NHL Waiver Watch: Wednesday Edition
Here's a look at three players to target on waivers in season-long fantasy hockey:
C Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Senators
The injury to Senators' C Kyle Turris has done wonders for Pageau's overall fantasy value. He's now centering Ottawa's second-line in between sniper Mark Stone and gritty winger Zack Smith.
Pageau is currently riding a six-game point streak where he has scored three goals and dished out five assists while averaging 19:12 of ice-time - including the power play and penalty kill. During his current tear, Pageau has registered 14 shots on goal, eight hits, seven blocks and four PIMs, making him a must-add in leagues that count those secondary statistics.
Turris isn't expected back anytime soon. While the Senators didn't make any moves at the trade deadline to solidify the center position, coach Dave Cameron must be comfortable moving forward with Pageau as his second-line center, who should be added in deep rotisserie and head-to-head leagues.
D Dmitry Kulikov, Panthers
Despite his January point-less drought, Kulikov has found some offensive magic over the last five games, tallying five assists while skating alongside Aaron Ekblad on the Panthers' blueline.
In that five-game span, he has also averaged 21:38 of ice-time and filled the secondary statistics columns, racking up 14 blocked shots and 10 hits. He's a great fill-in for this upcoming week if you have John Carlson. Kulikov is scheduled against teams that rank nowhere near the top-10 in goals against average.
LW/C Tomas Hertl, Sharks
The Sharks are ranked top-5 among NHL teams in goals per game, and the majority of that success has come from the first-line of C Joe Thornton, RW Joe Pavelski and Hertl.
He's still highly available in the majority of season-long fantasy formats, and as he begins to heat-up, owners should take note and grab him off the wire. Hertl is a perfect addition in head-to-head leagues if you need help in plus-minus and shots on goal, as he has skated to a plus-6 his past five outings while firing 18 shots on goal.
He's tallied four points in his last five games and with a friendly schedule in his favor, he's a perfect rental for the next week if you are in need of help.