Every week I write an article where I recommend players I think are worth adding or dropping in fantasy leagues, but because of the recently passed NHL trade deadline, I’m going to do something different this week. Instead, I’ll be going over some of the most noteworthy players who were dealt at the deadline who I think will be positively or negatively impacted by the trades they were involved in.
I’ll evaluate noteworthy players from the most recent trades first and work my way backwards.
• NHL Trade Deadline tracker
• PHT Trade Deadline Live Blog
Louis Domingue: Devils to Canucks – Domingue has left plenty to be desired this season with a 3.79 GAA and .882 save percentage in 16 games. Those numbers are terrible under any circumstances, but it obviously didn’t help that the Devils squad in front of him has been bad. He was put on waivers on Feb. 20th and sent to the minors upon clearing, but Vancouver ended up acquiring him because Jacob Markstrom is expected to miss the next three-to-four weeks due to a lower-body injury. Thatcher Demko is the de facto starter during Markstrom’s absence, but Demko isn’t having a great season, so Domingue should get an opportunity to start in some games with Vancouver. Domingue doesn’t have much fantasy value, but this trade certainly helped him.
Barclay Goodrow: Sharks to Lightning – Goodrow was the most surprising player to fetch a first-round pick. He has eight goals, 24 points, and 80 penalty minutes in 62 games this season while averaging a career-high 16:23 minutes. I don’t see him playing as big of a role with the Lightning as he did with San Jose, which is probably going to hurt his already limited offensive production. He’s currently minus-eight though and the move to San Jose should help him there. Overall, I see this trade as a wash or a slight negative for Goodrow from a fantasy perspective.
Robin Lehner: Blackhawks to Golden Knights – Lehner has a 16-10-5 record, 3.01 GAA, and .918 save percentage in 33 contests this season, but that’s with a pretty bad team in front of him. The move to Vegas should be a significant boost for him – when he plays. Which begs the question: How often will he play in Vegas? Marc-Andre Fleury isn’t having a particularly good season so there’s a good opportunity here for Lehner to grab the starting gig and run with it. If you’re hurting for goaltending help, then Lehner isn’t a bad one to take a chance on. He’s far from a safe bet to start regularly, but there is a chance of him having a really strong finish to the campaign thanks to this trade.
Andreas Athanasiou: Red Wings to Oilers – Athanasiou is having a rough season with 10 goals and 24 points in 46 games, but the move to Edmonton could be a huge boost for him. The speedy winger could be a great fit for Connor McDavid and if that proves to be the case, then he’ll do much better offensively. At the very least his plus/minus, which sits at a hideous minus-45, should be far better in Edmonton. Athanasiou is among those who benefited the most from the trade deadline and I’d take a chance on picking him up if he’s available in your league.
Patrick Marleau: Sharks to Pittsburgh Penguins – Marleau doesn’t have much fantasy value to begin with at this point, but this trade doesn’t do him any favors in that regard. He has 10 goals and 20 points in 58 games while averaging 15:36 minutes. With Pittsburgh he’s likely going to play a reduced role as part of a crowded bottom-six. It wouldn’t be surprising if Marleau ends up playing primarily on the fourth line.
Jean-Gabriel Pageau: Senators to Islanders – I’m fairly pessimistic when it comes to Pageau. He was probably playing over his head to begin with – as evidenced by his career-high 17.8 shooting percentage – and this trade stacks the odds against him further. Keep in mind with Ottawa he was leaned on heavily, averaging 19:18 minutes per game, but he won’t get that level of responsibility with the Islanders. On the plus side, he has far more to work with in New York than he did with Ottawa, but I still think this trade will result in him taking a moderate hit from a fantasy perspective.
Ilya Kovalchuk: Canadiens to Capitals – This one is perhaps the biggest roll of the dice just because of how inconsistent Kovalchuk has been. He had an incredible six goals and 12 points in his first 15 games with Montreal and followed it up with just an assist in his next seven contests. He was similarly inconsistent with the Kings before that. The move to the Capitals will put Kovalchuk on a contender and unite him with Alex Ovechkin, which should be a boost to his spirits, but Kovalchuk will be asked to be more of a role player with the Capitals than he was with Montreal, which gave him an average of 18:54 minutes. I’d lean towards saying that this trade will diminish Kovalchuk’s fantasy value, but I certainly think his situation will be worth monitoring over the next couple games.
Ondrej Kase: Ducks to Bruins – I think there’s potential here for Kase to do better with Boston than he did in Anaheim. Kase practiced alongside David Krejci and Jake DeBrusk in his first practice with Boston, which is a significant upgrade over his recent Ducks linemates of Sam Steel and Max Jones. Kase had seven goals and 23 points in 49 games with the Ducks and he has the potential to finish the campaign on a high note after this trade.
If you’re looking for fantasy hockey information, Rotoworld is a great resource. You can check the player news for the latest information on any player and insight into their fantasy outlook.
Every week Michael Finewax looks ahead at the schedule and offers team-by-team notes in The Week Ahead. I have a weekly Fantasy Nuggets column where I basically talk about whatever’s captured my attention that week. Gus Katsaros does an Analytics columns if you want to get into detailed statistical analysis. If you’re interested in rookies and prospects, there’s a weekly column on that written by McKeen’s Hockey.