NHL Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Player Pickups Dec. 3 – Blue Jackets Looking To Stay Hot; Suter, Spurgeon Find New Roles

On every game day this season, THN Fantasy will highlight players and goalies for fantasy managers to stream or roster for the rest of the season. The recommended players and goalies can be used in standard fantasy leagues or for daily fantasy games.

Forwards

Fabian Zetterlund, LW/RW, SJ at WSH (46% rostered)
William Eklund, LW, SJ at WSH (24% rostered)

I know the Caps defense and goaltending has been pretty stout, but this is the entire flank of the Sharks’ top line and they’ve been absolutely crushing opponents lately. The Sharks’ recent scoring binge will surely end at some point, but there’s nothing roll with rolling with the hot hands.

Zetterlund is safest with plenty of shot volume, while Eklund has more long-term upside and some PP1 exposure to boot. Zetterlund and Eklund’s play together has been so good that I wouldn’t be surprised if they play on a line together at the 4 Nations, should they make the team.

Sean Monahan, C, CLB at CGY (44% rostered)
Kent Johnson, C/LW/RW, CLB at CGY (30% rostered)
Dmitri Voronkov, LW, CLB at CGY (16% rostered)

Voronkov and Monahan are playing on the top line together, while Johnson’s been playing right wing on the second. Voronkov’s on a six-game points streak while Johnson, who gained triple-position eligibility Monday, has scored a point in every game he’s played in this season. Johnson’s play has been so strong that he’s quickly gaining momentum as a rest-of-season add, while Voronkov’s fantasy value is a little more shaky because he doesn’t have the draft pedigree and relies on good deployment.

Monahan’s the safe pick as the undisputed top pivot, and while his scoring pace hasn’t kept up with Voronkov or Johnson’s, he offers good shot volume and faceoff wins.

Bryan Rust, RW, PIT vs. FLA (32% rostered)

Rust has five points in his past five games, and while he can be hit or miss, it’s mostly because the Pens are so inconsistent. As Sidney Crosby’s usual running mate, Rust will get plenty of ice time and offers good shot volume and hits even on his worst nights.

Anders Lee, LW, NYI at MON (27% rostered)
Simon Holmstrom, RW, NYI at MON (1% rostered)

Lee’s quietly scored six points in his past four games and offers multi-category value with scoring, shots and hits. Holmstrom, the new addition to the top line with Jean-Gabriel Pageau unavailable, has also been excellent with consecutive two-goal games. He usually doesn’t shoot the puck very much, but he’s now registered a shot in four straight games, including a season-high six shots against the Caps.

The Isles offense is very tame, but Lee’s getting L1 and PP1 deployment – PP2 for Holmstrom – and faces a Habs team that has allowed at least three goals in five straight games. They’re allowing the most goals per game and the 10th most shots per game in the league.

Pavel Zacha, C/LW, BOS vs. DET (14% rostered)

Maybe Zacha’s picking it up? With just 11 points in 26 games this season, Zacha has undoubtedly been one of the bigger disappointments in fantasy. However, with four points in three games and six straight games where he’s registered at least two shots, perhaps things are looking up. What makes this matchup even more attractive is the Wings are expected to start third-string Ville Husso in net, who’s struggled for much of the season.

Jason Zucker, LW, BUF vs. COL (6% rostered)

With JJ Peterka struggling, the Sabres unveiled a new look at their Monday skate with Zucker playing on the top line with Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch. Not sure if this will hold, but at his best, Zucker was a shooting and hitting machine. Given the Avs’ struggles in net, I think this might be a good matchup for Zucker, who’s also playing PP2.

Pius Suter, C/LW, VAN at MIN (4% rostered)

Suter extended his goals streak to three games Sunday against the Wings and has been a nice surprise as their No. 2 center. He’s winning faceoffs with more regularity and his shot volume has also increased playing with an effective winger duo in Conor Garland, who’s been slowly gaining traction in fantasy and now rostered in more than half of Yahoo leagues, and power forward Dakota Joshua. Scoring against the Wild won’t be easy, but Suter’s increased usage bodes well for his hot streak.

Defensemen

Lane Hutson, D, MON vs. NYI (33% rostered)

That’s now an assist in three straight games for Hutson, who unfortunately remains behind Mike Matheson on the power play depth chart. No matter – Hutson continues to get his ice time. Hutson’s increased shooting and blocked shots rate makes him a more attractive play than usual, even against the stingy Isles.

Jared Spurgeon, D, MIN vs. VAN (9% rostered)

Interesting the Wild have moved Spurgeon to PP1, and indeed that’s the biggest reason why he’s an intriguing streaming option. Spurgeon doesn’t usually offer much in fantasy, but four points in two games with some shots and blocks sprinkled in makes him quite valuable. The Canucks have not been very good defensively and will be without their No. 2 defenseman, Filip Hronek, putting a lot of pressure on their thin blueline.

Honorable mention:

Anton Lundell, C/RW, FLA at PIT (36% rostered) – L3, PP2
Marco Rossi, C, MIN vs. VAN (17% rostered) – L2, PP2
Vladimir Tarasenko, LW/RW, DET at BOS (11% rostered) – L3, PP2
Charlie Coyle, C, BOS vs. DET (10% rostered) – L3, PP2
Evan Rodrigues, C/LW, FLA at PIT (6% rostered) – L1, PP2
Trent Frederic, C/RW, BOS vs. DET (4% rostered) – L3, PP2

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