Welcome to the Thursday prospect ramblings, on a Saturday, where I am back after a brief hiatus from rambling writing. What better way to return than to offer up some prospects that really should be owned in your keeper leagues. I am using Fantrax as I do not use CBS, ESPN and Yahoo is not good for keeper leagues (that involve prospects or trading over the summer)
I am going to offer up some prospects/rookies that have been playing, have had cups of coffee and those who are not up to the show yet. Let me get started:
Janis Jérôme Moser (ARI) – 15%
- 15% is on the high side but more people need to own Moser especially if the Coyotes move Chychrun, as it will free up more powerplay time. It is even possible that Arizona could move Gostisbehere, and that leaves Moser as the 1PP quarterback. Upside is leading the team defense in points, downside is the abundance of minuses and limited ceiling with a poor roster. If you can sneak him on your roster and sit on him do it
Robin Salo (NYI) – 8%
- Salo has been up and down a few times this season, but has seen a lot of time lately in the NHL. With Pulock out and Trotz knowing the players strength he has had the additional powerplay time that Dobson does not take. Next season will likely see Dobson and Sale battle it out for 1PP time in the future. On a poor Bridgeport team (the team is rarely known for scoring) he has an impressive eight points in 14 games
Mattias Norlinder (MTL) – 9%
- Put his use this season, that saw him having limited ice time, injuries, and a coach playing him to his weaknesses aside and look at his previous body of work then you know there is a great future player here. He was loaned back to Frolunda of the SHL because of how bad Montreal has been this season. Petry, Savard, and Edmundson are the only contracts on defense after this season, so Norlinder has a chance to grab the 1PP role next season especially if Petry continues to be terrible
Egor Zamula (PHI) – 7%
- Zamula has been up for just a single game this season and has spent the rest of his time in the AHL. He has played well in the AHL and is really just biding his time until he is called to the NHL full time. There is a very good defenseman here but will he get the 1PP time before being stuck as a shutdown defenseman is my (and other fantasy GMs) only worry
Zayde Wisdom (PHI) – 5%
- Coming back from injury and back in Kingston of the OHL (too bad it is not the AHL where he was playing exceptionally well for an 18-year-old, but that is a separate discussion) he is starting slowly but that is to be expected and it may be what is keeping his ownership low. The Flyers have what can be described as a fourth round steal
Brock Faber (LA)– 5%
- If Faber is unowned in your fantasy league, you need to pull off the ol’ “add World Junior players that can impress and trade them for an upgrade when they do” part of keeper league hockey. Here Faber could be a star for team USA and that will mean he will be a very sought-after prospect
Lucas Elvenes (ANA) – 8%
- Elvenes moved to a team (Anaheim) where he actually has a chance for a future NHL roster spot after being on waivers. He was not given that in Vegas and kept getting passed by other players who had lesser stats. In Henderson he had 10 points in 20 games, but once moved to San Diego he wants to impress his new team and has nine points in seven games. Anaheim will need top nine scoring if they want to be better and I expect Elvenes to help with that
Roni Hirvonen (TOR) – 6% and Kasper Simontaival (FLA) – 5%
- The World Juniors have been postponed so do not forget these two on the team. Lambert was getting all the accolades for Finland after a couple top notch performances but these two can climb back up the rankings. They both should be owned more in keepers and if I had to choose who has the higher fantasy upside it would be Simontaival but Hirvonen is the more likely NHLer
Oskar Steen (BOS) – 7%
- The Bruins need depth scoring and have some great young producers in the AHL (and overseas) but management (and to an extent coaching) prefers the vets they sign, who often are not great scorers, to younger players. Are the players really not that great or is it a trust issue? Steen has been on the roster since January 1st but has seen minimal ice time. If the Bruins decide to give more ice time to a player like Steen fantasy GMs would want to get the add in sooner than their counterparts
Joe Snively (WSH) – 1%
- Snively has probably been the Hershey Bears’ best forward all season, but he has two things going against him for an NHL future size (he is 5-9) and he just turned 26. He may either stay a top scoring AHLer or, if a team is willing and in need of a middle-six playmaking winger, get a legit shot at an NHL roster spot. He should be owned by more than 1% of keeper league GMs though, especially since he is top three in AHL scoring
Alexander True (SEA) – 2%
- For all the bad picks Seattle made in the expansion draft True may just be a sneaky good one. He has produced will in the AHL since 2018 and may have a legit shot at a top six/nine spot on the Kraken. At 6-5 it may take him a few seasons to produce really well but he could hit the 0.5 ppg mark in Seattle early and be a good depth add for a lot of keeper leagues
Johannes Kinnvall (CGY) – 2%
- The injury to Kinnvall has dropped his ownership % in Fantrax but people need to remember how good he can be if given a PP role in the NHL. He should be much more than 2% held, especially since he is back from injury. The only issue is the rise of Kylington, Andersson getting the 1PP time, and lack of depth scoring in Calgary. If any of those change Kinnvall has a chance to take it and I doubt he would give it back
Joachim Blichfeld (SJ) – 4%
- Blichfeld did everything he could at the start of the season to get dropped by many fantasy GMs, which was to somehow not make the Sharks roster which had around two to three open spots for the taking. He was also less impressive in the AHL than in his previous seasons, but appears to be back on track now and is back in the top 10 in shots for the AHL. He should be more than 4% owned, especially if the Sharks move out more players this season
Arseny Gritsyuk (NJ) – 1%
- First Jesper Bratt in round six (2016), then Yegor Sharangovich in round five (2018), and now Gritsyuk in round five (2019). Did the Devils grab another NHLer late in the draft that can help the roster almost immediately? He is third on Avangard Omsk (KHL) in scoring in his first full KHL season. He is signed until 2022-2023, so he will not be possibly able to help the Devils until 2023-2024. He is going to the Olympics for Russia and he will soon start getting scooped up in keeper leagues, I suggest getting the jump on your opponents ASAP
Valtteri Puustinen (PIT) – 3%
- Coming from Finland’s Liiga to lead an AHL squad in scoring is no small feat, especially for a seventh-round pick, who is just 22, 5-9, and is not known as a blazing skater. At just 3% he is not owned enough. He is a boom/bust NHL prospect but the boom could contain time alongside Malkin or Crosby over the next four years, and that is always a plus
Thanks for reading, I should be rambling more in the future
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