Hurricanes' Eric Staal a wise forward choice for Sunday

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

Looking for a good forward puck for Sunday's NHL games? Well, look no further than Eric Staal.

Staal has one goal and two assists in his past five games, along with eight hits and four blocked shots.

So far, on the season, Staal has ten goals and 23 assists, so he may he able to help you in the scoring, assists, and hits column.

Fantasy D-men: Flames' Brodie heating up

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

TJ Brodie

[TJ] Brodie started to show signs of what he was becoming in 2013-14 when he had 11 points in his final 19 games. Last season, he had NHL-bests in goals (11), assists (30) and points (41), as well as in six other statistical categories. That production made him a hot commodity in fantasy drafts this fall, and he was selected in the 11th round on average in 100 percent of Yahoo leagues. 

But he sustained a broken hand during a preseason game against the Edmonton Oilers that kept him out until Oct. 28. That down time saw his ownership drop and it's still a reason why he's available in some leagues. 

He was held without a point in his first two games and had two goals and six points in his first 14 games. But he's looked every bit as good as last season ever since. He had two goals and six assists during a seven-game point streak between Nov. 28 and Dec. 15, and he has 30 points in his past 36 games. --> Read more on NHL.com

NHL.COM'S TOP 60 DEFENSEMEN RANKINGS

These rankings are based on expectations for the rest of the season. Value is quantified by defense pairings, power-play usage, past performance and overall upside in standard Yahoo categories (goals, assists, plus-minus, penalty minutes, power-play points and shots on goal). 

1. Erik Karlsson, OTT 
2. Brent Burns, D/RW, SJS 
3. Oliver Ekman-Larsson, ARI (+1) 
4. John Klingberg, DAL (-1) 
5. P.K. Subban, MTL 
6. Kris Letang, PIT (+2) 
7. Roman Josi, NSH 
8. Duncan Keith, CHI (-2) 
9. Victor Hedman, TBL 
10. Dustin Byfuglien, D/RW, WPG (+1) 
11. Tyson Barrie, COL (+1) 
12. Drew Doughty, LAK (+1) 
13. Shea Weber, NSH (DTD) 
14. Kevin Shattenkirk, STL (+2) 
15. TJ Brodie, CGY (+5) 
16. Ryan Suter, MIN (-2) 
17. Brent Seabrook, CHI (-2) 
18. John Carlson, WSH (-1) 
19. Jake Muzzin, LAK (-1) 
20. Rasmus Ristolainen, BUF (+2) 
21. Keith Yandle, NYR (+2) 
22. Shayne Gostisbehere, PHI (+2) 
23. Mark Giordano, CGY (+2) 
24. Andrei Markov, MTL (+2) 
25. Justin Faulk, CAR (-6) 
26. Ryan McDonagh, NYR (DTD) 
27. Sami Vatanen, ANA 
28. Torey Krug, BOS (+2) 
29. Dion Phaneuf, OTT (-1) 
30. Anton Stralman, TBL (-1) 
31. Jason Demers, DAL (+1) 
32. Zdeno Chara, BOS (+3) 
33. Nick Leddy, NYI (+3) 
34. Johnny Boychuk, NYI (-3) 
35. Erik Johnson, COL (-2) 
36. Andrej Sekera, EDM (-2) 
37. Marc-Edouard Vlasic, SJS (+4) 
38. Aaron Ekblad, FLA 
39. Francois Beauchemin, COL 
40. Dougie Hamilton, CGY 
41. Mike Green, DET (-4) 
42. Alex Goligoski, DAL 
43. Seth Jones, CBJ 
44. Mattias Ekholm, NSH 
45. Morgan Rielly, TOR 
46. Niklas Kronwall, DET (NEW - INJ.) 
47. Matt Niskanen, WSH 
48. Brian Campbell, FLA (-2) 
49. Colton Parayko, STL (+4) 
50. Cam Fowler, ANA (-1) 
51. Trevor Daley, PIT 
52. Ryan Ellis, NSH (-2) 
53. Alec Martinez, LAK (-1) 
54. Michael Stone, ARI (+3) 
55. Mark Streit, PHI (-7) 
56. Olli Maatta, PIT (-1) 
57. Dmitry Orlov, WSH (NEW) 
58. Jared Spurgeon, MIN (-2) 
59. Jake Gardiner, TOR 
60. Tyler Myers, WPG 

Dropped out: Cody Franson, Nick Holden  

Key injuries: Alex Pietrangelo, Oscar Klefbom, James Wisniewski

Seabrook a wise defensive choice for Thursday

"The Neutral Zone" Staff Report

Brent Seabrook

Brent Seabrook is one of the top defenseman for thew Chicago Blackhawks, and his stats show it.

Just keep in mind that Seabrook is not the cheapest defenseman in daily fantasy sports.

Seabrook has 11 goals and 26 assists on the season. He has three goals and one assist in his past five games.

Also in his past five games, Seabrook has 16 hits and 14 blocked shots. Those stats are outstanding for the Blackhawks d-man.

Although he had an extremely quiet game on Sunday (a 6-1 outdoor loss to the Minnesota Wild), Seabrook should rebound tonight against the Nashville Predators.

Wild's Zucker a good forward choice when he returns from concussion

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

Jason Zucker (Getty Images)

Minnesota Wild forward Jason Zucker was placed on injured reserve on Wednesday with a concussion.

Although Zucker may fail to show up on the scoring category (he has only one goal and one assist in his past five games), but he shows up on the box score in more of a defensive way.

Along with his 12 goals and 10 assists on the season, Zucker has nine hits and one block in his previous five games. That is inpressive for the Wild forwartd, considering he is not one of the better forwards on the team. Zucker will mostly help you in the hits category, earning you points for hits, assuming you start him.

We don't reccomend starting Zucker too often, because, like we said, he often fails to show up on the score sheet.

Zuccarello a great forward pick for Tuesday

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

Mats Zuccarello

Mats Zuccarello isn't just good at scoring (he has 20 goals in 59 games this season), but he can play somewhat defense as well.

Along with his 20 goals and 26 assists this season, Zuccarello has six hits, seven shots on goal and seven blocked shots in his past five games, which is really impressive for the Rangers winger.

In his past five games, Zuccarello has two goals and five assists, and with his hits and blocked shots, he is a wise choice for Tuesday if you need a good forward who can get you points that is not too expensive in your fantasy salary cap, assuming you're playing daily fantasy.

Zuccarello has had almost 20 minutes of ice time per game in his past five, and although he failed to show up on the scoring sheet in his last game against Detroit on Sunday, he still knows how to find the net and score some goals/points for his team, and for your team.

Alex Killorn a good value pick for Sunday

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

Alex Killorn is not one of the top players in the NHL. but he is a good fantasy value pick for Sunday's games.

In his past five games, Killorn has one goal and three assists.

The Tampa Bay Lightning forward has 10 goals and 19 assists in 57 games this season.

Alex Killorn is a good forward fantasy pick for Sunday's games if u ou want someone who can help you earn points in the assist area.

Jarome Iginla a good pick for Saturday

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

Jarome Iginla is an NHL veteran, who's been in the league for quite some time.

But right now, he's doing quite well as a member of the Colorado Alvalanche.

In his past five games, Iginla has four goals and three assists, including two goals in his last game on Feb. 17 against Montreal.

So far this season, the Avalanche forward has 17 goals and 17 assists in 60 games played. 

Thornton and Subban wise picks for Friday

Joe Thonton

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

Joe Thornton - San Jose Sharks: Thornton is currently riding a seven-game point streak and has at least one point in 17 of his last 18 games. He has three goals and 10 assists for 13 points over his last 10 games. The Sharks center goes tonight against the struggling Carolina Hurricanes.

PK Subban

PK Subban - Montreal Canadiens: Subban has six goals and 39 assists for 45 points with 84 hits, 63 blocked shots, and 152 shots on goal in 60 games for the Canadiens this season. Over his last 10 games, the Canadiens defenseman has two goals and six assists for eight points with 18 shots on goal. He goes tonight against the struggling Flyers.

Brassard a wise pick for Thursday as he faces Maple Leafs

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

Derick Brassard

Derick Brassard could be considered the top scorer on the New York Rangers at this moment in the season. He leads the team in goals scored this season with 20 goals (just one ahead of Mats Zuccarello, who has 19).

Along with his 20 goals, the Rangers center has 23 assists on the season for 43 points. Also, he has a good plus-minus of 16.

In his matchup tonight, Brassard faces the extremely struggling Toronto Maple Leafs, who are last in the league standings with 49 points.

Brassard faces an easy matchup tonight, and with the fact that he leads the Rangers in scoring, and that he is facing the struggling Leafs, it makes him a wise choice for Thursday night's NHL Fantasy events.

Brassard has two goals and two assists in his past five games.

Datsyuk a good pick against the Islanders on Monday

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

Pavel Datsyuk

Pavel Datsyuk is a man on a mission for the Detroit Red Wings.

In his past five games, Datsyuk has five goals and four assusts, and even though he gets a fairly difficult match up against the New York Islanders Monday afternoon, Datsyuk should still have a great game and should help you rack up points.

In his last game on Sunday against Boston, Datsyuk had two goals and one assist, helping his team defeat Boston 6-5.

John Tavares is expensive, but good for your Thursday lineup

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

John Tavares

It's no surprise whatsoever that the New York Islanders have been winning, because John Tavares has been playing exceptionally well.

Tavares has at least a point in eight of his last ten games, and has four goals and seven assists for eleven points in his last ten games.

Tavares will look to add to his three-game point streak against the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday night.

Ovechkin and Miller are two LWs who will help you earn points on Thursday night

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

Alex Ovechkin

Alex Ovechkin (Washington Capitals): Ovechkin returns from his supposed “injury” tonight against the New York Islanders. He has 28 goals and 14 assists for 42 points with 234 shots on goal and a plus-minus rating of +20 in 46 games for the Capitals this season. He has seven goals over his last eight games.

JT Miller (New York Rangers): Miller has 15 goals and 12 assists for 27 points in 50 games this season with the

JT Miller

Rangers. J.T. has seven goals over his last seven games and goes against the Wild tonight. Miller has six goals in his past five games. Miller surely has stepepd up for the struggling Rangers, finding ways to find the net almoste each night. He scores the Rangers' only two goals in their loss to the Devils on Tuesday.

JT Miller becoming a great pick on Ranger game nights

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

JT Miller

JT Miller is a man on a roll for the New York Rangers.

Miller recently has easily been having two-goal games and racking up fantasy points at a crazy rate. He has six goals in his past five games, and is one of the Rangers' key players if they plan on making the playoffs this season.

The Rangers forward scored his teams' only two goals in their 3-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday.

Miller has 15 goals and 12 assists in 50 games played this season.

Miller is a very wise choice for your lineup if you want a power forward who can score goals and earn you tons of fantasy points at a low fantasy salary.

McDavid and Allen are injured players to target after All-Star break

"The Neutral Zone" Fantasy Hockey Report

Connor McDavid

There are only ten weeks left in the 2015-16 NHL regular season, so that means that some players may be returning for injuries after the All-Star break.

Here are two players to watch out for after the All-Star break that will be returning to action in the NHL post their current injuries:

Connor McDavid - Edmonton Oilers
McDavid hasn't played since fracturing his left clavicle when he crashed into the end boards against the Philadelphia Flyers on Nov. 3, but he had very good success in the beginning of his 2015-16 rookie season, where had five goals and seven assists in his first 13 games.

The only problem when it comes to the final two weeks of the 2015-16 regular season with choosing to acquire, pick, or start McDavid, or any of his teammates is that the Oilers only play two games in that two-week span.

Jake Allen - St. Louis Blues

Jake Allen

Allen went 8-5-2 with a 1.79 goals-against average and .931 save percentage in 12 starts in 15 games after February 1 last season. The fact that it is unknown when Allen will return from his current knee injury will possibly help you achieve him in a trade very easily. The 26-year-old was in hunt for the Vezina Trophy this season with a record of 18-10-3 with a 2.17 GAA, a .924 save percentage and five shutouts before he was injured.

One issue comes about when it comes to starting Allen. Blues coach Ken Hitchcock may start Allen's goalie teammate Brian Elliott fairly often to keep Allen fresh for the playoffs if the Blues make it this season, so that means that Allen may not be able to get as any starts as his fantasy owners would like him to have.