Fantasy Hockey Picks: Who to Drop & Late-Season NHL Waiver Wire Gems

If you're not surprised by the way this NHL season has gone, where have you been? The defending champions are out of the playoff picture, and it doesn't look like Toronto will be enjoying -- or dreading -- postseason hockey either. The Sabres lead the Atlantic Division as well, while the Ducks are standing atop the Pacific. 

Both wild-card races are a giant knot of teams with a little over three weeks to sort it all out. There's only really about seven teams firmly out of the race as it stands, depending on how generous you want to be with where teams are at. 

Panthers Fantasy Stock Dives Heading Into Playoff Race

Given how things have gone, I have some surprising advice for the week: drop your Panthers. They're way down in the standings, and over the last week or so, they've started to rotate big-name players out of the lineup. On one hand, it makes sense -- this is a team with a core that's gone to three straight Stanley Cup Finals, which is a lot of extra mileage. On the other hand, it's massively frustrating as a fantasy manager. Injuries vary by player, but you'd assume most of them would be in the lineup if the team was hunting a playoff spot. The bottom line is that you can't count on any Florida player to be in the lineup for any specific game for the rest of the season. You might want to hold Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Bennett, but the rest of the roster is expendable. 

Of course, you'll need to look to the waiver wire to see which other players around the NHL can give you more reliable availability without costing production. Luckily, with plenty of teams battling for their playoff spots, most teams will be keeping pretty full rosters nearly down to the wire. 

Hot Waiver Wire Forwards Making Noise In March

I wasn't on board with Yegor Chinakhov right away, but he's sustained his production over his entire Penguins tenure so far. He's been a point-per-game player (four goals, eight assists) over 12 contests in March, and his two-point effort Saturday gave him a career-high 30 points on the year. The Penguins have thrown a lot of darts at the wall this season, and Chinakhov's been a bullseye. His chemistry with Evgeni Malkin and Thomas Novak has just worked, but fantasy managers are still sleeping far too much here. 

Owen Tippett isn't a full-time option for fantasy, but he needs to be on the radar when his offense is clicking. He's earned five goals, one assist, 31 shots on net and 23 hits over his last eight contests. Tippett has picked up the pace physically, and he's in position to push for the second 50-point campaign of his career. I've always got patience for a power winger, especially when the offense is there. 

Rookie Breakouts Fueling Late-Season Fantasy Value

Jimmy Snuggerud has done well as a rookie this season. He hasn't been among the upper class of first-year players, but he's found a groove in recent weeks, mainly on the top line. He's earned five goals, seven assists and 31 shots on net over 10 contests in March. Snuggerud's uptick in offense is a great sign -- the rookie wall is usually a concern this time of year, but he just keeps getting better with more minutes. He also chips in about a hit per game, but physicality isn't his top trait. 

The Rangers are well out of the mix, but the trade deadline's fallout on Broadway has led to a shining line. I highlighted Gabe Perreault last week, and it's only fair to look at Alexis Lafreniere as well. Lafreniere has 14 points (seven goals, seven assists) with 29 shots on net and a plus-5 rating over 11 outings in March. He didn't have a hit for the first 10 games of the month, which is odd -- he's always had a bit of a physical edge. Lafreniere's move to the top line, albeit still on the right wing, seems to have unlocked something for him, though the addition of Perreault may also be the factor here. Lafreniere may never live up to the No. 1 overall status, but he's still a winger who can be a multi-category contributor with 50-60 point production, which has some value. 

I've kept an eye on Patrick Kane all season, and even with the Red Wings going through it on the injury front this month, he's stayed productive. He has three goals and six helpers over his last nine outings, including three power-play assists. He also has 27 shots on net. Kane is a playmaker at heart, but he's talented enough to keep scoring. As Detroit gets healthier and looks to hold onto a playoff spot, expect Kane's championship experience and veteran savvy to shine through. 

There's very few things to like about the Canucks this year, but the late-season growth of Marco Rossi's game is impressive. He gets no benefit from the supporting cast, yet he still has four goals and nine helpers, including five power-play points, over his last nine games. Rossi is rolling in a top-six role. I thought the Wild gave up on him too early, especially given their lack of quality center depth, but the Canucks have given Rossi the opportunity to flourish with a change of scenery, which could help the Quinn Hughes deal ultimately be a win-win. 

Anthony Cirelli continues to look good on the top line between Brandon Hagel and Nikita Kucherov. Of the three, Cirelli isn't getting enough attention -- he has 13 points over his last nine appearances. His three-game stretch of multi-point outings snapped Sunday in Calgary, but he's still in a strong spot. It can be tough to stand out as a center, but Cirelli's knocking on the door of another 50-point campaign and could push above 60 with a strong finish to the season. 

Emerging Defensemen and Peripheral Offensive Blue Line Options

Turning to the blue line, there haven't been a ton of standout options lately. Parker Wotherspoon has started to make some noise for the Penguins with six helpers over his last five games. The 28-year-old has earned 26 points over 70 outings this season, which is nearly double his total from the last three years combined. He's not this good, but he's in a favorable role with a top-four spot alongside Erik Karlsson, which has led to some peripheral offense. Wotherspoon is a good source for hits and blocks as long as he's piling up points. 

There's some musical chairs involved with the Montreal blue line, which is quite talented with three clear leaders. In the middle is the duo of Kaiden Guhle and Alexandre Carrier, where one or the other can earn fantasy value whenever they're getting the extra minutes in the top four. I'll focus on Guhle here, who caught some attention with a three-point effort Saturday. Guhle is also a better physical player than Carrier. For the season, Guhle has just 10 points in 29 outings, but he's added 60 hits and 47 blocked shots and could produce more offense than he's shown. 

Goaltender Rotations Impacting Fantasy Matchups

The goalie rotation in the Sabres' crease has prevented anyone from being a clear-cut starter most of the season, but it's still worth looking at both of Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Alex Lyon. Luukkonen is 4-1-0 with a .918 save percentage over five contests in March, while Lyon is 5-0-1 with an .899 save percentage over six outings this month after a 6-5 overtime loss to the Ducks on Sunday. Both have played well enough to send the Sabres to the top of their division, and that's led to a straight rotation in recent weeks. Predictable goalie usage is a huge benefit at this time of year, and both goalies are available in just under half of Yahoo leagues. 

Jakub Dobes has managed to keep himself in the conversation for starts with the Canadiens. I'm still a little wary of three-man creases, but Montreal has stuck to Dobes and Jacob Fowler lately. Dobes is just 3-3-0 with an .894 save percentage over six games in March, but he's getting enough playing time to be of interest, especially for a team that needs to make a push. 

With the fantasy playoffs now in full force, you want to make good choices when adding players. Play matchups where you can, but if you want to take a weekly approach on moves, look for short-term upside with busy weeks where you can. You want predictable and reliable contributors, not lottery tickets, at least early in the week. If you're down later in the week, take bigger swings. Good luck this week, and check back next week for more. 

Stuck between two players available on the waiver wire? Check out the NHL Player Comparison Tool or the NHL Trending Players to help break the tiebreaker on your waiver wire decisions.