October 23 Fantasy Hockey Preview: Travis Sanheim, John Carlson, Tom Wilson and More

There’s just one NHL game today: Philadelphia Flyers vs Washington Capitals in the second night of a home-and-home series. The teams played yesterday in Philly, where Washington won 4-1.

My iPhone’s map feature tells me that it’s about a two hour and fifteen-minute drive from the Flyers’ home, the Wells Fargo Center, to Washington’s arena, Capital One Arena, and the teams are making the short trek to play the second game today in the nation’s capital.

With just one game, it leaves very few fantasy hockey options, so let’s take a little time to dig into the players who have been most involved on both teams and could be the best players for your fantasy team on Wednesday.

Some of the guys we talk about will already be owned, but it’s more about comparing the shots and time on ice to see who is getting the most work in those aspects. The best way to score points is to be on the ice and touch the puck (preferably putting it on net).

Tuesday’s Game

I mentioned above that the Caps won 4-1, but let’s dig a little deeper:

• Washington took 29 shots and Philadelphia just 18

• Philly led in hits 23-20

• The Capitals got five power play opportunities and the Flyers three, but neither team scored with the advantage

• Instead, Washington scored two short-handed goals

Capitals Notable Stats

• Nic Dowd, Andrew Mangiapane, John Carlson, and Jakob Chychrun scored goals

• Brandon Duhaime, Dylan Strome, Jakub Vrana, and Martin Fehervary each had one assist; Connor McMichael had two assists

• Dowd, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Duhaime, Mangiapane, Alex Ovechkin, Aliaksei Protas, Strome, and Tom Wilson all had either two or three shots on goal; Carlson had five shots and Chychrun four

• Dowd and Duhaime had four hits, and Fehervary had three

Flyers Notable Stats

• Travis Sanheim scored the only goal, and it was assisted by Matvei Michkov and Cam York

• Bobby Brink, Travis Konecny, Owen Tippett, Sanheim, and Nick Seeler all took two shots; Scott Laughton led the team with three shots

• Laughton had five hits, and Garnet Hathaway had four hits

Wednesday’s Game

The Flyers are one of eight teams I listed yesterday as being ones to target with fantasy players because they give up a lot of shots and goals. Philly is in the top 10 in both of those statistics this year, offering more chances for opponents to score.

It worked yesterday, so let’s capitalize on the Capitals (no pun intended…I swear that wasn’t intentional) and look at players with the best chances to record points in today’s game:

Capitals’ Top Shooters and Time on Ice

Forwards (Shots/Average Ice Time)

• Alex Ovechkin (16/18:40)

• Tom Wilson (14/19:16)

• Dylan Strome (11/17:51)

• Andrew Mangiapane (10/14:11)

• Connor McMichael (10/16:01)

Defenders

• John Carlson (13/26:20)

• Jakob Chychrun (13/21:30)

• Trevor van Riemsdyk (10/19:49)

• Martin Fehervary (4/18:54)

• Rasmus Sandin (3/18:11)

Flyers’ Top Shooters and Time on Ice

Philadelphia’s players aren’t as valuable from a fantasy perspective because Washington is a better defensive team. The Caps are in the bottom 10 in shots allowed and in the bottom half of the league in goals allowed, presenting a middling or worse matchup.

Here are the players with the most involvement if you are inclined to add anyone from the Flyers:

Forwards

• Owen Tippett (19/18:06)

• Travis Konecny (17/20:14)

• Morgan Frost (17/17:31)

• Bobby Brink (12/11:40)

• Matvei Michkov (11/18:48)

• Scott Laughton (10/14:03)

• Joel Farabee (10/13:35)

Defenders

• Travis Sanheim (16/22:45)

• Cam York (9/23:05)

• Egor Zamula (6/18:53)

• Jamie Drysdale (5/18:25)