Boone Jenner is expected to miss the next six weeks with a broken jaw. The Columbus captain leads the Blue Jackets with 13 goals and 80 shots on goal while leading Jackets forwards in icetime (19:18). Expect rookies Adam Fantilli and Dmitri Voronkov to pick up more icetime and potentially increase their value while Jenner is out. If Fantilli is already rostered in your league (29% Yahoo/75% Fantrax), then Voronkov (2% Yahoo/21% Fantrax) might be worth considering. Both Cole Sillinger and Jack Roslovic are currently sidelined for a Jackets team that is battling more than its share of injuries yet again this season, which means that Fantilli and Voronkov will be the de facto top two centers for the time being.

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As of Saturday afternoon, Michael Carcone leads the league in 5-on-5 goals. That's a double-edged sword because on one hand, it means he should earn more overall icetime and power-play time. On the other hand, it reduces his value in multicategory leagues because of the lack of power-play goals (just 1 PPG) within the goal total. Carcone has averaged just over 10 minutes per game this season with a similar icetime total in Saturday's game against the Bruins. In addition, his power-play game-by-game icetime totals have only shown zeros for the past 14 games.

With a goal on Saturday afternoon (or morning where I live), Carcone has six goals over his last six games. That's an unreal run for a player that was unheard of in fantasy leagues prior to this season. A current 34% shooting percentage makes it obvious that the goal-scoring run will end, but you could add him in the hopes that he has a few more goals in him before reality hits.

In their 5-3 win, the Bruins were led by David Pastrnak's two goals and assist. Pasta also fired six shots, giving him 26 shots over his last four games – an average of over six shots per game. As of the time of this writing, only Nikita Kucherov has more shots than Pastrnak, who has averaged nearly five shots per game this season.

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Dylan Larkin was forced to leave Saturday's game after being hit by both Mathieu Joseph and Parker Kelly. A stretcher was brought out for Larkin, who was on the ice for a few minutes but eventually skated off. This might be concerning, as Larkin has dealt with a neck injury in the past. Hopefully this isn't as bad as it looked. The Red Wings did not provide an update after the game.

Scary play as Dylan Larkin heads to the dressing room following this net front play. pic.twitter.com/FCgFRf6q8v

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) December 10, 2023

David Perron subsequently received a match penalty for cross-checking Artem Zub immediately after Larkin was hurt, thinking that Zub hit Larkin. Although he was standing up for his teammate, Perron could face additional mandated time off from the league.

As a result of both Larkin and Perron leaving the game, the Red Wings were down to nine forwards, since they started the game with 11 forwards and seven defensemen. The most interesting beneficiary of these available minutes was Joe Veleno, who played a season-high 21:28. That might be because this game started to slip away from the Wings in the second period, but it could also be something to watch should Larkin miss time.  

In his second game as a Red Wing, Patrick Kane scored his first goal as a Red Wing. He also played nearly 20 minutes while taking seven shots on goal. It's only two games in, but Kane appears to be fine following hip surgery.

PATRICK KANE SCORES HIS FIRST AS A DETROIT RED WING 🚨 pic.twitter.com/VXZp3Vz7Kw

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) December 10, 2023

Claude Giroux scored a goal and added an assist in the Senators' 5-1 win. Giroux now has goals in three consecutive games, as well as five points and 13 shots over those last three games.

Vladimir Tarasenko also scored a goal and added an assist for the Sens. He is also holding a hot stick with six points over his last four games. He may have been dropped in your league after a so-so November (48% rostered in Yahoo), so he's worth a pickup if he happens to be available.

All of Giroux's and Tarasenko's points on Saturday were on the power play. The Sens' power play has now scored goals in five consecutive games, a positive development that might help coach D.J. Smith cling onto his job just a little bit longer.

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The Canadiens/Sabres game was an entertaining one with a bit of everything. Lots of scoring chances, solid goaltending, physical play, and an overtime and shootout that went beyond the minimum three shooters per side.

Although Juraj Slafkovsky was held without a point for the fifth consecutive game, he definitely made his presence known in this game. Slafkovsky scored a nice shootout winner for the Habs and picked up seven minutes in penalties, which included a third-period fight with Connor Clifton.

Slafkovsky with a gross display of hands on the shootout winner 🤮 pic.twitter.com/wUMUuWZIiF

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) December 10, 2023

Remember, Slafkovsky is only 19, and he has a bigger body (6-3, 230 lbs.) He may need 2-3 more years before he is fantasy relevant across the board, similar to the developmental path that now 21-year-old Quinton Byfield has taken. I think the Habs rushed him into the NHL after taking him first overall in the draft, but that doesn't mean he can't still develop into a stud forward. There might even be something in the near term for Slafkovsky, who has recently been skating on the top line with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield.

Cayden Primeau had an exceptional game, stopping 46 of 48 shots to earn the win. In what appears to be a three-headed goalie monster for the Habs, Primeau was playing in just his sixth game of the season. Sam Montembeault appears to have earned at least 50% of the starts, so it will be up to Primeau to battle with the slumping Jake Allen for what's remaining. Saturday's start could result in Martin St. Louis giving Primeau the nod more often than he has so far this season.

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With Joseph Woll now on IR with a high ankle sprain, it will be up to Ilya Samsonov and Martin Jones to protect the Leafs' net. Samsonov did his job on Saturday, stopping all 19 shots he faced in a 4-0 shutout of Nashville. Expect Samsonov to start the bulk of the time while Woll is out, which is currently listed as week-to-week. Woll seems to have passed Samsonov on the goaltending hierarchy, although this could still evolve into a timeshare once Woll is ready to return.

Auston Matthews scored a pair of goals for the Leafs, which vaults him into a tie for the goal-scoring lead as I type this (Kucherov would pass him later in the night). Weren't we worried about Matthews slumping not so long ago? Matthews had two different three-game stretches without a single point during November. It's better to ride out the slumps with your superstars instead of making a panic trade.

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It took 12 games, but the Kings have finally lost a road game. After trailing 2-0 after two periods, the Islanders received two goals from Anders Lee in the third period to tie the game, then Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored the game-winner 13 seconds into overtime. The Kings still don't have a regulation loss on the road. Are we not talking about the Kings enough as a Stanley Cup contender?

Lee's production (10 PTS in 26 GP) is way down from previous seasons, but he has taken 10 shots and delivered five hits over his last two games. I'd say he's droppable based on the body of work this season, but you might want to hold on a little longer based on the recent scoring and peripheral production.

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Shutting out the Rangers is not easy, but Charlie Lindgren was up to the task. Lindgren stopped all 31 shots he faced in the 4-0 win for the Capitals, helping build his case to be the Capitals' starter. Lindgren has allowed nearly one fewer goal per game as Darcy Kuemper, and his save percentage of .931 is much more appealing to fantasy teams than Kuemper's .887. Caps coach Spencer Carbery has noticed, giving Lindgren his second consecutive start on Saturday. Lindgren is only 25% rostered in Yahoo and 31% rostered in Fantrax, so he might be worth a look if he's available and you need goaltending help.

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Vitek Vanecek has been on my potential drop list for a few days, although I haven't made the move yet. Even though he picked up a win on Tuesday in Vancouver, he looked shaky at times in that game, allowing five goals for his third consecutive really bad start. I might start to reconsider on Vanecek, who picked up a 23-save win over Calgary on Saturday. Vanecek's second consecutive win turned out to be his first quality start since November 16, which is a span of six games. If he can build off that, I won't need to drop him.

Nico Hischier scored a pair of goals to lead the Devils offensively in their 4-2 win. Since returning from injury, Hischier has nine points in seven games. Hischier started the season with just two points (both goals) in his first seven games before missing time with an upper-body injury.

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Even though the Golden Knights knocked off Dallas 6-1, Jack Eichel's four-game goal streak was snapped. However, he is still riding a six-game point streak in which he has 11 points.

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Travis Konecny has scored two goals in back-to-back games and has multiple points in four of his last five games. That places him at 16 goals for the season, which is in the top 10 among goal scorers. Konecny is perhaps underrated playing for a Philly team where expectations are low and the team is loaded with young, middle-6-level forwards (based on current production). Konecny has reached 77 penalty minutes in back-to-back seasons and has accrued 36 PIM this season, so his value is higher in leagues that count that category. He has never reached 100 hits in a season, though.

One of Konecny's goals on Saturday came on a penalty shot.

Konecny converts on the penalty shot with a lucky bounce 😅 pic.twitter.com/qq4Rv990AD

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) December 10, 2023

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In case you weren't watching the late games, Philipp Grubauer and Justin Schultz both left the Kraken's game against Tampa Bay with injuries. Should Grubauer miss time, Joey Daccord would be in a prime position to pick up starts. Even with Grubauer healthy, he should be in the mix. Grubauer hasn't had a quality start in over a month (November 2) with three really bad starts beyond that. He hasn't been a complete disaster, but he's not exactly helping fantasy teams either.

Daccord is rostered in just 4 percent of Yahoo leagues and 21 percent of Fantrax leagues. Expect him to start tonight (Sunday) as the Kraken play the second of back-to-backs at home against Minnesota, so he's at least a streaming option in the second-last game of the day on a busier-than-normal Sunday. In relief, he allowed two goals on seven shots in the overtime loss to the Lightning.  

Nikita Kucherov… what can you say? Two goals and an assist, including the overtime winner. Leads the league in goals (19), assists (28), and points (47).

KUCHEROV ENDS IT! ⚡️

Nikita Kucherov's 19th goal of the season is the @Energizer overtime winner to seal a back-and-forth affair in Seattle! pic.twitter.com/a5ZFKEyMzH

— NHL (@NHL) December 10, 2023

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Elias Pettersson recorded three more points on Saturday, giving him seven points in his last four games. I don't think he looks quite as dominant as he has early in the season, but his recent production should show that he is just fine. Prior to his current four-game run, Petey had recorded just two points in his previous six games.  

The Hurricanes just completed an 0-4 road trip through Western Canada, including a 4-3 loss in Vancouver on Saturday. They have stops in Ottawa and Detroit next week before returning home, which might not make it easy for a few notable forwards looking to shake slumps sooner rather than later.

Jesperi Kotkaniemi: 0 PTS in last 6 GP

Teuvo Teravainen: 0 PTS in last 4 GP

Sebastian Aho: 0 PTS in last 4 GP

Seth Jarvis: 0 PTS in last 4 GP

For what it's worth, the Hurricanes held a players-only meeting after this game. Something is off with them right now. Rod Brind'Amour's open criticism of his team in Edmonton certainly didn't help, as the Canes lost that game and two more after that. Something that isn't helping matters: The Hurricanes do not have a goalie with a save percentage above .900 this season, with Antti Raanta (860 SV%) and Pyotr Kochetkov (.873 SV%) holding the two lowest save percentages among goalies that have played in at least 10 games. Hang onto one or both goalies if you can, but benching them might be your best course of action in the hopes that this team’s results can soon meet its potential.

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