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

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, G, Buffalo Sabres (Available in 96% of ESPN leagues, 63% Fantrax, 80% Yahoo) – The goalie landscape in fantasy is difficult to navigate, there are only a few netminders in the league that get consistent starts without sharing the workload. UPL may be an option for steady starts in the crease.

Would rostering a Sabre be your first choice for a goalie in fantasy? Probably not but as far as starts may be concerned here for the time being he may be an excellent option to help fill a spot in net. He's 2-2-1 with a 1.96 goals against average in his past five games and has a larger frame in net. If you're not in a league that receives negative points for goals against it might be a hard sell for UPL, but if not the great news is Buffalo is allowing the second most shots on net in the entire league. If he stops 32 and lets a couple of pieces of vulcanized rubber go by him so be it, that's still points for you. From a DFS standpoint here he more often than not checks two boxes we love seeing, cheap and sees volume. Until Dustin Tokarski returns this may be a nice addition for the foreseeable future.

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

Alex Tuch, LW/RW, Buffalo Sabres (Available in 43% of ESPN leagues, 63% Fantrax, 66% Yahoo) – We can't be targeting two Sabres in one Looking Ahead can we? You bet we are! I think we should call this one, "SabresMetrics". If there's any Buffalo fans out there that would like to name their fantasy team SabresMetrics you have my blessing.

So yes, Tuch is not playing NHL games right now but guess who else isn't playing games right now? Short list here – everyone. The good news is we know that Tuch has been practicing for some time and is very close to making his Sabres debut and that's were buying in now might be extremely advantageous. I can't see a scenario outside of maybe the first game back for him we'll he won't be seeing a significant amount of ice time on a club where he'll most likely be playing top line and top power play minutes. If his time in Vegas was an outlier, we should be seeing great shot volume from him as well as hits. I think this is a spot where you could potential make a claim or add right now before other members of your league notice that Tuch has returned, this could be a potential 50-60 point boost for any fantasy team.

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

Claude Giroux, C/LW, Philadelphia Flyers (Owned in 88% of ESPN leagues, 94% of Fantrax, 81% Yahoo) – Odd Man out committee hasn't had their hands full as much as of late but sometimes instead of looking at players themselves, you look at the situations that they're in and how they may have changed. Claude Giroux has entered the chat.

So the good news, Giroux owners have seen him put up eight points in his past nine games. The bad news is that the Flyers have started playing him more as a center and less at left wing as of late and that can be problematic for a player that defensively isn't as good at that position. Sure, it's fantasy or DFS so we don't necessarily need to take defense into account as significantly on a per player basis, but I think this is a situation where Giroux may find himself and his line skating backwards more often than they're skating forwards. He briefly was on a line with Sean Couturier and Travis Konecny and I was looking forward to seeing what that line could produce offensively but seeing him now centering Oskar Lindblom and Cam Atkinson might not be as great of a situation moving forward.

The Anchors (They’ll do nothing but disappoint even over the long haul)

Andrew Copp, C/LW/RW, Winnipeg Jets (Owned in 69% of ESPN leagues, 74% of Fantrax, 69% Yahoo) – I have maybe been on an island of my own here maybe overrating how good the Jets wingers are, and don't get me wrong here, there are a couple that don't get the dues that they deserve. Copp however has started to decline as of late and it's worrying.

No points in his past six games and four points in the last ten isn't exactly what fantasy owners are looking for from a player that has been put in some decent spots. He was on a line with centered by Pierre-Luc Dubois and Nikolaj Ehlers for around 80 minutes this season and that line had decent offensive production with six goals for on 53 shots but now Copp looks to be along a third line with Adam Lowry and Dominic Toninato. No top six minutes could be a downgrade for rostering him in the long term.

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

This period runs from December 24^th to January 5^th

Los Angeles – Could I interest anyone out there in a Alex Iafallo–Viktor Arvidsson two man coming out of the break? The Kings will get a road game in Arizona out of the break followed by Vegas, Vancouver, and Philadelphia. That's not a bad stretch of games for the club with the second most shots for in the past two weeks.

NY Islanders – The Isles began to look better following their rough stretch of road games to start the season followed by COVID issues. They have a light schedule coming out of the break with two meetings with Buffalo and a home game against the Wings. The break could be a nice reset for a team looking to get back on track in the second half of the season.  

Boston – You could say Boston is a Love Em most weeks and I wouldn't begrudge it but this upcoming they'll see Ottawa, Detroit, and Buffalo at home. If they're healthy I don't see why they can't run over the competition they'll be seeing upcoming.

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

Minnesota – If I had to give an award to the NHL club I like watching most it might actually be Minnesota so far this season. I love the combination of Ryan Hartman and Kirill Kaprizov on their top line and watching their depth shut out opponents is elite. So why are they a Leave Em? Well, they only play two games upcoming on a weekly slate where most clubs will play three or four. I love watching Kaprizov and Company, but love having a full roster even more.   

St. Louis – A light schedule upcoming but the games clubs they'll see in New Jersey and Edmonton could be a matchup nightmare for the Blues. In the past two weeks they have the highest expected goals against and second highest high danger chances against in the entire league.

Montreal – The Habs will be on the road in Tampa, Carolina, and Florida. That's a gauntlet for a club with the second worst goal differential in the league.  

*Would like to wish everyone a very happy and healthy holiday season.