I hope each of you fantasy hockey owners know that there is still draft-worthy talent and guys that are ready to help right now on the waiver wires. This week we have a really hotly added goalie, one that's not so hot, and some worthy defensemen from some of hockey's smaller markets.
- Pick Him Up Fasth
Another goalie has heat up the waiver wire uncontrollably in NHL Fantasy Week 4 and his name is Viktor Fasth (G, Ducks) a 30-year old rookie from the Swedish Elite League. He’s been on fire in his last four games, including his last outing, a 3-0 win over the Avalanche, in which he stopped all 31 shots in his first career shutout. He has now a .962 save percentage and an unbelievable 0.98 GAA, which are sensational numbers. He poses a threat to incumbent Jonas Hiller and is now owned in 50% of ESPN leagues and 32% of Yahoo leagues. Given that his play is top five so far in fantasy goaltending, you should grab him immediately if he’s still available or suffer the consequences. He has made a seamless transition to the NHL and should be transitioned over to your fantasy squad with all deliberate speed.
Fedor Tyutin (D, Blue Jackets) is only owned in 1/3 of most standard leagues and the reliable Russian has played well on the Blue Jackets blue line. He’s already got eight points in a season where most fantasy pundits thought his scoring would be down. He’s getting plenty of minutes and has shaved his plus/minus down to minus-4. He’s probably not going to score 38 points as is his current pace but scoop him up and benefit from the hot streak.
- The Man is an Island(er)
A return to the states is in store for Lubomir Visnovsky (D, Islanders) who after a contentious dispute, will not be able to play for HC Slovan Bratislava, the KHL team he opted to play with rather than New York. The Isles dug in on this one because their struggling line play, and they could use Visnovsky's services on either power-play unit. Lubomir is only two years removed from being the top offensive-defenseman in all of hockey so their is fantasy value here. Just monitor the situation to see if is willing to play at all. He'll get some playing time but how motivated will he be to produce?
- Leland: Wheelin and Dealin?
Also keep in mind that Miikka Kiprusoff is out with an injury which means Leland Irving (G, Flames) is the main guy in the crease for Calgary. Danny Taylor was called up from AHL Abbotsford to back Irving up. This is a deep waiver wire acquisition until Irving shows us a little more minding the net but is worth a flyer in any case. Since Kiprusoff is out indefinitely and may be playing down the injury, Irving will have a chance to show he is the Flames ‘tender of the future.
Ales Hemsky (RW, Oilers) has also gone under the radar in fantasy (in the 10% ownership range) but just had his first multi-point game of the season (a goal and an assist) in a 3-2 loss to Dallas Wednesday night. Hemsky was fantasy-relevant three years ago and was thought to be a fading star in the Edmonton offensive galaxy. He’s at a 19-goal pace and if he can continue to work on his plus/minus (-4 on the year) or your league’s settings don’t factor that then he’s a good value because he’s done it before and has talent around him.
Some other news on the wire:
- Veteran Bruin goalie Tim Thomas, expected to be out for the year, was traded to the Islanders for a draft pick in a cap-related move'; probably something that keeper owners should pay attention to.
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