Welcome back to another edition of Lining Up. There have now been a few games since some major coaching changes in EDM and MTL, so this week will examine some notable differences on the rosters and highlight any players that may now be considered worth picking up.

Let's dive in.

Evander Kane

Starting with EDM, head coach Jay Woodcroft officially took over on February 10 and has now been behind the bench for six games. The team has so far responded well with five straight wins before an ugly loss to MIN on Sunday. Luckily the coaching change has not impacted Evander Kane at all as he has been a fantasy monster since returning. So far, he has 5 goals and 9 points in 11 games along with almost three and a half shots and over three hits per game. He has spent the majority of his time lining up beside Leon Draisaitl which is the best player he's been paired with in some time. It is exciting to imagine the point pace he could bring continuing to be attached to Draisaitl for the remainder of the season. If he is somehow available in your league, stop reading and go pick him up.

Kailer Yamamoto

With the injury to Jesse Puljujarvi, Kailer Yamamoto has found himself on the top line with Zach Hyman and Connor McDavid. On the season he has been struggling with only 18 points in 50 games but he recently has three points in his last four. So long as he gets time with McDavid consider picking him up if you are in deeper leagues and in need of a replacement.

Tyson Barrie

One noteworthy observation with the recent coaching change is the increased power-play time for Barrie in place of Evan Bouchard. Over the last three games, Barrie has seen more than double the amount of power-play time compared to Bouchard and is with the top unit. On the season he has been underwhelming with only 20 points in 44 games but let's not forget that Barrie was on a 70-point pace last season. If he continues to see the kind of power-play deployment as he currently is, he could get back to that pace.

Overall EDM has a tough schedule this week against TBL, FLA and CAR but next week they play PHI, CHI and MTL. Consider scooping up a player from EDM if you can as regardless of competition they play six times over the next two fantasy weeks.

Cole Caufield

Moving on to MTL, former fantasy stud Martin St. Louis was appointed head coach of the floundering Canadiens as of February 9 and there have been some notable changes. A potential Calder Trophy finalist, Caufield has not had the season many were expecting with only 13 points in 35 games. However with arrival of St. Louis, Caufield has seen his stock rise and is now on what is effectively the top line with Josh Anderson and Nick Suzuki. He is seeing an increase in ice time with a high of over 21 minutes last Thursday and as of this writing, he has eight points in his last six games including three against TOR last night. At only 33% rostered in Yahoo Leagues, now is the time to buy back on Caufield.

Jeff Petry

Another player whom many were expecting much more out of this season, Petry has been a borderline nightmare production wise with only 10 points in 43 games. That total is a far cry from the 63-point pace he had last season. Once again with the St. Louis impact, Petry however has seemingly turned things around with five points in four games, again including a point last night against TOR as of the end of the first period. Luckily despite the low scoring for Petry, he has still been a big contributor in the peripheral department with almost three and a half combined hits and blocks per game as well as a shot and a half. Very well-rounded just as he was last year and at only 46% rostered it seems as though managers who drafted him with high hopes at the start of the season have since dumped him. Consider Petry once again as MTL has a fairly balanced schedule with two more games this week and three games next.

Alex Tuch – Tage Thompson

Back on January 11, this column highlighted Tuch and Thompson as a hot pair after a very small sample size of only three games in which both players were on point-per-game paces with the arrival of Tuch. Fast forward to now and with the addition of Skinner, this line has been on fire lately and they have nine GF and six GA in the last month.

Tuch has not missed a beat since joining BUF as he currently is operating at a 91-point pace with 21 in his last 19 games played to go along with nearly three and a half shots on goal. This is a drastic increase from his time with the VGK and indeed his 5on5 shooting percentage, pts/60 and PDO are all way above norms for him. However, to make up for a negative regression, Tuch is seeing an increase in TOI by nearly three full minutes and is averaging nearly a full minute more of power-play time. The three and a half shots on goal is also a higher rate than he ever had by nearly a full shot per game. Perhaps most importantly, Tuch has been lining up with Thompson for more than half of his tenure with BUF so perhaps the recent hot streak of nine points in his last seven games is a mark of chemistry forming between the two. Regardless, at only 50% rostered in Yahoo leagues it should be time to consider picking up a current point per game player.

Thompson has been on a tear lately with ten points in his last eight games including a hat trick on Saturday. On the season he has been performing above expectations with 38 points in 47 games. However, since the arrival of Tuch on December 29, Thompson actually has 20 points in 17 GP. Since that time, Thompson and Tuch have been keeping pace with big names such as Sebastian Aho, Chris Kreider and Leon Draisaitl. Thompson also is due for regression but a partial drop is still a great season for him, and at only 51% rostered why not enjoy the hot streak right into your playoffs.

Stay safe.