Another day, another COVID-related happening. This time, the Winnipeg Jets cancelled their Saturday practice due to an "abundance of caution." Get used to hearing that term. We will have to wait and see what happens tomorrow. If the Jets play as normal next week, you'll want to stack up on them in weekly formats, as they play FIVE games. Their next game is Monday against Toronto, followed by three against Ottawa and one against Edmonton. Yet if this is something serious, that juicy five-game week could get wiped off the schedule entirely.

Later in the day, Tucker Poolman was added to the NHL's COVID list. His addition to the list doesn't mean he has tested positive, but instead means he is being kept away from the team as a precaution.

Adam Daly-Frey listed the Jets as a team to target next week in this week's Looking Ahead. Click on the link to find out who else he likes and doesn't like based on the upcoming schedule.

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Maybe it took a tweet from basketball coach Rick Pitino along with other public pressure to keep the games-played streak alive (866 games), but Keith Yandle was practicing with the Florida first-unit power play on Saturday. Joel Quenneville even didn't rule out Yandle suiting up for the Panthers for their season debut on Sunday. This demonstrates how ranking real-life defensemen and fantasy defensemen are two completely different undertakings. I have another example of this in the next section.

If you're waiting on what to do with Yandle, this could very well come down to a game-time decision. As I mentioned earlier in the week, you're better to hold onto Yandle as opposed to dropping him outright since there's still a lot that can happen early in the season. Of course, that depends on alternate options on your waiver wire. In shallower leagues, it would make sense to drop Yandle if in fact he is scratched.

On a side note, I can't help but think how this Yandle situation is playing out similarly to how former NHL ironman Garry Unger's games-played streak ended at 914 back in 1979.

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The world of hockey isn't filled with truly controversial or polarizing figures, but Tony DeAngelo has to qualify as one of them. DeAngelo can bring it offensively (53 points in 68 games), but he had an awful game defensively on Thursday while also taking a needless unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. David Quinn wasn't going to be patient after the 4-0 loss to the Islanders, so he made DeAngelo a healthy scratch on Saturday. DeAngelo's defensive game was also a major problem for the Rangers when they got swept by Carolina during the play-in series. I should acknowledge that he is also well-known for his conduct on social media and strong support of a certain US politician, which isn't going to help his cause.

It's possible that this is just a one-game message sending from the coach, and DeAngelo is back in the lineup as normal for the Rangers' next game on Tuesday. Yet the issues that I brought up are reasons that I've ranked TDA lower than similar-producing defensemen in the Roto Rankings. Character issues aside, coaches seem more interested in preventing goals than they are in scoring them, which is why the disconnect between top real-life defensemen and top fantasy defensemen is worth noting. All that DeAngelo has going for him right now is scoring. If that scoring dries up, then he's essentially going to be what Shayne Gostisbehere is now. I'm already thankful that I walked away from the DeAngelo bidding war in my auction keeper league when I did.

With DeAngelo out of the lineup, Adam Fox made fantasy owners ecstatic by logging seven minutes of power-play time and recording a power-play assist.

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We found out on Saturday that Sean Couturier will be out a minimum of two weeks with a Costochondral separation. In plain English, that's a rib cartilage tear. Sounds painful.

If you're looking for players who might benefit, Morgan Frost hasn't been in the Flyers lineup yet this season and plays the center position. As well, fellow 2017 first-round pick Nolan Patrick has quietly recorded two points in two games while playing on a line with veterans Jakub Voracek and James van Riemsdyk. Now that his migraine issues are behind him, Patrick could be that post-hype sleeper that you're looking for. I also mentioned Scott Laughton getting bumped up to Couturier's line in yesterday's Ramblings. Whatever happens, the Flyers are not short on decent replacement options.

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It's time to give the Devils their due again. Another day, another mention of Egor Sharangovich. This one for his first NHL goal, the overtime buzzer beater. As mentioned yesterday, Sharangovich is on the Devils top line with Kyle Palmieri and Jack Hughes. Since many of you might still be asking "who?" at this point, he might just be someone to add to your watch list for now. Devils fans are having fun watching him, though.

1ST NHL GOAL ALERT
🚨 YEGOR SHARANGOVICH OT WINNER
2-1 #NJDEVILS pic.twitter.com/btrhxvuHqJ

— Here's Your Replay ⬇️ (@HeresYourReplay) January 16, 2021

Speaking of Hughes, he added another assist to give him three in two games. From what I saw of this game, he was absolutely flying out there. He still seems rough around the edges with his shooting and passing, but the talent and desire are there. He's currently unowned in about 42 percent in Yahoo leagues. If you're in one of those leagues, compare your most droppable option to Hughes and determine if that player has the same upside. This early in the season, you might as well go with upside for what should be considered a droppable roster spot.  

Ty Smith recorded an assist, giving him two points and a plus-3 in his first two NHL games. As I also mentioned earlier, he has PP1 upside and should get there in due course. However, P.K. Subban is still in that spot, whether you like it or not. Sami Vatanen hasn't joined the Devils yet as he will need to quarantine, but he will also be in the conversation once he's ready to play. 

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Don't look now but Phil Kessel already has three goals, including two on Saturday. We knew has fantasy value would drop with a move to Arizona, but it absolutely plummeted last season. He was believed to be playing through injuries, which if true he would have had a long time to heal. In my experts league draft I watched Kessel go unselected round after round, finally being selected at pick 271. Right wing is the position where I have the least amount of depth on this team, so in hindsight I should have closed my eyes and made the pick.

The subject of offseason trade rumors, Oliver Ekman-Larsson assisted on both of Kessel's goals and chipped in three assists total. Interestingly enough, Jakob Chychrun took on the first-unit power-play minutes for the Yotes while OEL took on just 17 minutes in this game. Something to watch if you were expecting heavy minutes and power-play time from Ekman-Larsson.

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In just his second game, Tim Stutzle scored his first NHL goal, and it was a beauty.

Another look at the first goal of Tim Stützle's career! #GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/w3WZQQnN0V

— Ottawa Senators (@Senators) January 17, 2021

After posting nothing but zeros in boxscore (not even a shot) in the Leafs loss on Friday, Mitch Marner bounced back in a big way, scoring a goal while adding two assists in 23:46 of icetime. Linemate Joe Thornton scored his first goal as a Leaf while adding an assist. I guess I can get behind adding Thornton while he's on that line with Marner and Auston Matthews, although his spot on a fantasy team is contingent upon him staying on that line.

Unfortunately for the Leafs, prospect Nick Robertson left what was his first regular-season game with a knee injury. It is believed that he will miss some time.

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Semyon Varlamov was injured in warmups, meaning that Ilya Sorokin was summoned for his first NHL start. Sorokin probably wasn't prepared to start and it showed, as he was on the wrong end of a 5-0 score against the Rangers. Not what his keeper owners had hoped for in his much-anticipated first NHL start. Barry Trotz expressed his displeasure after the game about players not taking more care of their goalie with practice shots.

Should be precautionary removal for Varlamov today. Goalie gear leaves the neck/throat exposed but collarbone should be protected. I would expect Varlamov to be fully fit for the Islanders next game https://t.co/YdgGrzsttl

— Dr. Harjas Grewal (@Harjas_Grewal) January 17, 2021

As you can see, Varlamov took a shot to his neck area and left right away. The Islanders didn't provide much of an update after the game, although Dr. Grewal's prognosis below would suggest Varlamov should be okay. Should Varlamov need to miss any time, familiar face and newly signed Cory Schneider could factor into the Islanders goaltending situation.

At the other end, Alexandar Georgiev pitched the 23-save shutout in his first start of the season. With all the hype surrounding Igor Shesterkin as a Calder Trophy favorite, maybe Georgiev isn't getting enough respect as the Rangers begin the post-Henrik Lundqvist era.

Pavel Buchnevich had a game, scoring two goals and adding an assist with five shots on goal. If Buchnevich can continue to connect with Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider, he could be in for a big year.

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Jeff Petry and Tomas Tatar each scored twice in the Canadiens' 5-1 win over Edmonton. This is exactly what I was thinking about Petry:

How often does a player play in a big hockey market and is so underrated?

Answer: Jeff Petry

— Eric Daoust (@DH_EricDaoust) January 17, 2021

In just two games, Petry has collected two goals, two assists, two power-play points, a plus-3, and seven shots on goal. The fact that he is 33 years of age knocks him down many keeper pool rankings. Yet fantasy hockey is a game of results no matter the name or age, and Petry continues to provide those.

Carey Price entered this game a lifetime 3-9-1 with a 3.65 GAA and .861 SV% against the Oilers, which are his worst numbers against any team. If you knew that and started Price anyway, good on you. Price stopped 34 of 35 shots to earn the win.

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It was the worst possible outcome for Canucks fans. Jacob Markstrom stopped all 32 shots he faced in earning a shutout over his former team. The Canucks didn't really test Markstrom with a lot of high-danger scoring chances in this game, but a goalie can only face the shots that he receives. Those shots came from shooters that Marky is very familiar with, so any thoughts that the Canucks would be able to pick apart Markstrom because they know his tendencies turned out to be pure nonsense.

The Markstrom signing shows why teams are so reluctant to trade players with divisional rivals. Markstrom's choice of Calgary was much less ideal for the Canucks than most other teams, considering that the current divisional alignment means that the Canucks and Flames play each other nine more times this season. So with all that, Markstrom is now a must-start whenever he faces his former team.

No goals and just one assist in Elias Pettersson's first three games. Maybe he misses J.T. Miller, who may clear quarantine sometime next week.

Alex Edler left this game in the third period after receiving a skate cut. No word on whether this will force him to miss any time.

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In trying to put a disastrous 2019-20 season behind him, Andreas Athanasiou has scored goals in each of his first two games with the Kings. He's connected on a line with 36-year-old Jeff Carter, who might be an afterthought in fantasy leagues at this point but has two points in each of his first two games. Carter is also firing the puck like the Carter of old, taking 11 shots over his first two games. You probably didn't think you would, but there's a chance you could be looking at adding one or both of these players if you're in a deeper league.

Fantasy Impact: Kings Sign Athanasiou

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For more fantasy hockey discussion, or to reach out to me, you can follow me on Twitter @Ian_Gooding