Patrik Laine scored his first hat trick in 23 months against the Sabres last night as part of a six-goal onslaught but the Habs. That ups him to six goals in seven games. He won’t keep that pace up as his shooting percentage normalizes, but the assists will click up a bit too to balance.

When someone loses that bad to the Habs though, some kind of changes need to be made… or not?

Sources indicate #Sabres players met with owner Terry Pegula and GM Kevyn Adams today in Montreal.

Summary of message: "We believe in you. The solution is within this room."

Pegula professed faith in Adams, Ruff, and apparently told players to not expect a big trade.

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) December 16, 2024

The Habs look like they just need a couple more years of growth and then they’re going to be a wagon, but don’t get too comfortable sitting on that projection, we’ve been saying that about the Red Wings, Sens, and Sabres for the last few years as well. 

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At the beginning of the season, Lukas Reichel put up six points in nine games, and it looked like he was back on track as a fantasy asset. However, with only three points in the 18 games following, it seems like that was just a hot spurt and the overall picture is still a player who is failing to love up to the offensive expectations of being a first round pick. 

On that note, if you’re looking for a multi-cat streamer, Nick Foligno is worth keeping an eye on as long as he’s up on the top line with Connor Bedard. Foligno also adds peripherals across the board, and is averaging nearly three hits per game despite his limited minutes thus far. He played almost 17 minutes last night, with no points to show for it. 

Third-liner Teuvo Teravainen had three points in the win over the previously league-leading Capitals.

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Another former first round selection, Lian Bichsel, is making his presence felt both on the scoresheet, and in the trenches benches. 

Lian Bichsel sent Brayden Schenn into the benches 😳 pic.twitter.com/IaajTrFEmy

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) December 15, 2024

Bichsel has scored twice in three games, but he won’t continue his career as a 66.7% shooter. Likely he settles in as more of a 20-point, number-four defenceman, but even if that’s all he is then his play above his age to this point is already an upgrade for Dallas. 

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Anthony Stolarz‘s injury timeline was clarified yesterday, and he’s expected to miss four-to-six weeks. The team noted it was a minor procedure to clean up his knee, which to me sounds like having his meniscus trimmed. 

In the meantime, ride Joseph Woll, and keep an eye on Dennis Hildeby as a viable streamer option. 

On a separate injury note, Rasmus Dahlin is hoping to be back in the lineup on Friday against the Leafs. 

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On the flip side of the injury news, Dante Fabbro left last night’s game with a lower body injury, and was almost immediately ruled out from returning to the game. It hurts double as he was just finding his game with the Blue Jackets. Hopefully this doesn’t set him back much. 

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Looking ahead to next week’s Christmas break, no team plays on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, yet there is almost a usual week’s volume of games. Most team play three games, with a few at two, and only Seattle and Colorado with the light one-game weeks after their head- to-head game this coming Sunday. 

Anaheim, Detroit, Minnesota, Philadelphia, and Toronto each have six games remaining between today and next-Sunday. If you’re looking for Holiday streamers, look no further. 

The Flyers especially have a great schedule, with their two games against the Kings as the only ones of that set against current playoff squads. 

There are plenty of back-to-backs coming up as well as a result of the compressed scheduling, so don’t worry about rushing in to grab the first backup start you see, there will be plenty of goalie options. Only Winnipeg, Vegas, Chicago, and Dallas go the next week and a half without a back to back set of games. 

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Kaapo Kakko was back in the lineup after being a healthy scratch last game, and was a minus-one with three shots and two hits in his return game. Juuse Saros shut the door with the 25-save shutout though, so it’s not all on Kakko.

It was a big two points on the line for two of the most underwhelming teams so far this year, in Nashville and the New York Rangers. Both looked like near playoff locks before the season, and both are on the outside looking in at the moment. 

Adam Wilsby scored his first NHL goal. No fantasy relevance anytime soon, but still always fun to see, especially one this pretty:

Wilsby's first is a BEAUTY 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/Tj6a1a12gu

— Nashville Predators (@PredsNHL) December 18, 2024

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I was thinking about Kirill Kaprizov’s season and how many are calling him the shoe-in for the Hart Trophy. He was an early second round pick in most leagues, and is tough to hit a bigger home run than that in a draft. It led me into who my top and bottom five draft picks were this year across my four leagues where there’s at least half of the team re-drafted every year. 

Best draft picks:

Kirill Kaprizov – Tough to say much more about him. He won’t be available again at 15th overall in any drafts for the next few years. 

Jack Eichel – A bit of a dark horse Hart candidate at this point, especially compared to the name right above him, but getting Eichel in drafts around pick 50 when he has been a top-20 player in healthy seasons was highway robbery. 

Martin Necas – Without argument he is the biggest breakout player of the year so far. He's no longer pacing for 140 points, but his current 120-point pace gives him some leeway in chasing down the century mark by the end of the year. That would be a remarkable season for someone whose previous career high is 71 points, and who was drafted outside the top 100 in the fall. 

Nikolaj Ehlers – Before getting injured (the story every year) Ehlers was on pace to put up a career high in power play points, which has seen him climb over the point per game mark for the first time as well. There is still room for him to grab more ice time at even strength, which should counter any drop from his slightly elevated shooting percentage.

Anthony Cirelli – Cirelli’s career high in points was set last year at 45. This year he’s up to a point per game through the first quarter of the season, in addition to a higher shot rate, and an excellent plus minus rating. He’s doing all this despite shouldering a huge defensive load. It’s too bad that he is due for some heavy regression thanks to his sky-high on-ice shooting percentage.

Worst draft picks

Roope Hintz – As of Monday night this one looked a little bit better because of the two goal game, but even with that Hintz is on pace for his worst campaign in five years. He might get back on track to the 90- point pace again, or he might not, but there’s no arguing that he has the potential for so much more if Dallas didn’t distribute ice time so evenly.

Dylan Cozens – The 71-point season is feeling like a distant memory now, as Cozens and the Sabres fail to show exactly what kind of style they want to play. It seems like he’s spinning his wheels on the second line right now, and could really use a change of scenery (or a new coach). He scored last night to bring his season total to 14 points in 31 games. That just isn’t going to cut it. 

Linus Ullmark – Two weeks ago this pick was looking awful, but at least his play has picked up since then. Ottawa as a whole is playing like a completely different squad, and Ullmark is reaping the benefits. Maybe it’s some extra comfort and familiarity, but I’m not the only one hoping this stretch continues. The Sens have the roster construction for it to last. 

Devon Levi – Back to the Sabres, and sticking with the theme of struggling goalies, Levi might have been a much later pick than Ullmark, but relatively he has been no less disappointing. Eight games, six losses, an average of four goals against per outing, and the overall feeling of a lack of confidence. Levi is turning 23 in less than two weeks, and it’s easy to forget how young he is. Most goalies don’t get a real shot at the NHL level until they’re at least 24 or 25, so there’s still an extra-long runway for Levi. For now though he can be dropped in non-dynasty formats. 

Steven Stamkos – The biggest disappointment in fantasy so far has to be Stamkos, who is only scoring a point every other game – though of course he puts two on the board the night I decide to write about him as a disappointment. He was supposed to be more of an offensive focal point in Nashville, but that just hasn’t materialized, and it appears he is just really missing the elite supporting cast in Tampa. With only eight even strength points through the first 31 games, that’s where the rebound is going to need to come, if there will be any bounce back this year. If Andrew Brunette is replaced as head coach, then that could be the shock that Stamkos and the team need. Otherwise, it might just be a very obvious age-related decline that we have to get used to. 

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A positive moment to end things off:

HISTORY. MADE. 🗣️

The #NHLJets have signed forward Kevin He to a three-year, entry-level contract! Becoming the first Chinese-born player to sign a contract in the @NHL ✍️ pic.twitter.com/AX68TGm338

— Winnipeg Jets (@NHLJets) December 17, 2024

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See you next Wednesday, and if you have any fantasy hockey questions or comments you can find me on BlueSky here, or Twitter/X here.