2018 Fantasy Hockey: Waiver Wire Report -- Week 2
Published: Oct 14, 2018
The NHL season is in full swing and that means fantasy hockey is as well! It’s a long grind to get to the playoffs and an even tougher challenge to win it all. Like every year, injuries are going to happen to key players, which means we need to be active on the waiver wire. The waiver wire can help you win a championship, so it’s important to add the right players at the right time. Let’s take a look at which players are worth adding for the upcoming week.
Paul Byron - Montreal Canadiens - Winger
This isn’t a homer pick. Outside of Carey Price, Paul Byron has been one of the best players for the Habs this season. There’s no question he has speed, but he’s also able to score goals and pick up some points. He’s 19% owned on Yahoo! and only 9.2% on ESPN. He’s not getting any power play time, but he is seeing time on the penalty kill, so if your league rewards you for SHP/SHG, Byron can be an asset. He’s not a sexy add, but he’s a good candidate to help fantasy owners stay afloat while injuried players are out.
Kasperi Kapanen - Toronto Maple Leafs - Winger
The Toronto Maple Leafs are the hottest team in the NHL thanks to Auston Matthews. For some reason, nobody seems to care that Kasperi Kapanen is playing on the top line with the hottest player in the league. He’s 10.6% owned on ESPN and 30% owned on Yahoo! He’s not getting any power play time, but as long as he’s on the top line, he’s going to pick up points. One day the Leafs will come back down to earth and cool off, but right now, Kapanen isn’t just a depth player, he’s fantasy relevant.
Elias Lindholm - Calgary Flames - Winger
For whatever reason, Elias Lindholm is only 45% owned on Yahoo! and 28.3% owned on ESPN. That’s absurd for a player who’s playing on the top line with Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan. The 23-year-old has six points in four games and is averaging just over 20 minutes a game. He should be close to 75% owned on both sites, so if he’s still lying around on the waiver wire, scoop him up!
Jeff Petry - Montreal Canadiens - Defence
Once again, this isn’t a homer pick, but Petry is literally the best defenceman the Habs have on the ice. He plays a bunch of minutes every night and is on the top power play unit. His ownership is below 30% on both sites, so if you didn’t draft him in your league, you should at least pick him up till Shea Weber comes back. He’s only got four points on the season, but he’s getting opportunities, which is what we are looking for in fantasy hockey. You can never have too many defenceman on your fantasy team, so pick up Petry and wait for him to get hot.
Thomas Chabot - Ottawa Senators - Defence
Only 54.7% owned on ESPN, Chabot has had a pretty solid start to the season, collecting eight points (2G, 6A) in five games. As far as defencemen go in Ottawa, he’s the only fantasy relevant option. He’s not going to be able to maintain this pace, but he may be able to surpass the 45-point mark by the end of the season, which isn’t too bad for a player who went undrafted in a lot of leagues. Let’s buy into the hype now and see what he does over the next couple of weeks. At worst, he becomes and excellent sell-high candidate to someone in need of points from the blue line.
Joonas Korpisalo - Columbus Blue Jackets - Goalie
It’s no secret that head coach John Tortorella wants to give Korpisalo more games but just how many more games is what fantasy owners want to know. Bobrovsky got absolutely demolished by the Tampa Bay Lightning in his last start and how has a 4.39 GAA and a .860 SV%. It’s still early in the season, but Korpisalo already has two wins and he’s going to challenge Bobrovsky for that starting job. Is this a long term solution? No way, but for fantasy purposes, it’s always good to have goalies who are hot and starting games, including backup goalies. If you have a deep bench and you can hold onto Korpisalo for a few weeks, he’s worth the risk.
Jack Campbell - Los Angeles Kings - Goalie
You don’t need to be a genius to figure this one out. He’s 51% owned on Yahoo! but only 10.8% on ESPN. That’s a crazy huge gap for a goalie that isn’t that terrible. With Jonathan Quick on IR and “week-to-week”, Campbell is going to get every chance to lead this team. The Kings aren’t a power house team, but they are still a pretty good hockey team. Campbell picked up his first career shutout earlier this week against Montreal and has a nice .938% SV% on the season. If the Quick owner in your league hasn’t already added Campbell, make sure to pick him up!
Player News
The Athletic’s Paul Dehner Jr. thinks that if Jermaine Burton “can straighten out and shift from headache to reliable, there are roles available.”
The Bengals exited the draft without adding receiver help, and Andrei Iosivas was more reliable than spectacular in his second season. Dehner Jr. notes that Burton went through “two evictions, trouble with the law, missed meetings, missed practices, being left off a road trip and healthy scratches” and said Burton is “lucky to even have this opportunity.” The 2024 third-rounder was seen in the building all week during draft weekend and this is likely a make-or-break year for him. He’s not a must-hold in dynasty at this point, but he retains upside.
Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Vincent Bonsignore believes Jack Bech is “a strong candidate to be an immediate starter” for the Raiders.
Often compared to Puka Nacua in the draft process, Bech probably will start out behind Brock Bowers and Jakobi Meyers in the pecking order for the Raiders. But being an instant starter in a room with no long-term fixtures could make him an interesting best ball dart throw, especially with the quarterback upgrade the Raiders added in Geno Smith. We would not be surprised if Bech were in the fantasy WR3/FLEX conversation towards the back half of the season.
Houston Chronicle’s Jonathan M. Alexander does not project John Metchie III to make the Texans 53-man roster in 2025.
After Houston added Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel in the draft, the wideout depth chart is getting a little crowded. Alexander had the Texans keep six receivers, and Metchie is projected to be squaring off with Xavier Hutchinson, Braxton Berrios, and Justin Watson for the final two jobs behind Higgins, Noel, Nico Collins, and Christian Kirk. Metchie may be a trade candidate at the roster cutdown entering the final year of his rookie contract. He’s still only 25, but has cracked 50 yards just once in a game in his career.
Chiefs exercised their fifth-year option on EDGE George Karlaftis.
Karlaftis will receive a $15.1 million salary for 2026, indicating that he is a core piece for the Chiefs and someone who they may have extension talks with as the season draws near. Karlaftis has 18.5 sacks in 32 games over the past two seasons. We’d classify him as more good than great, as he posted a career-high 69.8 PFF grade in 2024, but he clearly wins enough to be part of the reason the Chiefs defense is stout.
ESPN’s Rob Demovsky reports the Packers and CB Jaire Alexander “continue to talk about a possible resolution” to Alexander’s contract dispute.
“All options are still on the table: release, trade or return,” Demovsky added. The oft-injured Alexander, 28, has reached a stalemate with the Packers front office, which has reportedly tried to trade the veteran corner this offseason. The Packers would save $6.8 million in cap space by parting ways with Alexander, graded last year by PFF as the NFL’s eighth best cover corner. It appears he could stay in Green Bay after all.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports the Chiefs will pick up CB Trent McDuffie’s fifth-year option.
The move will cost the Chiefs $13.6 million in 2025. It’s a no-brainer considering McDuffie has been among the league’s most reliable corners for the past few years. Pro Football Focus in 2024 graded McDuffie as the NFL’s fifth best cover corner as he had two interceptions and 13 passes defended for the solid Kansas City secondary.