This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
The Canadiens and Oilers were heavily scrutinized this summer for trades that didn't jive with the analytics community and many fans. P.K. Subban and Taylor Hall were shipped out for what was widely considered inferior talents Shea Weber and Adam Larsson, respectively. And while it is still way too early to close the books on these deals, Montreal remains unbeaten in regulation, and Edmonton is atop the Pacific Division with a 6-1 record.
The intention isn't to grade the two trades, but spin them for our fantasy purposes. Sometimes you don't need to "win" the deal on paper to improve your team. In fact, you can often overpay for a particular fantasy asset and still be in a better position to win.
Again, we're exactly two weeks into the season, so the fortunes of Montreal, Nashville, Edmonton, New Jersey and the four players involved in those two blockbuster moves will continue to play out for a number of years. But if winning was the goal, the Canadiens and Oilers are certainly putting the right foot forward.
Here is a look at Thursday's nine-game slate.
Featured Matchups
Lightning (PP: 3, PK: 9) at Canadiens (PP: 15, PK: 7), 7:30 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Ben Bishop (3-1-0, 3.51, .885), Carey Price (3-0-0, 1.68, .939)
Key Injuries:Zach Redmond (foot), Ryan Callahan (hip)
Sticking with the Canadiens, they land in their first daunting spot of the season. Tampa Bay grabs the Habs on the wrong end of back-to-back games and playing their third game in four nights. Additionally, the Lightning have been pretty formidable themselves with a 5-1 record and 11 goals over their past two games. This could easily be a preview of this year's Eastern Conference Finals, too.
Bishop and Price will likely keep the scoring down, as this game will should prove to be more entertaining in a competitive toe-to-toe tilt than overloaded with offense and fantasy results. It's a huge test for Montreal, though. Tampa Bay has a deep and talented roster, and both teams are predominantly healthy. It's a game where you're not going to bench red-hot Steven Stamkos or Shea Weber, but the secondary scorers from both teams aren't lineup locks in your seasonal or daily lineups.
Red Wings (PP: 12, PK: 20) at Blues (PP: 7, PK: 3), 8:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Petr Mrazek (3-2-0, 2.82, .917), Jake Allen (3-1-1, 2.39, .896)
Key Injuries:Justin Abdelkader (lower body), Tomas Jurco (back), Niklas Kronwall (knee), Jori Lehtera (upper body)
Don't look now, but the Red Wings are cruising along a five-game winning streak with an average of 3.8 goals per game while allowing only 1.4. St. Louis, on the other hand, dropped three of four games through the typically soft Western Canadian swing. The Blues are still trying to find their footing following the offseason departures of David Backes and Troy Brouwer.
However, and albeit in a small sample size, the Blues have remained prolific on the power play and stout on the penalty kill. Good clubs usually take care of business on special teams, so it's a good sign that St. Louis will be able to push forward with another strong year. Detroit is flying high, but a road game against the Blues could easily curb the Red Wings' winning stretch.
Predators (PP: 2, PK: 29) at Kings (PP: 18, PK: 27), 10:30 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Marek Mazanec (0-1-0, 5.06, .806), Peter Budaj (3-0-0, 2.32, .893)
Key Injuries:Marian Gaborik (foot), Jonathan Quick (groin), Jeff Zatkoff (lower body), Miikka Salomaki (hand)
The Predators are reeling to start the year and were embarrassed 6-1 by Anaheim on Wednesday. The Ducks were even without captain Ryan Getzlaf. Usually, a trip to California is a nightmare, but the Kings aren't the daunting opponent they once were. The Predators put it all together Saturday for a statement win over the Penguins, so look for them to come out strong against Los Angeles, especially after last night's loss.
After losing three straight games to start the year, Los Angeles has responded with two overtime wins and a shootout win with Peter Budaj handling the crease. He's posted an underwhelming .879 save percentage during the stretch, though. And it isn't time to bump him up the fantasy rankings. While there is value in volume, expecting the 34-year-old Budaj to handle No. 1 duties in the rigorous Western Conference at this stage of his career will likely prove ill-advised. Turning to the Predators crease, it's not time to add Juuse Saros, but it might not be too early to proclaim him the best goalie in the organization.
Other Matchups
Coyotes (PP: 21, PK: 25) at Flyers (PP: 5, PK: 22), 7:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Louis Domingue (0-4-0, 5.03, .851), Steve Mason (2-3-1, 2.77, .901)
Key Injuries:Mike Smith (lower body), Michael Del Zotto (lower body), Scott Laughton (knee), Michael Raffl (abdomen), Dale Weise (suspension)
The Coyotes are reeling along a five-game losing streak and will be playing their sixth consecutive road game Thursday against the Flyers. Philadelphia is averaging 3.29 goals per game to start the year, and the mark could jump following the cushy matchup against Arizona. The Flyers juggled their lines mid-game Tuesday against Buffalo, so daily players will want to double-check the morning skate combos before locking in lineups.
Wild (PP: 27, PK: 1) at Sabres (PP: 9, PK: 19), 7:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Devan Dubnyk (3-1-1, 2.01, .929), Anders Nilsson (0-0-1, 2.77, .927)
Key Injuries:Jack Eichel (ankle), Evander Kane (ribs), Robin Lehner (illness), Erik Haula (lower body), Jared Spurgeon (upper body)
Minnesota needs a win to break even during its four-game road trip, and the Sabres have a single victory through their first five games. With Devan Dubnyk's recent form (.957 save percentage), Buffalo's 20th-ranked offense should continue to struggle. The Sabres have scored just 2.8 goals per game to start the year, after all. Mathew Dumba's elevated role has him averaging 25:12 with 3:09 of power-play time over the past four games. His fantasy stock skyrocketing, and he offers cross-category upside.
Islanders (PP: 26, PK: 3) at Penguins (PP: 12, PK: 17), 7:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Jaroslav Halak (2-2-0, 2.77, .905), Marc-Andre Fleury (4-2-1, 3.11, .904)
Key Injuries:Mikhail Grabovski (concussion), Nikolay Kulemin (undisclosed), Shane Prince (lower body), Ryan Pulock (lower body), Kris Letang (upper body), Derrick Pouliot (undisclosed), Conor Sheary (eye), Daniel Sprong (shoulder)
The Islanders enter on the wrong end of back-to-back games to face the nearly complete Penguins' roster. Sidney Crosby scored in his first game back, and Matt Murray served as the backup in Tuesday's win. It's a tough two-night stretch for New York, as they lost to first-place Montreal on Wednesday and have a date with the defending champions Thursday. At least John Tavares has four goals and two helpers over his past five games, but unfortunately, the remainder of the Islanders' roster is basically a nightly guessing game.
Panthers (PP: 22, PK: 11) at Maple Leafs (PP: 6, PK: 15), 7:30 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Roberto Luongo (3-1-0, 1.99, .922), Frederik Andersen (1-1-3, 4.29, .851)
Key Injuries:Nick Bjugstad (hand), Jonathan Huberdeau (lower body), Jussi Jokinen (knee), Josh Leivo (lower body)
This should be an entertaining game, and it's filled with a handful surprising scorers. Auston Matthews, William Nylander and Jonathan Marchessault have all exploded out of the gate, and Frederik Andersen's 4.68 GAA has ensured the Maple Leafs are locked into high-scoring games. Also look out for rookie Michael Matheson on the Florida blue line. He's received 3:21 of power-play time over the past two games and has impressed with two goals and two helpers through six games for the year.
Stars (PP: 19, PK: 18) at Jets (PP: 23, PK: 23), 8:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Antti Niemi (2-0-0, 3.67, .894), Connor Hellebuyck (1-2-0, 3.41, .880)
Key Injuries:Cody Eakin (knee), Ales Hemsky (groin), Jiri Hudler (illness), Mattias Janmark (knee), Patrick Sharp (concussion), Jason Spezza (undisclosed), Bryan Little (lower body), Drew Stafford (upper body)
Despite these teams both missing a key cog or two, there is still upside for a shooting gallery. Devin Shore is an encouraging rookie and producing at a point-per-game pace while skating with the No. 1 power-play unit. Also, Mark Scheifele is up to 20 goals, 19 assists and 92 shots over his past 30 games. What a bargain he was this draft season.
Blue Jackets (PP: 1, PK: 23) at Sharks (PP: 19, PK: 15), 10:30 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Sergei Bobrovsky (2-2-1, 2.42, .929), Martin Jones (3-3-0, 2.54, .899)
Key Injuries:Ryan Murray (upper body)
Columbus is batting .500 on the power-play with a 50.0 shooting percentage, but more impressive, the Blue Jackets have done it with Brandon Saad averaging just 0:48 power-play time per game thus far. John Tortorella's ability to smother talent is unparalleled. San Jose went 18-20-3 at home last season, but look for the Shark Tank to be more friendly to the home team this year. The Sharks have already won both their home games, and this is a cushy matchup to make it three in a row. If there is a buy-low window on Martin Jones, it's closing soon, so pounce.
Recommended Pickup
Viktor Arvidsson, LW, NAS – It can prove futile to chase a player because of a promotion up the depth chart, but Arvidsson has scored at each stop of his professional career and was off to a solid start this year with three goals and an assist before missing the scoresheet Wednesday. Arvidsson has also been predominately skating with Ryan Johansen and James Neal on the top line of late. The Predators haven't exploded out of the gate, but you'll want to jump on the bandwagon now because the best is yet to come in Music City.
