The Fantasy Hockey Weekly Planner is the essential guide to setting your lineup for the upcoming week. Every week, we provide you with top matchups, the latest news and give you the scoop on injured players.
Projections are for Jan. 14-20 games and all stats are through Saturday.
Teams with four games: Anaheim, Atlanta, Columbus, Dallas, Edmonton, N.Y. Rangers, Ottawa and Toronto.
Teams with three games: Boston, Buffalo, Calgary, Carolina, Colorado, Chicago, Detroit, Florida, L.A. Kings, Montreal, New Jersey, N.Y. Islanders, Nashville, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Phoenix, San Jose, Tampa Bay, Vancouver and Washington.
Teams with two games: Minnesota and St. Louis.
Teams with three home games: New Jersey, Phoenix and Washington.
Teams with three away games: Anaheim, Columbus, Edmonton, Florida and Los Angeles.
Teams with four away games: None.
Teams with back-to-back games in the upcoming scoring period, which means that a backup goalie might start one of the two contests: Anaheim, Atlanta, Boston, Buffalo, Calgary, Carolina, Chicago, Columbus, Dallas, Edmonton, Florida, Los Angeles, N.Y. Islanders, N.Y. Rangers, Ottawa, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Tampa Bay and Toronto.
On tap: Week 16 brings us seven nationally televised games in either the United States or Canada: Montreal at N.Y. Islanders (U.S.) on Tuesday; Calgary at Minnesota (CAN) on Wednesday; Los Angeles at Calgary (CAN) on Friday; Buffalo at Toronto (CAN) on Saturday; Los Angeles at Vancouver (CAN) on Saturday; Boston at N.Y. Rangers (U.S.) on Sunday; Anaheim at Dallas (U.S.) on Sunday.
| F A N T A S Y S P I N S |
The biggest news of the week comes out of Ottawa where it was announced that superstar Dany Heatley will be sidelined up to six weeks with a shoulder injury. The former Thrasher separated his right shoulder during Saturday's win against the Red Wings. He crashed into the boards in the second period and squashed the aspirations of Fantasy owners everywhere. Expect the Senators to look to Antoine Vermette or Mike Fisher to jump up to the top line alongside Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson. Also, Randy Robitaille is a real sleeper in this equation. The Senators have wanted more from the free-agent pickup all season and this is the perfect opportunity for him to shine. ... The Capitals made the right move by signing superstar Alex Ovechkin to a long-term deal, and do we mean long term. Ovechkin agreed to an extension that will pay him $124 million over 13 seasons. The 22-year-old Russian was in the final season of a three-year, entry-level deal. Ovechkin continues to lead the Capitals in scoring and will now be the cornerstone of the franchise for years to come. For those Fantasy owners who think this deal with make Ovechkin complacent, think again. This is the same player that edged Sidney Crosby for the Calder Trophy (top rookie) in 2005-06 with 52 goals and 54 assists. He will be a star in the NHL for the next decade and will be a top Fantasy performer. ... Flyers forward Joffrey Lupul is expected to miss at least two weeks because of a spinal cord contusion and mild concussion. It would be very surprising to see him back in the lineup before January ends because teams are starting to be very careful with players that sustain concussions. It's unfortunate Lupul might miss considerable time. Lupul has been one of the Flyers' best players since netting hat tricks twice in a span of three games from Dec. 11-15. Even when he does return to the lineup, it might take him some time to get his legs back. ... Former Red Wings enforcer Darren McCarty began the road back to the NHL when he signed with the Flint Generals of the IHL Jan. 8. McCarty has not played in the NHL since 2006 and spent most of last season recovering from hernia surgery. It would not be surprising to see a contender ink McCarty to a deal later this season, but his Fantasy impact will be minimal. Fantasy owners shouldn't be stashing him away. ... Welcome back Mikko Koivu. The Wild center returned to action Friday after spending nearly two months on injured reserve with a broken leg that came via a two-handed slash by Canucks defenseman Mattias Ohlund. Koivu played on the top line Friday against the Blackhawks with Brian Rolston and Mark Parrish. It might be only a matter of time before he is reunited with Marian Gaborik, but Wild head coach Jacques Lemaire already said that Pavol Demitra will not play on the same line with Koivu. Demitra is not happy at all. He is a much better player as a wing on the same line with Koivu than as a center on his own line.
Three Stars of the Week
Corey Perry, RW, ANA: The third-year forward is quickly becoming an offensive threat for the Ducks. He already has a career-high 23 goals, but what is really surprising is that he has sent home 10 power-play scores. Perry went through a mini-slump with just an assist in three games from Dec. 29-Jan. 2. He has since managed multiple-point outings in three of his last four games. He has three goals, including a power-play tally, and four assists in that span. Perry hasn't spent a minute in the penalty box in five January games and that will only help keep his offensive game fresh.
Craig Rivet, D, SJ: The Sharks have been dying for consistent play out of their defensemen, and it seems as though Rivet has stepped up to the challenge. He has scored four of his five goals this season in the last six games. He has a four-game points streak brewing with three goals and two assists in that span. He has been moved to the top defensive pairing for the time being, and the former Montreal Canadien should stay there as long as he produces.
Antero Niittymaki, G, PHI: Niittymaki has been a star for the Flyers since late December. He reeled off four straight wins which began with a shutout of Florida Dec. 30. He finally took an overtime loss Saturday against the Bruins and now will likely give way to Martin Biron once again. However, Niittymaki has been as much of a Fantasy star in net as Ty Conklin. He is 3-0-1 in January with a 2.24 GAA. We might as well give him his Fantasy props now because it might be the last time all season.
| F I V E T E A M S W I T H F A V O R A B L E M A T C H U P S | |||||||
| The following five teams have the best matchups for the upcoming week. That doesn't necessarily mean they will post the best Fantasy stats, but if you're looking for a one-week start or are trying to make a difficult decision between two players to use, lean toward players from these teams: | |||||||
| Team | 1/14 | 1/15 | 1/16 | 1/17 | 1/18 | 1/19 | 1/20 |
| Edmonton Oilers | -- | LA | -- | @WAS | @CAR | -- | @ATL |
| Edmonton averages just 2.42 goals per game, but this upcoming week provides a chance for the Oilers to boost their offensive numbers. They play four of the worst defensive teams in the NHL. Washington ranks 25th in GAA (3.02), Carolina is 26th (3.17), Atlanta is 27th (3.24) and Los Angeles is 29th (3.33). | |||||||
| Ottawa Senators | -- | @WAS | -- | CAR | -- | TB | @PHI |
| The loss of Dany Heatley is huge, but the Senators are still a solid offensive unit. How can they get over the loss of Heatley? By playing a favorable schedule to keep their confidence high. We already touched on the Capitals and Hurricanes shortcomings on defense, but Tampa Bay has the NHL's worst GAA (3.40) and are struggling in net with Johan Holmqvist and the rookie Karri Ramo sharing starts. The only downside here is for goalies Martin Gerber and Ray Emery because all four of the Senators' upcoming opponents have top 15 offenses. We could see some high-scoring affairs on the horizon. | |||||||
| Calgary Flames | -- | @NSH | @MIN | -- | LA | -- | -- |
| Calgary loves playing on the road and for two of their upcoming games they travel. The Flames are 12-7-1 away from home and own the top GFA (3.35) in the NHL when playing on the opposition's home ice. | |||||||
| Colorado Avalanche | -- | @TB | -- | -- | CHI | -- | CLB |
| The Avalanche end a five-game road swing Tuesday against the Lightning and then return to the Rockies for a five-game homestand that begins Friday against the Blackhawks. Colorado is one of the worst road teams in the NHL (7-12-3), but thrive playing in the thin air (16-6-0). They have scored 75 goals in 22 home games, and this is exactly what struggling stars Paul Stastny, Milan Hejduk and Andrew Brunette need. | |||||||
| Montreal Canadiens | -- | @NYI | -- | @ATL | -- | PIT | -- |
| Montreal is 5-1-2 in their last eight games and have been scoring at will. They have scored four or more goals in six of those games and have totaled 33 goals in the eight-game span. The Canadiens are the fourth best team scoring on the road (3.08 GFA) and fourth overall in the NHL (3.05). | |||||||
| F I V E T E A M S W I T H P O O R M A T C H U P S | |||||||
| The following five teams have the worst matchups for the upcoming week. That doesn't necessarily mean you should reserve every player from these teams, but try to avoid less-heralded performers from these squads if you have a better alternative: | |||||||
| Team | 1/14 | 1/15 | 1/16 | 1/17 | 1/18 | 1/19 | 1/20 |
| New Jersey Devils | -- | -- | NYI | -- | FLA | -- | TOR |
| The Devils have been one of the best teams in the NHL as of late. They are 8-2-0 in their last 10 games and head home for three games where they are 13-5-0. They play solid defense at the Prudential Center, but their offense is a little suspect. They have scored 46 goals in 18 home games for a 2.56 GFA. Martin Brodeur is a must-start Fantasy option for the upcoming scoring period, but the remaining New Jersey players are a bit risky. | |||||||
| Columbus Blue Jackets | -- | VAN | -- | @PHO | -- | @DAL | @COL |
| Columbus opens the week with a showdown against Roberto Luongo and the Canucks, who currently sit second in the Northwest Division with a 24-16-4 record. Then the Blue Jackets head on the road for three straight games where they are just 6-12-2. That's because they are just averaging 2.30 goals per game in 20 road games through Saturday. | |||||||
| Florida Panthers | -- | -- | @PHI | -- | @NJ | @WAS | -- |
| Florida is another team that doesn't fare well on the road. They are at .500 (11-11-1), but rely heavily on defense when away from South Florida. They have the 28th ranked road offense (2.26 GAA). All-Star Tomas Vokoun will have to be on top of his game to give Florida a chance to win two of three on the upcoming road trip. | |||||||
| Los Angeles Kings | -- | @EDM | -- | -- | @CGY | @VAN | -- |
| The Kings opened January with six home games. They went 3-3-0, but scored a whopping 25 goals. We don't mean to sound like a broken record, but too bad they can't experience that kind of success on the road. Los Angeles has the worst road offense in the NHL (2.16 GFA) and start a three-game road trip Tuesday against the Oilers. They end with games against Calgary and Vancouver. Matchups against Miikka Kiprusoff (22-13-8, 2.85 GAA) and Roberto Luongo (20-13-3, 1.99 GAA) are not very favorable. | |||||||
| Minnesota Wild | -- | -- | CGY | -- | ANA | -- | -- |
| The Wild have just two games in the upcoming scoring period and will square off against two Western Conference foes. The Flames and Ducks have combined to go 12-4-4 in their last 20 games. We might see some high-scoring affairs, but both Calgary (Kiprusoff) and Anaheim (Jean-Sebastien Giguere) have steady hands in net as well. | |||||||
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