NHL Stock Watch: Give em hell, Connor Hellebuyck
STOCK UP
Connor Hellebuyck, G, Jets: Although Hellebuyck wasn’t considered a major prospect when he finished his schoolboy career in Michigan — merely a fifth-round pick in the 2012 draft — his star quickly rose through a year of junior hockey and two unreal seasons with the University of Massachusetts-Lowell (38-12-1 record, 1.60 goals-against average, .946 save percentage). Those are silly stats, numbers that look like a mispunch on the keyboard. It looked like Winnipeg at least had a long-term prospect on its hands, depending on what U.S. College hockey results mean to you.
On second thought, speed up that timetable. The future is now.
The Jets were going to let Hellebuyck percolate in the AHL for a while — he spent a full season there last winter — but an injury to Andrej Pavelec forced an early recall this year, and maybe Pavelec won’t be getting his job back. Hellebuyck recorded his second shutout of the year Friday, upping his record to 11-6-1 and pushing his percentages into rarified air (2.00 GAA, .931 SVP). Meanwhile, Pavelec and Michael Hutchinson both have goals-against averages just under three, and save percentages barely over .900. The Jets are in a dogfight for a Western Conference playoff spot — they’re not going to get hung up on veterans and reputations, they’re going to use their best players. Hellebuyck sure looks like the best netminder on the roster.
[Yahoo Daily Fantasy: $10 could win you $20K in our $175K divisional-round contest]
Artemi Panarin, LW, Blackhawks: Don’t feel bad if you didn’t see this coming out of the gate — Panarin didn’t take any preseason action as he nursed an upper-body injury, and one never knows what a foreign import will be ready to do upon arrival to the NHL. Chicago gave the rookie a chance on spec, putting him instantly on a line with Patrick Kane, and the duo has clicked from the word go. Panarin is one of the Calder Trophy favorites to this point, — assuming his KHL experience isn’t held against his candidacy — rocking a 16-26-42 line. His scoring logs have been consistent in every month. He’s also landed a spot on the first power-play unit, a major endorsement given the star power in the Second City.
Vladislav Namestnikov, C, Lightning: Tampa Bay has been patient with its first-round pick from 2011, but it looks like Namestnikov is putting things together at age 23. He’s on a swanky 3-5-8 run over his last four games (including Friday’s hat trick and overtime winner), getting run with a handful of key forwards on Tampa Bay’s top six rotation (some Stamkos here, some Kucherov there). Yahoo owners haven’t raced out for Namestnikov yet, keeping his ownership tag around eight percent. Although center is a fairly easy fill in a number of pools, there’s a definite upside worth chasing here.
Jordan Eberle, RW, Oilers: A bum shoulder cost him the first month of the year, and Eberle didn’t look right during 12 November starts, either (three goals, zero assists). He’s picked up the pace since them, recording a usable 7-11-18 log over 20 games, pushing his ice time over 20 minutes this month. The emergence of Leon Draisaitl seems to be lending an extra bounce to Eberle’s step, as well. Bottom line, Eberle finally looks like the cornerstone forward you paid up for in the preseason.
Carl Hagelin, LW, Penguins: This one’s a speculation play. Hagelin didn’t take to the game in Anaheim, but now he’s been dealt back east, and perhaps to a line with Sidney Crosby or Evgeny Malkin. Don’t forget the handy forward we saw back in Hagelin’s New York days (not to mention at the University of Michigan); this is someone who could score 10 or more times the rest of the way. Hagelin is available for a tire-kick in 91 percent of Yahoo leagues.
STOCK DOWN
Jason Demers, D, Stars: Demers had a splashy offensive reputation in his San Jose days, and it looked like his first full season in Dallas might have been a gateway to a career year. Demers recorded a 3-4-7 line in nine October games, picking up some power-play time along the way. Alas, he’s only seen one man-advantage point since October, and he only has three assists to show for his last 16 games. If you want to chase Demers for the expected plus-minus on a strong team, that’s one thing, but there isn’t enough scoring to justify a 38-percent ownership tag in Yahoo leagues.
Tomas Hertl, C/LW, Sharks: His three-point game in the onslaught over Toronto last week might have been much ado about nothing. Hertl hasn’t done much in the three games since — just one assist in three games — and although he’s getting some run with Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski, he doesn’t always hang with those guys on the power play, where the easy opportunities are. Hertl only has two man-advantage points for the full season, and although that shooting percentage (six percent) might look suspiciously low, keep in mind he was just a nine-percent marksman last year, over a full 82 games. This still looks like fool’s gold to me. I'm not chasing the sirens from the 2013-14 season.
Eddie Lack, G, Hurricanes: Carolina moved for Lack in the offseason and figured he could be ready to push Cam Ward for the starting gig. Alas, both goaltenders have been disappointing, but Lack’s numbers in particular haven’t been up to snuff (2.84 GAA, .894 SVP). As a result, Ward is getting about two-thirds of the starts, and he has 14 of Carolina’s 20 victories. Maybe that Vancouver blue line — manned by Lack’s former teammates — was a little deeper than we gave it credit for.
