We're just past the halfway point of the season. Time to evaluate your fantasy lineups and plan ahead. Get those deals done before others swoop in and change your plans.
If you've done well so far, be sure to stay active. And should your rosters still be in a holiday slumber, we're suggesting a few fantasy candidates to help wake them up.
(Rostered rates as of Jan. 9)
Forwards
Matt Duchene, DAL (Yahoo: 44%): Duchene missed almost two months and then struggled to produce upon returning in early December, but he has gotten back on track during the New Year with four points and 10 shots over four games. He skates on the Stars' second power play, though his biggest draw is a primary place alongside Wyatt Johnston and Mikko Rantanen at even-strength. Even if there's no special-teams scoring, Duchene – coming off a 30-goal, 52-assist campaign – can still do some damage.
Justin Sourdif, WAS (Yahoo: 18%): It took three seasons for Sourdif to see his first significant NHL action after being acquired from Florida during the summer, and it looks like the Caps knew what they were doing. He logged minimal minutes in the bottom-six through the opening month or so before Pierre-Luc Dubois' extended absence allowed for a larger role. Sourdif has since recorded seven goals, 10 assists, 45 shots, 30 hits and a plus-15 from 27 outings, highlighted by a hat-trick and two helpers on Monday. He left Thursday's practice early, so be sure to check his status before adding him.
Lawson Crouse, UTA (Yahoo: 18%): Crouse has often received fantasy attention throughout his career for his secondary stats, yet has recently seen his coverage rise thanks to a move up beside Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz during five-on-five. And even with a spot on Utah's secondary man-advantage not resulting in anything so far, he's still posted six points, 11 shots and 19 hits while averaging 17:45 since Dec. 21. Crouse can play anywhere within the lineup where going back to the middle-six wouldn't necessarily hurt his value.
Andre Burakovsky, CHI (Yahoo: 11%): The Blackhawks continue to be without the services of Connor Bedard and Frank Nazar, but others have picked up the slack, combining for 31 goals in the last nine contests. Burakovsky has been one of the more prominent contributors the last week by way of a goal on nine shots and five assists, including four PPPs and 17-plus minutes a night. He should continue in the upper half of the depth chart when the two aforementioned big names come back, and playing with either one will only lead to additional offensive potential.
Christian Dvorak, PHI (Yahoo: 4%): Dvorak is enjoying a career season, as he's already at 26 points, which is only 12 short of his peak. Philly's lead center in all attacking areas has also racked up three goals, eight assists, 39 shots and 117 faceoff wins in 15 games on an 18:27 average and was just rewarded with a five-year extension. It would be nice if Dvorak did something while up a man, though the Flyers continue to struggle there. Regardless of that, he clearly deserves to be selected in way more than four percent of Yahoo! leagues.
Fraser Minten, BOS (Yahoo: 3%): The Leafs barely used Minten before trading him at the most recent deadline. A brief stint to close out the season led into a disappointing opening in the fall, as he'd only tally a single goal over 10 outings. Minten then went on a short streak that eventually saw him centering David Pastrnak and then Morgan Geekie at even-strength where he notched a pair of assists on New Year's Eve immediately followed by a two-goal effort – including his first NHL PPG. Even if that placement disappears, he remains active for shots (56) and hits (89).
Alexandre Texier, MON (Yahoo: 3%): Montreal snapped up Texier in November after the Blues ended his contract. He quietly crept his way up the lineup as more forwards went missing until he joined Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, which saw him post two assists last Thursday followed by a goal and another two helpers Wednesday. And then on Thursday, Texier went off for a hat-trick on six shots versus the Panthers. This upswing won't last forever, though he seems to have a connection with the dynamic duo. So as long as they're together, Texier is someone to strongly consider.
Alex Turcotte, LA (Yahoo: 0%): Speaking of front lines without significant personnel, the Kings were missing Anze Kopitar, Corey Perry and Trevor Moore on Wednesday. Some or all of them could return soon, but Turcotte has taken advantage of the vacancies on a unit between Kevin Fiala and Andrei Kuzmenko. He hasn't lived up to his fifth-overall pedigree from 2019, yet has delivered a goal, three assists, five shots and 25 faceoff wins across the last three matchups. Act quickly before Turcotte's favorable situation fades away.
Defensemen
Denton Mateychuk, CLS (Yahoo: 28%): Last week, I apparently said something about Mateychuk probably not being able to maintain his production after Zach Werenski returned. And he's proven me wrong by notching a goal and three assists in four games since his star partner came back despite losing his entire power-play placement. As long as Mateychuk stays alongside Werenski during five-on-five, the offense will keep flowing.
Zayne Parekh, CGY (Yahoo: 17%): Parekh excelled for Canada at the recent WJC by finishing third in scoring at 13 points. He started the season with the Flames and picked up a PPA across 11 appearances, yet his ice time dwindled before he got injured and eventually was loaned out to play in the tournament. Reports are saying Parekh will return to the club, but no set date has been announced. And when that happens, he should be allowed to lead Calgary's man-advantage considering the rebuilding club ranks last in the league with a 13.9 percent success rate.
Charle-Edouard D'Astous, TB (Yahoo: 1%): After a fairly successful junior career, D'Astous went undrafted while traveling through Scandinavia and to a bunch of minor-league stops before receiving his NHL debut near the end of October. And even though the 27-year-old isn't logging major minutes, he's been able to find the scoresheet enough times – via three goals and 11 assists that includes two PPAs – to go with 41 shots, 53 PIM, 37 hits and 41 blocks. D'Astous may end up being bumped down the depth chart once Ryan McDonagh returns and could give up his power-play duty once Victor Hedman reappears sometime next month, so grab him while he's still productive.
Timothy Liljegren, SJ (Yahoo: 0%): John Klingberg is on IR with a lower-body issue, which has allowed Liljegren to take over as the Sharks' PP2 quarterback. And he's responded by registering two PPAs from the last three contests where he's also supplied another helper, four hits and eight blocks on a 21:28 average. Liljegren looks to be a solid short-term option with the chance for more opportunities. Add him now and release if/when the scoring stops.
Goaltenders
Stuart Skinner, PIT (Yahoo: 41%): While Skinner was a bit shaky in the first three outings after coming over from Edmonton (only saving 59 of 71 shots), he's been solid the last three, winning all of them and only allowing a goal in each. He's been alternating starts with Arturs Silovs, who's also come out on top during his last four appearances. Skinner probably holds the advantage as Pittsburgh's No. 1 due to experience, though could relinquish it to Silovs should he encounter another rough patch.
Philipp Grubauer, SEA (Yahoo: 25%): Grubauer has once again put himself in the fantasy conversation thanks to a scorching two-week run, posting a 1.39 GAA and .960 save percentage while working his way back into a platoon with Joey Daccord. The Kraken have surged up the standings thanks to the duo and face an eight-day road trip where the action will probably be split. Based on Grubauer's recent results and just being named to Germany's Olympic squad, he'll be motivated to continue doing well.
Players to consider from past columns: Dylan Cozens, Leo Carlsson, Frank Nazar, Will Smith, Carter Verhaeghe, Gabriel Landeskog, Jared McCann, Cole Perfetti, Nick Schmaltz, Anze Kopitar, Kiefer Sherwood, Brock Nelson, Zach Benson, Tyler Toffoli, Jonathan Huberdeau, Adam Fantilli, Patrick Kane, Dawson Mercer, Chris Kreider, Troy Terry, Brock Boeser, Mikael Granlund, Sean Monahan, Mats Zuccarello, Ryan O'Reilly, William Eklund, Will Cuylle, Bobby McMann, Anders Lee, Tyler Bertuzzi, Owen Tippett, Josh Norris, Brayden Schenn, Eeli Tolvanen, Pavel Buchnevich, Alexis Lafreniere, Boone Jenner, Anton Lundell, Ivan Barbashev, Vladimir Tarasenko, Conor Garland, Jack Roslovic, Beckett Sennecke, Jake Neighbours, Jamie Benn, Ryan Hartman, Mikael Backlund, Vasily Podkolzin, Zachary Bolduc, Logan Stankoven, Luke Evangelista, Claude Giroux, Marcus Johansson, Mackie Samoskevich, Evander Kane, Alex Laferriere, Teuvo Teravainen, Alexander Wennberg, Jake DeBrusk, Chandler Stephenson, Noah Cates, Braeden Bowman, Sean Couturier, Jordan Eberle, Jackson Blake, Dmitri Voronkov, Pavel Zacha, Jackson Blake, Anthony Mantha, Blake Coleman, Eetu Luostarinen, Ross Colton, Jack Quinn, Josh Doan, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Mason Marchment, Arseny Gritsyuk, Collin Graf, Matias Maccelli, Matthew Coronato, Fabian Zetterlund, Oliver Kapanen, Ben Kindel, Emmitt Finnie, Igor Chernyshov, Andrew Copp, Ryan Leonard, Erik Haula, Ryan McLeod, Brock Faber, Drew Doughty, Mattias Ekholm, Brandt Clarke, Kris Letang, Travis Sanheim, Filip Hronek, Rasmus Andersson, Zeev Buium, Noah Hanifin, Cam Fowler, K'Andre Miller, Jared Spurgeon, Jake McCabe, Artyom Levshunov, Vladislav Gavrikov, Ivan Provorov, Hampus Lindholm, Darren Raddysh, Brent Burns, Olen Zellweger, Sam Malinski, Ryan Pulock, Sean Durzi, Radko Gudas, Philip Broberg, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Justin Faulk, Damon Severson, Esa Lindell, Mattias Samuelsson, Josh Manson, Simon Edvinsson, Dmitry Orlov, Matt Roy, Cam York, Nick Blankenburg, Tony DeAngelo, Jordan Spence, Nate Schmidt, Spencer Knight, Jesper Wallstedt, Brandon Bussi, Jacob Fowler, Yaroslav Askarov, Carter Hart, Jet Greaves, Jake Allen, Jakub Dobes, Tristan Jarry, Cam Talbot, John Gibson, Dan Vladar, Casey DeSmith, David Rittich, Connor Ingram, Akira Schmid, Joel Hofer, Jonathan Quick, Kevin Lankinen
