Fewer than 20 games remain for some NHL teams, so it's gut-check time for your fantasy leagues. In default ESPN.com head-to-head leagues, this is the penultimate week of the regular season.
At this stage, there won't be a ton of impact players just floating around on the waiver wire. But, based on the rostership percentage of ESPN leagues, there are a few.
I usually try to focus on players rostered in fewer than 50 percent of leagues, so that there is some likelihood of availability in your league. But today we are doing some cleanup. The cut-off for this group of players is 80 percent because the idea is to make absolutely sure you aren't missing a clutch addition to your roster for the stretch run. Double-check each of them to make sure they are not already rostered.
Roope Hintz, F, Dallas Stars (rostered in 73.4 percent of ESPN leagues): The only excuse for him not being universally rostered is the way he's been in and out of the lineup with some injuries this season. Because, from a statistical output perspective, Hintz is a force. His 2.2 fantasy points per game (FPPG) is at the same level as Artemi Panarin and Steven Stamkos. If he keeps up that pace, he ranks 21st in the NHL for projected remaining fantasy points. Just in case you are among the quarter of leagues in which he sits available, make sure to have a quick look.
Martin Necas, F, Carolina Hurricanes (rostered in 67.6 percent): Since Feb. 26, Necas has posted 2.4 FPPG and is coming off a Player of the Week nod from the league. There was a wider window for scooping him up last week, but it's closing quickly. And while there is some concern about deployment once Vincent Trocheck and Teuvo Teravainen are back in the lineup, he should still be on rosters for the time being.
Brendan Gallagher, F, Montreal Canadiens (rostered in 79.4 percent): It's possible Gallagher has slipped under the radar as a rise in output coincides with the team's coaching change. At the time of the change, he was posting 1.5 FPPG, which is tangentially relevant for fantasy. Since then, he's driven his FPPG to 1.7 by posting 1.9 since Feb. 26. That is very fantasy relevant, whether you take the overall average or just his output since the change.
Timo Meier, F, San Jose Sharks (rostered in 69.8 percent): Similar to Gallagher, Meier has turned a corner during the past month, elevating his FPPG from 1.3 to 1.6. A strong showing on the power play has been responsible for much of the rise. His connection with Tomas Hertl was slow to show itself this season, but the pair have come around and Meier has been noticed less on the fantasy free-agent market.
Jonas Brodin, D, Minnesota Wild (rostered in 56.2 percent): Based on his output this season, Brodin is projected to be among the top 20 defensemen for remaining fantasy points. While he only has 15 points this season, his production is a perfect combination of most of the other key fantasy categories for ESPN. He actually leads all skaters for the Wild in total fantasy production this season, yet remains widely available. Lock him up for the stretch run.
Nikita Zaitsev, D, Ottawa Senators (rostered in 27.0 percent): While Thomas Chabot has 62.9 fantasy points this season and is on rosters in 96.3 percent of leagues, Zaitsev has 62.3 fantasy points and is only rostered in a quarter of leagues. Zaitsev, like Brodin, doesn't get most of his production from scoring, but hits and blocks shots with aplomb.
Forwards on the move
Mika Zibanejad, F, New York Rangers (up 43 spots to No. 31): I truly hope the first two months of this season are something we and Zibanejad can forget about come fantasy time for the 2021-22 season. But, for the remainder of this season at least, I think we can declare he is back. Last year's leader among skaters for FPPG has looked like his old self again, posting 3.0 FPPG since Feb. 26 to be just one tick back of Connor McDavid for the league lead in that span. And he's lifted all boats with him, as Adam Fox, Ryan Strome (power-play linemate) and Pavel Buchnevich (even-strength linemate) have all been at the next level too.
Clayton Keller, F, Arizona Coyotes (up 35 spots to No. 161): Though the overall fantasy output is somewhat muted by a complete lack of hits and blocked shots in his profile, Keller has picked up the pace for the fantasy stats he does accrue. He has 15 points in his last 16 games, including a handful on the power play. Keller is available in 57 percent of ESPN leagues.
Defensemen on the move
Keith Yandle, D, Florida Panthers (up 54 spots to No. 102): The loss of Aaron Ekblad for the remainder of the season hurts for fantasy. Yandle gets a boost here, but that won't help you replace Ekblad, since Yandle will already be on rosters. If the Panthers remain committed to their two-defensemen approach to the power play, Gustav Forsling could be of moderate interest to deeper leagues. He's been the third man up for the Panthers man advantage, even potting a handful of points lately.
Dougie Hamilton, D, Carolina Hurricanes (up 37 spots to No. 21): The past month of fantasy scoring by defensemen has had Dougie Hamilton, Adam Fox, Jeff Petry and Alec Martinez in their own tier above the rest. Hamilton hasn't gone a game without a point since Feb. 25.
Goaltenders on the move
Igor Shesterkin, G, New York Rangers (up 23 spots to No. 60): As the Rangers offense comes alive, Shesterkin is healthy again, hopefully for the rest of the season this time. Thanks to plenty of missed time to injuries, he should be better prepared to start the bulk of games for the Rangers going forward. He has a clear path to a 70 percent or more crease share from this point forward, as his showing has been significantly better than that of Alexandar Georgiev.
Alex Nedeljkovic, G, Carolina Hurricanes (up 19 spots to No. 208): I know I've been a Petr Mrazek advocate for the Hurricanes stretch run, but with the play of Nedeljkovic lately, it's no shock there is no rush to have Mrazek return from his thumb surgery. Mrazek is practicing again on occasion, but we still don't have a timetable for his return. Good thing, too, as the Canes had to waive Nedeljkovic earlier this season to get him playing time in the AHL. How lucky for them no one claimed him. He's starting the majority of the Canes games now and winning the vast majority of those starts. It would be fantastic if we could get clarity on Mrazek's status, but that seems unlikely unless the Hurricanes make some kind of deadline move with their bounty of goalies. In the meantime, get Nedeljkovic into lineups.
New to rankings
Juuse Saros (No. 164), Tyler Seguin (191), Kirby Dach (202), Jason Robertson (203), Calvin de Haan (216), Alex Killorn (226), Casey DeSmith (240), David Krejci (249).
Just missed
Brock Nelson, Scott Mayfield, Nikita Zaitsev, James Reimer, Tyler Bertuzzi, Frank Vatrano, Kevin Labanc, Ryan Hartman, Joonas Donskoi.
Dropped out
Pavel Zacha, Aaron Ekblad, Antti Raanta, Colton Parayko, Nick Schmaltz, John Gibson, Carter Hart, Kasperi Kapanen.
Fantasy hockey top-250 rankings
1. Andrei Vasilevskiy, G, TB (G1)
2. Auston Matthews, C, Tor (C1)
3. Connor McDavid, C, Edm (C2)
4. David Pastrnak, RW, Bos (RW1)
5. Philipp Grubauer, G, Col (G2)
6. Brad Marchand, LW, Bos (LW1)
7. Victor Hedman, D, TB (D1)
8. Alex Ovechkin, LW, Wsh (LW2)
9. Nathan MacKinnon, C, Col (C3)
10. Mikko Rantanen, RW, Col (RW2)
11. Leon Draisaitl, LW, Edm (LW3)
12. Max Pacioretty, LW, Vgs (LW4)
13. Patrice Bergeron, C, Bos (C4)
14. Anze Kopitar, C, LA (C5)
15. Aleksander Barkov, C, Fla (C6)
16. Mitchell Marner, RW, Tor (RW3)
17. Steven Stamkos, C, TB (C7)
18. Joe Pavelski, RW, Dal (RW4)
19. Patrick Kane, RW, Chi (RW5)
20. Jeff Petry, D, Mon (D2)
21. Dougie Hamilton, D, Car (D3)
22. Alex DeBrincat, LW, Chi (LW5)
23. Charlie McAvoy, D, Bos (D4)
24. Alec Martinez, D, Vgs (D5)
25. Mark Scheifele, C, Wpg (C8)
26. Mark Stone, RW, Vgs (RW6)
27. Artemi Panarin, LW, NYR (LW6)
28. Drew Doughty, D, LA (D6)
29. Marc-Andre Fleury, G, Vgs (G3)
30. John Carlson, D, Wsh (D7)
31. Mika Zibanejad, C, NYR (C9)
32. Sidney Crosby, C, Pit (C10)
33. Sean Couturier, C, Phi (C11)
34. Semyon Varlamov, G, NYI (G4)
35. Jonathan Huberdeau, LW, Fla (LW7)
36. Vincent Trocheck, C, Car (C12)
37. Nicklas Backstrom, C, Wsh (C13)
38. Ondrej Palat, LW, TB (LW8)
39. Alex Pietrangelo, D, Vgs (D8)
40. Adam Fox, D, NYR (D9)
41. Jakob Chychrun, D, Ari (D10)
42. Connor Hellebuyck, G, Wpg (G5)
43. Sebastian Aho, C, Car (C14)
44. Logan Couture, C, SJ (C15)
45. Ivan Provorov, D, Phi (D11)
46. Chris Kreider, LW, NYR (LW9)
47. Gabriel Landeskog, LW, Col (LW10)
48. Darnell Nurse, D, Edm (D12)
49. Kyle Connor, LW, Wpg (LW11)
50. James van Riemsdyk, LW, Phi (LW12)
51. John Klingberg, D, Dal (D13)
52. Alexander Radulov, RW, Dal (RW7)
53. Filip Forsberg, LW, Nsh (LW13)
54. Brayden Point, C, TB (C16)
55. Jake Guentzel, LW, Pit (LW14)
56. Cale Makar, D, Col (D14)
57. Evander Kane, LW, SJ (LW15)
58. Roope Hintz, C, Dal (C17)
59. Nikolaj Ehlers, LW, Wpg (LW16)
60. Igor Shesterkin, G, NYR (G6)
61. Kris Letang, D, Pit (D15)
62. Shea Theodore, D, Vgs (D16)
63. Roman Josi, D, Nsh (D17)
64. Anthony Cirelli, C, TB (C18)
65. Dustin Brown, RW, LA (RW8)
66. Patric Hornqvist, RW, Fla (RW9)
67. Brent Burns, D, SJ (D18)
68. Andrei Svechnikov, LW, Car (LW17)
69. Joel Farabee, LW, Phi (LW18)
70. John Tavares, C, Tor (C19)
71. Alex Tuch, RW, Vgs (RW10)
72. Seth Jones, D, Cls (D19)
73. Blake Wheeler, RW, Wpg (RW11)
74. Tyler Toffoli, RW, Mon (RW12)
75. Brayden Schenn, C, StL (C20)
76. Morgan Rielly, D, Tor (D20)
77. Thatcher Demko, G, Van (G7)
78. Tyson Barrie, D, Edm (D21)
79. Vladimir Tarasenko, RW, StL (RW13)
80. Mikhail Sergachev, D, TB (D22)
81. Josh Anderson, RW, Mon (RW14)
82. Tom Wilson, RW, Wsh (RW15)
83. Matt Dumba, D, Min (D23)
84. Jacob Trouba, D, NYR (D24)
85. Jamie Benn, LW, Dal (LW19)
86. David Perron, RW, StL (RW16)
87. Ryan O'Reilly, C, StL (C21)
88. Shea Weber, D, Mon (D25)
89. Jack Eichel, C, Buf (C22)
90. Jonas Brodin, D, Min (D26)
91. Devon Toews, D, Col (D27)
92. Brady Tkachuk, LW, Ott (LW20)
93. Elias Lindholm, RW, Cgy (RW17)
94. Nick Suzuki, C, Mon (C23)
95. Pavel Buchnevich, RW, NYR (RW18)
96. Tomas Hertl, C, SJ (C24)
97. Mats Zuccarello, RW, Min (RW19)
98. Ryan Strome, C, NYR (C25)
99. Jordan Staal, C, Car (C26)
100. Johnny Gaudreau, LW, Cgy (LW21)
101. J.T. Miller, C, Van (C27)
102. Keith Yandle, D, Fla (D28)
103. Jean-Gabriel Pageau, C, NYI (C28)
104. T.J. Oshie, RW, Wsh (RW20)
105. Sergei Bobrovsky, G, Fla (G8)
106. Thomas Chabot, D, Ott (D29)
107. Kaapo Kahkonen, G, Min (G9)
108. Timo Meier, RW, SJ (RW21)
109. Travis Konecny, RW, Phi (RW22)
110. Mark Giordano, D, Cgy (D30)
111. Jacob Markstrom, G, Cgy (G10)
112. Sam Reinhart, RW, Buf (RW23)
113. Kevin Lankinen, G, Chi (G11)
114. Ilya Samsonov, G, Wsh (G12)
115. Brendan Gallagher, RW, Mon (RW24)
116. Kirill Kaprizov, LW, Min (LW22)
117. Robin Lehner, G, Vgs (G13)
118. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, C, Edm (C29)
119. Martin Necas, C, Car (C30)
120. Neal Pionk, D, Wpg (D31)
121. Samuel Girard, D, Col (D32)
122. Adrian Kempe, C, LA (C31)
123. Nazem Kadri, C, Col (C32)
124. Matthew Tkachuk, LW, Cgy (LW23)
125. Bryan Rust, RW, Pit (RW25)
126. Tristan Jarry, G, Pit (G14)
127. Adam Larsson, D, Edm (D33)
128. Jaroslav Halak, G, Bos (G15)
129. Brock Boeser, RW, Van (RW26)
130. Mike Smith, G, Edm (G16)
131. Patrik Laine, RW, Cls (RW27)
132. Pierre-Luc Dubois, C, Wpg (C33)
133. Nick Ritchie, LW, Bos (LW24)
134. William Nylander, RW, Tor (RW28)
135. Ryan McDonagh, D, TB (D34)
136. Joel Eriksson Ek, C, Min (C34)
137. Jake Muzzin, D, Tor (D35)
138. Matt Grzelcyk, D, Bos (D36)
139. Justin Faulk, D, StL (D37)
140. William Karlsson, C, Vgs (C35)
141. Elias Pettersson, C, Van (C36)
142. Rasmus Ristolainen, D, Buf (D38)
143. Dominik Kubalik, LW, Chi (LW25)
144. Kyle Palmieri, RW, NJ (RW29)
145. Mathew Barzal, C, NYI (C37)
146. Tuukka Rask, G, Bos (G17)
147. Carter Verhaeghe, C, Fla (C38)
148. Nino Niederreiter, RW, Car (RW30)
149. Bo Horvat, C, Van (C39)
150. Josh Morrissey, D, Wpg (D39)
151. Taylor Hall, LW, Buf (LW26)
152. Cam Atkinson, RW, Cls (RW31)
153. Jonathan Marchessault, LW, Vgs (LW27)
154. Victor Olofsson, RW, Buf (RW32)
155. Kailer Yamamoto, RW, Edm (RW33)
156. Boone Jenner, C, Cls (C40)
157. Oliver Bjorkstrand, RW, Cls (RW34)
158. Chandler Stephenson, C, Vgs (C41)
159. Vitek Vanecek, G, Wsh (G18)
160. Jordan Binnington, G, StL (G19)
161. Clayton Keller, C, Ari (C42)
162. Kevin Hayes, C, Phi (C43)
163. Evgeny Kuznetsov, C, Wsh (C44)
164. Juuse Saros, G, Nsh (G20)
165. Anton Khudobin, G, Dal (G21)
166. Miro Heiskanen, D, Dal (D40)
167. Ryan Graves, D, Col (D41)
168. Kevin Fiala, C, Min (C45)
169. Evgeni Malkin, C, Pit (C46)
170. Eeli Tolvanen, LW, Nsh (LW28)
171. Shayne Gostisbehere, D, Phi (D42)
172. Conor Garland, RW, Ari (RW35)
173. Jakub Voracek, RW, Phi (RW36)
174. Claude Giroux, LW, Phi (LW29)
175. Teuvo Teravainen, RW, Car (RW37)
176. Alex Iafallo, LW, LA (LW30)
177. Petr Mrazek, G, Car (G22)
178. Christian Dvorak, LW, Ari (LW31)
179. Frederik Andersen, G, Tor (G23)
180. Ryan Pulock, D, NYI (D43)
181. Quinn Hughes, D, Van (D44)
182. Erik Karlsson, D, SJ (D45)
183. Tyler Motte, LW, Van (LW32)
184. Jared Spurgeon, D, Min (D46)
185. Cam Talbot, G, Min (G24)
186. Drake Batherson, C, Ott (C47)
187. Sean Monahan, C, Cgy (C48)
188. Tomas Tatar, LW, Mon (LW33)
189. Ilya Sorokin, G, NYI (G25)
190. Torey Krug, D, StL (D47)
191. Tyler Seguin, C, Dal (C49)
192. Zach Hyman, LW, Tor (LW34)
193. Carey Price, G, Mon (G26)
194. Elvis Merzlikins, G, Cls (G27)
195. Oliver Wahlstrom, RW, NYI (RW38)
196. Max Comtois, LW, Ana (LW35)
197. Denis Gurianov, LW, Dal (LW36)
198. Brandon Tanev, LW, Pit (LW37)
199. Robby Fabbri, C, Det (C50)
200. Scott Laughton, LW, PHI (LW38)
201. Connor Murphy, D, Chi (D48)
202. Kirby Dach, C, Chi (C51)
203. Jason Robertson, LW, Dal (LW39)
204. Jack Hughes, C, NJ (C52)
205. P.K. Subban, D, NJ (D49)
206. Oliver Ekman-Larsson, D, Ari (D50)
207. Esa Lindell, D, Dal (D51)
208. Alex Nedeljkovic, G, Car (G28)
209. Zach Werenski, D, Cls (D52)
210. Joonas Korpisalo, G, Cls (G29)
211. Dylan Larkin, C, Det (C53)
212. Jack Campbell, G, Tor (G30)
213. Yanni Gourde, LW, TB (LW40)
214. Brian Elliott, G, Phi (G31)
215. Andre Burakovsky, LW, Col (LW41)
216. Calvin de Haan, D, Chi (D53)
217. Calvin Petersen, G, LA (G32)
218. Jack Roslovic, C, Cls (C54)
219. David Savard, D, Cls (D54)
220. Wayne Simmonds, RW, Tor (RW39)
221. Rasmus Andersson, D, Cgy (D55)
222. Rasmus Dahlin, D, Buf (D56)
223. Jordan Kyrou, C, StL (C55)
224. Adam Boqvist, D, Chi (D57)
225. Mike Hoffman, LW, StL (LW42)
226. Alex Killorn, LW, TB (LW43)
227. Phil Kessel, RW, Ari (RW40)
228. Duncan Keith, D, Chi (D58)
229. Chris Driedger, G, Fla (G33)
230. Andrew Copp, C, Wpg (C56)
231. Jakub Vrana, C, Wsh (C57)
232. Jordan Greenway, LW, Min (LW44)
233. Rickard Rakell, C, Ana (C58)
234. Jordan Eberle, RW, NYI (RW41)
235. Brett Pesce, D, Car (D59)
236. Mattias Ekholm, D, Nsh (D60)
237. Noah Hanifin, D, Cgy (D61)
238. Jonathan Bernier, G, Det (G34)
239. Jeff Carter, C, LA (C59)
240. Casey DeSmith, G, Pit (G35)
241. Jaccob Slavin, D, Car (D62)
242. Mikael Granlund, LW, Nsh (LW45)
243. Justin Schultz, D, Wsh (D63)
244. Jason Dickinson, C, Dal (C60)
245. Ty Smith, D, NJ (D64)
246. Miles Wood, LW, NJ (LW46)
247. Nick Foligno, LW, Cls (LW47)
248. Darcy Kuemper, G, Ari (G36)
249. David Krejci, C, Bos (C61)
250. Anthony Mantha, RW, Det (RW42)