Tage Thompson racked up three points before a hit to the head made him leave the third period of Sunday's dance with the Devils. Fortunately, it seems the Sabres dodged a bulled here. The rest of the season would be much harder to navigate without their top forward, who has 14 points in his last nine outings.

Tage Thompson is "good" and "passed all the tests," according to Lindy Ruff.

— Lance Lysowski (@LLysowski) February 2, 2025

Speaking of sizzling Sabres, JJ Peterka is also in great form with nine points in his last six appearances. The 23-year-old forward is scoring at a 67-point pace this season. More power-play opportunity and production has helped him build on last year's 50-point output.

Rasmus Dahlin had two assists in this one. He missed a big chunk of December with back spasms, but since returning to the lineup fulltime on December 23^rd, Dahlin has a remarkable 20 points in 18 games. The only blueliner with more points during this stretch is Zach Werenski.

Owen Power threw everything but the kitchen sink on net Sunday, racking up nine shots against New Jersey. He also tallied an assist to extend his point streak to four games, with points in six of his last eight outings.

Jason Zucker's goal against the Devils gives him 38 points in 50 games, which translates to 62 points over 82 outings. A prominent power play role has been key to his resurgence in Buffalo as 15 of his points have come with the man advantage.

Jake Allen was pulled from the game after allowing four goals through two periods. It's hard to be too critical of his play considering the Devils were outshout 27-17 while he was in net. Nico Daws wasn't really tested but stopped all seven shots he faced in his first appearance of the season. Daws wasn't great in the NHL last year and has struggled in the AHL this year, so I imagine Allen will continue carrying the workload until Jacob Markstrom returns.

Paul Cotter scored a couple of goals on Sunday. Cotter shows flashes of offensive promise but has struggled to produce since the first month of the campaign. He primarily plays a depth role, where he racks up a ton of hits.

Jesper Bratt and Jack Hughes combined for a shorthanded goal on Sunday. In the process, both players extended their point streaks to five games.  

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The Flyers were short a few regulars on Sunday, including the recently acquired Andrei Kuzmenko and Jakob Pelletier, who are still working through Visa issues.

The Flyers only have 11 available NHL forwards, by the way. Tippett is on the trip but not available to play due to injury. Pelletier and Kuzmenko are still working through visa issues. So this is more a necessity rather than a choice. And that's with Gaucher, Abols & Richard in. https://t.co/nyXqgMZ51j

— Charlie O'Connor (@charlieo_conn) February 2, 2025

An undermanned forward group was unable to solve Mackenzie Blackwood, who made 24 saves for his second-straight shutout. Blackwood has bounced back nicely from his first stretch of turbulence with Colorado. For Philly, this is the third-straight game they've been shut out.

Martin Necas didn't find the scoresheet Sunday, but boy were we all right about him getting more minutes with the Avs. He led Colorado's forwards with 24:51 of ice time, racking up four shots on net.

Jonathan Drouin tallied a helper on both of Colorado's goals, giving him 22 points in 21 games this season. He's not skating beside Necas and Nathan MacKinnon on the top line anymore – that honour currently belongs to Artturi Lehkonen – but a top-unit power play role makes Drouin a valuable fantasy asset.

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An illness kept Troy Terry out of Sunday's clash with the Canadiens. In his absence, it was Trevor Zegras who stepped up beside Frank Vatrano and Ryan Strome. Zegras managed an assist in his new role and now has four points in five games since returning from knee surgery.

Despite missing their leading scorer, the Ducks overcame an early 2-0 deficit to defeat the Canadiens in regulation. On the heels of an incredible month of hockey brought that them back into the playoff picture, the Canadiens have lost five-straight games.

After scoring on Sunday, Mason McTavish is up to seven goals in his last six games. He's enjoyed success on a line with Leo Carlsson and Alex Killorn, who each picked up two points against Montreal.

Hungry for another sizzling Duck? Look no further than Frank Vatrano. With a goal on Sunday, he's now scored in five of his last six appearances. Still, his 25-goal pace is a significant step back from last year's 37-goal output. Although we all anticipated some regression, I think the effects have been magnified by Anaheim's power-play woes. Last year, Vatrano racked up 13 power-play goals after converting on 18.3% of his shots with the man advantage. This year, he's barely on pace for five PPGs as he holds a woeful 8.8 power-play shooting percentage.

Patrik Laine was limited to just one shift in the third period as coach Martin St. Louis was unhappy with the Finnish sniper's play. His even-strength struggles have been magnified in recent games as he's been held off the scoresheet in four-straight outings. This wouldn't be the first time in Laine's career that he's been benched, as we all remember his turbulent tenure with Tortorella. It'll be interesting to see how he receives the message this time around.

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Florida's big guns propelled the team to a 6-3 victory over the Islanders Sunday, snapping New York's seven-game winning streak.

Carter Verhaeghe registered a hat trick and an assist.

Aleksander Barkov posted three helpers.

Sam Reinhart tallied a goal and assist, as did Matthew Tkachuk.

Aaron Ekblad also chipped an assist, giving him five points in five games since returning from an upper-body injury. He's currently available in 43% of Yahoo Leagues, which is ludicrous considering he's quarterbacking Florida's star-studded power play. A top PP role helped him score at a 77-point pace a few seasons ago, so I have high expectations for Ekblad down the stretch.

Speaking of top power-play quarterbacks, Tony DeAngelo has been productive for the Islanders. Sunday's assist gives him three points in five games since signing with the team. The Isles have been collecting offensive defensemen like infinity stones lately, so DeAngelo has a thin margin for error with Adam Boqvist and Scott Perunovich waiting to snatch that PP1 role. There won't be room for all three in New York's lineup for very long as the team is hoping to have Noah Dobson and Ryan Pulock back shortly after the Four Nations Face-Off break.

With Semyon Varlamov and Marcus Hogberg injured, 25-year-old Jakub Skarek made his NHL debut on the second half of a back-to-back for the Islanders. It wasn't an ideal outing as he allowed five goals in the loss. Regardless of Skarek's performance Sunday, Ilya Sorokin has been excellent lately and was always going to see the lion's share of action going forward.  

Mathew Barzal missed Sunday's clash with the Panthers after blocking a shot in Saturday's tilt with the Lightning. The team expects to know more about his status on Monday.

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With Miro Heiskanen sidelined week-to-week with a lower-body injury, Thomas Harley has the reins on PP1. He wasted no time making the most of his new role, tallying a power-play helper on Sunday and chipping in an even-strength assist for good measure.

A goal and assist on Sunday give Wyatt Johnston 15 points in his last 10 outings and 38 in his last 35. He wasn't very productive in the opening five weeks of the season but has been excellent since. 

Over the past month, 20-year-old Adam Fantilli has shown us why he went third overall in 2023. After scoring on Sunday, Adam Fantili is up to 16 points (nine goals) in his last 15 appearances. He's skating over 19 minutes a night and averaging three shots per game during this stretch. Fantilli is still available in 66% of Yahoo Leagues right now, but I imagine that number will drop drastically down the stretch. 

Fantilli isn't the only example of undervalued offense in Columbus as the entire second line has been productive lately. All three members found the scoresheet Sunday as Kent Johnson is up to a seven-game point streak, James van Riemsdyk has six points in his last six games, and Cole Sillinger has points in three straight after missing three games with an upper-body injury. It's worth noting that this line's advanced stats haven't been great, so this run probably won't last forever. Still, someone like Kent Johnson, who has been excellent all season scoring at a 71-point pace, should be owned in more than just 20% of Yahoo Leagues. 

Sunday gave us our first look at Mikael Granlund on the Stars. He made a nice pass to Logan Stankoven to get his first assist with Dallas, but didn't actually spend too much time beside Stankoven. Granlund spent most of the first and second beside Jamie Benn and Evgenii Dadonov, and then lined up beside Mason Marchment and Matt Duchene in the third. I imagine we'll see some more tinkering in the coming games, but as we projected, Granlund should have strong linemates in Dallas. He skated 16:40 in his Dallas debut, which is four minutes fewer than his average in San Jose this season. Although less ice time and power-play opportunity will hurt Granlund's fantasy outlook, skating beside talented players and facing weaker opponents should help him stay relevant in most leagues.

Marchment took a puck to the face on December 27^th and ended up sidelined for over a month. He made his triumphant return to the lineup Sunday, scoring a goal with just 13 minutes of ice time.

Dadonov's two goals on Sunday gives him 19 points in his last 22 games. He's a big part of that dangerous depth in Dallas. 

Kirill Marchenko left the game and did not return, with no update after the contest. He's been outstanding for the Blue Jackets this season, boasting 55 points through 53 games. Losing him would be a massive blow to the team.

While Werenski is back, two #CBJ are not.

Kirill Marchenko took a puck to the face late in the second while he was on the bench and he has not returned to the bench to start the third.

Dante Fabbro has been ruled out with an upper-body injury sustained late in the first.

— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) February 3, 2025

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Jonathan Quick helped the Rangers steal two points from Vegas on Sunday, stopping 34 of the 36 shots he faced en route to the 400^th win of his career. The 39-year-old netminder hasn't played as well as last year, but neither has the team in front of him.

Jack Eichel has been a sharpshooter lately. After tickling the twine twice on Sunday, Eichel has seven goals in his last seven games. He's currently scoring at a 104-point pace. Part of this career-best offense is fuelled by Vegas' surprisingly lethal power play. After ranking 20^th in the league with a 20.2% success rate last year, the Golden Knights have the league's second-best PP this season, clicking at 28.7%. That's helped Eichel jump to 0.42 PPPs per game this year after posting 0.35 PPP/g last season.  

That lethal PP has also been a boon for Pavel Dorofeyev, who is back to a consistent role on PP1. He has 14 points in his last 11 games, with eight of those points coming on the man advantage.

It’s only been two games, but J.T. Miller seems to be breathing new life into Mika Zibanejad and the Rangers' power play.

Playing with Miller and Artemi Panarin at both even-strength and on the power play, Zibanejad had a three-point night against Vegas. Panarin had three points of his own, while Miller tallied two for a second-straight game.

New York has underperformed with the man advantage all season but has now scored on three-straight power-play opportunities. This is troubling news for Vincent Trocheck owners, as the 31-year-old forward is off PP1 and no longer has exposure to Panarin.

Panarin makes it 4-2. #NYR pic.twitter.com/OOUQwyf62X

— David 🏒 (@DaveyUpper) February 3, 2025

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In his first game 'free' from Miller, Elias Pettersson came through with an assist. Wait, wrong Elias Pettersson – the assist came from the 21-year-old blueliner, not the 26-year-old star forward. EP40 had a quiet first game post-trade, registering one shot and four hits through 19 minutes of action.

One of the key pieces of that Miller trade – Filip Chytil – had a dream debut for Vancouver as he sent the game to overtime with a key third period goal. I know Chytil has a concerning concussion history, but he showed promising offensive potential in New York and I really think some of that will be unlocked with the Canucks. He actually has a path to PP1 here and should see much more ice time than he did before – as evidenced by the 20:03 he saw on Sunday.

WELCOME TO THE CANUCKS, FILIP CHYTIL❗️ pic.twitter.com/ONDpOTlDSr

— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) February 3, 2025

After a quick stint on the injured reserve, Kiefer Sherwood returned to the lineup and left an imprint on both this game and a bunch of Red Wings. The NHL hits leader added eight to his total on Sunday, but also contributed two shots and an assist.

Despite Sherwood's physical impact, Alex DeBrincat left the biggest mark on this game scoring two goals including the game winner. He's on pace for 35 goals this season, which is a decent step up from the 27 he tallied last year and the year prior.

Sidelined with an upper-body injury for the past couple weeks, Patrick Kane had a quiet return to the lineup with three shots and a block through 18 minutes.

Elmer Soderblom's assist extends his point streak to four games. It's an encouraging hot streak, but the 23-year-old giant can't be relied upon for this level of offense and isn't getting the deployment to be relevant in most fantasy leagues.

With his team outshout 27-18, Alex Lyon came through with a strong 25-save performance to help Detroit secure the win on Sunday. Lyon has allowed two or fewer in six of his last seven starts.

Despite taking warmups on Sunday, captain Quinn Hughes wasn't well enough to play against Detroit. It sounds like the Canucks will continue to monitor his status ahead of Tuesday's clash with Colorado.

Rick Tocchet says Quinn Hughes wanted to gut it out, but it wouldn't have been the smartest decision to play him.

"48 hours, we'll see how it is." #Canucks @Sportsnet650

— Brendan Batchelor (@BatchHockey) February 3, 2025

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Continuing the theme of players having strong post-trade outings, Morgan Frost scored in his second game for the Flames, chipping in five shots on net. He's primed to play a prominent role with the team as he skated nearly 18 minutes and saw 64% of Calgary's power-play time on Sunday. Frost skated beside Yegor Sharangovich and Martin Pospisil, who both tallied assists on his goal.

🔥FLAMES GOAL🔥

Morgan Frost scores his first goal as a Calgary Flame and it's a beauty!

🎥: Sportsnet | NHL#Flames #SeaKraken pic.twitter.com/cnC3MJTYrV

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) February 3, 2025

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San Jose sent Yaroslav Askarov down to the minors Sunday as he'll be participating in AHL All-Star festivities on February 2^nd and 3^rd. At the same time, the Sharks recalled Vitek Vanecek from an AHL conditioning stint. A fractured cheekbone has kept Vanecek out of the Sharks' lineup since December 17^th. The Sharks may try to showcase Vanecek and Alexandar Georgiev over the next month, seeking any kind of return before the NHL's trade deadline on March 7^th. That'll be easier said than done given San Jose's awful defense, but I suppose it's worth a try. This move also provides Askarov a good opportunity to reset. Although the league's top goaltending prospect got off to a strong start with the Sharks, he's struggled over his last five outings.

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The Ottawa Senators also made a significant goalie move on Sunday, sending Leevi Meriläinen to the AHL. The 22-year-old netminder had been playing well, but because he doesn't need to clear waivers like Anton Forsberg does, this was the easiest way to clear a path for Linus Ullmark. Sidelined with a back injury since December 22^nd, it appears Ullmark could be an option for Ottawa against Nashville on Monday. He was in excellent form before the injury, but don't be surprised if he now needs a game or two to shake off some rust.

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Thanks for reading! Hope you have an awesome week ahead!