Fantasy Hockey Values: Pair of backup goalies shining when needed most

By Jan Levine, RotoWire

Special to Yahoo Sports

In this space, we'll look at which NHL players are seeing their fantasy hockey values rise or fall on a week-to-week basis.

This week's article includes a Brock Star on the Island, Toffoli on a roll, Klingberg heating up, a new No. 1 goalie in the Desert (with the usual No. 1 down with injury) and Seattle's netminder slumping.

First Liners (Risers)

Brock Nelson, C, NYI

Quick, amongst players who have been on the Islanders all season, who leads the team in points?

That's right, it's Nelson. He has hit the scoresheet in 10 straight games, including Saturday, piling up six goals and 12 points over that stretch. On the season, Nelson has produced 21 goals and 51 points in 56 contests — leaving him only eight points short of tying the career-best 59 he managed last season in 72 games. Enjoy the ride if you have Nelson in your league.

Nick Schmaltz, RW, AZ

On an elite team, Schmaltz would likely slot in on the second or third line. In Arizona, he is seeing top-line minutes, and, for the most part, has succeeded in that role. Last year, Schmaltz posted a career-high 23 goals and 59 points in 63 games while skating with Clayton Keller. This season, despite missing slightly more than a month with an injury and with a similar line placement, Schmaltz is up to 14 goals, 35 points, 78 shots on net and an even plus-minus-rating through 38 outings. Schmaltz has been hot lately too, racking up seven goals and seven helpers with a plus-7 rating over his last eight contests.

Tyler Toffoli, LW, CGY

Toffoli has been relatively consistent in his career, racking up at least 43 points in seven of his last nine seasons. This season is no exception, as Toffoli is on pace to exceed the career-high 58 points he scored with LA in 2015-16 having notched 19 goals and 24 assists in 52 games. Toffoli has been on a roll recently too, posting four goals and two assists in his last four games. Calgary is barely hanging on to the second wild-card spot in the West and will need Toffoli to keep producing to have any shot at maintaining that position.

Sam Reinhart, RW, FLA

The Florida sun did wonders for Reinhart last year, as he posted career-highs in goals (33), assists (49) and points (82). This year has not been as successful for the winger, but Reinhart's game continues to stay warm with 17 points (seven goals, 10 assists) in his last 13 games. The Panthers have been very up-and-down this year, contributing to Reinhart's slight decline in production. If the team can find a way to stay healthy, they have a realistic shot at a wild-card spot, which will require solid performances from Reinhart as well.

John Klingberg, D, ANA

Klingberg left Dallas with a little bit of a bang, posting 40-plus points (47) for the sixth time in eight years last season. He also finished with exactly 20 power-play points, the fourth time he has reached that level. Klingberg couldn't find a long-term suitor in the market, so he took a one-year, $7 million deal with Anaheim. To date, he has been a bust — to put it nicely. But he has shown signs of life recently, with five points over his last four contests, which could raise the interest level in him before the March 3 NHL trade deadline. Be aware though, he missed Sunday's contest with an undisclosed injury.

Moritz Seider, D, DET

Quietly, Seider has mostly put his early-season struggles behind him, hitting the scoresheet with more frequency the past month. With two assists Saturday, Seider has racked up one goal and 15 points in 13 games over the last month. That output has upped his season marks to three goals and 25 assists in 51 games, a far cry from the 50 he posted in 82 games, but respectable nonetheless. The ancillary numbers — besides shots on goal — including time on ice, power-play time on ice, hits and blocks, are in line with last season, boding well for future success.

Adin Hill G, LV

Hill had been relatively solid for Vegas, posting an 11-5-1 record with a 2.58 goals-against average (GAA) and .909 save percentage. He now gets an opportunity to run for the starting job — at least for a little while — with Logan Thompson week-to-week with a lower-body injury. Las Vegas is in a lighter part of their schedule, so the number of games Hill sees might be minimal. But a starting goalie on a playoff-bound team has solid value in almost all formats and he picked up the win Sunday, stopping 23 of 25 shots.

Casey DeSmith, G, PIT

DeSmith's time in the sun may be coming to an end soon, but he has been a godsend for the Penguins. With Tristan Jarry sidelined, DeSmith started his sixth straight game Saturday. He went 3-1-1 in his first five games while registering a .910 save percentage, albeit with a 3.28 goals-against average. DeSmith was pulled after allowing three goals on 15 shots Saturday and will revert back to his backup job once Jarry returns, which should be in the near term, as he practiced this week with the team.

Others include Mika Zibanejad, Elias Pettersson, Boone Jenner, Adam Henrique, Matt Duchene, Bo Horvat, Brandon Tanev, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Chris Kreider (goal No. 250 as a Ranger), Roope Hintz, Frank Vatrano, Quinn Hughes, Seth Jones, Aaron Ekblad, Jake Oettinger, Ville Husso, Jaroslav Halak and Jack Campbell.

Fourth Liners/Press Boxers (Fallers)

Jack Eichel, C, LV

Eichel finally broke his goal drought Thursday, lighting the lamp for the first time in 10 games and notching his first point in six. He followed that up with another goal and assist, giving Eichel 17 tallies, 38 points, 147 shots on net and a plus-10 rating through 41 contests overall — solid enough numbers, but not to the level that was expected from him following his acquisition from Buffalo. Eichel has yet to truly dominate in the Desert, which will be needed with Vegas battling to maintain its top spot in the division. Maybe his last two performances are a sign that dominance is beginning. If that happens, he becomes a buy-low in fantasy.

Alexander Edler, D, LA

Edler hasn't recorded a point in his last 19 contests and sits with just one goal and six assists in 45 games. His ice time is down three minutes a game and he's also served as a healthy scratch a bit recently. The Kings are likely to add a blueliner by the trade deadline, which could relegate Edler to seventh blueliner duty, meaning he will be on the outside looking in. Feel free to move on.

Jonathan Huberdeau LW, CGY

Huberdeau has had a rough campaign in Calgary after notching a career-best 115 points last year in Florida. He got off to a brutal start and appeared to have turned the corner in January, but he ended up back in the middle of a rough patch thereafter. Huberdeau has five points — two goals and three assists — in his last eight games, which is a mild hot streak for him this season, and sits with just 10 goals and 26 assists in 51 games. That output is a far cry from what Calgary expected when they dealt Matthew Tkachuk to the Panthers.

Others include Jeff Carter, Jared McCann, Dominik Kubalik, Seth Jarvis, Dylan Guenther and Marc-Andre Fleury.