NHL Player News
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Elias Pettersson C | VAN
Canucks' Elias Pettersson: Four-game, six-point scoring streak
Pettersson had two helpers Saturday in a 4-3 victory over the Senators.
Ten of Pettersson's 15 points have come in his last seven games; it includes four goals and six assists. And he's on a four-game, six-point scoring streak (two goals, four assists). Pettersson still has a long way to go, but it looks like he's put his early-season malaise behind him. He needs to pick up his shot pace, though. With 40 shots in 19 games, Pettersson is on pace for just 170 shots, a significant drop from 207 last year and 257 the one before that. He's converting at about the same rate as he always has, which means he might fail to hit 30 goals for the first time in four seasons.
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Dante Fabbro D | CLB
Blue Jackets' Dante Fabbro: Pots goal Saturday
Fabbro scored a goal, blocked three shots and went plus-2 in Saturday's 5-4 shootout win over the Hurricanes.
Fabbro is up to two goals and two assists over six appearances since the Blue Jackets claimed him off waivers from the Predators. The 26-year-old defenseman has been able to hold a top-four role in Columbus after being a frequent scratch in Nashville. Those four points account for all of his offense through 12 outings this season, and he's added 17 shots on net, 10 hits, 17 blocked shots and a plus-3 rating. Fabbro has at least short-term appeal in fantasy, especially with a fairly favorable run of opponents over the next 10 days (Montreal, Chicago and Calgary twice).
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Dmitri Voronkov LW | CLB
Blue Jackets' Dmitri Voronkov: Nets power-play marker
Voronkov scored a power-play goal on three shots, blocked two shots and went plus-2 in Saturday's 5-4 shootout win over the Hurricanes.
Voronkov has four goals and two assists over his last five games. He took a little time to settle back in after missing October with an upper-body injury, but he's all the way back now. The Blue Jackets have an interesting composition of forwards, with offense spread across three lines, so Voronkov could be an option in some fantasy formats. He has seven points, 23 shots on net and an even plus-minus rating through 11 appearances.
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Jack Eichel C | LV
Golden Knights' Jack Eichel: Another multi-point game
Eichel scored a goal on three shots and had two assists in Saturday's 6-2 win over the Canadiens.
Eichel helped Vegas to blow open the game, recording assists on two of the five goals the Golden Knights scored during the second period. He later put the nail in the coffin with his seventh goal of the season with just under two minutes left. This was Eichel's 10th multi-point effort, in which he has 21 of his 32 points. He became the fastest player in Vegas history to reach 30 points. For the season, Eichel has seven goals, 25 assists, nine hits, 17 blocks, four PIM and a plus-10 rating.
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Kirill Marchenko RW | CLB
Blue Jackets' Kirill Marchenko: Tallies twice in shootout win
Marchenko scored two goals on four shots in Saturday's 5-4 shootout win over the Hurricanes.
Marchenko ended his five-game goal drought with an unassisted goal in the first period. He also sent the game to overtime with a third-period marker. The 24-year-old winger has been consistent and occasionally explosive on offense -- this was his seventh multi-point effort in 20 contests. Marchenko has eight goals, 12 assists, 51 shots on net and a plus-9 rating while filling a top-line role.
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Kiefer Sherwood RW | VAN
Canucks' Kiefer Sherwood: Four-game, five-point streak
Sherwood had a goal, an assist and 10 hits Saturday in a 4-3 win over Ottawa.
His goal stood as the winner. Sherwood pounced on a loose puck in the crease at 8:41 of the third period and drove it past Linus Ullmark to push the score to 4-1. He's on a four-game, five-point scoring streak that includes three goals, 11 shots and a whopping 30 hits. Sherwood has been a great fantasy surprise this season -- he has six goals, five assists and a league-leading 125 hits in just 19 games. That's gold in leagues where muscle still counts.
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Keegan Kolesar RW | LV
Golden Knights' Keegan Kolesar: Strikes in win
Kolesar scored a goal on three shots and had two hits in Saturday's 6-2 win over the Canadiens.
Kolesar was in the right position to take advantage of a rebound after Montreal goalie Sam Montembeault was unable to close his glove around the puck. It was the sixth goal through 21 appearances for Kolesar, who is scoring at a 23-percent clip and is poised establish a new career high (eight goals). The second-line winger has nine points, 26 shots, 70 hits and 14 PIM.
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Jake DeBrusk LW | VAN
Canucks' Jake DeBrusk: Huge three-point effort in win
DeBrusk had two goals and an assist in a 4-3 win over Ottawa on Saturday.
His first was a tip on the power play late in the first period to put the Orcas up 1-0. DeBrusk then put his team up 3-1 in the second with a sweet deke on the backhand around Linus Ullmark's outstretched left pad on a rush. Vancouver has been a great fit for DeBrusk, who has 13 points (five goals, eight assists), 35 hits and 36 shots in 19 games. That's a 56-point pace, which would be a career mark if he can continue at this rate.
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Elvis Merzlikins G | CLB
Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Escapes with shootout win
Merzlikins stopped 32 of 36 shots in Saturday's 5-4 shootout win over the Hurricanes.
Merzlikins let three separate one-goal leads slip away, and Jackson Blake put the Hurricanes ahead 4-3 at 13:23 of the second period. That lead nearly lasted to the finish, but Kirill Marchenko saved the day by tying the game with 1:06 left in regulation. Merzlikins handled the rest, getting through overtime and stopping all three shootout attempts to earn his fourth straight win. In that span, he's been a little shaky with 13 goals allowed. The 30-year-old netminder improved to 6-5-1 with a 3.08 GAA and an .894 save percentage through 12 starts. He's the no-doubt starter for the Blue Jackets right now, and he'll likely get the nod for Wednesday's home game versus the Canadiens.
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Tanner Pearson LW | LV
Golden Knights' Tanner Pearson: Burns former team
Pearson scored a goal on one shot and had one hit in Saturday's 6-2 win over Montreal.
Pearson scored the Golden Knights' third goal in a stretch of 2:17 minutes midway through the second period to blow open the game against his former team. The goal was the fourth (20 shots) for the fourth-liner, who snapped a nine-game drought without a tally.