RADIO
Thursday is a busy night in the National Hockey League, with 10 games on the schedule.
Among the most compelling matchups, the Carolina Hurricanes continue in Tampa Bay after losing to the Lightning Wednesday and the Pittsburgh Penguins are in Washington to face the Capitals, and as long as Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin are involved, that’s an interesting game.
The Boston Bruins visit the New York Islanders in another game involving two teams in playoff positions.
North of the border, the Montreal Canadiens will play their first game without Claude Julien behind the bench, as they travel to Winnipeg to take on the Jets. The Tkachuk brothers match up as the Calgary Flames visit the Ottawa Senators, and the Edmonton Oilers wrap up the Thursday schedule against the Vancouver Canucks.
Here are some Star Shootout angles to consider for Thursday’s NHL action on Monkey Knife Fight.
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STAR SHOOTOUT - MAIN GAMES
MORE OR LESS
Connor Hellebuyck MORE THAN 28.5 SAVES
The Jets netminder is averaging 28.6 saves per game this season, getting on track after a relatively slow start, and is at home against a Montreal Canadiens team that might be looking for a new coach bounce with Dominique Ducharme but has already been generating 32.9 shots per 60 on the road this season. That should leave enough room for Hellebuyck to come up with at least 29 saves.
Patrick Kane MORE THAN 0.5 ASSISTS
Forcing his way into the Hart Trophy discussion, the Blackhawks superstar winger has 30 points in 20 games and that includes 21 assists. He does have a tendency to erupt for big games so Kane has recorded assists in just 12 of 20 games this season. He does have a favorable matchup tonight, though, as Kane has produced nine assists in five games against Columbus this season, recording an assist in all five of those games.
Brad Marchand LESS THAN 0.5 ASSISTS
Marchand may be a shift disturber but continues to produce points at a high level, earning 20 points in 16 games this season. He has picked up assists in five of 10 road contests and is facing an Islanders team that is allowing a league-best 1.81 goals per 60 minutes on home ice this season.
Tyler Toffoli LESS THAN 5.5 FANTASY POINTS
One of Toffoli’s strengths as a player throughout his career has been his ability to generate shots and he has a career-high 3.3 shots per game this season. If he is creating shots around that rate against Winnipeg tonight, Toffoli would still need some points to give him a shot here and he has points in six of 10 road games this season, even though Montreal has played six of those games against Ottawa and Vancouver. Basically, it’s entirely possible that Toffoli could score enough to get over this number but it’s asking quite a bit.
Mark Scheifele LESS THAN 5.5 FANTASY POINTS
There are not many players who are as consistent as Scheifele right now. He is riding a 10-game point streak and has been held without a point in just two of 18 games this season. Even if they are slumping, Montreal presents quality opposition for Scheifele and the Jets on this night and the challenge for Scheifele is that he doesn’t have the same foundation of shot volume, averaging 2.3 shots per game. If he is only getting a couple of shots on goal, it requires more scoring to get to six or more fantasy points.
RAPID FIRE
David Pastrnak +0.5 fantasy points vs. Alex Ovechkin
Although Pastrnak has a more difficult matchup, playing a defensively-sound Islanders squad, he also is a lively underdog because the Bruins sniper is generating more shots than Ovechkin (4.0 to 3.6 per game, respectively) and if Ovi does not have that advantage from the start, it makes it more difficult for him to cover as a favorite against an elite talent like Pastrnak.
Darnell Nurse +0.5 fantasy points vs. Patrice Bergeron
Nurse has become a shockingly valuable contributor this season, putting up 14 points in the past 15 games and his shot blocking numbers also help to make him a viable underdog against Bergeron who is consistent and productive as ever but does have a challenging matchup that should give Nurse a fighting chance.
Connor McDavid -0.5 points vs. Brad Marchand
This one might be a little closer than it first appears because McDavid has done so much more damage at home this season. On the road, he has 12 points in 10 games, which is great, but he does have 26 points in 11 games at home. Marchand does have 11 points in 10 road games, so that would seem to make him a lively ‘dog. The challenge, however, is that Marchand takes on an Islanders squad allowing 1.81 goals/60 on home ice compared to McDavid visiting Vancouver, where the Canucks have surrendered 3.14 goals/60 on home ice. That difference keeps the edge with McDavid.
