Hello everyone, hope everyone has had a good fantasy week, and for those of you in the northern states of America and most of Canada. Hope you survived the copious amounts of snow that's been dumped on us over the past week! As many of you know, the NHL schedule was revised this week and things are gonna get a little bit crazy in a week or two. The players won't be going to the Olympics, but to fill that giant Olympic-sized void in the upcoming schedule, the league will be making up a slew of previously postponed games. And just one more caveat, there's still an All-Star game and break to contend with as well, so things are going to be very touch-and-go over the next few weeks.

I know we are still a couple weeks away with this stuff, but I still think it's worth bringing up now, especially with my columns being every Sunday. At the end of next Sunday other people may have already taken action, so it's best to be prepared. Next week is busy, but largely business as usual, but just as a quick aside, the Leafs, Lightning, and Predators all only have two games next week, so keep that in mind. The following week is where things start getting a bit hectic.

For those of you in head-to-head leagues, Week 16 will be a two-week affair thanks to the All-Star Game. That means January 31 to February 13 will be one matchup rolled into one. Regardless of what format your league is in though, the schedule gets a bit wacky thanks to all these make-up games. As seen below, there's eight teams with a heavier workload, but at the same time there are seven teams who barely play. Depending on who you have rostered, this can have huge effects on your fantasy team. 

With all this in mind I've come up with a few recommendations for players to pick up who will be playing a ton over that two-week period. Of course, you have to keep track of injuries and COVID-protocols between now and then, but for now, these are some players to keep in mind. 

Tim Stutzle

At the top of that list was the Ottawa Senators, who will be the busiest team over the two-week period leading up to, and following the All-Star break. Stutzle has kind of had a meandering season up until now. Through 33 games he's only racked up six goals and 12 assists for 18 points in total. His offense is pretty much on pace to match his numbers from his rookie season. The Sens have had it rough lately with constantly dealing with games being postponed. Stutzle personally had to deal with being put in COVID-protocol as well, so I get why his production has been a little stifled. 

Over the last week he has managed to string together points in three of his last four contests. Also, it seems like coach DJ Smith has a lot of confidence in the young German forward. He currently is seeing an average of 17:40 a game, and additionally he has been playing on the man advantage 61.8% of the time. There's certainly been no shortage of opportunities for Stutzle to showcase his talents. Hopefully the youngster can thrive when the Sens start playing all these extra make-up games in a couple of weeks. 

Aside from scoring, Stutzle will also get you a little bit of everything else in terms of peripheral stats, specifically hits. He has 57 hits thus far in the season, already surpassing his mark of 50 that was set in his rookie year. He has been especially pouring on the hits as of late, as he has had two or more in each of his last five games. If he keeps that pace up, it will add some serious value to him going forward.  He also gained center eligibility earlier this season and is getting some sporadic faceoff wins, but nothing to get overly excited about quite yet. He will also get you the occasional block, not quite one per game but he certainly isn't afraid of sacrificing his body. 

Stutzle's availability will vary depending on which platform you are on. It is currently 34% in Yahoo leagues, but in ESPN it has already gotten up to 48%, while in Fantrax it is already over 76%.

Nico Hischier 

With how Hischier has been playing as of late, he may just be more of a straight up long-term add rather than a streamer option for the All-Star break. The 2017 first overall pick is finally starting to show why he was the premier pick five long years ago as he has now tallied a point in nine of his last ten games. Through 33 games he's scored eight goals, 16 assists for 24 points. That's a 60-point pace, which would easily be a career best for him. It hasn't been easy for the Swiss center, as he has battled through a myriad of injuries during his brief five-year tenure in the league. It's pretty incredible to be Band-Aid Boy Certified by Dobber and only have been in the league for such a short time!

Fingers crossed, Hischier can stay healthy, because he is a huge part of the Devils core. Along with the Devils' other top tier young gun Jack Hughes, the two form a strong two-pronged attack down the middle.  It would be nice if the Devils could add a little more depth on the wing to complement their two stud centers. Jesper Bratt and Yegor Sharangovich both seem to be mainstays for the team. But most recently Lindy Ruff has Pavel Zacha down to the third line and is playing Jimmy Vesey and Tomas Tatar on Hischier's wings. Don't get me wrong, those two are serviceable NHLers, but I think Hischier could be doing even better with stronger linemates. 

Aside from the scoring prowess that he has been showing flashes of, Hischier is also becoming one of the league's best on the draws. He currently has won 54.5% of his faceoffs this year and has a total of 343 wins. If you are in a league that tracks faceoff wins, this should be enough to get your attention already.  When you add in his solid shot rate, his excellent deployment (over 19 minutes a game plus he is seeing time on the first power play unit), there's a ton to like. The Devils are going to have a busy schedule in a couple of weeks, so you really oughta consider scooping him up if you can. Depending on your situation, he could even earn a spot to stay if he continues playing well. 

Blake Coleman

My last player is someone who I have found myself frustrated with a number of times in the past. Blake Coleman has shown flashes over the years of breaking through and being a big-time offensive player, but then for one reason or another he just never does. But just because he isn't a fantasy mainstay does NOT mean that he can't be effective for you periodically. With the Flames coming up on a busy schedule in a couple of weeks, this could be the perfect time to add the American winger for some great value.

Coleman currently finds himself residing on Calgary's second line with Andrew Mangiapane and Mikael Backlund. The biggest downsides for Coleman right now is that he isn't featured much on special teams so he's been limited to just 15:29 on average per night. While that's not great, it's still enough for him to be viable, and he definitely still makes the most of his ice time. Coleman is a real stat sheet stuffer. He will get you a bit of everything.

First and foremost, he is a very high-volume shooter, averaging 3.2 shots per game this season. You always love to see a guy who shoots over three shots per game, but on top of that he is averaging just under a block per game with 31 in 35 games. That's not all, he also is a reliable source for hits as he currently is sitting at 78. That averages out to be over two per game. So even if Coleman goes cold in the scoring department, he should be reliable enough to get you stats elsewhere. 

He's pretty widely available in most leagues. Yahoo has him at 26% rostered, while he's up to 44% on Fantrax, but just 9% in ESPN leagues. Yahoo also has him as dual-wing eligible so that makes him even a bit more flexible to squeeze into your lineups. 

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That's it for this week. There are some other overlooked players out there on teams that are playing a ton in the coming weeks. You would be wise to prepare accordingly. And even if you don't make many changes, just be aware if you have a lot of players from the teams that aren't playing a ton over the All-Star break such as the Sharks or Kings. Hopefully you all come out on top after these make-up games are all finally in the books!