by We’re only a month into the NHL season, but you know many Fantasy general managers are already panicking about their team’s slow start.
Maybe they’re already 40 points ahead in a points-only league, have a 1-3 record in a head-to-head league, or are 8th out of 10 in a roto league.
The Dobber forums are seeing some posts from GMs looking for trade advice and wanting to trade players like Jordan Kyrou, Jonathan Huberdeau, Moritz Seider, Dougie Hamilton, and other struggling players.
What should a fantasy GM do? You take this as an opportunity to improve your team. You look at sagging Superstars in other rosters and hope to acquire them by trading your above-average players. Look at last year. A month into the year, the top 25 point earners included the likes of Oliver Bjorkstrand, Anthony Duclair, Drake Batherson, Jesse Puljujarvi, Andrew Copp, Kevin Shattenkirk and Chandler Stephenson. Everyone who sold them high laughed, especially when you got struggling players like Roope Hintz, Kevin Fiala and Elias Pettersson in return. It might seem weird to think about it now, but you know there were some GMs who traded Puljujarvi and Björkstrand for Pettersson.
Below are 10 players you should trade high with. Keep in mind that this doesn’t mean that you have to trade these players, but since their value is high, this is a great opportunity to improve your team.
10.Artturi Lehkonen
Lehkonen’s value has fallen since the start of the season when he had four points (all man advantage) in his first two games. He has three points in nine games since those two competitions. However, there may be some fantasy hockey general managers who are unaware of how badly he is struggling and are only looking at the seven point total in 11 games. If you have the time and you play in a Yahoo Fantasy league, I recommend you take a look at Yahoo’s trade market, where you can see trades that have taken place in other Yahoo leagues. You can search for players to get an idea of the value. A weekend search of Lehkonen’s name reveals that he was recently dealt straight to Matt Duchene, Jason Robertson and Ryan Johansen. If you want to move him, you might be able to sell another GM for some of Lehkonen’s perks (in the top powerplay unit and in the top line with Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen at equal strength). You can also point to Lehkonen’s career-best ice time and shots per game.
9.Gabriel Vilardi
After years of not doing much in fantasy hockey, Vilardi is finally producing this year. He started on the third row but did so well that he was moved to the top row (Kevin Fiala fell on the third row). In 14 games, Vilardi has nine goals, 14 points and 37 shots. He has also been at the top of the power play unit all season but only has two power play points. The Vilardi trade might be a bit iffy as it depends on how you view the lines of kings for the rest of the season. If you think Fiala will stay in the third row all season and Vilardi will stay with Anze Kopitar, it might be wiser to stick with Vilardi. However, if you think it’s only a matter of time before Fiala returns to the top spot, or that the lines will be reshuffled once Alex Iafallo and Quinton Byfield are back in the lineup, then stepping up might be wise to sell.
8. Dominik Cuban
In the second game of the season, Tyler Bertuzzi went down with an upper-body injury that is expected to keep him out of the lineup for four to six weeks. That injury allowed Kubalik to play in the top line and with the best powerplay unit, and he reacted tremendously. In 12 games, Kubalik has 15 points (eight of them man-advantage) with 29 shots, 14 goals and a two-plus. It’s now three weeks since Bertuzzi was knocked out of the line-up so he should be back soon, possibly next week. Maybe Kubalik will stay on the top line and Bertuzzi will be transferred to another line, but that’s no guarantee. It would be better to get rid of all your worries and doubts now if you can get a good return on Kubalik.
7. Adin Hill
It appears that Robin Lehner’s injury wasn’t the disaster that many thought. Lehner struggled last season but would have been the team’s de facto starter this year had he been healthy. However, his absence for the year has allowed Logan Thompson and Adin Hill to make a big step forward. While Thompson is getting the majority of starts, it’s still pretty close (eight games for Thompson against five for Hill so far). Hill is 5-0-0, with a 2.17 GAA and 0.925 SV%, and Saturday night’s game against Montreal marks the first time Hill has conceded more than two goals in a contest. You might find an owner who is already frustrated with their struggling number one goaltender and would be willing to move it for Hill.
6.JustinFaulk
Faulk was underrated in fantasy hockey, but he’s a solid choice in leagues where peripherals count. Each year, Faulk is one of the few defenders who can achieve a triple-triple (finish a season with at least 100 shots, 100 blocks, and 100 hits). Only 22 players scored all three points last season. So far this year, Faulk has been even better than usual. He’s on his way to a high-shot, high-block career, and he should still have 125+ hits. Still, it’s his offense that raises eyebrows. Faulk’s 10 points in nine games lead the Blues. He has three power play points, which is second on the team. If you don’t think he’s going to hit career highs in points, power play points, shots and blocked shots, it’s a good time to move him.
5. Calen Addison
If you’re in a points-only league, stick with Addison unless someone is willing to pay you a massive overpayment. In a year-long league that counts peripherals, trade it in as soon as you get a decent deal. You may have already missed your sales peak as Addison has zero points in his last four games. During the season, Addison has seven points (five with the man advantage) in 11 games. In most other categories, however, it is a disadvantage. He has zero goals, only 12 shots, three hits and is minus six. To be fair, he has six PIM and 10 blocked shots, but it’s not enough to get him into year-old leagues.
4. Ryan Nugent Hopkins
RNH has 13 points in 12 games, eight of which come with the man advantage. It’s a great start, but that’s the norm for the Oilers forward. Let’s look at his last five campaigns:
2021-22: First 15 games, 19 points. 48 games remaining, 31 points.
2020-21: First 20 games, 18 points. 32 games remaining, 17 points.
2019-20: First 19 games, 13 points. 46 games remaining, 48 points.
2018-19: First 15 games, 17 points. 67 games remaining, 52 points.
2017-18: First 21 games, 17 points. Remaining 41 games, 31 points.
Aside from that one outlier of a 2019-20 season, his points per game often dropped significantly after the first 15-20 games. He’s started hot again this year so it would be wise to move him before his production starts falling again.
3. Carter Hart
Without a doubt, Hart’s game was the biggest shocker of the season. The Flyers were expected to be one of the worst teams in the league, but instead they’re in a playoff position thanks to Hart, who has yet to lose a regular game this season. On the season, he’s 6-0-2 with a 1.97 GAA and a .946 save rate. He’s not off to a bad start and his 280 saves before Sunday’s games were the most in the league with Connor Hellebuyck. However, these stats from Hart hide just how bad the Flyers were. According to Evolving-Hockey, the Flyers rank in the bottom 10 (or bottom two in several of them) on many advanced metrics. Perhaps the most meaningful? They are the worst in the league in terms of expected goals conceded percentage, but sit sixth in terms of goals conceded per game, showing just how much of an impact Hart has had this year.
2. Hampus Lindholm
Lindholm hasn’t been relevant to fantasy in years, and his first dozen games would be the best of his career. He has 13 points, four of them on the power play. However, your opportunity to trade high is coming to an end. Lindholm gets plenty of ice time with Charlie McAvoy out of the lineup, but McAvoy should be back from shoulder surgery soon. He is already a full training participant and should be back sometime in November. When that happens, Lindholm’s ice time and power play usage will decrease. Don’t you think you could get a solid return on him? According to Yahoo Trade Market, someone traded Lindholm straight for Rasmus Dahlin over the weekend.
1. Erik Karlsson
I’ve been a big supporter of Karlsson’s catch-up season in the past, but this year is a bit extreme. In 14 games, he has 10 goals, 19 points, 3.2 shots per game and six power play points. He hits 22.2% of his shots, which is insanely high (his previous career high was 8.5% a season ago). He’s also on pace for 111 points. He’s scored eight of his goals and 13 of his points in his last five games, so he’s going through a crazy string of productive games. Even if he’s back to normal and has a pace of 80 points, there’s always a risk of injury. He hasn’t reached the 60-game mark in a season since 2017-18 when he was with the Senators.
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