Looking ahead at the best schedules in fantasy hockey for Week Seven.

All fantasy owners need help in the short term AND the long term. The Looking Ahead feature identifies one player to plug into lineups in the short term, a second to invest in for the long term, a third to bench for the coming week and a fourth who will struggle to meet expectations for some time. Without further ado…

The Immediate Fix (Grab this guy and use him for the next several days)

David Desharnais, C, Montreal (Available in 68 percent of Yahoo leagues) – This 29-year-old centerman has averaged 35 assists and 50 points over the past two seasons as a core player in the Montreal offensive attack.  There are no surprises with Desharnais. He’s a solid, known player. Just keep in mind that he’s not playing on the same line as all-world winger Max Pacioretty (at this time). He also won’t maintain his incredibly high 21.7 shooting percentage and PDO of 1072. Tomas Plekanec is the Montreal center fantasy owners want to own in the long term, but Desharnais should be the one they are willing to own in the short term. The Canadiens have quite a friendly schedule in the coming days. This is a player who is JUST good enough to be worthy of adding for a finite amount of time.

The Building Block (Buy now, sit back and enjoy the production)

Jori Lehtera, C, St. Louis (Available in 83 percent of Yahoo leagues) – The underrated second-year centerman is currently entrenched as the Blues’ No. 1 centerman and seeing significant action alongside talented forwards Vladimir Tarasenko (his former teammate in the KHL) and Alex Steen. That fact alone makes him worthy of fantasy consideration in most formats. However, the 27-year-old Finn is capable of racking up assists given the fact that he’s also seeing ice time on St. Louis’s top power-play unit (with Tarasenko, Steen, David Backes and Kevin Shattenkirk). He’s more set-up man than goal-scoring threat, but Lehtera’s overall offensive production should not be overlooked. Since the Blues have such an advantageous schedule coming up, poolies could do a lot worse than plugging the second-year player into lineups for now. A healthy, productive Tarasenko is adept at making his linemates look really good. Why not take advantage and secure Lehtera’s services?

The Odd Man Out (His short-term outlook is cause for concern)

Max Domi, C/LW, Arizona (Owned in 75 percent of Yahoo leagues) – It’s been a fantastic debut season for the Coyotes rookie. At just 20 years of age, the 2013 first-rounder has registered seven goals and six assists in 15 games. He’s seeing action on the No. 1 power-play unit. He’s playing more than 17 minutes per game. Unfortunately for Domi, the Coyotes are starting to slide a bit after a strong start to the campaign, and the team has a rough schedule coming up. He’s not Stamkos, Ovechkin or Crosby (before this year). Domi belongs on the bench this week, but be sure not to leave him there for long.

The Anchor (He’ll do nothing but disappoint, even over the long haul)

Dougie Hamilton, D, Calgary (Owned in 77 percent of Yahoo leagues) – Last season, Hamilton elevated his game and became a budding franchise defenseman with the Boston Bruins. Though he was traded to Calgary this past offseason, the change of scenery was not expected to deter the talented, young blueliner in his development into a consistent fantasy option. Well… he’s been consistent(ly bad) in his inaugural campaign with the Flames. What’s gone wrong? Short answer: everything. Consider the following…

• He’s seen his ice time drop by more than two minutes per game since last year.
• He’s taken only 28 shots in 16 games this year (after racking up 188 in 75 games a year ago).
• Three… yes… THREE Calgary defensemen are seeing more time on the man advantage than Hamilton.
• He’s registered a PDO of 929 on the season, suggesting luck has not been on his side.

All that being said, Hamilton’s a player worthy of hanging onto in redraft leagues for a few more weeks. There’s just too much talent there to risk dropping him. But things aren’t looking good moving forward. He should not be activated into lineups until further notice.

Love ‘Em (These squads are sure to pay dividends in the coming days)

St. Louis – The Blues play four times between Saturday, Nov. 14 and Thursday, Nov. 19, and three of those contests will take place in St. Louis. It doesn’t hurt that the struggling Columbus Blue Jackets and the unimposing Buffalo Sabres are slated to take on the Blues in the coming days, either.

Chicago – Who cares that Jonathan Toews and Co. play seven out of their final eight games in the month of November away from the Windy City? The volume is there for the Blackhawks. Five games between Saturday, Nov. 14 and Friday, Nov. 20 means fantasy owners should be ready and willing to employ any and all fantasy-relevant Chicago players in the short term.

Montreal – Three straight home matchups to start the week (versus Colorado, versus Vancouver and versus Arizona) followed by a road matchup against the Islanders makes for a fairly enticing fantasy schedule. Now the Habs just need Carey Price to get healthy. 

Leave ‘Em (These squads will leave fantasy owners sorely disappointed in the short term)

Calgary – This coming week will find the middling Flames in the middle of a rough slate of games (road matchups against Tampa Bay, Washington and Chicago starting Thursday Nov., 12 and ending Sunday, Nov. 15). Then they play just twice over the course of the ensuing five days. Pass.

Arizona – The strong start to the season was fun and all, but the Coyotes have started to show their true (read: ugly) colors in recent weeks. Now the team is slated to play its next four games on the road. Look out below… 

New York Islanders – The opportunities just aren’t there for the Islanders in the coming days. They play only three times between Friday, Nov. 13 and Friday, Nov. 20. The matchups aren’t bad. It’s just that other squads see more action in the next week or so.