EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsIt's early. Really early.That makes the task less about identifying the best fantasy players and more about spotting the ones flashing something useful before the sample gets big enough for everyone else to notice.Hits and blocked shots are especially good for this kind of early-season fishing. A player piling up peripheral fantasy points can establish a surprisingly useful floor. If there's any offensive upside hiding underneath it, you may want to know about him before the production arrives.We've seen how far that floor can carry a player. At this point last season, Brayden McNabb sat 16th among all defenders in fantasy points, and all but 0.1 of his 13.0 points had come from hits and blocks. He was still available in 57% of leagues at the time.Consider this your early warning system.Here are the top 10 players in fantasy points from hits and blocked shots (FPHBS) so far:I know what you're thinking: "Haha, he confused the two Elias Petterssons."Nope. That's good ol' Petey leading all forwards in fantasy points from peripheral, physical stats. In fact, with Pettersson changing his game (he had 67 total hits in 74 games last season, versus 19 through just four this season) and Hronek the undisputed champ of FPHBS so far, you might even say the Canucks are leaning into a different approach.This could be good business for fantasy. Filip Hronek is the headliner, logging 25:51 a night and quarterbacking the top power-play unit, with 17 blocks giving him a 2.3 FPPG floor under his 3.9 FPPG. The other Elias Pettersson -- Elias N. Pettersson, the defender, available in 96.7% -- sits 11th in FPHBS for deep-league managers who want a piece of the Canucks' new shot-blocking habit.Vladislav Gavrikov is the easiest add of the group. He's producing 2.6 FPPG with two-thirds of it coming from hits and blocks, the kind of steady return that holds up when the offense comes and goes. It also looks like he and defense partner Adam Fox are on the same page after a so-so first season together.The Flyers are the other team to watch, with Nick Seeler, Travis Sanheim, Jamie Drysdale, Cam York and Rasmus Ristolainen all inside the top 20. Seeler is pure floor for the deepest formats, but Drysdale is the interesting one. Nearly all of his points have come from hits and blocks, yet he's also running the top power-play unit. When the offense shows up, it lands on a foundation that's already there.Four games is nowhere near enough to crown anyone, and some of these names will fade as quickly as they arrived. But hits and blocks are about role and deployment, not puck luck, so they tend to hold up better than early scoring does. Grab the players who pair this floor with a real job -- Hronek, Gavrikov and Drysdale chief among them -- and check back in a few weeks to see who's still standing.Goalie notesHere's this week's goaltending snapshot, showing crease shares, fantasy production and key notes where relevant.Anaheim Ducks in two games:Lukas Dostal (crease share: 100.0%, fantasy points: 9.2, 63.1% available)Ville Husso (no games this season, 99.8% available)Dostal is 2-0 with a .918 save percentage and owns the crease, though a back-to-back likely hands Husso Saturday's game in Calgary. He shouldn't be sitting on the wire in 63% of leagues.Carolina Hurricanes in three games:Brandon Bussi (crease share: 66.5%, fantasy points: -2.8, 15.6% available)Pyotr Kochetkov (crease share: 33.5%, fantasy points: 3.2, 93.0% available)Kochetkov's bid to reclaim a bigger role with the Hurricanes is off to a solid start. Bussi still leads the crease, but his .872 save percentage leaves the door open. Kochetkov should be a handcuff for anyone counting on Bussi out of the draft, though his 93% availability suggests few managers have bothered.Edmonton Oilers in three games:Devon Levi (crease share: 66.0%, fantasy points: -1.2, 95.1% available)Tristan Jarry (crease share: 34.0%, fantasy points: -7.6, 92.2% available)Levi is 2-0 despite an .810 save percentage, and Jarry has been worse. With Frederik Andersen out until at least Dec. 30, Levi is worth modest interest while he works his game into shape and while the skaters in front of him fix the defensive lapses that have opponents scoring touchdowns even when the Oilers win.Minnesota Wild in two games:Jesper Wallstedt (crease share: 100.0%, fantasy points: 13.0, 18.5% available)Wallstedt is 2-0 with a .957 save percentage, and Filip Gustavsson is out until at least Nov. 1. If he's on your waiver wire, fix that.Seattle Kraken in three games:Joey Daccord (crease share: 66.9%, fantasy points: 15.2, 53.5% available)Philipp Grubauer (crease share: 33.1%, fantasy points: 0.4, 96.1% available)Daccord is tied with Ilya Sorokin for the lead among all goalies in fantasy points, with a .966 save percentage across two wins. He's earned a roster spot in more than half of leagues.Toronto Maple Leafs in three games:Sergei Bobrovsky (crease share: 66.8%, fantasy points: -2.6, 30.7% available)Anthony Stolarz (crease share: 33.2%, fantasy points: 7.2, 89.0% available)Bobrovsky has dropped both of his starts, while Stolarz posted a .963 save percentage in his lone outing. At the very least, a 50-50 split looks likely in the short term, which makes Stolarz a target.Vancouver Canucks in four games:Kevin Lankinen (crease share: 61.9%, fantasy points: -14.0, 90.3% available)Leevi Merilainen (crease share: 38.1%, fantasy points: 6.6, 99.4% available)Lankinen carries a 6.50 GAA through three starts, and Thatcher Demko is out until at least mid-December. Merilainen has the better numbers, but this is a crease to avoid until somebody grabs it.Winnipeg Jets in three games:Stuart Skinner (crease share: 67.3%, fantasy points: 4.8, 83.5% available)Clay Stevenson (crease share: 32.7%, fantasy points: 6.0, 98.1% available)With Connor Hellebuyck suspended, the Jets have turned to Skinner and Stevenson with better results than you might expect: Winnipeg sits eighth among all teams in goaltender fantasy points so far. Neither is an option this week, especially against the Avalanche, but this crease is worth revisiting if the team keeps it up.Power-play notesCole Perfetti, LW, Winnipeg Jets (available in 60.4%): The Jets' top unit has scored four goals in 7:46 together while firing 6.7 shot attempts per two minutes, nearly double the league average of 3.75. Perfetti has four power-play points in three games and doesn't belong on the waiver wire.Luca Cagnoni, D, San Jose Sharks (available in 62.8%): Cagnoni has been the Sharks' top power-play quarterback in all three games, taking 81% of the team's advantage time at 3:41 a night. He has one power-play point and 2.23 FPPG so far, and the job looks secure.Jackson Blake, RW, Carolina Hurricanes (available in 53.9%): Blake has been on the ice for 85% of the Hurricanes' power-play time, averaging 7:15 a game. He already has two power-play points, and the Canes still play four times this week.Maxim Shabanov, RW, Minnesota Wild (available in 98.3%): Shabanov holds the open spot on a top unit with Kirill Kaprizov, Matt Boldy, Joel Eriksson Ek and Quinn Hughes that's generating 4.4 shot attempts per two minutes. That's elite company to keep for 84% of the Wild's power-play time.Brayden Schenn, C/LW, New York Islanders (available in 80.8%): The Islanders' top unit of Schenn, Kyle Palmieri, Bo Horvat, Matias Maccelli and Matthew Schaefer is at 4.77 shot attempts per two minutes. Schenn is the best fantasy bet of the available trio at 2.1 FPPG, though Palmieri (92.2% available) is worth watching after missing most of last season with a knee injury.Jack Quinn, RW, Buffalo Sabres (available in 79.1%): The Sabres' top unit of Quinn, Josh Doan, Zach Benson, Tage Thompson and Rasmus Dahlin is producing 4.7 shot attempts per two minutes without a goal to show for it yet. Quinn is already at 2.8 FPPG.Kent Johnson, LW/RW, Columbus Blue Jackets (available in 95.6%): Johnson has a top-unit spot with Adam Fantilli, Matthew Knies, Charlie Coyle and Zach Werenski, and he also skates with Fantilli and Knies on one of the league's most productive even-strength lines. He doesn't have a power-play point yet, but at 2.1 FPPG he's already earning his keep.Tommy Novak, C/LW, Pittsburgh Penguins (available in 83.3%): Novak has stuck on the top unit with Sidney Crosby, Rickard Rakell and Erik Karlsson through all three games, and the group is at 4.8 shot attempts per two minutes. Watch for Bryan Rust's return, which could bump him down the depth chart on the advantage.T.J. Hughes, RW, Colorado Avalanche (available in 99.3%): Hughes is skating next to Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar on the top unit, and he's getting 62% of the Avs' power-play time. The unit has gone 8:35 without a goal at 2.3 shot attempts per two minutes while the second unit scored three times, so the spot is worth watching but not worth chasing yet.Zayne Parekh, D, Calgary Flames (available in 86.8%): The Flames' top unit of Parekh, Morgan Frost, Joel Farabee, Matt Coronato and Matvei Gridin has stayed intact through three games and scored twice in 5:36. Parekh quarterbacks it, though Calgary plays only twice this week.Cam Fowler, D, St. Louis Blues (available in 88.8%): Fowler has claimed the top-unit quarterback job, playing 64% of the Blues' power-play time through two games. That unit has managed only 1.8 shot attempts per two minutes while the second group has been busier, so his hold on it is only as good as the results.Jamie Drysdale, D, Philadelphia Flyers (available in 89.0%): As mentioned at the top of this column, Drysdale has the top unit's blue-line spot and 73% of the Flyers' power-play time. The unit is slightly above league average in shot attempts with no goals yet, so the points should follow.Matthew Wood, RW, Nashville Predators (available in 98.8%): Wood holds the open spot on a top unit with Steven Stamkos, Ryan O'Reilly, Filip Forsberg and Roman Josi, playing 63% of the Predators' power-play time. The unit has sputtered at 1.8 shot attempts per two minutes with no goals in 6:36, but that's the kind of deployment that pays off once it clicks.
