NHL Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Forwards Pickups Dec. 12 - Holloway Excelling Under Montgomery; Chibrikov Encore

On every game day this season, THN Fantasy will highlight players and goalies for fantasy managers to stream or roster for the rest of the season. The recommended players and goalies can be used in standard fantasy leagues or for daily fantasy games.

Ross Colton, C/LW, COL vs. UTA (48% rostered)

Jared Bednar mentioned he'd like to move Colton back to Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen's line at some point, though that has yet to happen. With Artturi Lehkonen playing so well in that spot, the Avs may not see it necessary to change, but they are on home ice where they get last change. Bednar likes to throw out different combos sometimes, and perhaps Colton will finally see L1 usage. He's scored one goal in three games while averaging 14 minutes since returning from a 17-game absence.

Anders Lee, LW, NYI vs. CHI (45% rostered)

Honestly, I'm getting tired of mentioning Lee every week, so please do everyone a favor and pick him up. His goal against the Kings was his 11th points in his past nine games, and he added six shots. He's on fire and a great source of shots.

Pavel Buchnevich, C/LW, STL vs. SJ (43% rostered)
Dylan Holloway, C/LW, STL vs. SJ (26% rostered)

Really great matchup for the Blues and Buchnevich is on a three-game points streak. It's actually six games if you include the three games he played prior to his two-game absence due to injury. The shot volume has increased a little bit, too, with at least three shots on goal in each of his past three games.

Holloway has sneaky rest-of-season value because he's thriving under Jim Montgomery. His deployment isn't the best, but he's consistently getting 16-17 minutes per game and has now scored 11 points in his past seven games - that's over half of his entire season total (19). Plenty of shots and hits makes him a valuable multi-category contributor.

Bryan Rust, RW, PIT at MON (33% rostered)
Rickard Rakell, C/LW/RW, PIT at MON (30% rostered)

Not only does Rust have five points in his past five games, his linemate Sidney Crosby has tormented the Habs throughout his entire career. Sam Montembeault, who's expect to start, has been excellent lately, but I still expect the Pens to have the upper hand offensively in this matchup.

Kent Johnson, C/LW/RW, CLB vs. WSH (32% rostered)

No matter who's in net, Johnson's scoring. He's scored four points in his past two games after a quiet three-game stretch, and at one point played on the top line with Sean Monahan and Kirill Marchenko. The Caps can be tough to beat but Johnson's converting his shots at such a high clip that it doesn't seem to matter.

Marco Rossi, C, MIN vs. EDM (30% rostered)

Tough matchup for Rossi, who either has to face Leon Draisaitl or Connor McDavid. However, Rossi's been putting up good numbers lately, especially with his late-game heroics. He's scored seven points in his past six games, and up to 24 points in 28 games while centering the Wild's top line.

Nikita Chibrikov, RW, WPG vs. VEG (0% rostered)

I noted Chibrikov in my Tuesday article (even before he was added to Yahoo's player database!) and, once again, he had an awesome season debut with two points - including an absolute snipe - two shots and four hits. That's an efficient night for someone who plays L2 and PP2 and finished with 13:28 TOI. Chibrikov made a similar statement in his lone game last season, scoring his first NHL goal in his NHL debut against the Canucks.

Chibrikov's minutes will likely remain limited and the Knights are a tough opponent, but his play has been very noteworthy so far. The hits gives him under-the-radar value in multi-category leagues. I don't think Chibrikov will stick with the team when Nikolaj Ehlers returns - it's too early to say, though he's earning his way - but in the meantime he's a potentially awesome DFS value play and streaming option.

Honorable mention:

Sean Monahan, C, CLB vs. WSH (42% rostered)
Gabriel Vilardi, C/RW, WPG vs. VEG (38% rostered)

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