over in an already reduced speed area) that changes behavior. Police leave you on the side of the road with a massive ticket for up to $10,000, a license suspended for up to a month and no car as it gets impounded for two weeks.

That changes how you drive. And your car insurance premium. 

The NBA takes a hard line. Bad boy Draymond Green was suspended indefinitely last season for hitting an opponent in the face. It came after he'd been suspended for five games earlier in the year, and after he had punched his own teammate in the face during training camp. 

Green was reinstated after missing 12 games, but not before he met with counselors and league reps to prove he was a changed man. 

Zach Edey might disagree after this weekend. But you get the point. The league and players association are in lock step on it. The NHL needs to do the same. 

Now, let's take a look at who caught my eye this week. 

Anthony Beauvillier, LW, Pittsburgh (2 percent Yahoo!) - Every Pen not named Sid (and maybe Geno) is apparently on the block, including Beauvillier who's riding a four-game, five-point scoring streak. Maybe the threat of a trade lit a fire as he only managed four points from his first 16 outings. Beauvillier is one-dimensional, though he does fire the puck. I'm all-in, at least short-term. I'll bail once he's traded as he'll never have a better center than he does right now. 

Dakota Joshua, LW, Vancouver (11 percent Yahoo!) - I hadn't paid attention to why Joshua wasn't in the lineup until Thursday night. I see great things ahead now that he's back and cancer-free. The Orcas reunited him with Teddy Blueger (1 percent Yahoo!) and Conor Garland (28 percent Yahoo!), a trio that was one of the league's best third lines last year. Joshua hasn't put up any points yet, but he does have seven hits over two appearances. He produced 18 goals (32 points) last season alongside 244 hits in only 63 games. That last stat was good for ninth in the league. Get Joshua now if you're in a league that values his kind of skill.

Mason Marchment, LW, Dallas (39 percent Yahoo!) - Marchment went nuclear with a five-point performance Monday against the Pens, and followed it up with a goal and assist Thursday and another two snipes Saturday. He leads the Stars in hits (29) and is a surprising second in scoring with 17 points - including 11 assists - and power-play points (four). Marchment will drop down the list soon enough when sleeping stars Roope Hintz (78 percent Yahoo!), Jason Robertson (98 percent Yahoo!) and Wyatt Johnston (86 percent Yahoo!) finally wake up offensively. But he's a likely 60-plus point performer, so should be rostered in a lot more than one-third of leagues. 

Bobby McMann, LW, Toronto (4 percent Yahoo!) - McMann is a 28-year-old journeyman goal scorer who's on a 20-plus pace for the Blue and White. He's talented enough to skate in the top-six, which is his current location. And he's on a two-game, three-goal run heading into Wednesday night - his top-end breakaway speed on that second goal Saturday was sweet. McMann has simplified his game and is modeling himself around the Oilers' Zach Hyman (97 percent Yahoo!). He's no Hyman, but there's value in a 20-25 goal player who offers the ability to skate with those thoroughbreds in Toronto. And especially as a bullet-like F1 who forechecks like a terrier. He can also shoot with 17 on net through his last three. McMann is a value meal pick. Nothing wrong with that. 

Josh Norris, C, Ottawa (29 percent Yahoo!) - Norris took a three-game goal streak (three goals, one assist) into Saturday. The streak was snapped (Carolina's so good), yet it feels like his game is finally starting to come together. Norris has registered 11 hits, eight shots, one PPG and 29 FW in his last four games, while he and Brady Tkachuk (100 percent Yahoo!) make a great combination. Norris has posted a 35-goal, 55-point (66 games) season in his recent (pre-big injuries) past. He's the kind of dice roll that could give you sevens really fast without a big investment or risky trade. 

Anthony Richard, C, Philadelphia (0 percent Yahoo!) - Richard has been a wild surprise for the Flyers since his call-up 10 days ago. He takes a four-game, six-point scoring run into Monday while skating on a line with the uber-talented Matvei Michkov (55 percent Yahoo!). Richard won't keep this up. And he might be back in the minors before he gets his LW qualification. But this is his pinch-me moment as a 27-year-old with only 29 NHL games to his name. And Richard knows opportunities like this need to be seized. Take a look at him in deep daily leagues that use F instead of specific positions. 

Tyler Seguin, RW/C, Dallas (31 percent Yahoo!) - Seguin is on fire. Not bad for a 32-year-old former star who gets overlooked at drafts and in most leagues. He's on a three-game, four-point streak (one goal, three assists) going into a two-game stretch against two porous squads (Habs and Sharks). And he's notched points in all but one of his last nine outings (five goals, six assists). Seguin sits third on the Stars with 14 points - including seven goals - in 12 appearances. He can help you win. 

Olen Zellweger, D, Anaheim (6 percent Yahoo!) - Zellweger is a big-upside offensive defender with a huge opportunity in front of him as he gets first dibs to fill Cam Fowler's (3 percent Yahoo!) skates for up to four weeks. That means prime ice time and control of PP1. And so far, so good. Zellweger put up three points - a goal and two PPAs - during Friday's win over the Wings. His plus-minus will be a risk - it's Anaheim after all. But short-term, you can likely absorb that kind of hit because the rest of his game has star written all over it. 

Back to changing the game.

Hockey is an incredible game played at high speed with sharp weapons on their feet. Decisions are made in split seconds, even in amateur. And lives can be changed in a second. 

The hits to the head need to go. So does the fighting, to be honest. And this said by a writer who used to pen a regular column on the sin bin, with a special emphasis on pugilism. 

Fighting isn't legal in any other sport. Hits to the head aren't either. But in hockey, you might get away with a penalty and nothing more. 

Don Cherry would pop his collar. Everything changes. Over to you, NHL. 

Until next week.