Fantasy: 5 moves you need to make in Week 6
Every Monday, theScore offers a weekly fantasy hockey column detailing a handful of moves you should make. This week's edition focuses on Week 6. Ownership percentages and position eligibility are courtesy of Yahoo.
Buy low on Seguin but not BennTeam: Stars
Position: C/LW
Ownership: 99%/91%
The Dallas Stars' top players have not been producing. Fantasy owners have been as disappointed as head coach Jim Montgomery in the play of Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn, Alexander Radulov, and Joe Pavelski to start the year.
Of those four, Seguin and Radulov seem the most likely to turn things around. They're first and second among Stars forwards in expected goals and high-danger scoring chances. Seguin is still just 27 years old and, while Radulov is 33, he hasn't previously shown any signs of decline since returning to North America in 2016-17.
Benn, on the other hand, has just one goal in 18 games. He's been in decline over the past couple of seasons, and power forwards like him rarely age well in today's NHL. The 35-year-old Pavelski stood no chance of matching his 20.2 shooting percentage from a year ago and has predictably regressed in his first season in Dallas.
Seguin - and to a lesser extent, Radulov - provide some intriguing buy-low value on the fantasy trade market. Benn and Pavelski do not, though. If you own a player like Benn, you're best to wait it out a bit longer and hope he can play at a 20-25 goal pace the rest of the way.
Trade for William Nylander
Kevin Sousa / National Hockey League / GettyTeam: Maple Leafs
Position: C/RW
Ownership: 83%
William Nylander is slowly working his way into Mike Babcock's good books - or at least he should be.
| Stat | 1st 9 GP | Last 10 GP |
|---|---|---|
| G | 2 | 5 |
| A | 3 | 5 |
| P | 5 | 10 |
| ATOI | 16:43 | 18:54 |
The slick Swede has been on fire lately, recording multi-point games in three of his last four outings. He played over 20 minutes for the second time on Sunday against the Chicago Blackhawks, and with fellow right winger Mitch Marner out for at least a month, Nylander should continue to get more ice time and a spot on the top power-play unit.
The price for him may be a bit steep, but thanks to some strong underlying numbers, Nylander could finish the season with 80-90 points.
Add Jean-Gabriel PageauTeam: Senators
Position: C
Ownership: 41%
Known as a reliable two-way center, Pageau is enjoying a career year with eight goals and four assists in 16 games. His 20.0 shooting percentage won't hold, but he's scored five times in his last four games, making him one of the hottest players in the league.
While Pageau's hot start may not last, he's worth owning in the meantime - especially considering Ottawa has four games this week.
Add Anders Nilsson
Icon Sportswire / Icon Sportswire / GettyTeam: Senators
Position: G
Ownership: 15%
Who knew the Senators would produce so much fantasy value? Nilsson has been fantastic, authoring a .930 save percentage and a 2.66 goals-against average in eight starts this season. Craig Anderson, meanwhile, has also made eight starts this year but owns an .897 save percentage and a 3.20 goals-against average.
Ottawa surrenders a lot of shots and won't rack up many wins, but Nilsson should begin to get more starts and needs be owned in all fantasy formats.
Add Robby FabbriTeam: Red Wings
Position: LW/RW
Ownership: 14%
Fabbri has taken full advantage of a fresh start, tallying two goals and an assist in two games since being traded from the St. Louis Blues to the Detroit Red Wings. He's skating in Detroit's top six and getting time with the top power-play unit.
A first-round pick in 2014, Fabbri scored 18 goals as a 20-year-old rookie with the Blues in 2015-16, but an abundance of major injuries then stunted his development. He fell out of favor with St. Louis and was often stuck playing a fourth-line role.
Now that he has a prime opportunity to showcase his offensive abilities, Fabbri is worth picking up in deeper leagues.
(Advanced stats source: Natural Stat Trick)
Josh Wegman has been theScore's resident fantasy hockey expert since 2015. Find him on Twitter @JoshWegman_.
Copyright (C) 2019 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.