This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
Christmas is right around the corner (and this is my last Daily Puck before the holidays), which means only one thing. No, it's not one of those articles about "gifts" for each NHL team or what have you. There won't be any talk of the Wings needing a top-pair defenseman, or the Stars needing a goalie. Instead, I have a simple note to make. Why aren't there any NHL teams that wear Christmas colors regularly? There are 30 teams, soon to be 31, but nobody uses red and green as their primary color scheme. The Devils used to, of course, before they exchanged green for black. Considering they are called, you know, the Devils perhaps they can be forgiven for dropping green for black. Then again, the New Jersey Devil lives in the Pine Barrens, so maybe they should still be wearing green. The Wild also used to be red and green, and they still are sometimes. However, it feels like they wear their green and "wheat" jerseys more often than those. Oh, and their logo is terrible. So if you want to get in the Christmas spirit watching hockey, you have to settle for a jersey the Minnesota Wild wear sometimes that has a stupid logo. Merry Christmas!
Featured Matchups
Capitals (PP: 11, PK: 7) at Flyers (PP: 5, PK: 11), 8:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Braden Holtby (14-7-2, 2.08, .925), Steve Mason (13-9-4, 2.68, .908)
Key Injuries:Mark Alt (upper body), Sean Couturier (knee), Michal Neuvirth (lower body), Matt Read (oblique), Mark Streit (shoulder), John Carlson (illness)
On the season, these two teams are on the opposite end of the spectrum, goal prevention wise. The Caps rank third, the Flyers 23rd. However, though 10 games in December, the Flyers are only allowing 2.18 goals per game. Of course, the Capitals are only giving up 1.89, so Washington is still better on that front. You also have to trust Holtby over Mason, even if Mason has slowly but surely improved his save percentage in recent weeks. This special teams matchup looks pretty even as well. One complicating factor is how good Philadelphia's offense has been, but they will still likely have trouble with Washington and Holtby. It could be a rough game for Jakub Voracek, Claude Giroux, and Wayne Simmonds. In fact, considering Simmonds has a 18.2 shooting percentage, he could be in for some rough games as is. By the way, Voracek has 120 shots on goal. That's the same number Alex Ovechkin has, although the Flyers have played four more games. In his six games since returning from injury, Oshie has three points and 12 shots on goal. Meanwhile, Evgeny Kuznetsov doesn't have a goal in his last 11 games, but he has eight assists in his last seven contests.
Oilers (PP: 6, PK: 10) at Coyotes (PP: 27, PK: 23), 9:30 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Cam Talbot (16-10-4, 2.52, .917), Mike Smith (7-6-4, 2.65, .928)
Key Injuries:Max Domi (hand), Brad Richardson (leg), Mark Fayne (undisclosed), Andrew Ference (hip), Darnell Nurse (ankle), Tyler Pitlick (undisclosed)
Any matchup against the Coyotes is one to get excited about in fantasy hockey. In addition to their bad special teams, Arizona is 30th in goals scored, and 28th in goals allowed. On top of that, the Coyotes are dead last in shots allowed per game, giving up 35.4. That's far and away the most in the league. Edmonton is seventh in goals per game, so they are probably salivating over this matchup. They have five players who have taken at least 82 shots on goal. This includes Connor McDavid, who leads the team with 92. He also leads the team in points with 40, despite only having one power-play goal so far. Oscar Klefbom is an interesting defenseman. He's got five goals and 12 points, and he's put 82 shots on goal. The Coyotes don't have as much to offer offensively. Radim Vrbata leads the team with eight goals and 20 points. The next best healthy forward is probably Tobias Reider. He has seven goals and six assists in 30 games, which qualifies as a success for this team. If you are looking for a hard luck player, look no further than cagey veteran Shane Doan. While he only has three goals and six assists, he's put 70 shots on goal, the second-highest total on the Coyotes. His shooting percentage is a mere 4.3. Doan should get better, although perhaps not enough to help fantasy owners.
Recommended Pickup
Nazem Kadri, C, TOR – Kadri isn't Auston Matthews or William Nylander or Mitch Marner, but don't hold that against the veteran center. Yes, an influx in young talent has lessened his role, and Kadri also often finds himself facing tougher matchups so Toronto can ease their youngsters into the league. However, that hasn't stopped Kadri from having a good season. He's got 11 goals and eight assists in 31 games, and he's put 94 shots on goal. The quick math can tell you that's about three shots per game, and he's on pace for 249 shots on net. That's a little lower than last year, but still a good number, and he's on pace for his a 50-point season. He may not have the flashy upside of a Matthews or Marner, but that's also probably why he's available in a lot of leagues.
