You don’t need to be a fan to feel a bit bad for the New York Rangers. Thanks to earning more road wins than anyone else (including the Avalanche/Stars/Lightning etc.), the 20-18-6 club had still been maintaining a reasonable shot at clawing into a playoff spot in a congested Eastern Conference. At least until Monday evening, when Mike Sullivan’s crew lost both its No. 1 defenseman in Adam Fox and elite netminder Igor Shesterkin to lower-body injuries. Now the climb feels steeper.
Due to be re-evaluated Jan. 31, Fox appears pegged to sit out until at least after the Olympic break. Crummy stuff. However, the news on Shesterkin isn’t as dire. Listed as week-to-week, and not months, New York’s No. 1 projects to return to action down the stretch. Still, in the meantime, the Rangers need to stay afloat, while invested fantasy managers must tuck Shesterkin on IR and do the same. A sizeable task, considering the former Vezina winner (2022) is top of the NHL in Goals (saved) Above Replacement (24.3 GAR) and Wins Above Replacement (3.8 WAR), according to Evolving Hockey.
Fortunately, backup Jonathan Quick is no slouch. While not the formidable goaltending force he once was, the future Hall-of-Famer remains thoroughly capable. Posting a .919 SV%, 2.23 GAA, 7.3 GAR and 1.2 WAR — despite seeing limited action — Quick is proving reliable enough. It’s now up to the rest of the Rangers to do their bit in helping the 39-year-old secure victories when deserved. Having forward J.T. Miller back after an eight-game absence will help in that regard.
Most notable for our purposes, Quick is available in more than 90% of ESPN Fantasy leagues. So managers who need to plug a netminding hole — temporarily carved out by Shesterkin’s injury or for other reasons — and believe the Rangers are better than their anomalously bad home record suggests, should think about taking a swing with New York’s current go-to. When fit, he’s a proven winner.
Of course, the Rangers aren’t alone in being forced to manage unwelcome drama in the crease. Here’s a handful of other NHL veterans who are falling short, while not dealing with injuries (to our knowledge) and what to do about it in the fantasy realm:
Resources: Goalie depth chart | Daily lines | Projections | Play for free | Player rater | Most added/dropped | Mock draft lobby | How to watch
If you haven’t already, it’s time to cut ties with Frederik Andersen. Winless since Nov. 6, the veteran has the second-worst SV% (.867) of any netminder who has played more than 10 games. His 3.43 GAA isn’t much fun either. Worst of all, managers who have activated Andersen at every opportunity have 19 fewer total fantasy points over the course of this campaign than if they had started nobody. Right. If in need of one last reason to break free, know that the rest of the Hurricanes aren’t as confident when competing with Andersen between the pipes. There’s been talk from several skaters about how bolstered they do feel when playing in front of first-year NHLer Brandon Bussi. Which speaks volumes.
0:26
Brandon Bussi makes big-time save vs. Stars
Brandon Bussi makes big-time save vs. Stars
Speaking of whom, Bussi is an excellent candidate to replace Andersen on fantasy rosters, if available. With Pyotr Kochetkov likely out for the rest of the season, the 27-year-old is going to see plenty of action down the stretch for one of the best teams in the East. The more pressing question concerns whether Carolina chooses to continually ride Andersen in relief or bring in help from elsewhere.
Also, enough already with Jordan Binnington. For every impressive performance — like Saturday’s shutout against Montreal — the Team Canada netminder in turn punishes his fantasy managers by giving up, say, seven goals to the Blackhawks (a game in which video suggests he wasn’t willing to leave as much as backup Joel Hofer wasn’t keen to join. While it’s hardly fair to lay the Blues’ problems at Binnington’s skates, still, no thanks. Until he perhaps guides the Canadians to Olympic glory, then rides that golden wave into the NHL postseason — a story we’ve witnessed before — let this inconsistent figure be someone else’s fantasy problem.
While seven goals allowed are injurious enough, spare extra thought for every fantasy manager who rolled out Jacob Markstrom against the Islanders Tuesday. Left out for the full 60, the 35-year-old was fully permitted to surrender nine on 24 shots, thereby netting a minus-15-fantasy-point shot to the gut in ESPN conventional leagues. Now, that really smarts. (Correspondingly, Ilya Sorokin earned plus-15 fantasy points in pitching a shutout for the Isles in the lopsided 9-0 blanking, creating a whopping 30-point swing.)
1:25
New Jersey Devils vs. New York Islanders: Game Highlights
New Jersey Devils vs. New York Islanders: Game Highlights
The most concerning part? This one outing doesn’t just feel like a bad day at the office for Markstrom, again, a proven solid veteran goaltender. One (coach Sheldon Keefe in this case) doesn’t leave their 1A out there to get thoroughly peppered unless there are other issues at play. Those who closely follow the team suggest there’s lackluster investment on behalf of too many players, and changes — on-ice, behind the bench or upstairs — could be on the horizon. Until such fiddling comes into play, and New Jersey stands to enjoy a post-change bump like we just witnessed with the Sabres, Markstrom doesn’t merit a spot on anyone’s fantasy roster. For the record, he’s netted 0.8 fantasy points to date this season. Total. At minimum, a fantasy upgrade to Jake Allen makes sense.
Folks, you can’t play Connor Hellebuyck until they win a game (or few). They’ve lost 10 straight and sport a 3-14-5 record since Nov. 21. Yes, the club’s No. 1 is one of the best in the business, and sure, this Jets team is still good enough to get back reasonably on track, but until they do, Hellebuyck needs to sit idle. Through little fault of his own, the reigning Hart/Vezina Trophy winner has served as a fantasy liability for weeks now.
For potential roster replacements from around the NHL, the following fantasy performers are roundly getting the job done, and remain largely available in ESPN leagues:
-
Jet Greaves, Columbus Blue Jackets (15.2 GAR, 2.4 WAR)
-
Dan Vladar, Philadelphia Flyers (15.1 GAR, 2.4 WAR)
-
John Gibson, Detroit Red Wings (5.3 GAR, 0.8 WAR)
-
Joseph Woll, Toronto Maple Leafs (4.9 GAR, 0.8 WAR)
-
Karel Vejmelka, Utah Mammoth (0.1 GAR, 0.0 WAR)
