Thursday, March 30, 2017

DFS NHL Picks (March 30, 2017)

Center:

Derick Brassard - Ottawa Senators: Brassard has 15 points (4-11=15) in 22 games against the Minnesota Wild, his opponent tonight.

Wingers:

Cam Atkinson - Columbus Blue Jackets: Atkinson ranks 6th-T in the NHL in goals with 34-27-61. Setting career highs in goals, assists and points, his 34 goals are 4th- most in a single season in club history (Sanderson; 2002-03).

Zack Werenzki - Columbus Blue Jackets: Werenski, who has 2-6-8 in the past 10 games, has 12 multi-point games on the campaign,

Defensemen:

Erik Karlsson - Ottawa Senators: Karlsson has recorded 16 points (3-13=16) in 10 matches against the Wild.

Ryan Suter - Minnesota Wild: Suter owns eight points (4-4=8) in 13 games against Ottawa.

Goaltender:

Craig Anderson - Ottawa Senators: Anderson is 6-7-3 with a 2.65 GAA, a .910 SV% and one shutout in 17 games (16 starts) against Minnesota.

Fantasy impact: Tyson Jost signing

By PETE JENSEN / NHL.COM

There's no sugarcoating how disappointing this season has been for the Colorado Avalanche, not to mention for the fantasy owners of their players. That said, a late-season signing could put a positive spin on their outlook entering the offseason.

The Avalanche signed top forward prospect Tyson Jost to an entry-level contract Wednesday, and he's expected to join Colorado for its final six games of the regular season. Jost, the 10th pick in the 2016 NHL Draft, scored 35 points and was plus-17 in 33 games during his freshman season at University of North Dakota. He signed with the Avalanche after playing one game in the NCAA tournament last week (4-3 double overtime loss to Boston University).

Jost also scored 15 points in seven games for Team Canada at the 2016 IIHF U-18 World Championship, breaking Connor McDavid's tournament record (14 points in 2013).

Jost could fit into Colorado's top-six forward group right off the bat, and is clearly a building block for the roster next season along with forward Nathan MacKinnon (145th in Yahoo) and emerging rookie Mikko Rantanen (LW/RW, 4 percent owned). Colorado's lines against the Washington Capitals on Wednesday were MacKinnon with Rantanen and Sven Andrighetto, and Matt Duchene and Gabriel Landeskog with J.T. Compher. Jost could feasibly get a trial at either center or wing on either line, replacing Andrighetto or Compher, along with some power-play usage.

How Duchene and Landeskog fit into the Avalanche's future plans remains unclear, but they are on the roster for now and could help Jost make a smooth transition. Landeskog (66 games played) and Duchene (71) rank 297th and 406th, respectively, in Yahoo -- quite the fall for these top 100 fantasy players of years past.

The biggest issue for the Avalanche remains their back end; they have allowed the most goals per game (3.38) in the League and are second-to-last in both penalty kill (76.4) and Shot Attempts close percentage (46.65). Their goalies (Calvin Pickard, Semyon Varlamov, Jeremy Smith, Spencer Martin) have combined for the lowest save percentage in the League (.894).

Duchene, Landeskog and top defenseman Tyson Barrie were not moved before the 2017 NHL Trade Deadline, but each could still be on the block despite being under contract past this season. With the NHL Expansion Draft looming for the Vegas Golden Knights and plenty of productive goalies on expiring contracts, the Avalanche will have a chance to address their goaltending this summer.

As for Jost's fantasy value in the short term, the main concern is plus/minus; Colorado has eight players with a minus-20 or worse, not including Jarome Iginla (minus-21 with Avalanche), who was traded to the Los Angeles Kings on March 1.

If you can afford to open up a bench spot for Jost in your keeper league, it may be worth stashing him to see how he fares in his upcoming NHL stint. If not, take a flier on him in either a deep league that does not count plus/minus or in your fantasy playoff consolation bracket.

Fantasy top 25 goalie rankings for 2016-17

By DAVID SATRIANO / NHL.COM

All season long, NHL.com will rank the top 25 goalies for standard Yahoo leagues (wins, goals-against average, save percentage, shutouts). Players with long-term injuries have been removed from this list.

These rankings are based on expectations for the rest of the season. Value is quantified by projected starts, peripheral category coverage, time-share situations, team defenses, past performance and overall upside in standard leagues. It is important to note that our rankings reflect sheer fantasy value, not necessarily the most talented goalies in order.

The fantasy playoffs are either in the semifinal or final round, depending on your league settings. That means it's officially crunch time.

If you're still alive, it's good to know which readily available goalies have the schedule on their side over the final 11 days of the season. Teams that have clinched berths in the Stanley Cup Playoffs may rest their starters on occasion, meaning backups could see spot starts. Similarly, teams who are out of the playoff race could give a backup or a rookie a look in goal.

With every goalie start and category being crucial, here are five goalies worth picking up who can help you get to or win the championship:

Jaroslav Halak, New York Islanders

Halak (25 percent owned) made his first start for the since Dec. 29 on Friday and allowed three goals on 40 shots in a 4-3 shootout win against the Pittsburgh Penguins. He's readily available and likely will see at least two starts with the Islanders needing every point to get into the playoffs and Thomas Greiss (69 percent owned) having shouldered a heavy workload in recent months. The Islanders play the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday, the New Jersey Devils on Friday and the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday. The Devils and Sabres have been eliminated from playoff contention and the Flyers are six points behind the Boston Bruins for the second wild card from the Eastern Conference, so there's a chance for Halak to put up some good numbers. The Islanders also have a back-to-back set in the final week of the regular season.

Curtis McElhinney, Toronto Maple Leafs

With the Maple Leafs fighting for a playoff berth, the status of starting goalie Frederik Andersen looms large. Andersen sustained an upper-body injury Saturday and didn't play Tuesday, when McElhinney (7 percent owned) made 25 saves in a 3-2 win against the Florida Panthers. Andersen (30-15-14, 2.66 GAA, .918 SV%, four shutouts) is expected to start against the Nashville Predators on Thursday, but McElhinney has proved to be a viable streaming option, going 2-1-0 with seven goals allowed in the past week. The Maple Leafs have seven games left, including their final four at home. McElhinney could be a dark horse fantasy option if he gets another start or two down the stretch.

Juuse Saros, Nashville Predators

The Predators are on the brink of clinching a playoff berth, and that's no surprise given how well Pekka Rinne has played in order to get them to this point. Rinne likely will start every postseason game barring injury, but Saros (7 percent owned) could see two or three starts in the final six games of the regular season. He's 9-7-3 in 17 starts and has stellar peripherals (2.22 GAA, .928 SV%). Saros has allowed two goals or fewer in 12 of 19 appearances.

Chad Johnson, Calgary Flames

Earlier in the season, Johnson had a great run in Calgary, taking over during Brian Elliott's struggles. Elliott has found his game (14-1-1, .937 SV%, two shutouts in his past 16 starts) and has taken over as the No. 1 that he was brought in to be before this season. Johnson (26 percent owned) has 18 wins this season and a SV% of .900 or better in 20 or 35 appearances. He should see a few starts down the stretch with the Flames likely to rest Elliott for the playoffs. Johnson is 9-6-1 with a 2.18 GAA and .926 SV% on the road, where Calgary plays its final three games of the regular season.

Laurent Brossoit, Edmonton Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers have clinched a playoff berth for the first time since 2006. Cam Talbot has started the most games in the League (68) at a time when not many goalies reach 70 starts in a season. He has 38 wins, a 2.37 GAA, .920 SV% and seven shutouts. Although the Oilers are fighting for the Pacific Division title with the Anaheim Ducks and San Jose Sharks, it's time for Talbot to get some rest. Enter Brossoit, who has played seven games (three starts) and is 3-1-0 with a 1.99 GAA and .934 SV% and has won two straight. Brossoit should start at least once in the Oilers' season-ending back-to-back set April 8-9 against the Vancouver Canucks.

Others worth considering: Joonas Korpisalo (CBJ, 3 percent owned); Michael Hutchinson (WPG, 6 percent owned); Aaron Dell (SJS, 12 percent owned)


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Worth Noting

-- John Gibson (86 percent owned) of the Anaheim Ducks returned to back up Jonathan Bernier (55 percent owned) in a 4-1 win against the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday. Gibson has made one start since Feb. 20 (allowed four goals on 35 shots in a 4-3 loss to the St. Louis Blues) because of a lower-body injury, but should see some action in the final six regular season games to prepare for the postseason.

-- Florida Panthers goalie James Reimer (39 percent owned) left the game against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday after a collision. He's listed as day to day, and Reto Berra (1 percent owned) is expected to start against the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday. Roberto Luongo (66 percent owned), who hasn't played since March 2 because of a lower-body injury, could also return before the end of the season.

-- Hutchinson is 3-1-0 in his past four games for the Winnipeg Jets and has allowed five goals on 102 shots (.951 SV%). He's 7-12-3 on the season but has lowered his GAA to 2.96 and raised his SV% to .903 after having a plus-3.00 GAA and sub-.900 SV% for most of the season.


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Top 25 Goalie Rankings

These rankings were last updated March 30

1. Sergei Bobrovsky, CBJ (SAME) 
2. Braden Holtby, WSH (SAME) 
3. Carey Price, MTL (SAME) 
4. Devan Dubnyk, MIN (SAME) 
5. Cam Talbot, EDM (+2) 
6. Jake Allen, STL (+2) 
7. Matt Murray, PIT (-2) 
8. Brian Elliott, CGY (+1) 
9. Martin Jones, SJS (-3) 
10. Tuukka Rask, BOS (SAME) 
11. Pekka Rinne, NSH (+1) 
12. Corey Crawford, CHI (+1) 
13. Jonathan Quick, LAK (-2) 
14. Craig Anderson, OTT (+3) 
15. John Gibson, ANA (NR - INJ.) 
16. Henrik Lundqvist, NYR (-2) 
17. Jonathan Bernier, ANA (-1) 
18. Frederik Andersen, TOR (DTD) 
19. Thomas Greiss, NYI (-1) 
20. Andrei Vasilevskiy, TBL (SAME) 
21. Antti Raanta, NYR (-2) 
22. Jaroslav Halak, NYI (NEW) 
23. Steve Mason, PHI (+1) 
24. Cory Schneider, NJD (-1)
25. Juuse Saros, NSH (NEW)

Dropped out: Ben Bishop (LAK), Aaron Dell (SJS), Jimmy Howard (DET)

Key injuries: Roberto Luongo (FLA), James Reimer (FLA), Semyon Varlamov (COL)

Tuesday, March 28, 2017

DFS NHL Picks (March 28, 2017)

Center:

Mika Zibanejad - New York Rangers:
Zibanejad has notched a point in three of six career contests against the Sharks, who are his opponent tonight. He enters the contest with a three-game assist/point streak (one goal, four assists), and he has posted a multi-point game in each of the last two contests. He has recorded nine points (four goals, five assists) in the last 11 games, and he has posted a 60.6% faceoff win percentage over the last seven games (77-for-127).

Wingers:

Cam Atkinson - Columbus Blue Jackets:
Atkinson ranks 8th-T in the NHL in goals with 33-27-60. He has set a career high in goals, assists and points (27-26-53 in 2015-16) and became the 7th different Jacket in club history to tally 30 in a season on Mar. 7 vs. New Jersey. His 7 multi-goal games are tied for the most in a season in club history (Nash; 2010-11) and his 7 game-winners are tied for the most (6x). Wennberg (13-42-55) has 5-14-19 in his last 29 games. He ranks 18th-T in the NHL with 42 assists which is currently 7th-T for the most assists in a single season in club history.

Jack Eichel - Buffalo Sabres: Eichel has totaled 11 points (4+7) in his last 10 road games. He has at least a point in four of his five career games against Columbus, having totaled six points (2+4) in those games. Plus, he has not gone two games without a point since Jan. 31 and Feb. 2. In the 26 games since, Eichel has totaled 34 points (11+23).

Defensemen:

Zach Werenski - Columbus Blue Jackets:
Werenski, who has 2-6-8 in the past 9 games and 5-16-21 in the past 29, has 12 multi-point games on the campaign. Posting 11-36-47 in 74 games, the 19-year old set the Jackets rookie record for most assists in a season, surpassing Jakub Voracek’s 29 (2008-09) and Rick Nash’s point record of 39 (2002-03). His 47 points are 2nd-most by a defenseman in club history, trailing James Wisniewski (51; 2013-14) and his 11 goals are 2nd-T by a defenseman in club history, trailing Bryan Berard (12; 2005-06). The 47 points, which are 5th by a rookie this season, are 6th all-time by a teenage defenseman in his rookie season.

Drew DOughty - Los Angeles Kings: Doughty is second on the team in assists (32;leads defensemen), tied for team-leading goals among defensemen (9) and first among defensemen in points at 41 (9-32=41). He logged his sixth multi-point game of the season (1-1=2; his ninth goal and fourth PPG of the season), Mar. 23 vs. WPG Doughty tied Mike Murphy (673) for ninth of the Kings all-time games played list, Mar. 11 vs. WSH. He had a three-game assist streak (0-3=3), Mar. 2.

Goaltender:

Sergei Bobrovsky - Columbus Blue Jackets:
Bobrovsky, who leads the league in wins (40), GAA (1.99) and SV% (.934) of netminders that have played in 25+ games and 2nd-T in SO (7). The NHL All-Star set a club record with his 34th win on Mar. 5 and surpassed Steve Mason (33 wins; 2008-09). He is 11-2-2 with a 1.39 GAA, .957 SV% and 4 SOs in his past 15 games (since Feb. 11) and is riding an 11-game point streak (9-0-2) with a 1.08 GAA, .967 SV% and 4 SOs.

Wednesday, March 22, 2017

DFS NHL Picks (March 22, 2017)

Chris Kreider has a point in five of his last seven games.
Center:

Connor McDavid - Edmonton Oilers:
With a two-point effort last game against Los Angeles, Connor McDavid is now back alone in front of the NHL scoring race, with 82 points (25G, 57A) in 72 games, two points ahead of Sidney Crosby (PIT) and Brad Marchand (BOS). McDavid has led the league in scoring at some point in all four months of the 2016-17 season.  He has led or co-led the NHL in scoring since Nov. 22, 2016.

Wingers:
Chris Kreider - New York Rangers:
Kreider has established career-highs in goals (26) and points (49) this season. He has tallied a point in five of the last seven games (two goals, four assists). Kreider is one of six NHL players who have recorded at least 26 goals and 100 hits this season. He leads the Rangers in goals (15) and points (30) at home this season.c

Leon Draisaitl - Edmonton Oilers: Draisaitl has now amassed 65 points (24G, 41A) in 72 games, setting career highs for points, goals, and assists. That point total puts him in 13th place in the NHL scoring race. Draisaitl has nine points (1G, 8A) in his last four games.

Defensemen:
Brady Skjei - New York Rangers:
Skjei registered his 30th assist of the 2016-17 season tonight at New Jersey. He is the fourth defenseman who has recorded at least 30 assists in his rookie season in franchise history, joining Brian Leetch (48 - 1988-89), Reijo Ruotsalainen (38 - 1981-82), and Ron Greschner (37 - 1974-75) as the only defensemen to accomplish the feat.

Cam Fowler - Anaheim Ducks: Among NHL defensemen, Fowler ranks tied for sixth in PPG (5) and tied for seventh in GWG (3). He has three assists in his last seven games. He earned his 23rd assist of the season and tied Andy McDonald (167) for seventh on the franchise all-time assists list on Mar. 17 vs. Buffalo.

Goaltender:

Jonathan Bernier - Anaheim Ducks:
Bernier has posted a 7-2-1 record with one shutout, a 1.78 GAA and .943 SV% in his last 10 starts dating to Feb. 22 vs. Boston. Since that date, Bernier ranks fifth among NHL goaltenders in GAA (min. 9 starts) and SV% (min. 9 starts), tied for fifth in wins and tied for fourth in GA (18, min. 9 starts).

Saturday, March 18, 2017

DFS NHL Picks (March 18, 2017)

Center:

Derek Stepan - New York Rangers: Stepan has recorded four points (one goal, three assists) in his last two games against Minnesota.

Wingers:

Mats Zuccarello - New York Rangers: Zuccarello had a two-goal hame against tbe Florida Panthers last night. He has registered five assists/points and a plus-four rating in his last two games against the Wild, who tbe Rangers face tonight.

James Neal - Nashville Predators: Neal has eight points (5G-3A) in his last seven games against the Hurricanes (4/27/2013 – 11/5/2016).

Defensemen:

Justin Faulk - Carolina Hurricanes: Faulk  leads all Carolina defenseman with 30 points this season, and among all league blueliners he is tied for third with 14 goals in 2016-17.

Filip Forsberg - Nashville Predators: Forsberg  has scored 12 goals in his last 12 games, and owns 18 points (12G-6A) in those 12 contests.

Goaltender:

Devan Dubnyk - Minnesota Wild: Dubnyk  is 1-2-0 with a 2.72 GAA and a .897 SV% in three starts vs. the Rangers.

Thursday, March 16, 2017

DFS NHL Picks (March 16, 2017)

Center:

Mikko Koivu - Minnesota Wild: Koivu owns 11 points (1-10=11) in 13 matches against the Carolina Hurricanes.

Wingers:

Nicklas Backstrom - Washington Capitals: Backstrom earned three assists on Tuesday against Minnesota, marking his third three-assist game of the season and 34th of his career. Since he entered the NHL in 2007-08, Backstrom leads the NHL in three-assist games (34). Backstrom also earned his 70th point of the season on Tuesday, marking his fourth consecutive (2013-17) and sixth career 70-point season.

Lee Stempniak - Carolina Hurricanes: Stempniak has 13 points (5-8=13) in 34 matches against the Wild.

Defensemen:

Josh Morrissey - Winnipeg Jets: Morrissey had five hits against the Predators Tuesday night. It marked sixth time this season he had at least five hits in a game. On the season, Morrissey has 131 hits, which is sixth among NHL rookies and third on the team.

Jaccob Slavin - Carolina Hurricanes: Slavin scored his first career hat trick against the Islanders on Monday, and notched an assist for his first NHL four-point game. Slavin's hat trick was the first for a Hurricanes defenseman since Joe Corvo did so against Ottawa on March 16, 2008, and he became the youngest defenseman in franchise history to score three goals in a game.

Goaltender:

Devan Dubnyk - Minnesota Wild: Dubnyk is 5-1-0 with a 2.85 GAA and a .914 SV% in seven games (six starts) against the Hurricanes.

Tuesday, March 14, 2017

DFS NHL Picks (March 14, 2017)

Center:
Connor McDavid - Edmonton Oilers: Connor McDavid has 75 points (23G, 52A) in 68 games and continues to lead the NHL in scoring, with a one point lead on Sidney Crosby (PIT). He leads all Oilers forwards in average time on ice (21:17) and ranks 4 among forwards in the NHL. He set a season high for ice-time vs. Pittsburgh (26:53) on Mar. 10, 2017.

Wingers:
Jack Eichel - Buffalo Sabres: In the time since his Nov. 29 return from an injury that sidelined him for 21 games, Jack Eichel ranks eighth among all NHL skaters with 47 points (19+28) and leads the league with 194 shots on goal. Eichel leads the league in points (26) and assists (19) since the beginning of February.

Jamie Benn - Dallas Stars: Benn leads the Stars with three points (1-2=3) against Edmonton this season. Benn comes into Tuesday’s contest riding a three-game point streak (1-2=3) against the Oilers and has 10 points (5-5=10) over his last nine games against them.

Defensemen:
Jaccob Slavin - Carolina Hurricanes: Last night against the Islanders, who he faces again tonight, Slavin earned his first-career NHL hat trick, including his first shorthanded goal, and his first four-point game with three goals and one assist in the contest. He leads all Canes skaters this season with a plus-18 rating, 133 blocked shots, and 23:25 average time on ice, including a team-leading 3:07 average shorthanded time on ice. Slavin leads all Canes blueliners with 23 assists, and his 28 points (5g, 23a) this season marks a new career-high.

Justin Faulk - Carolina Hurricanes: Faulk earned his first multi-goal game of the season against the Islanders on Monday, and has 5 points (3g, 2a) in three games against the Islanders this season. He currently has points in a season-high three straight games. He leads all Canes blueliners and is ranked third among league defenseman with 14 goals in 2016-17.

Goaltender:
Braden Holtby - Washington Capitals: Holtby is 5-2-0 in his career against Minnesota with one shutouts, a 2.28 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage and has won three consecutive games against the Wild. He leads the NHL in goals-against average (2.03) and shutouts (8) this season, ranks third in wins (34) and fifth in save percentage (.926).

Sunday, March 12, 2017

DFS NHL Picks (March 12, 2017)

Center:
Eric Staal - Minnesota Wild: Eric Staal  tallied three points (2-1=3) to top the 20-goal and 50-point marks Friday. He ranks second on the Wild with 51 points (2130=51) this season and has now hit the 20-goal mark in 10 of his 13 NHL seasons and the 50-point mark in 11 seasons. The 32-yearold has totaled 832 points (346-486=832) in 995 career NHL games, including 13 points (2-11=13) in 16 career games vs. Chicago.

Wingers:
Chris Kreider - New York Rangers: Kreider has recorded an assist/point in four of his last five games against Detroit (one goal, four assists) and has tallied eight points (three goals, five assists) in his last nine games against the Red Wings.

Nicklas Backstrom - Washington Capitals: Backstrom has recorded 15 points (5g, 10a) in 11 career games against the Ducks. He has tallied a point in nine of his 11 games against Anaheim and has recorded a multi-point game in five of his last eight games against the Ducks.

Defensemen:
Brent Burns - San Jose Sharks: Burns has 13 points (five goals), 43 SOG and 17 blocks in his past 10 games.

Andrei Markov - Montreal Canadiens: Markov has two points in his past three games, and has five points, 14 SOG and 17 blocks in that span.

Goaltender:
Antti Raanta - New York Rangers: Raanta is filling in for the injured Henrik Lundqvist. Raanta has posted a 13-4-0 record, along with a 2.14 GAA, a .929 SV%, and 3 SO in 19 starts in 2016-17. In his only career appearance against the Red Wings, Raanta stopped 31 of 33 shots he faced and earned a win on Apr. 9, 2016.

Friday, March 10, 2017

Fantasy: Schedule guide for head-to-head playoffs

NHL.com Fantasy Hockey Staff

The fantasy playoffs in standard leagues begin the week of March 13 and it's essential to know how the NHL schedule will impact your roster.
Games in hand are extremely important during each round of the fantasy playoffs, but whether a player's remaining games will be played at home and/or against non-contending teams can go a long way in determining a championship run. When mulling add/drop decisions, a good tiebreaker is to see if either player's team has more games remaining, a favorable or difficult schedule, or a home- or road-heavy slate.
Past and recent production, lineup placement, power-play usage, projected goalie starts, and your position of need remain the most important factors pertaining to fantasy value, and plenty of players are equipped to produce in road situations or against a strong opponent. That said, these schedule splits can provide additional pros and cons to adding or dropping a player.

NOTE: The splits have been updated after games played Thursday, March 9. ... Non-contenders are the bottom four teams in each conference as of Thursday: Arizona Coyotes, Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, Vancouver Canucks in Western Conference; Buffalo Sabres, Carolina Hurricanes, Detroit Red Wings, New Jersey Devils in Eastern Conference.
Teams in bold have advantages in terms of games remaining, strength of schedule and home splits.

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Anaheim Ducks (15 games left, 2 vs. non-contenders - 9H/6R)
*Arizona Coyotes (16 games left, 5 vs. non-contenders - 8H/8R)
Boston Bruins (15 games left, 2 vs. non-contenders - 9H/6R)
*Buffalo Sabres (15 games left, 1 vs. non-contenders - 7H/8R)
Calgary Flames (15 games left, 2 vs. non-contenders - 8H/7R)
*Carolina Hurricanes (18 games left, 4 vs. non-contenders - 10H/8R)
Chicago Blackhawks (16 games left, 5 vs. non-contenders - 6H/10R)
*Colorado Avalanche (16 games left, 4 vs. non-contenders - 8H/8R)
Columbus Blue Jackets (17 games left, 5 vs. non-contenders - 7H/10R)
*Dallas Stars (15 games left, 5 vs. non-contenders - 5H/10R)
*Detroit Red Wings (17 games left, 7 vs. non-contenders - 10H/7R)
Edmonton Oilers (16 games left, 6 vs. non-contenders - 11H/5R)

Florida Panthers (17 games left, 4 vs. non-contenders - 8H/9R)
Los Angeles Kings (16 games left, 4 vs. non-contenders - 10H/6R)
Minnesota Wild (17 games left, 7 vs. non-contenders - 8H/9R)
Montreal Canadiens (14 games left, 5 vs. non-contenders - 8H/6R)
Nashville Predators (15 games left, 3 vs. non-contenders - 7H/8R)
*New Jersey Devils (15 games left, 4 vs. non-contenders - 9H/6R)
New York Islanders (16 games left, 6 vs. non-contenders - 7H/9R)
New York Rangers (14 games left, 2 vs. non-contenders - 6H/8R)
Philadelphia Flyers (16 games left, 5 vs. non-contenders - 8H/8R)
Pittsburgh Penguins (17 games left, 5 vs. non-contenders - 7H/10R)
Ottawa Senators (16 games left, 3 vs. non-contenders - 6H/10R)
San Jose Sharks (16 games left, 6 vs. non-contenders - 9H/7R)
St. Louis Blues (17 games left, 8 vs. non-contenders - 8H/9R)
Tampa Bay Lightning (16 games left, 5 vs. non-contenders - 9H/7R)
Toronto Maple Leafs (16 games left, 5 vs. non-contenders - 8H/8R)

*Vancouver Canucks (15 games left, 2 vs. non-contenders - 7H/8R)
Washington Capitals (16 games left, 3 vs. non-contenders - 7H/9R)
Winnipeg Jets (14 games left, 2 vs. non-contenders - 7H/7R)
* Non-contending team

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FANTASY PLAYOFF SCHEDULE BY WEEK

Most games in Week 21 (First round: March 13-19): Carolina (five)

Most games in Week 22 (Quarterfinals: March 20-26): 12 teams with four

Most games in Week 23 (Semifinals: March 27-April 2): Carolina, Nashville (five)

Most games in Week 24 (Championship: April 3-9): Toronto, Ottawa (five)