Yahoo Sports Fantasy Hockey: Players seeing an uptick in ice time to consider
By Jason Chen, RotoWire
Special to Yahoo Sports
One of the sometimes underrated aspects of fantasy hockey is ice time. If you’re not on the ice, you can’t rack up points.
Here are some players who have received more ice time lately and who have at least three games this week:
Joey Anderson, Devils
Anderson, who captained Team USA at the 2018 World Juniors, is known for his intangibles, and coaches love that. Since returning to the Devils lineup, Anderson has certainly caught John Hynes’ attention. His ice time has subsequently climbed from 10 minutes to 13 on Friday against the Leafs. The Devils have four games this week, including two against the hated Pennsylvania teams. Those will be physical affairs in which Anderson could excel. He has just one assist this season but also has six shots, two blocked shots and 10 hits.
Matt Grzelcyk, Bruins
Bruce Cassidy eased him back into the lineup after a two-game absence, but in his third game back against the rival Leafs, Grzelcyk led all defensemen with 22:33 of ice time. He also collected one assist. The undersized 24 year old has eight points in 14 games and he’s on pace for a career season. His emergence as a top-four defenseman has made rumors of trading Torey Krug that much more sensible. The Bruins have four games coming up, which will be a good test for Grzelcyk as they await the return of Charlie McAvoy and Kevan Miller.
Miro Heiskanen, Stars
The Stars’ blue line has been decimated by injuries, so Heiskanen is being thrusted into the spotlight much sooner than expected. On Saturday against the Preds, the Stars dressed Joel Hanley, Ben Gleason and Dillon Heatherington — a trio that played a total of 11 NHL games last season. It forced Jim Montgomery to lean heavily on his prized rookie. Heiskanen ended up playing 29:26 — two minutes more than John Klingberg’s season high. He’s the most obvious and capable candidate to fill Klingberg’s skates and the Stars play three games this week, two of which are at home.
Boone Jenner, Blue Jackets
Two-way guys who play hard always have a spot in John Tortorella’s lineups, and with his recent scoring streak Jenner will see even more ice. He has has four assists in five games and played more than 22 minutes in each of his last two games. Both were one-goal games, albeit one went to a shootout, which speaks to how much Tortorella trusts him in high-pressure situations. Tortorella leans on his top two lines heavily, especially when he benches Anthony Duclair and Oliver Bjorkstrand. The BJ’s have a soft schedule coming up against the defense-thin Stars, subpar Panthers, and Hurricanes.
Brent Seabrook, Blackhawks
Not a whole lot has changed since Jeremy Colliton took over. The Blackhawks continue to lose, most recently against the Flyers on Saturday, and they also continue to ride their old horses in Duncan Keith and Seabrook. The two were the only defensemen to log more than 21 minutes, and despite his declining skill, Seabrook is averaging more ice time than before. The Blackhawks have a busy week with a four-game schedule, playing host to three tough rivals after a stop in Carolina. Seabrook could log close to 100 minutes this week. At his scoring rate per 60 minutes, he could easily pick up a couple points.
Colton Sissons, Predators
The tenacious winger has been on a tear, scoring a hat trick against the Avs and then logging more than 20 minutes against the Stars on Saturday. In fact, he’s surpassed his season average of 14:35 in each of his last four games. He’s shooting at double the rate of his career average, so don’t expect the hot streak to last. That said, if he has one hot streak all season it could be the one he’s on now. The Preds play four games this week, including a visit to the California triumvirate.
Jake Virtanen, Canucks
Brock Boeser is out for weeks with no timetable, so in steps Shotgun Jake. The exciting speedster is in the midst of a potential breakout season and on the verge of erasing all jokes about the Canucks passing on William Nylander. The hometown boy from Abby skated a season-high 20:20 on Saturday — the first time he’s played more than 18 minutes all season — and the rest of the top line with Elias Pettersson and Nikolay Goldobin looked excellent against the Sabres, creating chances with speed and skill. It bears mentioning Virtanen is shooting at the rate of an elite goal scorer, so predictions of his year-end goal production will depend on what you think his ceiling is. However, make no mistake, Virtanen, who plays four games this week, has multiple-30-goal-season potential in him.
Lucas Wallmark, Hurricanes
A 2014 fourth-round pick, Wallmark is in his first full season with the Hurricanes (he’s split the last two seasons between Carolina and AHL Charlotte). He’s a skilled player who can be a reliable No. 2 scoring center one day, and recently he’s started to pop up on the radar a lot more. He’s played at least 15 minutes in each of his last three games, even though his season average is 13:33. On a team where the offense has suddenly disappeared — the Hurricanes have scored three goals or more just twice in their last six games — players such as Wallmark are asked to step up. He registered eight shots against Detroit on Saturday, and the Hurricanes play host to Chicago, Columbus and New Jersey this week.
