October 26 Fantasy Hockey Teams to Stream: Tomas Hertl, Jake Neighbours, John Tavares and More
NHL teams with good matchups on Saturday and their most involved players.
Entering the weekend, five teams rank in the top five in both most shots allowed and most goals allowed per game:
- Boston Bruins
- Buffalo Sabres
- Montreal Canadiens
- Pittsburgh Penguins
- San Jose Sharks
Hockey is such a fickle sport, trying to guess which players in the middle will record a goal or assist on a given night, so I’ve been more concerned with finding the teams that offer the best matchups, specifically allowing the most shots and goals.
All five of those target teams are in action on Saturday, so let’s look at the teams they are facing and which players have been most involved. Not every player listed below will be available, but this is a good comparison of usage among players on the same team.
Individual and team stats are from NHL.com.
Toronto Maple Leafs @ Boston Bruins
The Bruins have allowed the sixth-most goals per game on the eight-most shots. They have allowed three or more goals in all but two of their eight games.
Maple Leafs’ Top Shooters and Time on Ice
Forwards (Shots/Average Ice Time)
- Auston Matthews (39/20:41)
- John Tavares (27/16:40)
- William Nylander (25/18:07)
- Mitch Marner (20/21:10)
- Matthew Knies (20/16:48)
- Nicholas Robertson (14/13:09)
Defenders
- Oliver Ekman-Larsson (22/22:01)
- Morgan Rielly (17/21:11)
- Jake McCabe (6/20:42)
- Christopher Tanev (3/18:44)
Detroit Red Wings @ Buffalo Sabres
The Sabres are 10th in both shots and goals allowed per game this year.
Red Wings’ Top Shooters and Time on Ice
Forwards
- Patrick Kane (15/17:12)
- Dylan Larkin (15/21:18)
- Alex DeBrincat (14/17:58)
- Lucas Raymond (14/19:03)
- Vladimir Tarasenko (13/13:56)
- J.T. Compher (13/17:53)
Defenders
- Moritz Seider (13/24:22)
- Erik Gustafsson (9/16:31)
- Simon Edvinsson (6/20:39)
- Ben Chiarot (8/20:38)
St. Louis Blues @ Montreal Canadiens
Montreal is second in most shots allowed and fifth in most goals allowed per game. They have given up at least four goals in each of their last four games.
Blues’ Top Shooters and Time on Ice
Forwards
- Brayden Schenn (24/17:36)
- Jordan Kyrou (22/18:47)
- Jake Neighbours (17/15:48)
- Pavel Buchnevich (16/18:50)
- Dylan Holloway (14/14:47)
- Mathieu Joseph (12/13:08)
- Robert Thomas (12/20:33)
Defenders
- Colton Parayko (15/24:00)
- Ryan Suter (12/20:07)
- Justin Faulk (7/23:36)
- Philip Broberg (8/19:58)
Vancouver Canucks vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh has allowed the most shots per game and second-most goals per game. They have given up at least four goals in each of their past five games.
Canucks’ Top Shooters and Time on Ice
Forwards
- J.T. Miller (14/18:59)
- Brock Boeser (14/18:09)
- Kiefer Sherwood (14/12:45)
- Conor Garland (13/18:24)
- Nils Hoglander (11/14:47)
- Elias Pettersson (9/19:45)
Defenders
- Quinn Hughes (22/25:02)
- Filip Hronek (9/23:37)
- Carson Soucy (5/19:27)
- Tyler Myers (8/17:43)
Vegas Golden Knights vs. San Jose Sharks
The Sharks rank fifth in shots allowed per game and fourth in goals allowed. They have given up at least three goals in six of eight games.
Knights’ Top Shooters and Time on Ice
Forwards
- Jack Eichel (17/20:51)
- Mark Stone (16/19:51)
- Ivan Barbashev (16/16:05)
- Pavel Dorofeyev (16/14:53)
- Tomas Hertl (15/18:38)
- Brett Howden (15/15:34)
Defenders
- Alex Pietrangelo (16/21:44)
- Brayden McNabb (14/19:02)
- Shea Theodore (12/21:59)
- Noah Hanifin (12/20:58)