Welcome back everyone! As we move further into fantasy playoffs, I just want to stress something for those who may have not gotten this far before or are clinging onto the roster you already have. At some point there is going to be a player that you're likely rostered for all or most of the season that you like that is going to become "dead weight" so to speak. Last week there were a multitude of Florida skaters who could definitely help in the later rounds but with only two games last week, it became difficult to justify rostering any of those fringe players. Just remember, next week isn't guaranteed in playoffs. It's now or it's never.  

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

Jakub Vrana, LW, St. Louis Blues (Rostered in 36% of ESPN leagues, 54% Fantrax, 30% Yahoo) – Alright so for playoffs we want a player on a team that is lower rostered, plays both days this coming weekend, and four games next week. I'm very excited about this one, Jakub Vrana come on down.  

I wrote about Vrana when he played for Washington coming back from injury and was very excited about what his game could potentially look like. Fast forward to a stint in Detroit that didn't work out and I was worried about where his NHL career might go and was really hoping we would eventually see him play again in a Red Wings sweater or really anywhere. St. Louis has taken a flyer on him and so far, he has been excellent with six points in his last eight games, with his last game providing five shots on goal. When healthy, Vrana is a player that has excellent finishing ability around the net and is a great play driver on offense. Right now, Vrana is slated on the Blues third line, but has moved around during games playing around 15 minutes a night.

I mentioned at the top that the Blues schedule is a big beneficiary of making a solid fantasy add but I think it goes a little further than that. The Blues next five opponents will be – Anaheim, Los Angeles coming off a back-to-back, Vancouver, Chicago, and Nashville. I know we're talking about the Blues here, but that list isn't exactly a gauntlet of clubs coming St. Louis's way. Vrana is going to get opportunities against some clubs with pretty brutal depth which makes adding him even more enticing.

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

Jake Sanderson, D, Ottawa Senators (Rostered in 15% of ESPN leagues, 67% Fantrax, 30% Yahoo) – Another player on a club that has a full schedule next week, but one that you might want to hang on to a tad bit longer. Jake Sanderson makes for a good addition on a club that is outside looking in on the playoff picture. Yes, I know Ottawa is all but out of the playoffs, but I feel like I read a headline every morning about either them or Buffalo somehow making it into the last wild card spot. Win out and…maybe.

I've been impressed with Sanderson's game this season but more recently I've watched him closer and really like what he brings to this Senators club. Last week while Thomas Chabot was out of the lineup, I thought the Senators would move Sanderson to the top power play unit over newly acquired Jakob Chychrun and they did just that. Sanderson is an excellent puck-moving defensemen and right now playing on a club that is putting pucks on net. So far this month the Senators rank fifth in shots for at all strengths and fifth in expected goals for.

Maybe a little touch and go for Sanderson on the score sheet but I like him moving forward for his potential on special teams as well as his physicality, he has 122 blocks this season. To put that into perspective, that's one ahead of Victor Hedman and one behind Justin Holl, the difference here being that Sanderson has 25 assists so far on the season to go along with those hits.

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

Seth Jones, D, Chicago Blackhawks (Rostered in 91% of ESPN leagues, 81% of Fantrax, 58% Yahoo) – Sigh. Here we go writing about the Hawks, and for in Seth Jones who I promise will be in a "worst contracts" article at some point this offseason. There's still value here because of what he can bring on offense and with his ice time, but the odd man out is a circumstance of those around him.

I think right now the top line for the Hawks is some combination of Lukas Reichel (who I'm high on), Philipp Kurashev, and maybe Taylor Raddysh? I'm a Hawks fan and that's a complete guess here. For a player like Jones that's not exactly the forward lines you want to be out on the ice with on a club that rolls their lines like an AHL team. Jones has no points in his past seven games while still skating around 23 minutes a night, most of that has to do with consistently starting shifts in the defensive zone. I think if you're between two defensemen for a start, I might take a pass on Jones for the foreseeable future.

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

Sean Durzi, D, Los Angeles Kings (Rostered in 45% of ESPN leagues, 74% Fantrax, 26% Yahoo) – I've checked back in on Kings defensemen Sean Durzi for the past couple of weeks but the day-to-day status next to him has forced him to miss his sixth straight game, with possibly more on the horizon.

Durzi this season has been a very good fantasy player, especially while Drew Doughty was out of the lineup giving him opportunities along LA's top power play. The issue here is that he has been out of the lineup since March 9^th with an upper-body injury, which is not ideal given that each roster spot is so important this time of the season. Durzi had been skating on his own in practice but has only served as an extra in Kings practices so I'd imagine that it might still be some time before he makes his return to the lineup and would not rule out him missing the rest of the regular season all together.

Day-to-day players are always a tough situation to navigate and given that Los Angeles puck drops are usually well past lock given where they play, it's too difficult to wait for news to break most notably on back-to-backs. I like Durzi as a player to keep an eye on next year but for now I don't think there's much of a chance that he can help you win this season.

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

This period runs through March 24^thto April 5^th

Pittsburgh – When it's going right for the Penguins, their top six are rolling with a very good power play. I standby though when it's going wrong their bottom six is getting run over and this Penguins club looks extremely beatable. This upcoming week though they grade out well for us, a welcome relief for a club hanging on by a thread for a playoff spot.

Colorado – Another Love 'Em this week for the Avalanche. Their entire second line might be hurt but their upcoming schedule is too good to pass up with two games upcoming against Anaheim. Even though, just between us friends, Anaheim for whatever reason plays this club tough. Different scale I know, but how Anaheim has played the Avalanche to me this is like when Montreal takes on the Maple Leafs.

Florida – Unlike last week, Florida plays four times next week earning them a 'Love Em. They will be on the road but for a higher rostered club more games are what we want to see from them at this point in the fantasy season.

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

Tampa Bay – It's a very tough upcoming schedule for the Bolts with games against Boston and Carolina upcoming, two bluelines that aren't giving much up right now. Tampa is a Leave 'Em for now.

Buffalo – Buffalo does play next Monday against Montreal, which is great, but then they are off until next Friday when they'll likely see the Rangers and Igor Shesterkin in net.

Arizona – In the past week I've actually watched more Coyotes than I have this season and they haven't been the easy win that I think a lot of people have made them out to be? Regardless, they had a great fantasy schedule this week playing Monday/Wednesday/Friday/Sunday, but an unfavorable one next week. Like Buffalo, it's a Monday game then they won't be in action until Friday and Saturday.

*For continued fantasy news and notes, follow me on Twitter @ndySanz.