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Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire: William Karlsson leads pickups

evan berofsky
·8-min read
William Karlsson #71 of the Vegas Golden Knights
William Karlsson has been lighting it up on the fantasy hockey side of late. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images)

Sometimes you just need a moment to relax. Everything else can wait until later. No, really. You deserve it.

Feel better? Good. Now get back to your fantasy hockey teams.

Need some hockey help? Perhaps some of these players can do the (hat) trick.

(Rostered rates as of Nov. 8)

Forwards

When your first name is Connor, people expect success. It may have taken McMichael a couple seasons to get up to speed, but he's doing great holding down a top-six job with 13 points and 39 shots — including 10 (!) last week against the Rangers — in 12 games. He's also appeared on Washington's top power play, though hasn't yet contributed anything. Let's assume McMichael won't maintain this type of scoring pace, so he'll probably end up somewhere in the 50 to 60 range and paired with excellent linemates.

Kudos to anyone who's been patient with Niederreiter over the years, as he's rarely matched fantasy expectations — at least when it comes to offense. The hits have often operated as his biggest draw, though he's definitely getting more looks of late as a result of a blistering run the last 11 contests where he's totaled seven goals, three assists, 30 shots and 23 hits. The 19.4 shooting percentage and some other stats will eventually level off, but Niederreiter is a must-get based on what he's been able to do in mediocre minutes (14:45 average) on a deep Winnipeg lineup.

Karlsson has been a Vegas mainstay since the franchise began by taking on important roles and being relatively consistent in supplying scoring. An injury kept him out for the first few weeks, but his coverage has steadily increased since he's come back. He's found the scoresheet in all five outings (two goals, four assists) on top of 12 shots and six blocks while centering the third even-strength line. Karlsson has also tallied a PPA on the second unit and a SHG during his debut. That's a nice versatility to have in your lineup, though you may not want to add him if you're full at C since he only qualifies there in Yahoo.

It's amazing to see Terry frequently appear in this column considering he's recorded at least 54 points from each of the previous three campaigns. So, you're probably not shocked to hear he's tallied five goals and five assists from his last 11 games to go with 25 shots on a 17:50 average. Terry's also a regular on Anaheim's top power play, where he's chipped in four PPPs. He'd hypothetically post better numbers on a more consistent offense, but that probably wouldn't happen with fewer opportunities.

Zetterlund was handed a larger workload upon arriving in San Jose, and he took advantage of the opportunity by registering 44 points (16 while up a man), 204 shots, 120 hits and 71 blocks. And he's right back at it with 10, 30, 34 and 12 in those same categories. A lone PPG is all Zetterlund has to show for participating on the lead group, though that haul could soon increase with Macklin Celebrini back in the lineup.

Beniers wasn't the most desirable fantasy commodity during his sophomore season as his scoring dropped off. That outlook was further diminished as he's fairly one-dimensional (unless you count faceoff wins). But when Beniers is on, he's tough to ignore. Like the eight points across seven contests combined with 52 FOW — and even eight blocks. Just wait until his PP contributions kick in. And if Beniers starts to slump, you can always throw him back to the wire.

Sometimes a veteran player is brought aboard to fill a certain role, and then he ends up significantly outdoing what was expected of him. It's still only 13 outings into Zucker's Sabres career, but he's already at three goals and eight assists. He may be part of the third trio during five-on-five, yet he's joined the big boys on the first man-advantage to post four PPPs — all of those coming since Oct. 26. Zucker's totals and prime placement could ultimately slip away, though you may want to see how far this run will go.

Sillinger is only 21, but this is already his fourth full year. And it finally appears he's ready to break out offensively thanks to a big boost in ice time and responsibility. Sillinger has so far notched eight points skating 18:10 while working in the top-six and playing on both special-teams units. And his value is only enhanced by 18 hits and a bright future.

Defensemen

The Leafs may not be scoring as many goals compared to recent seasons, yet they've looked much better defensively over their first 14 games. Offseason additions Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Chris Tanev have helped, while McCabe has been essential as a solid cross-category producer with five assists, 17 PIM, 32 hits and 28 blocks on a career-high 21:39 average. And even if the points dry up, he's still good for sufficient contributions to get him on more rosters.

Vlasic has carried over the strong play from his first full year into a prominent role where he's now significantly involved in all areas. He may not be proficient directing pucks on net or laying out opponents, though he's already posted seven helpers — including three on the power play — and a whopping 40 blocked shots while logging more than 23 minutes a night. Vlasic wasn't relied upon for scoring during his NCAA days and may not be able to maintain a high enough rate, though that shouldn't matter based on the rest of his production.

As with Troy Terry above, the Ducks offer a few sneakier fantasy options. I don't know if someone quarterbacking the top PP qualifies as an under-the-radar candidate, yet Zellweger may get overlooked on a subpar unit. He racked up 37 points across 44 AHL contests last season and potted his first NHL PPG Tuesday alongside five shots. Anaheim could easily switch up the lead point-man, but for now, he's the player occupying that slot and the one worth adding.

Pulock has been overlooked in recent years due to him not being the point machine otherwise known as Noah Dobson. He used to frequently net 30-plus, though those days are well in the past. The current incarnation of Pulock is at five assists, 19 shots, 30 blocks and 18 hits on 22:42 — which has climbed to 27-plus minutes in the last four matchups on a depleted Isles' left side. He even helped out Tuesday on the man-advantage with a PPA, but that placement may be lost after Mike Reilly returns.

Goaltenders

Things haven't particularly gone well for the defending Western Conference champs as they have a 6-7-1 record and only 2.36 goals per game. On the other end, Stuart Skinner is struggling with a 3.28 GAA and .881 save percentage through nine outings — though he did shut out Pittsburgh last month. Pickard hasn't been significantly better over six appearances, yet he reeled off three straight wins before falling to Jersey on Monday. Edmonton's offense and Skinner are bound to improve, but Pickard is primed to pick up more starts and represents a solid streamer.

Like Pickard, Knight plays behind a No. 1 who's disappointed so far, as Sergei Bobrovsky is carrying a 2.97/.891 line (paired with a stellar 7-2-1 record). And even after missing most of the previous two years, the 23-year-old Knight has impressed the last two weeks by only allowing a combined five goals from two-plus outings. Bobrovsky will continue operating as the main starter, though Knight will earn more fantasy attention by getting enough work behind an excellent Panthers attack.

Players to consider from past columns: Logan Stankoven, Gabriel Vilardi, Dylan Guenther, Rickard Rakell, Jonathan Huberdeau, Teuvo Teravainen, Dylan Strome, Josh Norris, Cole Perfetti, John-Jason Peterka, Pavel Zacha, Jake Neighbours, Dylan Cozens, Connor Zary, Leo Carlsson, Casey Mittelstadt, Yegor Chinakhov, Brayden Schenn, Anthony Cirelli, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Pavel Dorofeyev, Reilly Smith, Kirill Marchenko, Marco Rossi, Chandler Stephenson, Conor Garland, Mason Marchment, Jack Roslovic, Alex Laferriere, Filip Chytil, Justin Faulk, Brandt Clarke, Lane Hutson, Jordan Spence, Travis Sanheim, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Owen Power, Ryker Evans, Jacob Middleton, Neal Pionk, J.J. Moser, Jamie Drysdale, Hampus Lindholm, Matt Grzelcyk, Charlie Lindgren, Kevin Lankinen, Lukas Dostal, Justus Annunen, Elvis Merzlikins, Casey DeSmith