Tired Road Teams
I’ve been doing the tired and rested teams for this column for a few years now and I continually see that most if not all of the tired teams are the ones playing on the road.
Last week all five games involving a team that played the night before and a team that was rested, had the visiting team as the tired team. This week, 14 of 16 games involve the tired team being the road team with only two contests having a visiting team waiting and rested while the home team is on road the night before.
It’s an interesting way to play your fantasy team, especially in DFS.
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Now to The Week Ahead.
WEEK OF OCTOBER 12-18
4 Games – Anaheim, Columbus, Edmonton, Florida, St. Louis, Tampa Bay, Vancouver, Winnipeg
3 Games – Arizona, Boston, Buffalo, Calgary, Carolina, Chicago, Colorado, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minnesota, Montreal, Nashville, New Jersey, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Ottawa, Pittsburgh, San Jose, Washington
2 Games - Philadelphia, Toronto
Anaheim plays all four games at home.
Columbus, Edmonton, Minnesota, Nashville, San Jose and Tampa Bay play three games on the road.
The New York Islanders, Pittsburgh and Washington play three games at home.
INJURIES
Robin Lehner is out of action with a lower body injury. (Click here to see the rest of the injury list.)
Note: A tired team is one that has played the day or night before and is going against a team that did not play the previous day or night. The reverse is true for a rested team.
ANAHEIM
Games this week
vs. Vancouver, vs. Arizona, vs. Colorado, vs. Minnesota
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None
Notes
The Ducks play four games this week and it’s likely that Anton Khudobin will make his Anaheim debut in the regular season. Frederik Anderson should get the call in net for the other three matchups. Jakob Silfverberg took a shot to the head, courtesy of Raffi Torres in the final pre-season game but was given the go-ahead to practice on Wednesday. He has been given the go-ahead to play on October 10. The Ducks are going with a top-nine to start the season as Corey Perry will play on the third line with Ryan Getzlaf and Ryan Kesler centering the top-two lines. John Gibson, as expected, was sent to the minors but will be recalled to start in goal if Andersen goes down.
ARIZONA
Games this week
@ Anaheim, vs. Minnesota, vs. Boston
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: vs. Minnesota (Thursday)
Notes
The Coyotes play three games in four nights so it’s likely that Anders Lindback will make his Arizona debut while Mike Smith will see action in the other two games. Smith stated that he was “in a pretty bad place mentally” at the start of the 2014-15 season and it sure showed as he was the worst goalie in the league by the stats. Max Domi and Anthony Duclair made the team and the duo will play with Martin Hanzal to start the season. The Coyotes returned Dylan Strome to the minors. He played very well at camp but Arizona made the right move by sending him back to junior.
BOSTON
Games this week
vs. Tampa Bay, @ Colorado, @ Arizona
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None
Notes
The Bruins lost their opener 6-2 to Winnipeg and both Ryan Spooner and Matt Irwin were both minus-three. Irwin replaced the injured Zdeno Chara (upper body) on the blueline but with similar efforts as in the loss to the Jets and he will find himself in the press box or elsewhere. The Bruins inked Jonas Gustavsson to backup Tuukka Rask and sent Jeremy Smith to the minors. Look for David Krejci to have a bounce-back season as he missed 35 games last year. Zdeno Chara missed the opener because of an upper body injury. He should return to the lineup this week.
BUFFALO
Games this week
vs. Columbus, @ Florida, @ Tampa Bay
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None
Notes
The Jack Eichel era in Buffalo got off to a good start as he potted the only goal for the Sabres in a 3-1 loss to Ottawa Thursday. He certainly looked good with Evander Kane as his linemate. Robin Lehner suffered a leg injury Thursday and did not return as Chad Johnson took over the cage. Johnson may get a chance to run with the job as early reports state the injury may not be short term. Zach Bogosian was put on injured reserve as he has a lower body injury. Sam Reinhart made the team as the Sabres thought long and hard about whether or not to send him to the AHL. He still may find himself there as he needs plenty of ice time.
CALGARY
Games this week
vs. St. Louis, @ Winnipeg, vs. Edmonton
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: vs. Edmonton (Saturday)
Notes
Karri Ramo started the season in goal but gave up five goals to Vancouver so Jonas Hiller will get the start in Game 2. Joni Ortio is still on the roster as the Flames are carrying three goalies but something must be done soon as there is not enough playing time to go around. Micheal Ferland got into a fight two seconds into the opening match as he took on Derek Dorsett. Mason Raymond was waived by the Flames before the start of the season but is still on their roster after the other 29 teams passed. Jiri Hudler scored the Flames lone goal Wednesday.
CAROLINA
Games this week
vs. Florida, @ Detroit, @ Washington
Rested Team: vs. Florida (Tuesday)
Tired Team: @ Washington (Saturday)
Notes
Cam Ward got the opening night assignment on Thursday but expect to see Eddie Lack split the net with him for most of the season. James Wisniewski suffered a lower body injury Thursday night and did not return. Consider him day-to-day for now. It was a surprise to those who know the thinking of the Carolina management but Noah Hanifin made the opening night roster as an 18-year-old. The Hurricanes do not like to rush their prospects but his showing in pre-season was so good, Hanifin forced the organization to keep him. He is worth a pickup in keeper leagues.
CHICAGO
Games this week
@Philadelphia, @ Washington, vs. Columbus
Rested Team: vs. Columbus (Saturday)
Tired Team: @ Washington (Thursday)
Notes
The Blackhawks play three games in four nights so expect to see Scott Darling play once with Corey Crawford getting a couple of starts. The Blackhawks recalled Viktor Svedberg from the minors. He is 6’9, tied for the tallest player in the NHL with Zdeno Chara. Everyone seems to be enamored with Artemi Panarin and he did not disappoint in his NHL debut as he scored on a set up from Patrick Kane. Grab him in fantasy pools if you can. Teuvo Teravainen also scored and should be on someone’s fantasy roster as he is getting first line minutes alongside Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa. Hossa is expected to play on Friday after he was given Thursday off from practice for a maintenance day.
COLORADO
Games this week
vs. Boston, @ Anaheim, @ Los Angeles
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None
Notes
It was a surprising great opening night for Francois Beauchemin as the rearguard assisted on three goals in a 5-4 loss to Minnesota. Mikko Rantanen, the Avs first round pick and 10th overall in the 2015 Draft, made the team and will start the season on the third line with Carl Soderberg. The drafting of Rantanen was one reason Colorado was able to trade away Ryan O'Reilly as they thought at the draft he could play for them right away. They were right as the talented Finn is an exceptional playmaker and speedy skater. Take him in dynasty pools if you can. Mikhail Grigorenko made the roster as their 13th forward.
COLUMBUS
Games this week
@ Buffalo, vs. Ottawa, vs. Toronto, @ Chicago
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: @ Chicago (Saturday)
Notes
The Blue Jackets play four times this week including three games in four nights. Curtis McElhinney should get one start with Sergei Bobrovsky getting the net in the other three contests. David Clarkson is out with a lower body injury. Jared Boll will start the season on the fourth line with Matt Calvert and Greg Campbell. He could be drafted if you are in need of penalty minutes. Sergei Bobrovsky was outstanding in pre-season with a 1.36 GAA and a .959 save percentage. He is ready to start the season and looks to return to his Vezina Trophy form of a couple of seasons ago. If you have any of the top line of Ryan Johansen, Nick Foligno or Brandon Saad on your fantasy squad, you are sitting pretty.
DALLAS
Games this week
vs. Edmonton, @ Tampa Bay, @ Florida
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None
Notes
Antti Niemi picked up the opening night assignment in goal over Kari Lehtonen and did not disappoint as he stopped 33 shots in a 3-0 whitewash over the Pittsburgh Penguins. It’s interesting to see that the Stars did not go with their long-time veteran Lehtonen and it looks like there may be a changing of the guard in Dallas. Cody Eakin is starting on the top line with Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin but expect to see Valeri Nichushkin in that role soon. Mattias Janmark scored in his NHL debut Thursday and could move up the depth charts as he is currently seeing fourth line action with Ales Hemsky and Antoine Roussel. Jamie Benn had no problem starting the season after having off-season hip surgery.
DETROIT
Games this week
vs. Tampa Bay, vs. Carolina, @ Montreal
Rested Team: vs. Tampa Bay (Tuesday)
Tired Team: @ Montreal (Saturday)
Notes
The long NHL career (especially with Detroit) seems to be over for Daniel Cleary as the Red Wings sent him to Grand Rapids of the AHL after a 10 year span with the team but is not going to report and will likely retire. Keep an eye on Dylan Larkin as the talented player will make his NHL debut on the top line with Henrik Zetterberg and Justin Abdelkader. He deserves to be owned in all dynasty leagues and some deeper re-draft pools. Look for Jimmy Howard and Petr Mrazek to share the net to start the season. Darren Helm (concussion/shoulder) is hoping to return to action this week after suffering the injury at training camp when he ran into a teammate during practice.
EDMONTON
Games this week
@ Dallas, vs. St. Louis, @ Calgary, @ Vancouver
Rested Team: @ Calgary (Saturday)
Tired Team: @ Vancouver (Sunday)
Notes
The Oilers play four games this week including three games in four nights. Cam Talbot should see action in three games with Anders Nilsson getting the start in one contest. I was surprised to see the Oilers send Leon Draisaitl to the minors but it should help his progress in the future as he will see plenty of ice time in the AHL. Connor McDavid was held off the scoresheet in his NHL debut Thursday but certainly showed flashes of his brilliance on the ice. Anton Slepyshev started the season on the top line with McDavid and Taylor Hall and that should give him some fantasy relevance in the early going. Anders Nilsson could surprise many in goal this season for the Oilers although Cam Talbot got the opening night start Thursday.
FLORIDA
Games this week
@ Philadelphia, @ Carolina, vs. Buffalo, vs. Dallas
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: @ Carolina (Tuesday)
Notes
The Panthers play the second game of a back-to-back with the Flyers on Monday so look for Shawn Thornton to pick up some penalty minutes. Florida plays four times this week including three games in four nights. Expect to see Al Montoya make his seasonal debut this week. The Panthers sent their first round pick Lawson Crouse back to junior hockey. He should start having some fantasy value in a couple of seasons. Connor Brickley, the Panthers second round pick in 2010, made the team after a terrific camp. He had only 22 goals and 47 points in the AHL last season so his fantasy value will be minimal. Still, it was nice to see him crack the lineup.
LOS ANGELES
Games this week
vs. Vancouver, vs. Minnesota, vs. Colorado
Rested Team: vs. Vancouver (Tuesday), vs. Minnesota (Friday)
Tired Team: None
Notes
The Kings are the rested team in two out of three contests this week. Milan Lucic picked up 10 minutes in penalties in his Los Angeles Kings debut and that helps fantasy owners who use that category. Jonathan Quick got off to a slow start as he gave up five goals on 32 shots but don’t let that sway you from taking him in pools. Anze Kopitar had a real slow start to the season last year and the Kings are hoping history does not repeat itself. He is in his final year of a long-term contract and if the two sides fail to reach an agreement, he can become a UFA on July 1. That should boost his play as most players tend to do better in a contract year.
MINNESOTA
Games this week
@ Arizona, @ Los Angeles, @ Anaheim
Rested Team: @ Arizona (Thursday)
Tired Team: @ Los Angeles (Friday)
Notes
The Wild play three games in four nights as they spend this week in the Southwest, so look for Devan Dubnyk to play twice while Darcy Kuemper is likely to play between the pipes once. That means Niklas Backstrom will spend time in the press box to start the season although coach Mike Yeo does not want any of his netminders to be rusty. Dubnyk was just average at best Thursday as he gave up four goals on 27 shots. His unbelievable performance of last season is likely to be his career year and he could find himself sharing the job this season. Zach Parise opened the season with a hat trick. Look for a big season from him in 2015-16 as he had a lot to deal with last season with the passing away of his father J.P.
MONTREAL
Games this week
@ Pittsburgh, vs. New York Rangers, vs. Detroit
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: vs. Detroit (Saturday)
Notes
It was quite a surprise to see that Mike Condon beat out Dustin Tokarski for the backup job behind Carey Price in the Montreal cage. That being said, barring an injury to Price, it’s hard to see the backup getting into more than 15-20 games this season including non-starts. P.K. Subban got off to a great start as he assisted on all three goals in the Habs 3-1 win over Toronto Wednesday. Max Pacioretty looks 100 percent as he has recovered from a broken tibia suffered during the off-season. He scored twice Wednesday. The Canadiens took Paul Byron off waivers from Calgary, forcing them to send Jacob DeLa Rose to the minors.
NASHVILLE
Games this week
@ New Jersey, @ New York Islanders, @ Ottawa
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None
Notes
Pekka Rinne picked up right where he left off last season as he stopped 26 of 27 shots in a 2-1 win over Carolina. I like Craig Smith this season as well as Seth Jones. Jones assisted on both goals while playing 21:04 minutes. He should get close to 40 points this season with better offensive years on the horizon. Mike Ribeiro had a big season in 2014-15 and I look for more of the same this year. Filip Forsberg is likely to regress this season after a very good rookie season. He started off last season red hot but cooled off in the second half.
NEW JERSEY
Games this week
vs. Nashville, vs. San Jose, @ New York Rangers
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None
Notes
The Devils placed Ryan Clowe on the injured reserve list but he has already said that his NHL career is over due to concussions. The remainder of his salary will be treated like Marc Savard and Chris Pronger who also left the NHL early with long-term contracts but had concussion woes. Eric Gelinas will start the season in the press box. Cory Schneider is expected to be ready to go on October 9 for the opener despite missing a practice earlier in the week for a maintenance day. Patrik Elias will start the season on the IR with a knee injury. First rounder and sixth overall selection Pavel Zacha was sent back to Sarnia of the OHL. Keep an eye on him as he is the future of the Devils up front.
NEW YORK ISLANDERS
Games this week
vs. Winnipeg, vs. Nashville, vs. San Jose
Rested Team: vs. San Jose (Saturday)
Tired Team: None
Notes
Jaroslav Halak could miss the opener with an upper body injury and that will allow Thomas Greiss to get in an extra start or two. The Islanders loved Mathew Barzal enough to trade up for him at 16 in the 2015 Draft and he came close to making the Islanders out of training camp but they took the safe approach and sent back to Seattle of the WHL. If you are in a keeper league, he will make a nice last round pick. Kirill Petrov was sent to the minors. He is another to watch as he has had plenty of experience in the KHL and is still only 25 years of age.
NEW YORK RANGERS
Games this week
vs. Winnipeg, @ Montreal, vs. New Jersey
Rested Team: vs. Winnipeg (Tuesday)
Tired Team: None
Notes
Henrik Lundqvist has started off the season slowly the last couple of seasons before really turning it on. It’s a bit surprising that the Rangers have slated him to start the first three games of the season but they still want to limit his starts this year to 60 games. That means some extra action for backup Antti Raanta. J.T. Miller had a couple of assists in the opener and should take a big step forward this season in fantasy pools. I like Emerson Etem heading into camp but he struggled in the pre-season. I still think he'll have a big year but temper his stats at the start of the season.
OTTAWA
Games this week
@ Columbus, @ Pittsburgh, vs. Nashville
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: @ Pittsburgh (Thursday)
Notes
The Senators play three games in four nights so expect to see Andrew Hammond play once for Craig Anderson if Hammond has recovered from a groin injury. Look at Curtis Lazar in pools as the former first round selection is now on the second line with Bobby Ryan and Mika Zibanejad. Mike Hoffman got a break in the opener as Clarke MacArthur was moved off the top line due to an injury (he did play as a bottom six forward) and that allowed Hoffman to join Mark Stone and Kyle Turris on the first unit. Hoffman responded with a couple of assists as did Stone with Turris scoring a pair. Coach Dave Cameron is expecting more from Bobby Ryan who struggled last season with only 18 goals.
PHILADELPHIA
Games this week
vs. Florida, vs. Chicago
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: None
Notes
The Flyers play the back end of a home-and-home series with Florida so look for Wayne Simmonds to get off to a good start in penalty minutes if there is a fight. Brayden Schenn was thought to be in trouble in Philadelphia but he scored once in the opener. Sam Gagner was a healthy scratch on Thursday as was tough blueliner Radko Gudas. Andrew MacDonald was unclaimed on waivers and sent to the minors despite a $4.05 million salary cap hit. Vincent Lecavalier was also a healthy scratch Thursday and expect that to happen a lot more this season. Michael Raffl started the season on the top line with Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek. That should translate into a 25-30 goal season if he remains there.
PITTSBURGH
Games this week
vs. Montreal, vs. Ottawa, vs. Toronto
Rested Team: vs. Ottawa (Thursday), vs. Toronto (Saturday)
Tired Team: None
Notes
The Penguins are home to all three Eastern Canadian teams this week. They were shutout in the opener by the Dallas Stars despite adding Phil Kessel and Sergei Plotnikov to their top-six forwards. In a bit of a surprise, Olli Maatta was sent to the minors but the move appears to be temporary for the defenseman as it seems to be a salary cap move. Pascal Dupuis is out four-five weeks with a lower body injury. He missed the last five months of the 2014-15 season with blood clots. Chris Kunitz started the season with Kessel and Sidney Crosby. David Perron did not score in his last 17 games last season including the playoffs and that jumped to 18 in the loss to Dallas.
ST. LOUIS
Games this week
@ Calgary, @ Edmonton, @ Vancouver, @ Winnipeg
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: @ Vancouver (Friday)
Notes
The Blues play all four games in Western Canada this week including three games in four nights so expect to see Brian Elliott and Jake Allen split the net. If you are looking for a defenseman in very deep leagues, look at Colton Parayko as the blueliner has some offensive upside. He had four goals in the AHL in 17 games last season after leaving the NCAA. Robby Fabbri is another player to look at as the former first round draft pick will see action alongside Jaden Schwartz and Jori Lehtera. Fabbri scored on Thursday, the first NHL goal of his career as he made his debut. Scott Gomez made the team on a PTO but was a healthy scratch in the opener.
SAN JOSE
Games this week
@ Washington, @ New Jersey, @ New York Islanders
Rested Team: None
Tired Team: @ New York Islanders (Saturday)
Notes
The Sharks head east and play three games in four nights. Alex Stalock should see his first game action of the season but look for Martin Jones to get two starts. Raffi Torres just doesn’t learn. He has been suspended or fined nine times in his NHL career and his hit to the head on the Ducks’ Jakob Silfverberg got him suspended for 41 games. Joel Ward started the season on the Sharks second line with Patrick Marleau and Logan Couture. That should help his fantasy value. Joe Pavelski should have another big fantasy season and it got off to a good start as he had a goal and two helpers Wednesday. Keep an eye on Joonas Donskoi as he started the season as a top-six forward on a line with Joe Thornton and Pavelski.
TAMPA BAY
Games this week
@ Boston, @ Detroit, vs. Dallas, vs. Buffalo
Rested team: None
Tired Team: @ Detroit (Tuesday)
Notes
The Lightning play four games this week including three games in four nights. Ben Bishop should get the call in net three times with Kevin Poulin playing once. Bishop tied an NHL record on Thursday as he stopped two penalty shots against the Flyers. This could be the season that Jonathan Drouin breaks out. He started off well with two assists in the opener. He should see lots of ice time with Steven Stamkos and that cannot hurt his value. Kudos if you had Jason Garrison in your lineup this week as he had two goals on Thursday. Former first round pick Slater Koekkoek was sent to the minors at the end of training camp.
TORONTO
Games this week
@ Columbus, @ Pittsburgh
Rested team: None
Tired Team: @ Pittsburgh (Saturday)
Notes
The Maple Leafs play only twice and yet they will be the tired team on Saturday in Pittsburgh as they also play on Friday. There has been no solution in net as both Jonathan Bernier and James Reimer should split the net this week. I like the addition of Frank Corrado to the Maple Leafs blueline. While I cannot recommend him in fantasy pools as I think his plus/minus will be lacking, he is a good skating and puck-moving defenseman something that coach Mike Babcock likes. James van Riemsdyk scored the lone Leaf goal on Wednesday with linemate Nazem Kadri picking up the assist.
VANCOUVER
Games this week
@ Anaheim, @ Los Angeles, vs. St. Louis, vs. Edmonton
Rested Team: vs. St. Louis (Friday). vs. Edmonton (Sunday)
Tired Team: @ Los Angeles (Tuesday)
Notes
The Canucks play four games this week. Ryan Miller should play three times with Richard Bachman likely playing once as Jacob Markstrom is out of action with a hamstring injury. Markstrom is expected back near the end of October at the earliest. Brandon Sutter fit in nicely on the top line with Daniel and Henrik Sedin as he had a goal and an assist. It’s nice to see Jake Virtanen, the sixth overall pick in the 2014 Draft, make the Canucks out of training camp. It may take a couple of seasons for Virtanen to have fantasy value but he is worth stashing in keeper leagues.
WASHINGTON
Games this week
vs. San Jose, vs. Chicago, vs. Carolina
Rested team: vs. Chicago (Thursday) vs. Carolina (Saturday)
Tired Team: None
Notes
The Capitals get quite a break early on as they will have played four games by the end of the week and have been the rested team in three of the four games. That’s quite an advantage. Nicklas Backstrom is getting close to returning to action. He had off-season hip surgery and it was unknown at the time when he would be able to return. Well, it now seems he will miss only four or five games and should be back by the Carolina game or early the next week. There is the battle for the sixth defenseman’s spot beside Nate Schmidt and it’s Dmitry Orlov and Taylor Chorney competing. I like Matt Niskanen this season.
WINNIPEG
Games this week
@ New York Islanders, @ New York Rangers, vs. Calgary, vs. St. Louis
Rested team: None
Tired Team: @ New York Rangers (Tuesday)
Notes
The Jets play four times so look for Michael Hutchinson to get at least one start with Ondrej Pavelec getting the remainder. Alexander Burmistrov made a triumphant return to the NHL from the KHL as he had a goal and an assist in the win over Boston and was also a plus-four in the game. It’s nice to see Nic Petan score in his NHL debut. Be all over Nikolaj Ehlers, especially in dynasty pools as he is a talent. It doesn’t hurt that he will play alongside Mathieu Perreault and Mark Scheifele. The Jets have a lot of talent on their squad and it is just a matter of time before they will be Cup contenders.
