The Fantasy Hockey season is slowly ending, so we must start making some tough decisions. At this point of the year, it’s about finding players on the NHL waiver wire report that can produce. 

Fantasy hockey injuries for those on the NHL injury report for Week 21 may become season-ending, but that doesn’t mean all the hard work from the start needs to be lost. Let’s take a look at some names that we need to keep an eye on for the upcoming fantasy week, both on the NHL injury report for Week 21 and the NHL waiver wire report.

 

 

 

Fantasy Hockey Week 21 Injury Report

Roope Hintz - Dallas Stars - Face

Roope Hintz left Saturday’s game after taking a puck to the face and didn’t return. He was also unable to suit up Sunday against Vancouver. 

The injury doesn’t seem serious, but the team may elect to give him some extra rest to make sure he returns at 100%. We’ll wait for another update from the team, but there’s a good chance he returns to action this week.

Patrik Laine - Montreal Canadiens - Illness

Montreal Canadiens forward Patrik Laine was unable to suit up against Calgary due to illness and his status for their next game is still undecided. 

This isn’t the first time Laine has missed time due to illness, but the hope is that he can return at some point during the roadtrip. The Habs failed to score a goal in that game he missed, so they are hoping he can return sooner rather than later.

Dougie Hamilton - New Jersey Devils - Lower-body

The Devils are already without Jack Hughes for the remainder of the season and now Dougie Hamilton is expected to miss at least a week due to a lower-body injury. 

The veteran defenceman hasn’t played since March 4th and the team was active at the deadline, adding Brian Dumoulin and Dennis Cholowski. This doesn’t give fantasy owners much confidence, so we’ll need to wait for another update next week and see if he’s making any progress.

 

 

 

Victor Hedman - Tampa Bay Lightning - Lower-body

Victor Hedman was a late scratch on Saturday against Boston and the team is calling him day-to-day. The Lightning captain was on the ice for warmups, but the team decided that he wasn’t healthy enough to play. 

Could it be the team exercising extra precaution for their best player? Probably, but we’ll need to wait for another update to make sure this isn’t more than just a one-game absence.

Connor Ingram - Utah Hockey Club - Personal

Connor Ingram has entered the NHLPA Players Assistance Program and will be away from the team indefinitely. He did come out and post a message to fans, saying that he is still dealing with the loss of his mother earlier in the year due to breast cancer and that he needed to take time to work on his mental health and get better. 

We never want to see a player struggling like this, so we wish him the best in his recovery and hope he can return to action when he is ready.

 

 

 

Fantasy Hockey Week 21 Waiver Wire

Logan Stankoven - Carolina Hurricanes - Yahoo!: 27% owned

Logan Stankoven was part of the deal that sent Mikko Rantanen to Dallas and he’s going to get every chance possible to establish himself as a top player. The kid scored a goal in his first game and added two shots on goal. 

He saw just over 15 minutes of ice time, which isn’t a ton, but you have to expect his usage will increase as the season winds down. He’s a great add to any fantasy hockey team trying to make a push for the playoffs.

Dylan Cozens - Ottawa Senators - Yahoo!: 37% owned

Sticking with young players in new places, Dylan Cozens was traded to Ottawa as part of the Josh Norris deal and is hoping a fresh start will be able to reignite his career. He joins a team in the hunt for the playoffs and he needs to contribute if the Sens want to hold onto one of the two final playoff spots. 

Cozens is only 37% owned in Yahoo! leagues, so there’s a decent chance he’s still on the waiver wire in your league. We know it’s been difficult for him this season, but we also know he can rack up points and that’s a gamble worth taking.

 

 

 

Jean-Gabriel Pageau - New York Islanders - Yahoo!: 14% owned 

With Brock Nelson now in Colorado, a spot on New York’s second line has opened up and Jean-Gabriel Pageau is going to get the first crack. He racked up three points in the first game without Nelson and played close to 19 minutes. 

The Islanders are a terrible hockey team with a horrendous power play, but the increased usage and the fact they are still in a playoff hunt is enough for me to consider adding him in deeper formats.

Vitek Vanecek - Florida Panthers - Yahoo!: 7% owned 

It was only one game, but Vitek Vanecek was very good against Buffalo. He’s stopped all 21 shots he faced and backstopped his team to a 4-0 victory. His numbers in San Jose were not very good, but with an excellent defensive group in front of him, he’s going to be able to string some strong performances together. 

Playing time down the stretch may be an issue, but the Panthers want to make sure they don’t overwork Sergei Bobrovsky and seeing how well Vanecek played, maybe they give him a few more starts than anticipated.