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swissboyhisch · 1 year

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That Scar Hurt By The Way

Pairing: Nikita Zadorov x Reader

Summary: In a world where everyone has a soulmate link, you happened to luck out with a pain link.

Word Count: 1424

Warnings: None I think. It is an AU though.

Request: From ANON I need soulmate and or were! fics so bad any player!😍😍🥞🥞

THE MASTERLIST JOIN THE TAGLIST HOCKEY DISCORD

Soulmates. A term used to describe two people who were meant to be with each other. Can be used platonically but more common when referring to romantic relationships.

No-one knows when it began but these days, people were born with a link to their soulmate. There were different links you could have. Marks shared by the two. Person A draws on themselves and it appears on person B. One is singing/listening to a song and the other can hear it. Some have a measure of how much danger their partner is in.

You were born with the pain sharing and matching scars link. Growing up, you’d have random bruises popping up on your body. At random points through the years, you’d feel bursts of pain before the bruises arose. They became more frequent in your later teens and early adulthood. And more painful.

There was one instance in particular that you vividly remember. 7th of November 2019. You were going about your day, teaching one of your grade 10 classes, when you felt something hit you in the face. Your hands flew to your lip. The pain was extensive.

“Miss!” One of the girls shouted as the class watched you hunch over.

“Are you okay?”

You worked up the courage to pull your hands away from your jaw. Blood. And a lot of it. “I–”

“I’m going to get Miss Allen.”

Julie, one of your students, helped you to your desk and handed you the trash can. The pain became too much. Vomiting despite trying to hold it in. Your students whisper, worried about you. The sound of heels rushing to your class made you groan.

“Okay guys,” Lily, your colleague and close friend, called. She clapped her hands to gain the class’ attention. “Can you please make your way next door to Mrs. Harrison’s class. She knows you are coming. Hurry please.”

Lily made her way over to you, towel in hand. You looked up at her. “Hi.”

“Hey, you look like you took a puck to the face,” She jokes.

You hold the towel to your face wound and give her a glare. “Thanks.”

“Let’s get you to the hospital,” Lily states. “I have Hayley covering my class. And Nick is coming to pick up your class.”

15 stitches later and some strong medication helped you push through. That’s the day that won't leave your mind. You now have a permanent scar over your chin and lip that you try to cover daily. Makeup has become your best friend. Since then you have struggled with your self image. Men would cringe away, disgusted, when they saw the scar.

Despite your quite obvious soulmate link, it was years after that event that you had met him. Nikita Zadorov. A Russian NHL defenseman for the Calgary Flames. Six foot five. Brown hair. Chocolate brown eyes.

You moved to Canada to teach recently. Better pay. Calgary to be precise. And one day at the end of the school year, you had to cover for a PE class. You were told it was going to be an easy cover since there were a couple guests coming to talk to the grade 10 group. A couple of hockey players. Sure, you had watched hockey but not to a crazy extent. The class though… excitement. It was all they have been talking about for weeks. God forbid having these students after this period.

“I have your guests here,” One of the office ladies called as she entered the gym.

In walked three guys wearing Calgary Flames merch. You smile, offering your hand and name.

“Tyler Toffoli.”

“Jacob Markstrom.”

Then he stepped forward. I mean it was hard not to notice him. But the first thing that caught your eye was the scar on his jaw. One that happened to match yours. “Nikita Zadorov.”

“Hi…” Before you could shake his hand or say anything else the students started coming in. “Guys come sit down and you’ll get to talk to them at the end of class.”

“And signatures?” One of the boys asked.

“Yes. And signatures.”

You got to sit at the back watching over the students and observing. You needed to find out more about the tall defenseman. Without you noticing either, Zadorov kept glancing at you. The class finally got to question time where they were firing off all types of questions, about hockey, about the team. But one piqued your interest.

“How did you get that scar?” One of the students asked Zadorov.

The man chuckled, “I got a puck to the face back at the start of the 2019-2020 season.”

Thanks to his words, you were thrown back into that memory. The pain. The healing process. You were basically 100% sure he was your soulmate. But there was one way of confirming it. Pain. A pinch to your arm. Nothing too extreme but it was enough to make him jump in surprise. One that you noticed.

The bell rang, indicating the end of the period and the start of lunch. The students finally left, and you went forward to thank them for coming in. They were staying for the last period to talk to another class, but you wouldn’t be covering.

“Thank you for today. The kids loved it,” You hummed. “It was an honour.”

“I don’t want to be annoying, but do you have a scar on your lip?” Toffoli asked.

It caught you out. Too nervous to say anything. “I mean yeah, I got it years ago. Puck to the face. You know the drill.” You didn’t mean to say the puck bit, but you couldn’t think of any other excuse. Bloody Lily and her joke.

“Same as me,” Zadorov smiled.

“Yeah…”

“Soulmates,” Markstrom grinned.

Zadorov pinches himself without you realising. You didn’t jump but you rubbed where he pinched. “You are my soulmate.”

“I think so… That scar hurt by the way.”

Neither of you could believe it. Your soulmate.

“Can I see it?” Zadorov asked shyly. He remembered how badly it hurt. To know you also felt it. God that hurt him more than the actual injury. “The scar I mean.”

You guided him to your class where you could have the conversation in private. The other two dropped off at the staff room for some lunch. You sat down at your desk and pulled out your makeup wipes. Using your phone camera as a mirror, you wiped off your makeup covering the scar.

“May I?”

After agreeing, Zadorov’s hand comes to cup your jaw. Sparks filled your bodies, the soulmate touch. So gentle. Lightly ghosting your skin. His thumb grazed the scar. The dented lines across your lips and down your chin. One scar matching his.

“I’m so sorry,” he whispers, feeling his heart break once more.

When it first happened, he was aware that his soulmate was experiencing this at the same time. The pain accelerated because of this knowledge. Every time he looked in the mirror, he imagined what it would look like on another person. His soulmate. But to finally see it on them, the pain returned. He did this to you.

You smile softly, “It’s okay.”

“15 stitches,” he muttered.

“7th November 2019.”

Zadorov, still cupping your jaw, leaned in. Pressing his forehead to yours. “Tell me about it.”

“I was teaching back in Anchorage. End of the day. A grade 10 class. They’re probably scarred for life. Just feeling that sudden pain, hunching over covering my lip and jaw. But that pain had me vomiting. My friend had to take me to hospital. She even made a joke that it was like I took a puck to the face.”

“Well, you did,” Zadorov offers, “Kind of, anyway.”

Your class door opened and there stood your favourite colleague with Toffoli and Markstrom behind her. “When they said Zadorov had met his soulmate and it was the PE teacher, was a little shocked thinking it was Mr. Paulson for a hot sec.”

“Yes Big Z,” Toffoli grinned, messing with the defenseman’s hair.

Zadorov pushed his teammate away with a roll of his eyes. “Leave us alone.”

“Can’t do sadly, bell is about to go so we have to head to the gym.”

You got an expectant look which made you shake your head. “I’m not covering for the next class. I have one of my own.”

“Can I see you after?” Zadorov asked.

“I hope you’d want to,” You laugh.

“Out of all the soulmate links to have, we have this. But I’m thankful it’s you.”

TAG LIST:

@findapenny @mp0625 @hischierhaze @11zegras @lvrzegras @francesfarhadi @cixrosie @daisysthings

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puck-bunny-for-all · 4 days

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Momma and Papa of the Year - B.B

@bboeser : thank you for giving me 3 of the best gifts of my life, a partner, a best friend, and momma ❤️‍🔥

tagged : @mrs.boeser

location : her heart

_quinnhughes : i dont miss the hormonal version of yn but I do miss watching her struggle to get up. 🤡

↪ mrs.boeser : that's a bit rude of u to say but I miss watching you get high sticked @_quinnhughes🤡🤡🫷🏻

↪ bboeser : I just try to be a cute husband and y'all are fighting in my comments smh

zadorov_16 : glad to be a part of your wild American journey 🫨

mrs.boeser : I love you so much you mean everything to me❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

eliaspettersson : when can I babysit again !?

↪ mrs.boeser : quite literally never again 😬

↪ bboeser : love u Petey but gotta agree w the mrs 😬😬

kuzya_096 : AHHH MY FAVORTIE AMERICAN COUPLE благословенная семья ( blessed family )

tdemko30 : oooo I see a future goalie in my sight🤩

↪ bboeser : where, not here, future right wing in our house.

dakotajoshua8 : 👶🏻👶🏻👶🏻

ilyamikheeve66 : alexa play 'baby' by beibs

arturssilovs1 : I agree with @tdemko30 , looks like a future goalie. 🤩

lindholmelias : and I WASS LIKE BABY BABY BABY OOOOO

colemcward : mom and dad gave me a sibling 🫨

↪ mrs.boeser : who tf told u I was ur mom😤🤨

↪ colemcward : dad did @bboeser

↪ bboeser : it may have slipped when I was drunk 🤫

_tylermyers_ : come over my kids wanna playdate!

connor.garland8 : 'nucks favorite parents 💙💚💙

@mrs.boeser : thank YOU for being the best partner and dad EVER. I love u so so so so so much baby ❤️‍🔥

tagged : @bboeser

location : his heart

connor.garland8 : still the 'nucks fav parents💙💚💙

_tylermyers_ : why does he think those sunglasses look good🙅🏻

↪ bboeser : bc they do u dweeb 😤

colemcward : so ur un adopting me ? 🫨🫨

↪ mrs.boeser : I NEVER ADOPTED U IN THE FIRST PLACE COLE🤬

bboeser : my favorite momma 💙💙💙

lindholmelias : how do I get me a father Brock?

↪ mrs.boeser : YOU dont I do 😏

arturssilvos1 : still a future goalie 🥅

↪ mrs.boeser : GET OUT OF HERE WITH THOSE LIES

ilyamikheeve66 : маленький брок (mini brock)

↪ mrs.boeser : WOT

dakotajoshua8 : 👶🏻👶🏻👶🏻

kuzya_096 : my American mom🇺🇸🇺🇸

↪ mrs.boeser : WHY DO YOU ALL THINK IM YOUR MOM?!?!

↪ kuzya_096 : bc u are even if you dont admit it 🇺🇸

eliaspettersson : can I babysit if im supervised? 🤨

↪ mrs.boeser : by whoM!?

↪ eliaspettersson : @_quinnhughes

↪ mrs.boeser : FUCK NO

↪ _qunnhughes : that's rude 🤨

zadorov_16 : looks just like Brock

A.N :

I had to pre-write a bunch of A.N in the drafts I have bc I NEVER remember to do them lololol, any who im gonna take me a lil break and read some stuff and then I might be back in a little if I dont fall asleep putting my daughter to bed lol. I ALSO DARE SOMEONE ELSE TO HIGHSTICK QUINN ILL KILL U.

Tags : @lukey-pookie-hughes43 and @skylershines and @quinnylouhughesx43

#hockey #nhl #nhl imagine #nhl players #instagram edit #vancouver canucks #brock boeser #quinn hughes #thatcher demko #connor garland #arturs silovs #tyler myers #elias pettersson #nikita zadorov #Andrey kuzmenko #ilya mikheeve #elias lindholm #cole mcward

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wehaveagathering · 5 months

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flyers @ canucks 12.28.23: bobby brink getting in the way >:)

im sooooooo not over that game last night. it's the 5'8"-9" bobby brink little bitty check on 6'5" nikita zadorov to get joel farabee the puck for a breakaway for me. all he had to do was just bump right into him, not that much really, then get joel the puck and bam!! third goal in 2:06.

so zadorov is coming thru from the D zone, right? and it looks like he's planning to deke around brink or - something. actually not really sure what he was planning here, he couldn't have passed to myers bc brink was in the way, so probably just using the NINE FUCKING INCHES he has on bobby to just overwhelm him and hopefully get the puck past the red line. anyway, it clearly doesn't work. if you look close you can see that the blade of bobby's skate aligns with the blade of zadorov's stick where he has the puck on the forehand, and it just knocks it away from him, and he follows that with just staying in zadorov's space and not allowing him the full 6'5" range of motion that he has to get the puck back while he sweeps around for it with his stick. this ofc allows bee to grab it and make a break for it. then you can see AGAIN after farabee has the puck just a tiny little moment where brink gets in zadorov's way again and zadorov loses his balance, during which farabee gets a couple strides in over the blue line and into his breakaway. loved loved seeing this barely-a-check from bobby as he uses his size to his advantage against these huge opponents. really fucking smart play and it makes me SO excited to see his career unfold bc he's got two more years with us. imagine what this play could look like in two years!!!

#flyers #philadelphia flyers #bobby brink #joel farabee #hockey analysis #my stuff

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pucksonnet · 20 days

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Northern Lights and Oilers Victorious in Vancouver - Game 2 (PON Post Game)

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Canucks fall 4-3 to the Edmonton Oilers in overtime to an anti-climactic goal that bounces in off Ian Cole, who continues to have the worst series imaginable.

Arash and Ryan break down the questionable officiating, missed calls and the the treatment of Edmonton and Vancouver's captains. They look at the positives, the return of Petey's scoring touch and Nikita Zadorov continuing to dominate the series.

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eberles · 3 years

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Nikita Zadorov is a dirty as fuck player. He’s also anti-gay. But go off.

“but go off” imagine assuming people were just born with all knowledge of dirty players? lmao must be nice to be you and just be graced with all info the world could give you

#wtf it’s 8 am hop off my dick #asks

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thevezinamonologues-blog · 6 years

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K but what are your thoughts on the softest dad imaginable Nikita Zadorov, because I can't even 💖💖💖

ok y’all just KNOW ME and my MIND because I’m bein hit with that A+ Dad Content this evening.

He’s a Dad. He’s Russian. He’s tall.

All things that have me drooling.

Like I have a HUNGER.

wOW.

Not to be NSFW but I want him to snuggle me softly (maybe after rawing me until I can’t feel my extremities but who’s counting)

Ask me hockey things for NSFW night!

#nzadorov #colavalanche #sin bin #tystrawbarrie #answered

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andrewuttaro · 4 years

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New Look Sabres: GM 28 - NJD - Birthday Wish

7-1 Win

The Buffalo Sabres are normally on the receiving end of tremendous beatings, at least for the last decade or so. Last night we got a rare taste of what it was like destroying a team by a lacrosse score line. It was something else. Less than seven minutes into the first period it was probably over. I was thinking about the future of several players careers… Devils players! The consensus on Sabres twitter seems to be this game came at just the right time. This club had the roughest of Novembers but had the points in the bank from October to make up the difference. They spent all those savings and as Thanksgiving came and went they began to find their footing again. After a promising home-and-home with the Leafs a convincing win to solidify the gains of a decent stretch of games was needed. A convincing win that was in fact a win in regulation against a team you should handle. New Jersey came knocking asking if we remembered the Home Opener. Whether it was the 50th Anniversary jerseys or 1970s figures present at the game that jogged their memory, the Buffalo Sabres remembered. That game, the second one of this season, was a rout. But this rout makes that rout look like herding cats. When I said this game was over in seven minutes earlier, I mean it was pretty well over in seven minutes. But before we pile on the Devils I thought I’d share with you some thoughts I had about some great players on their roster whom this game made me feel for. Will Butcher: you passed up Buffalo for what you thought would be better. It was for a time but here we are. PK Subban: I love you bud… but this game showed that scary trend is real. Your advanced numbers are garbage, I hope your next destination helps out. Wayne Simmons: Dude, please don’t retire after this. You deserve better than this awfulness. Taylor Hall: well… huh… we both know you’re not going back to Edmonton. When you go win a Cup with Colorado this June please don’t pass the Cup to Nazem Kadri or Nikita Zadorov. For some reason Sabres twitter loves to roast itself during that part of the Final and those two guys minus well be BBQ Chefs. Let’s get down to business.

The Buffalo Sabres came out aggressive. Yeah, I say that a lot here in the second paragraph of postgame; but this time the New Jersey Devils also came out aggressive, AGGRESSIVELY BAD! The Sabres had two goals before the Devils had a shot on goal. That’s right: let me clear my throat played twice before Linus Ullmark was even tested. To be exact the shots were 3-0 Buffalo five minutes in and that was good for a 2-0 lead. Unreal, right? The first goal was right after a Sabres powerplay ended and Jack Eichel was all alone in front of Louis Dominque and just tapped it against the guys pads. It trickled in and everyone was surprised. Hardly two minutes later New Jersey just could not make a clean zone exit and Jeff Skinner had the puck one-on-one with a now annoyed Dominque. Skinner tucked it in far side with a quick little slapper and there are your two goals against zero shots. Up next, not even two minutes later, Jeff Skinner’s third or… whatever non-numbered line we’re calling it, hauling Larsson and Sheary behind like a Christmas tree on a punch buggy mind you, pull off a goal you are more likely to see in the All Star game when all the guys are just trying trick shots they joked about in college then in a real NHL game. Jeff Skinner skates into the zone backwards with speed because the Devils did not know what they were doing in their own zone and crosses the gut of the ice like a figure skater to shoot the puck backwards at the net. That shot didn’t go in because this isn’t a video game, Jeff. However Louis Dominque blocked it with a pad and the resulting rebound was punched in by a Conor Sheary halfway onto his ass. It’s now 3-0 and I think this was the part where Dominque got pulled. No that wasn’t until the first intermission.

After goal three John Hynes and the Devils coaching staff took a time out to try and stop the bleeding. They did for a little bit. It was about ten minutes later when the Devils had finally figured out this shots on net thing but were still giving up D-Zone turnovers juicer than a holiday ham. Conor Sheary just takes a pot shot from a shite angle and Dominque gets his stick glove on it sending it up in the air. Carter Hutton must have watched this play on the bench thinking he’s not alone anymore. The puck goes straight up, and Dominque even watches a little bit of it’s hangtime. Then it just lands in the goal behind him like a letter delivered by a carrier pigeon. What a game already: its 4-0. Sheary skates the bench in celebrating with a “Idk, it just went in” look on his face. All you Monday night folks who paid for the cheapest Sabres tickets of the season so far got your money’s worth and more. But wait, there’s more! We’re in the last minute of the first period. Folks are filing up the stairs to get to the pisser before others and what happens. Casey Mittelstadt just dumps a puck off to Rasmus Asplund in the offensive zone and Asplund just goes “whatever” and one times it like he’s friggin Alex Ovechkin. It went in: 5-0 because this was Buffalo’s night evidently. That was Asplund’s first NHL goal. The kid who just got called up because of injuries and looked like an NHLer gets rewarded faster than maybe any other recent callup. And so the first period ends… *laughs in disbelief* 5-0 Buffalo.

This game was Founders Night. They had family of the Knox Brothers, the founders of the franchise, in attendance for a pregame ceremony. Apparently there was a giant birthday cake and birthday guard. Fun trivia: 50 Years ago on December 2nd the NHL formally granted Buffalo an expansion franchise. The club wouldn’t get named the Sabres for a little over five months but that’s a birthday even if there wasn’t a name. Perhaps the birthday wish was for lots of goals because 5-0 in the first period was not the end by a longshot. Three minutes into the second period PK Subban and Colin Miller have a little spat and the resulting penalties make it 4-on-4. I don’t know how to put this for children: Victor Olofsson sent a puck to heaven. Olofsson unleashed a slapshot that may soon be outlawed by the Geneva Conventions. The broadcast team didn’t know it went in until the horn went off. Ben Mathewson did a 60 frames per second (fps) replay of the goal and there isn’t really more than a couple frames between the slapshot and McKenzie Blackwood realizing the puck had gone in. It was the hardest goal any Sabre has shot this season. 6-0 Sabres and I really want to apologize to the Devils fans in attendance. This had to be embarrassing. I am so sorry. It wouldn’t be a shutout though guys. Zemgus Girgensons got called for tripping and New Jersey made the most of the powerplay when Nico Hischier sauced in a rebound past Linus Ullmark. 6-1 Sabres, the shutout is gone but the Devils are still angry evidently: Casey Mittelstadt is tripped by Kyle Palmieri, the ref blows it against him and before Mittelstadt is up Palmieri launches the puck at him in a temper tantrum. Mind you the Devils are now out-shooting the Sabres 2 to 1 but the Sabres are locking it down. This was the performance we needed. This was our birthday wish for the Sabres. The Sabres made Palmieri and the Devils pay for that trip and Henri Jokiharju fired a laser from the blue line to make it 7-1 for the home team. At this point we just crossed the halfway point of the game. Buffalo has scored a touchdown and Josh Allen didn’t even throw for it. This game was so good 71-year-old Mike Robitaille was telling 51-year-old Rob Ray that advanced stats are just splendid on the broadcast. It was a savagely beautiful disarming of the trap Ray had set. The Sabres were dunking on the Devils and Boomers were dunking on Boomers about advanced stats. This was such a wildly fun game we’re going to look back on it in two weeks and think it was some collective dream we had.

And it seemed meant to be like some kind of fairy tale! The third period had its scary moments, a couple Devils powerplays and a handful of defensive lapses for the home team but the end result never really seemed in question. Buffalo won in regulation 7-1. This game was everything. Jack Eichel’s point streak continues, he now has 38 points in 28 games on pace for a 111-point season. If he doesn’t make the all-star team we can rightfully conclude this league is rigged against Buffalo. Victor Olofsson probably deserves to go as well. Not only is he scoring at 5-on-5 now but he is leading the team in multi-point games; yes even more than Eichel. Friggin Johan Larsson had a career night: he got three points in a game, all on assists, for only the second time in his career. Think about every shocked or mother-of-god meme you got: that was this game. It was memeable! I can’t imagine they dominate like this every night but like, comment and share this blog to join the fun. Sabres After Dark returns Thursday night for a game in Calgary. I want some revenge for the Thanksgiving Eve myself but by that point my end-of-semester crunch week will be winding down, so I’ll probably settle for just some enjoyable sex puns. I got a pair of those oven mitts they gave away for the Thanksgiving Eve game, let’s hope the Sabres stay hot so I need them! Let’s Go Buffalo!

Thanks for Reading.

P.S. I don’t think the Bills catch New England for the division but let’s just savor the fact they’re one game back and that such a scenario is a realistic possibility at all. Just enjoying being a fan, I don’t think they catch em either but I’m going to enjoy this well it lasts!

#buffalo sabres #Hockey #NHL #blog

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fiveonfir3 · 4 years

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Four Thoughts: Something In The Way

1. My summary of Igor Shesterkin’s first NHL start since I was in the building Tuesday night. I may have mentioned it on here months ago and I’m too lazy to read back and look for it... I was at MSG for Shesterkin’s preseason appearance and in warmups, he looked pretty nervous, not technically sound, etc. Typical what you would expect for a rookie goalie getting his first taste at NHL action. Tuesday night’s game was different. He looked pretty comfortable in warmups. Slightly interesting thing I noticed; Nikita Zadorov gave Shesterkin a tap on the pads in the middle of stretching. I was trying to see if they were teammates at one point in Russia considering they are the same age. Also, when not in net or stretching, Shesterkin was casually skating back and forth on the red line. Not sure if that’s his usual warm-up routine or just shaking out nerves. Igor mentioned post game that the game didn’t go the way he envisioned it. Maybe in a weird way, JT Compher scoring early helped ease the nerves a bit but it wasn’t until the third period where he really began to settle in.

2. It’s going to take some getting used to the difference between Hank’s mannerism’s in net compared to Igor’s. Shesterkin has a fabulous glove hand. He’s not afraid to reach out for the puck like a first baseman would waiting for a throw across the field. I can’t imagine we’re going to see Igor heading a lot of pucks away. Lundqvist has said previously that he would never stick his glove in front of his helmet to make a save and that’s why you see him head pucks away all the time. Shesterkin, on one save I believe during an Avs power play had no problem doing this. The Ranger goalie is also going to be a one man breakout on NYR power plays of their own. His stretch pass to Kakko early on drew a significant reaction from the fans as if that’s something they’ve never seen a NYR goalie do ever. He’s a shiny new toy that’s been wrapped up in a box for years and years and Ranger fans got to open that gift Tuesday night. Igor is going to get every opportunity to succeed at this level and he’s off to a good start.

2a. Last thing on Tuesday’s game. I’ve been to hundreds of NYR games in my life and the Lindgren hit on Donskoi was the hardest check I’ve ever seen live. The thud echoed loudly in the building. And as I’m typing this, the NHL Dept. of Player Safety ruled no supplemental discipline will be handed down.

3. Time to start looking ahead towards the NHL trade deadline which is incredibly just 6 weeks away in this rapidly moving NHL season. It was reported recently that the Rangers haven’t officially made Kreider available and that could be taken as a sign that the Rangers are still looking to sign him to an extension. I know it’s an extreme long shot, but I genuinely wonder if Kreider would be open to signing a one year deal since the Rangers are going to be severely strapped for cap space if the upper limit doesn’t go up significantly next season. Kevin Shattenkirk’s dead cap charge goes up to 6 million next year and the Rangers are going to have to find a way around that. After the end of next season, with the team as is now, $32 million dollars in cap space will be freed up and allow the Rangers to re-sign their RFA’s which include Buchnevich, Chytil and Howden up front as well as Lindgren and Hajek on the blueline. Shesterkin’s contract would be up too and I can’t imagine NYR not giving him a healthy raise provided he continues on this course towards becoming the next franchise goalie. Kreider would be given a nice bump with term just as NYR become significant threats to come out of the East. The biggest question in the extreme short term... what to do with Georgiev?

4. I’m not going to go too far down the Lias Andersson rabbit hole in this column since it I did that in my last one, but it’s worth noting that Andersson in interviews from Sweden, is citing mental health problems as reason for leaving Hartford. After radio silence for a couple weeks, NYR president John Davidson released some of his findings. JD said he couldn’t find anything that would potentially lead Andersson to believe he was grossly mistreated which is significant since the league has since come down with a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to the treatment of players after some misconduct with other coaches around the league. JD also said he tried to reach out to Lias himself to no avail, but they have been talking to his agent. So we’re at an impasse. Per Bob McKenzie, NYR have taken phone calls on Andersson and would pull the trigger if the right deal came along. Even for a team that’s still below water when it comes to playoff positioning, this is too much of a distraction to allow to go on too much longer. It wouldn’t surprise me if Andersson made it through the trade deadline still technically as a Ranger but at some point at or around the draft, this saga needs a conclusion.

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thrashermaxey · 6 years

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Ramblings: Seguin, Bergeron, Girard, Faulk, Perry, and More – August 21

There are only 10 days left in August – where does the time go? – and that means training camp isn’t very far away. Get a jump on your fantasy league mates with the 2018-19 Dobber Hockey fantasy guide! There have been recent updates and it will continue to be updated. There are line projections, points projections, peripheral projections, and lots of articles to peruse. Head to the Dobber Shop and grab your copy now!

The fan vote for the top-20 wingers in the NHL might look a little odd. There’s a reason for that:

oh my god i’m a monster pic.twitter.com/6Q82KRbJcJ

— Mr Booth (@MrBooth_7) August 20, 2018

The Habs acquired Hunter Shinkaruk yesterday from the Flames in exchange for Kerby Rychel.

Both players were second-half first-round picks back in 2013. Shinkaruk has 79 points in his last 132 games in the AHL. He had 32 points in 63 games for Stockton last year. Rychel has 94 points in his last 144 games in the AHL. He had 30 points in 55 games in his last full AHL season.

If these guys weren’t first-round picks five years ago, would this be news? Maybe either gets a brief look in the NHL, especially Shinkaruk given the lack of talent throughout the bottom-6 for Montreal, but this isn’t worthy of much more ink spilled fantasy-wise.

Last week, on Friday, I posted a Ramblings featuring one player from each team that, as of that moment, I would probably be drafting more than most people. As stated in that Ramblings, a lot of it is a function of ADP and value. There may be a player from a certain team who’ll be a sixth-round pick and returns fifth-round value. That’s solid. There may also be a player from that same team who is a 16th-round pick and returns 11th-round value. That is also a good return. Both are players I’d want on my roster, but I only get to pick one, and it’ll probably be the guy in the 16th round because I imagine fewer people will target him.

It’s time for the flipside and go through players I will be avoiding. The players listed may change over the next 4-6 weeks. Role, injury, demotion, and perhaps even a trade are all factors, not to mention where their actual ADP lands. These are also just skaters (no goalies) and we’re assuming 12-team leagues using Yahoo standard format.

I’m going to do half the teams (or just over half) today and the other half in my next Ramblings. It takes more space to describe why a guy shouldn’t be drafted than why he should.

Anaheim – Corey Perry

There has been a lot of work done on aging curves so we know Perry is on the downswing of his career. We also know that passers age better than shooters, and shooters better than snipers. At this point in his career, with his shot volume, Perry would need to be a sniper. Remember that Jarome Iginla had a 30-goal, 60-point season and three years later couldn’t crack 30 points. I’d rather draft Ondrej Kase.

Arizona – Alex Goligoski

To his credit, he does have five consecutive 35-point seasons, one of 15 d-men to have such a current streak and the rest are generally considered fantasy blue line cornerstones. The problem is he got there last year with the help of 12 goals, shooting 25 percent on the power play; he hadn’t cracked double-digits on the PP since 2010-11. He also shot 8.6 percent at five-on-five, a career high. Once those crash, even a modest rebound in his secondary assist rate won’t help on a team still devoid of scoring in the bottom-half of the lineup.

Boston Bruins – Patrice Bergeron

In leagues with face-off wins, he’s still in the top tier. But like Perry, Bergeron is 33 years old. He’s also coming off a season where he posted a career-high shooting percentage. It’s not that I dislike Bergeron in fantasy, that is not the case at all. But at his age, I’d prefer to target a younger player in a similar situation in a similar draft range. That means someone like Jack Eichel or Aleksander Barkov.

Buffalo Sabres – Rasmus Dahlin

This is completely ADP related. He is NHL.com’s 17th-ranked defenceman and Yahoo’s 26th. Last year, Alex Pietrangelo was the 18th-ranked defenceman in Yahoo’s standard setup and Erik Karlsson was 28th. That should give readers an idea of the fantasy expectations levied on an 18-year old defenceman playing for a team that ranked last in 2017-18 in goals and has no clear path to top PP minutes. Hard pass.

Calgary Flames – Sean Monahan

Years back, I was low on Monahan and things haven’t really worked out well for me since. All the same, he is coming off a litany of injuries and surgeries including, but not exclusive to, wrist reconstruction. The thing is, he’s not a huge shot volume guy, he doesn’t contribute hits, and plus/minus is always a concern. He’s limited in the fantasy game, which isn’t what I want from a guy who’ll probably be drafted in the fifth or sixth round.

Carolina Hurricanes – Justin Faulk

Faulk had 19 power-play points last year. How many does he have this year with Dougie Hamilton in town? There’s the possibility they move to a three-forward PP unit but I’m not betting on it. This is a situation where the PP points are going to dry up and even a rebound in shooting percentage (the opposite of Goligoski) isn’t going to be enough. Then there’s always the issue with their goaltending and the ensuing plus/minus.

Chicago Blackhawks – Duncan Keith

The uncertainty of Corey Crawford’s health and ability to start the year is a big concern here. They need him if the guy who’ll be heavily used, like Keith, are to sustain anything nearing a respectable plus/minus. Add the lack of hits and goal scoring and he won’t be able to contribute positively in half the categories. Count me out.

Colorado Avalanche – Samuel Girard

This one is tough because outside of the top of the lineup, Tyson Jost, Tyson Barrie, and possibly Erik Johnson, I’m not drafting other players off the roster in this format anyway (well, maybe Nikita Zadorov as well depending how deep the league is). I wanted to add Girard more as a caution for others. The team signed Ian Cole and still have both Patrik Nemeth and Zadorov. Girard likely ends up on the third pair again and won’t get top PP minutes.

Columbus Blue Jackets – Alex Wennberg

Not drafting Wennberg given how cheap he’ll be is kind of obvious but it’s just a factor of his complete inability to produce anything other than a good amount of assists and possibly plus/minus. He won’t contribute in goals, shots, power-play points, or hits. When a player can only produce in 2/6 categories, and half the categories in which he could contribute is plus/minus, it’s a clear sign to just avoid. He’s a much better real-world player than fantasy player.

Dallas Stars – Tyler Seguin

This isn’t to disparage Seguin. I’ve written in the past on how I think he’s kind of underrated in the fantasy game even though he’s been incredibly consistent since donning the Stars uniform. Seguin, though, lost his multi-position eligibility. He’s only available as a centre now. If I don’t get the first overall pick, and can’t get Auston Matthews, centre is a position I’ll wait to draft. This is more a function of my draft strategy than trying to downplay Seguin’s production.

Detroit Red Wings – Filip Zadina

Before everyone yells at me, I will say this is assuming Henrik Zetterberg doesn’t play this year or is largely ineffective.

Should Zadina crack the roster, he’ll be, at best, on the second line. We have to concern ourselves with his potential line mates and the ability to get to the top PP unit. They might not split units again if Zetterberg isn’t around. I absolutely love the long-term prospects for Zadina but for 2018-19, I do worry about his usage and his team context.

My caveat is that if his ADP comes in around the top-200 rather than the top-150, I’ll have more interest.

Edmonton Oilers – Leon Draisaitl

If the assumption is that Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is going to be on the top line with Connor McDavid, that locks Draisaitl to the second-line centre role. He is not a guy who contributes across the board; the shot volume will be about average for a 12-team league, the hits won’t be there, and plus/minus will be a concern on that team. Though he’ll be drafted lower than last year, he will probably still be around a top-50 pick. At that ADP, a player should be able to contribute to at least four out of six categories, hopefully five. He will probably only contribute in three. Unless his ADP falls closer to the seventh round, I won’t be drafting him.

Florida Panthers – Evgeni Dadonov

I’ve gone on at length about Dadonov this offseason. My assumption is that he’ll be pushed off the top PP unit and though he didn’t rely on PP production last year, that’ll be a small ding, and there are other red flags. These Ramblings last month cover my thoughts on Dadonov for 2018-19.

Los Angeles Kings – Anze Kopitar

Kopitar is going to be a top-25 pick, which puts him likely in the second round of a 12-team league. Last year, he posted career highs in goals and assists, a four-year high in shots, and an eight-year high in power-play points. Despite all that, he finished just inside the top-20 players in a standard Yahoo setup. In other words, he will probably be drafted at his ceiling, and that is a very easy way to lose value on a draft pick. I’d rather wait and grab a different centre as mentioned in the section on Patrice Bergeron, or just someone from a different position like Vladimir Tarasenko or Artemi Panarin.

Minnesota Wild – Nino Niederreiter

In the fantasy game, Niederreiter reminds me a lot of Brandon Saad: better than he gets credit for, hasn’t hit his true fantasy ceiling, and coming off about as bad a year as you can expect. The difference is that Niederreiter will be drafted several rounds ahead of Saad. Earlier this month I wrote of the potential for the Swiss Superman to be pushed down the lineup not because of poor play but just the desire to spread the scoring to the third line. Combine that third-line role with a lack of top-end PP minutes and it’ll be another year of Niederreiter’s usage preventing him from reaching his true fantasy potential, or even just exceeding his likely ADP.

Montreal Canadiens – Carey Price

Good goalies can only overcome so much. Goaltenders are heavily dependent on the team in front of them for success, both in wins and goals against average. Even save percentage. Sometimes there are seasons where goalies have very good fantasy years on bad teams: Antti Raanta last year, Craig Anderson the year before, and Semyon Varlamov in 2013-14 come to mind. They are the exception, not the rule, and I don’t want to have to rely on Price to be the #1 goalie on my fantasy roster. If he slides to the #2 range, then I’ll consider.

I know I said I wouldn’t include goaltenders, but like Raanta, Anderson, and Varlamov, there are sometimes exceptions to the rule.

Those are the first batch of players I will be avoiding from each team. The rest will come on Thursday. Feel free to disagree in the comments. Let’s get some hockey talk flowing here as we lurch towards the end of the offseason.

I will also have the results of my very first mock draft of the season in my Ramblings for Friday. This mock draft happens Tuesday night and features fantasy writers from across the industry. I’m looking forward to sharing the results with fellow Dobberheads.

from All About Sports https://dobberhockey.com/hockey-rambling/ramblings-seguin-bergeron-girard-faulk-perry-and-more-august-21/

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swissboyhisch · 1 year

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My Jersey

Pairing: Nikita Zadorov x Reader

Summary: After a little rain comes sun... And thunder. Thunder in the form of a six foot five Russian defenseman.

Word Count: 1389

Warnings: Shitty Bruins fans, harassment, some puck bunny comments, borderline sexual harassment, but also hinted sexual stuff at the end!

A/N: I love Zadorov and there is NOTHING on him anywhere. He's so cute as well. Easily the best dressed player in the league. Have you seen him in those suits... WOW. If anyone has any fic recs for him... PLEASE SEND THEM TO ME! Or even just to talk about him, feel free to send in something or message me. I'm always happy to discuss him.

THE MASTERLIST JOIN THE TAGLIST HOCKEY DISCORD

You, adorning your Zadorov jersey, shuffled along the rows of the Saddledome. You had a glass ticket that was next to the penalty box for the Flames. But for now, it was time to watch their warm-ups like many of the other fans. Around you was a large group of older Boston Bruins fans already in their seats. The way they were eyeing you made you nervous. The Flames players skated out for warm-ups skating past where she now stood.

“What are you? Some kinda puck bunny?” Someone questioned from behind you. At first, you weren’t paying attention, but a tug on the back of your jersey pulled your eyes away from warm-ups. “Hey Zadorov slut.”

You turned to them after them tugging hard enough to cause you to stumble back into the seat behind you. “I’m just a fan, can you please stop?”

“What’s the accent, huh, sweetheart?” One of the other older guys questioned.

“Leave me alone please.”

The grey-haired guy wouldn’t let go of the sleeve of your jersey. Even though you struggled and pulled. The last thing you wanted to do was ruin the brand new Zadorov jersey. No-one around them was coming to your aid. You looked around, hoping someone would help you cause it was like he wasn’t stopping. A loud sound from behind you startled them. The guys doing the harassing looked past you. You turned to see the 6’5” Nikita Zadorov standing against the glass glaring at the group.

“Don’t touch her,” He shouted, slamming his fist against the glass.

They seemed to listen to the Flames defensemen because they didn’t speak to you for the rest of the warmups. At the end of the 15 minutes, Zadorov came over with a puck in his glove. He smiled and pointed to you. He chucked it over the glass. You flipped the cold puck over in your hand, the Flames logo staring up at you. The kids nearby got excited but were sad when you caught the puck. One thing you hated was seeing the sad kids and there was one girl that stood in front of you that was also wearing a Zadorov jersey.

“Here you go sweetheart,” You smiled, passing her the puck.

The young girl got so excited jumping up and down and holding it out to show her parents standing nearby. You smiled and laughed as the kids were all bouncing at seeing a Flames puck up close. By the time you looked up from the kids, the team had skated off the ice and back to the changerooms.

“Thank you for that,” A woman’s voice spoke up.

You smiled at the girl’s mother. “It’s all good.”

Everyone started moving to their seats after warm-ups ended. After buying a coke from one of the food stands, you moved to the opposite side of the arena and found your glass seat. Right next to the penalty box. You watched on as the stadium filled with fans becoming the ‘Sea of Red’. Something that was exciting to witness for yourself. It wasn’t long before the teams returned to the ice ready for puck drop. You were ready to watch the Flames win.

Marchand knocked into Markstrom making the ref call goalie interference. But that wasn’t enough. You watched as Zadorov skated to drop the gloves with Marchand. 6’5” vs 5’9”. Not exactly fair but that didn’t matter to a defensemen protecting his team. He screamed something in the Bruin rat’s face as he shoved him away from the crease.

“Get him!” the guy beside you shouted.

The ref stopped and sent them both to the sin bin. You watched as Zadorov skated to the one right beside you. He was pissed off and helmetless from the fight. He looked… sweaty. And sexy. He caught your eye and smirked at you. Whether he remembered you from before the game or not didn’t matter.

Calgary came onto the ice, waving thank you to the fans still in the crowd. The final score was 5 to 3 with Flames winning. Each player had something they were throwing to the fans. Some had pucks, t-shirts or hats. Many kids were back down against the glass but you just stood at your seat. Making sure to take pictures before you leave.

Zadorov spotted you in the crowd once more. Paying no mind to the people around you. He grabbed a puck and skated across the ice. Standing before you, he held up the puck once more and made sure you knew to keep it. After you nodded he flicked it over the glass.

You flipped the puck over in your palm again. Just like before the game. This time, on the other side of the puck, was an instagram handle. One that you didn’t recognise written in silver marker.

“Me?”

Zadorov smirked and nodded. Tyler Toffoli bumped into him, the pair sharing a laugh. The other members of the team were heading off the ice. Zadorov sent you one more smile before the pair left the ice. You sat back down, knowing the three stars were yet to be announced. While you waited, you pulled out your phone and opened instagram. You searched the handle and a simple account popped up. A private account to be precise. As you requested to follow him, the announcers started the star presentation. Toffoli, Zadorov and Lucic were the three stars of the game which was awesome to witness.

You followed people out of the Saddledome and continued your path down the street into the city where you occasionally went for post-game drinks. After a win like tonight, it seemed like many people had the same idea as you. You ordered your drink and found an empty table to perch yourself at. People watching was the entertainment for the night. Drunk girls dancing like nobody was watching. When in reality everyone was watching them twerk. Guys arguing over something stupid. It was like most of your solo nights out at the bar.

“Well I didn’t think I’d see you out tonight,” A voice spoke up over the music. It was the certain Russian accent you’ve heard only in interviews.

The seat across from you was pulled out and Zadorov settled himself into it. Over the music the hollers of his already tipsy teammates could be heard. If either of you looked in the back corner of the bar, his friends were posted up. All celebrating tonight’s win against the Bruins.

“Well I decided to stop by on my way back to my place,” You respond.

Zadorov holds out his hand, “Nikita.”

You slipped your hand into his and shook it, yelling your name over the music. “So, Z…”

“A nickname already?”

“There are like 5 other Nikita’s in the NHL,” You state, “I need to differentiate them all.”

The smirk that came across the Russian’s face should have been illegal. “Yet, my name is the one on show across your back.”

“Is that how it’s gonna be?”

Zadorov chuckled, “It’s definitely a sight for sore eyes. A sexy woman wearing your jersey… It’s something most men dream of.”

Two drinks were placed on the table between the pair of you. Both looked up to see Toffoli already retreating back to the corner. Upon closer inspection, they had gotten your order correct. Zadorov was drinking what looked like stereotypical Vodka but anything was possible. Knowing athletes, a majority don’t like to drink during the season.

“Well…” You smirk, “I originally wanted Tkachuk’s jersey but he was traded to Florida before I could buy it. Don’t you think it would have looked good on me?”

Upon hearing your words, Zadorov slid his hand up behind your neck. Gently pulling you closer over the table so he could whisper into your ear. “How about we go back to yours and I’ll make it so the only name you say is the one across your back?”

“Hm… Try me,” I retort, sending him a sly smile.

“Let’s get going shall we.”

“Sure thing Tkachuk replacement.”

On the way out of the bar, once out of curious eyes, Zadorov pulled you close and hand settled on your ass. Giving it a squeeze. “Just you wait baby. The only thing you’ll be wearing is my jersey as I make you forget everything but my name.”

TAG LIST:

@penny4yourthoughts @mp0625 @hischierhaze @11zegras @lvrzegras @francesfarhadi @cixrosie @daisysthings

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thrashermaxey · 6 years

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20 Fantasy Hockey Thoughts

Every Sunday until the start of the 2018-19 regular season, we'll share 20 Fantasy Thoughts from our writers at DobberHockey. These thoughts are curated from the past week's "Daily Ramblings".

Writers: Michael Clifford, Ian Gooding, Cam Robinson, and Dobber

1. There’s always a concern about a team suffering from a Stanley Cup hangover. The wear and tear on the body from an extended season. The adrenal fatigue that comes with the insane high of winning a championship. And, of course, the brutality that the liver is faced with in the days and weeks that follow the Cup ceremony. But, in all seriousness, after spending 13 years together climbing to the top of the mountain, there’s a legitimate chance that the Capitals’ Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom step off the gas a bit to start next season. Especially Backstrom, as he’ll have some healing to do this offseason that will take away from training. Watch for that lull and take advantage if you can. If they start icy, it’ll be a prime opportunity to get one or both at a discounted price. (june9)

2. Is there another NHL team that benefits more from the increasing salary cap than Washington? With a reported $5-7 million dollars being tacked onto the roof this offseason, that will likely facilitate them retaining John Carlson.

The powerful right-shot blueliner re-established himself as a cornerstone fantasy asset this past season. Leading all blueliners in points is fantastic but replicating it is always the hard part. However, he attained his lofty numbers on the back of some sustainable metrics. Carlson shot the puck a great deal more this season – surpassing his previous career-high by 29 shots. Yet, his conversion rate remained consistent with his career norms. The other main factor to his 68-point season was the 33 power play points – another slam dunk career-high. He saw over a minute more per night on the man-advantage than 2016-17 and clearly made effective use of the additional time.

While 2017-18 very well could end up as his peak season, there's little reason to believe the 28-year-old won't be flirting with the top of the pile for defenseman scoring in immediate future. There is no one sniffing around his spot on the top power play unit, and his surrounding talent will remain quite high. (june9)

3. It appears that Brady Tkachuk’s 2018-19 season is very much an unknown.

According to @OHLinsiders: Top NHLDraft Prospect Brady Tkachuk to OHL London rumour certainly has legs. I'm told that former Boston U Coach David Quinn's departure for the NHL is making Brady think twice. Will come down to whether or not he's NHL ready or not – if not, look for him to be in London.

This comes on the heels of his announcement to return to Boston University for a sophomore campaign a few weeks ago. However, it appears David Quinn grabbing the Rangers’ gig has changed some things.

Many had assumed that Tkachuk would be one of the more NHL-ready prospects and thus hold some more clout in fantasy drafts this fall. Being drafted out of the NCAA will facilitate a multitude of options. Tkachuk will be eligible to play in the NCAA, OHL, AHL, or NHL. If he ends up in London, let’s hope he just takes No.7 to save fans from going out and getting a new jersey, as brother Matthew (Tkachuk) rocked that uni during his monster 2015-16 season with the Knights. However, this new revelation re-opens the door for an NHL debut next fall. That should play a role in his fantasy draft slot. (june9)

4. The fact that Noah Hanifin is reportedly being dangled on the trade block shouldn’t raise huge red flags on his offensive upside. He scored 23 points in 37 games during his draft season, his only season at Boston College. His power-play time and production dipped slightly over the past two seasons but his role stands to increase if Justin Faulk is traded. Plus, if Hanifin continues his current pace, he could easily push for 40 points in 2018-19. Also keep in mind that he has been more durable than Faulk, missing just four games over his first three NHL seasons.

It’s clear that the Hurricanes want to make some drastic changes, having missed the playoffs for nine consecutive seasons. If they choose to stand pat with both Faulk and Hanifin, it’s possible that Hanifin could start to earn a greater share of ice time and power-play time. Hanifin is also entering that potential breakout fourth NHL season and was the Canes’ top-scoring defenseman last season (one point more than Faulk), so there is some sleeper potential here. (june10)

5. The Stars are expected to bring back Valeri Nichushkin on a two-year deal, although the signing can’t be announced until July 1 (according to TSN). Although he failed to reach 35 points during his two seasons in Dallas, Nichushkin should give the Stars some much-needed scoring depth. Now, we’ll see if he can fulfill that promise that made him the 10th overall pick in 2013. (june10)

6. Last week, I spoke about Oliver Ekman-Larsson’s pending free agency in 2019. At the time, it was reported that the Coyotes have an eight-year deal on the table for $8.25 million. John Chayka does not appear to be a man who minces words or actions. There’s a reason the organization is putting that worthy of an offer on the table 13 months before their star blueliner is eligible to test the waters. And, that’s to know what his intentions are.

OEL can take the offer under advisement for the summer and not allow the team to glean much information from it. Or, he can thank them and politely decline saying he wishes to focus on next season and leave the contractual part of the game for next summer. If that’s the case, I have a sinking suspicion that Arizona will dangle OEL at the draft in Dallas. Imagine the draft floor chatter that will be flying about if both OEL and Erik Karlsson are being legitimately shopped. (june9)

7. That the Sabres might want to trade someone with a high cap hit isn’t overly surprising. It would essentially be the start of their second (third?) rebuild, but with Jack Eichel, Casey Mittelstadt, and eventually Rasmus Dahlin in place, along with two first-round picks next year, the chance to further stock the cupboard with prospects/picks makes sense. Ryan O’Reilly has fantastic for the Sabres but maximizing the return now in hopes to build a contender three to four years down the road seems like the right move. I’m sure the Canadiens are inquiring.

8. Troy Stecher’s power play (PP) time on ice (TOI) in Vancouver all but disappeared this past season. He went from 2:42 per game in 2016-17 (nearly 193 minutes total) to … 15 seconds per game (17:22 total). Alex Edler saw an increase in PP time and that meant someone had to lose their minutes and that guy was Stecher. And he lost almost all of them.

It’s not really a huge surprise. Out of 50 defensemen with 150-plus power play minutes in 2016-17, Stecher was 49th in points per 60 minutes. The team scored 5.29 goals per 60 minutes on the power play with him on the ice, 48th out of those 50 defensemen. With Edler patrolling the blue line on the PP, that goals/60 rate increase to 8.98 in 2017-18. Sure, there are mitigating circumstances (Brock Boeser) but that same mitigating circumstance means that Stecher isn’t likely to reclaim that PP time in 2018-19.

There still isn’t much depth on the Canucks roster as far as scoring is concerned, so without those power play minutes, Stecher might not carry much fantasy value next year. Edler is a UFA after the season, though, so Stecher dynasty owners may need to exercise patience. (june7)

9. It’s hard to see Tim Heed having much fantasy value unless his coaches start trusting him. He was consistently a healthy scratch down the stretch for the Sharks and ended up only playing a little less than a third of the season for the team. He was a tweener for them; not really a NHL regular but too good for the AHL (he has 61 points in 65 career AHL games).

Heed is under contract for 2018-19, so he’ll have another year to prove himself. It seems unlikely the Sharks move Heed’s role from inconsistently in the lineup to 20 minutes a game in his age-28 season. Whether by adjusted shot share, actual goal share, or expected goal share, he was at or near the top in every regard for San Jose. We can quibble about his usage or sheltering but he crushed the opportunity given to him. It’s just a matter of whether it will lead to a bigger role. (june7)

10. It appears Sean Monahan’s recovery from multiple surgeries is going as planned. It’s nice to hear there haven’t been any setbacks for the Calgary center and that he should be ready to go when the team hits the ice for training camp in a few months.

In general, I’m wary of drafting players coming off significant offseason surgery. If Monahan is all ready to go for the start of training camp, though, I’m not sure how much we should be concerned as fantasy owners. The concern would be if we get close to training camp and the team says he’ll need another couple of weeks. Until then, it seems there’s nothing to worry about.

11. There is cause for concern that the Jets’ Dustin Byfuglien’s style of play is already leading to a statistical decline. Although Byfuglien’s points-per-game average has remained steady over the last four seasons (0.65 PTS/GP), he is now 33 years old and was held to just 69 games last season due to injuries. His hit total has also dropped from 222 in 2015-16 to 183 in 2016-17, and to just 147 in 2017-18. The Jets appeared to be a tired bunch after their hard-fought seven-game series win over Nashville. Although Byfuglien played three minutes less per game in 2017-18 compared to 2016-17, logging nearly 25 minutes per game is still heavy mileage. Understand all that Big Buff provides in a multicategory league but be careful not to overpay. (june6)

12. Nikita Zadorov finished second among blueliners (to Byfuglien) with 103 penalty minutes and first among all players with 278 hits. This was the first season in which Zadorov reached triple-digits in penalty minutes and the first season in which he has recorded 200 hits. For what it’s worth, Zadorov also reached a scoring career high with 20 points (7g-13a), so he was one of many Colorado players to improve over a dismal 2016-17 season. Zadorov finished the season owned in 28 percent of Yahoo leagues.

If you believe that today’s game has less hitting than even last season’s game, then one stat supports your belief. In 2016-17, two players finished with over 300 hits (Mark Borowiecki led with 364), while in 2015-16 three players finished with over 300 hits (Matt Martin led with 365). We know that penalty minute totals have dropped through the years with far fewer fighting majors, but the number of hits could be declining as well. (june6)

13. Brayden McNabb isn’t a player that you’re going to read about in a whole lot of fantasy articles. Yet, in the right type of league he could be extremely valuable – a true hidden gem on a team that unearthed plenty of hidden gems.

McNabb didn’t earn a particularly high point total (15 points) in 76 games and he won’t often be mentioned as a reason that the Golden Knights were so successful, but McNabb finished sixth among defensemen with 226 hits and sixth among all players with 176 blocked shots. That represented the highest combined hits/blocked shots total (401) among all players.

Interestingly enough, those weren’t the only categories where McNabb shined in 2017-18. He also finished tied for 13th with a plus-26 ranking (and fourth on the Golden Knights). McNabb is also a decent option in penalty minutes, having nearly reached 100 penalty minutes two seasons ago with the Kings and amassing at least 50 penalty minutes in each of his last four seasons. Although McNabb was owned in only 14 percent of Yahoo leagues, he turned out to be extremely valuable in leagues that count all of plus/minus, hits, and blocked shots. (june6)

14. Reader Loutzenheiser asked: “What do you make about all the noise regarding the Habs drafting Jesperi Kotkaniemi at the third spot? Opinions seem scattered but some scouts him as a challenger to Filip Zadina on the third pick.”

Honestly, from what I understand of the draft, after the first two picks it becomes too close to call. Yes, there seems to be a consensus about numbers three and four, but the number nine guy could easily move up because the gap between three and 10 isn’t huge. Kotkaniemi, we have ranked 13, but he’s also considered by many to be the top center available and it wouldn’t shock me if he moves higher to a team that needs a center. Would I do it if I’m Montreal? No. However, if I really liked him or Joe Veleno, then I would trade down. I’d see if I can swap with sixth or seventh and get a second-round pick thrown in. Then I’d still get my guy plus the pick. (june5)

15. Matt Norman: “Where does Victor Mete fit in this year? Are they going to run him next to Shea Weber full time? It feels like last year was a bit of a crap shoot at the beginning. He cooled off after game 10.”

No, and I don’t think you can expect a lot offensively from Mete this year. Give him time. He’s a good one but Weber has the top role right now. Mete and his career trajectory reminds me of Olli Maatta (so far … even include the injuries). (june5)

16. Todd MacKay asked: “Will Elias Lindholm ever take the next step? What about Tomas Hertl? Who's going to have the next Sean Couturier-esque breakout?”

Yes, I believe Lindholm will. I know it’s been five seasons now, so my expectations have dropped to 70 points at best. But, there’s another gear … As for Hertl, I don’t like his chances as much. I think he gets hurt too much and I never thought he’d top 70 points to begin with … Couturier-esque breakout: Lindholm is a good candidate; Tyler Johnson … I’m just looking at guys who have been around for a few years and have established a production window. I’m not looking at young players on the rise such as Jake Guentzel and Pierre-Luc Dubois because I think those are obvious candidates. (june5)

17. Jonny Miazyk: “How much do you like Alex Tuch going forward?”

I think Tuch will be Chris Kreider fantasy-wise and – knock on wood – doesn’t have the injury baggage to slow his development or reduce his production. (june5)

18. The breakout we’ve been waiting for from Jason Zucker finally came and the power play had a lot to do with it. Zucker amassed 16 power-play points, which doesn’t sound like a lot, until you realize he had six (!) power-play points in his first 248 games with the Wild. He’s an RFA and is deserving of a healthy raise over the two-year, $2M AAV contract he just finished.

One issue is just whether there’s growth to be had or not. Minnesota is one of the teams that still splits its two PP units evenly – first through sixth in PP TOI per game among Wild forwards was separated by 18 seconds – so, unless something changes with the coaching staff, it’s hard to see Zucker racking up more PP points. If he’s back with the Wild, though, in this same role, I wouldn’t anticipate much of a decline in production. (june4)

19. Back in late February, I wrote about how good of a season Nick Schmaltz was having, all things considered. It is recommended to go back and read that.

Going forward, Schmaltz certainly seemed to have earned the Blackhawks’ second-line center role behind Jonathan Toews. Skating with Patrick Kane boosted his five-on-five ice time from his rookie year but a huge chunk of the jump also came from the power play; he finished fourth among their forwards in PP TOI per game.

To my eyes and by the numbers, Schmaltz looks like a good playmaker right now and that should only improve for the 22-year old. The lack of shots means the across-the-board production may not be there but he seems in line to have a season like Mikko Koivu has had recently – expect somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 goals and 35 assists. (june4)

20. Micheal Ferland saw a career year with 21 goals and 20 assists, career highs in both stats. Part of the jump in goals came from his power-play usage in that he tripled his career output to that point in PPGs with six (he had three for his career before 2017-18).

Maybe he stays on the top line under the new coaching regime, but it’ll be interesting to see what happens with the power play. It was a sore spot for the Flames most of the season and needs to be better next year. Do they just eschew the second unit completely? Does Ferland finish in the top-6 mix for forwards PP TOI again? Open-ended questions with a new head coach in town. (june4)

Have a good week, folks!!

from All About Sports https://dobberhockey.com/hockey-home/20-fantasy-hockey-thoughts/20-fantasy-hockey-thoughts-27/

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