A few days ago NHL.com provided fantasy hockey fans with 10 under-the-radar pickups for the final stretch. Four of those players were guys that had recently been traded. Today we break things down even further by looking at any relevant fantasy player that was traded prior to the NHL's deadline on Monday, Feb. 28. It's always difficult to gauge exactly how a newcomer will perform with his new squad, but 10 days after the deadline, we should start to see some trends.
While some of the players listed below are surely owned in your fantasy league, a few of them may still be out there on waivers and are certainly worth adding as you approach your league's playoffs. Remember, sometimes it takes time for these newbies to get used to a different setting and teammates -- some patience needs to be shown from a fantasy viewpoint, and hopefully they'll reward you in the end.
In order from the most owned in standard Yahoo! Fantasy Leagues to the least owned, here is a list of any potentially fantasy-relevant players that were dealt prior to the deadline, their ownership percentage, their statistics with their new team, their total season stats and what you should do with them in regards to your fantasy team.
Alex Goligoski, Dallas Stars, D (owned in 94 percent of Yahoo! Leagues)
8 games with DAL: 1 G, 6 A, plus-3, 10 PIMs, 2 PPP, 14 SOG
68 games total: 10 G, 28 A, plus-23, 38 PIMs, 19 PPP, 115 SOG
Verdict: add him -- stepping in smoothly on the top defensive pairing with Stephane Robidas
Tomas Kaberle, Boston Bruins, D (93 percent)
8 games with BOS: 0 G, 1 A, plus-3, 0 PIMs, 0 PPP, 7 SOG
66 games total: 3 G, 36 A, plus-1, 16 PIMs, 22 PPP, 106 SOG
Verdict: bench him -- clearly off to a slow start and focusing more on defensive role early on
Chris Stewart, St. Louis Blues, RW (87 percent)
11 games with STL: 9 G, 3 A, plus-1, 11 PIMs, 6 PPP, 21 SOG
47 games total: 22 G, 20 A, minus-9, 49 PIMs, 14 PPP, 116 SOG
Verdict: add him -- he is flourishing with his new squad despite the team struggling
Dustin Penner, Los Angeles Kings, LW (79 percent)
4 games with LAK: 1 G, 2 A, plus-1, 0 PIMs, 0 PPP, 6 SOG
66 games total: 22 G, 20 A, minus-11, 45 PIMs, 8 PPP, 143 SOG
Verdict: add him -- only good things coming while on the top line with Anze Kopitar and Justin Williams
Craig Anderson, Ottawa Senators, G (78 percent)
8 games (8 starts) with OTT: 5-3-0, 1.49 GAA, .954 save percentage, 1 shutout
41 games (39 starts) total: 18-18-3, 2.90 GAA, .909 save percentage, 1 shutout
Verdict: add him immediately -- he may not keep it up playing for OTT, but ride him before it's too late
Erik Johnson, Colorado Avalanche, D (77 percent)
8 games with COL: 2 G, 2 A, minus-3, 6 PIMs, 2 PPP, 24 SOG
63 games total: 7 G, 16 A, minus-11, 43 PIMs, 7 PPP, 132 SOG
Verdict: add him -- but don't expect much more than what he's done in his first 8 games with the Avs
James Neal, Pittsburgh Penguins, LW (74 percent)
7 games with PIT: 1 G, 1 A, even, 4 PIMs, 0 PPP, 16 SOG
66 games total: 22 G, 19 A, plus-8, 64 PIMs, 8 PPP, 176 SOG
Verdict: add him -- off to a slow start, but the talented winger will get it going eventually
Bryan McCabe, New York Rangers, D (70 percent)
6 games with NYR: 0 G, 2 A, plus-3, 0 PIMs, 2 PPP, 13 SOG
54 games total: 5 G, 19 A, plus-6, 28 PIMs, 9 PPP, 1010 SOG
Verdict: drop him -- despite manning the power play, he isn't seeing enough total ice time to be helpful
Dennis Wideman, Washington Capitals, D (54 percent)
5 games with WSH: 0 G, 2 A, plus-5, 2 PIMs, 0 PPP, 11 SOG
66 games total: 9 G, 26 A, minus-21, 35 PIMs, 19 PPP, 146 SOG
Verdict: add him -- it's only a matter of time before he starts contributing more in D.C.
Dan Ellis, Anaheim Ducks, G (45 percent)
6 games (6 starts) with ANA: 4-1-1, 2.26 GAA, .911 save percentage, 0 shutouts
37 games (34 starts) total: 17-8-7, 2.81 GAA, .893 save percentage, 2 shutouts
Verdict: add him -- with Jonas Hiller's return in doubt, Ellis will be relied on for plenty of action
Niclas Bergfors, Florida Panthers, RW (35 percent)
5 games with FLA: 0 G, 2 A, plus-1, 0 PIMs, 0 PPP, 15 SOG
57 games total: 11 G, 20 A, minus-10, 6 PIMs, 9 PPP, 114 SOG
Verdict: leave him -- wait another year or two for the 24-year-old
Brad Boyes, Buffalo Sabres, RW (34 percent)
5 games with BUF: 2 G, 2 A, even, 0 PIMs, 1 PPP, 11 SOG
67 games total: 14 G, 31 A, plus-11, 30 PIMs, 10 PPP, 143 SOG
Verdict: add him -- off to a fast start with new squad
Brian Elliott, Colorado Avalanche, G (33 percent)
4 games (4 starts) with COL: 0-3-1, 3.95 GAA, .890 save percentage, 0 shutouts
47 games (43 starts) total: 13-22-9, 3.26 GAA, .893 save percentage, 3 shutouts
Verdict: leave him -- Avs are in rebuild mode
Kris Versteeg, Philadelphia Flyers, LW (32 percent)
11 games with PHI: 4 G, 1 A, plus-1, 4 PIMs, 1 PPP, 25 SOG
64 games total: 18 G, 22 A, -12, 33 PIMs, 14 PPP, 153 SOG
Verdict: add him -- he can only improve skating on a line with Mike Richards
Al Montoya, New York Islanders, G (23 percent)
11 games (9 starts) with NYI and season total: 6-2-2, 2.02 GAA, .927 save percentage, 1 shutout
Verdict: add him -- his current hot streak may end before you know it
Mike Fisher, Nashville Predators, C (21 percent)
12 games with NSH: 1 G, 3 A, -5, 4 PIMs, 2 PPP, 29 SOG
67 games total: 15 G, 13 A, -24, 37 PIMs, 11 PPP, 161 SOG
Verdict: leave him -- we were hoping the plus/minus would improve at worst case
Jason Arnott, Washington Capitals, C (19 percent)
5 games with WSH: 1 G, 2 A, plus-4, 4 PIMs, 1 PPP, 9 SOG
67 games total: 14 G, 13 A, minus-5, 36 PIMs, 6 PPP, 148 SOG
Verdict: add him -- centering Caps' second-line with Alexander Semin and seeing time on top PP unit
Alex Kovalev, Pittsburgh Penguins, RW (19 percent)
6 games with PIT: 1 G, 0 A, even, 8 PIMs, 0 PPP, 9 SOG
60 games total: 15 G, 13 A, minus-9, 36 PIMs, 9 PPP, 132 SOG
Verdict: leave him -- trade to playoff contender hasn't done much; he appears to be running out of gas
Kevin Shattenkirk, St. Louis Blues, D (19 percent)
11 games with STL: 0 G, 5 A, plus-3, 10 PIMs, 2 PPP, 18 SOG
57 games total: 7 G, 24 A, minus-8, 30 PIMs, 12 PPP, 85 SOG
Verdict: add him in deeper leagues -- especially in keeper leagues
Rich Peverley, Boston Bruins, C (14 percent)
7 games with BOS: 1 G, 1 A, plus-1, 0 PIMs, 0 PPP, 10 SOG
66 games total: 15 G, 21 A, -15, 35 PIMs, 12 PPP, 171 SOG
Verdict: leave him -- playing minor role on a very deep team in Boston
Ian White, San Jose Sharks, D (11 percent)
8 games with SJS: 0 G, 3 A, plus-5, 2 PIMs, 1 PPP, 21 SOG
47 games total: 2 G, 17 A, minus-1, 20 PIMs, 6 PPP, 108 SOG
Verdict: leave him -- unless you need shots from your blue line
Michael Frolik, Chicago Blackhawks, RW (10 percent)
14 games with CHI: 2 G, 2 A, -3, 4 PIMs, 0 PPP, 45 SOG
66 games total: 10 G, 23 A, -1, 20 PIMs, 6 PPP, 203 SOG
Verdict: leave him -- power forward seeing limited ice time in his new city
Joffrey Lupul, Toronto Maple Leafs, LW (8 percent)
13 games with TOR: 3 G, 3 A, -8, 15 PIMs, 3 PPP, 34 SOG
39 games total: 8 G, 11 A, -12, 29 PIMs, 9 PPP, 88 SOG
Verdict: add him in the deepest leagues -- off to hot start on hot team
Blake Wheeler, Atlanta Thrashers, RW (8 percent)
8 games with ATL: 3 G, 3 A, plus-2, 8 PIMs, 2 PPP, 33 SOG
66 games total: 14 G, 19 A, plus-10, 40 PIMs, 4 PPP, 134 SOG
Verdict: add him in the deepest leagues -- could be a useful bench forward
Scottie Upshall, Columbus Blue Jackets, RW (6 percent)
5 games with CBJ: 2 G, 0 A, minus-5, 4 PIMs, 0 PPP, 15 SOG
66 games total: 18 G, 11 A, even, 46 PIMs, 3 PPP, 159 SOG
Verdict: keep an eye on him -- scored 2 goals in his first two games, but struggled in the next three
Francois Beauchemin, Anaheim Ducks, D (5 percent)
12 games with ANA: 1 G, 1 A, -2, 6 PIMs, 1 PPP, 12 SOG
66 games total: 3 G, 11 A, -6, 22 PIMs, 2 PPP, 88 SOG
Verdict: leave him -- not on the fantasy map
Cory Stillman, Carolina Hurricanes, LW (3 percent)
6 games with CAR: 2 G, 3 A, plus-2, 0 PIMs, 1 PPP, 9 SOG
50 games total: 9 G, 19 A, plus-5, 20 PIMs, 7 PPP, 90 SOG
Verdict: keep an eye on him -- could be useful in deep leagues while playing with Eric Staal
Contact Matt Cubeta @ MCubeta@nhl.com
Receive your weekly recap of all the happenings around the world of sports.