The fantasy hockey regular season is starting to wind down and some deeper leagues are already into their playoffs. The Pittsburgh Penguins are the only team in the NHL with just 14 regular-season games remaining, while there are six teams with 18 games left to play.
We’ll focus, not only on trading for players who are great values but also players who might be able to give you a few more games of production down the stretch.
NHL Fantasy Hockey Trade Advice (Week 21)
Buy
Gustav Forsling heads into Saturday with 16 games remaining, so that’s key. He also heads into the weekend with zero points in the past seven games, which has been hurting his current fantasy managers.
The 28-year-old veteran rearguard is still on target for 11 goals with 27 points and a stellar +40 rating, which is key if you’re in a pool that rewards or penalizes that category. The reason to pick up Forsling is two-fold.
First, the remaining schedule, as he has 16 games heading into Saturday, although you must act quickly, as the Panthers have a back-to-back against the Montreal Canadiens and New York Islanders on the road this weekend.
Two, he has that tremendous plus/minus rating, which will serve you well down the stretch. Florida is a Stanley Cup contender and will keep its foot on the gas down the stretch, trying to get the playoffs to go through Sunrise in its pursuit of a repeat championship.
Travis Sanheim has gone ice-cold in the past 10 games, going without a point with a -4 rating during the skid. The slide comes at the most inopportune time of the season for fantasy managers, too.
The rearguard is worth scooping up, though, especially if you can get him for a low cost. He is on pace for a respectable seven goals and 33 points. It wouldn’t take much to get him to 35 points, which would be tied for the second most in his career. Sanheim is especially useful in fantasy leagues that do not penalize plus/minus ratings.
Sanheim has a -10 rating, which doesn’t figure to get much better with the Flyers scuffling down the stretch toward another non-playoff finish. He’ll head into the new week with 14 more regular-season games to play after Saturday’s game with the Carolina Hurricanes. He also has a four-game week coming up, if that helps with your interest.
Sell
OK, the 24-year-old Belarussian winger has 28 goals and 58 points with a +38 rating. You can stick it out with him and nobody would blame you. And, if you’re in a dynasty pool, certainly hang onto him. However, in redraft leagues, you might be able to flip Protas for a huge return to bolster your roster down the stretch.
The Capitals have just 16 regular-season games remaining. Heading into the new week, it will have 15, including three from March 17-23 and three from March 24-30. If you can flip him for a guy with a couple of four-game weeks coming up, that’s important to think about, too.
By the time Protas has a four-game week from March 31-April 6, you could be done already. He has managed five goals and seven points with a +8 rating in the past four games, including a hat trick at Anaheim on Tuesday. Highlight that in your negotiations, even though you know he was gifted the trick thanks to an empty-net goal. Alex Ovechkin could have easily scored the empty-netter, but he gave it to Protas so he could get his first-career NHL hat trick.
Rickard Rakell and the Penguins face the New Jersey Devils on Saturday afternoon, meaning the team has just 13 regular-season games remaining, the fewest of any NHL team. Rakell caught fire in March, going for five goals and nine points with a +2 rating.
Rakell has a power-play goal and an assist on the man advantage. It’s time to flip him to another team, as he isn’t going to be useful to most fantasy managers in weekly formats. He has three consecutive three-game weeks coming up, too, so if you can find an option who has a four-game week or two coming up, you’re increasing your chances considerably in weekly formats.
Rakell is on pace for a career-high 36 goals and 70 points, with seven power-play goals and 17 points on the man advantage. Use that fact to your advantage in trade talks and grab a younger player, especially if you’re in a long-term keeper format.
Joe Williams is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Joe, follow him @WinWithJoe.
