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Nearing the quarter-mark of the season, fantasy owners need to take action on top-tier players who continue to struggle. Fantasy owners as a whole award opportunity to struggling players based on name value. A big-name player who was selected with a high draft pick will be rostered for longer than a late-round pick, even if the production is extremely similar.

While these high draft picks were selected as such due to histories of quality performance, some years it just isn't there. Cutting bait either in a trade or to waivers may not be easy but can be a necessity. Here's a look at five players owners should expect to turn their seasons around while five others may be doomed for a lost season:

Slump-busters

C Logan Couture, San Jose Sharks

Couture is already beginning to come around with four goals in his past seven games, including one in each of his past two. He is up to six goals and 11 points through 20 games. The resurgence is much more than just a hot streak, as he continues to put himself in idea scoring situations. He is one of five Sharks skaters with more than 50 minutes played at 5v4. Four of his goals have come on the power play.

He has a Corsi For rating of 56.30 percent at 5v5, the second-best mark on the team. His average shot distance of just over 28 feet, per Corsica.Hockey, is right in line with his career average entering this season. He is starting 32.17 percent of his shifts in the offensive zone and finishing 36.95 percent in the opposition's end. His Zone-Finish Ratio of 53.89 ranks fifth on the team.

All of Couture's five assists have come at 5v5. Of the five, four have been primary assists. His career assist ratio is 69 percent primary. He should happen into some more secondary helpers and see improved PP production. He should finish the year with 70-plus points, setting a new career high.

LW Mike Hoffman, Ottawa Senators

Like Couture, Hoffman has shown some of his expected promise of late, including a three-point game Tuesday, against the Montreal Canadiens. He's at just four goals and 10 points through 17 games, after scoring 27 and 29 goals in each of the past two seasons. He remains at 3.35 shots on goal per game, more than he averaged in each of those seasons.

His 7.0 shooting percentage should climb toward his career rate of 11.2, offering some reprieve. Four of his 10 points have come via the power play, as new head coach Guy Boucher has awarded him more special teams opportunity than Ottawa's previous bench bosses.

He is being deployed in the most ideal offensive situations, starting over 48.5 percent of his shifts in the offensive end. His ZFR of 59.49 ranks second on the team, behind only C Kyle Turris. This much time in the oppositions zone and an average shot distance just over 28 feet will allow Hoffman to approach 30 goals for the third consecutive season.

C Adam Henrique, New Jersey Devils

The injury to LW Taylor Hall (knee) has harmed the production of the Devils' offense as a whole, especially his former center. Henrique sits at just three goals and eight points on the year, after scoring 30 goals for the first time last season. He has gone point-less in three straight games and goal-less in four.

A shooting percentage of 20.1 helped him a lot last season, as he took just 149 shots on goal to score his 30. He shooting percentage has fallen to a more natural 10.3 percent this season, but he has taken just 29 SOG. After scoring 19 power-play goals over the last three years, he doesn't have a PP point this season.

Henrique's average shot distance this year is just 19.05 feet at 5v5. Only five players with at least 50 minutes of 5v5 play have closer averages, and Henrique is the only one of these players with more than 200 minutes played. He and owners may need to wait for Hall to return, but the production will follow close behind.

Ghosts of production past

C Evgeny Kuznetsov, Washington Capitals

After leading the Capitals in points last season, Kuznetsov has just three goals and six assists in 2016-17. More alarmingly, he has just 30 SOG through 19 games, after averaging 2.35 per game last season. His average shot distance has risen from 29 feet to over 30 feet. A small difference, but one having an impact.

His paltry production has already come with an inflated PDO of 99.81. The league norm is 100 and his projected rate is 99.81. He has been getting lucky and still hasn't capitalized. Of his five assists at 5v5, three have been primary and two have been secondary.

He is currently centering the top line with LW Alex Ovechkin again, and it led to a two-point game Wednesday. Ovechkin's center can never be ruled out completely, but he won't get back to last year's level.

LW Evander Kane, Buffalo Sabres

Kane has just two assists and remains without a goal since making his return from injury Nov. 9. He has 19 shots on goal through nine games, well short of his career rate of 3.46 SOG per game.

He has been shuffled throughout Buffalo's lineup, currently skating on the second line with C Sam Reinhart and C/LW Zemgus Girgensons. He doesn't have a Corsi For rating higher than 48 percent on any trio he has played with. He has no more than 46.53 minutes of 5v5 play with any one three-man unit.

His average shot distance is 40.46 feet, more than 10 feet further back than his career average entering this season. Until he starts getting some more high-danger opportunities and putting himself in better position, he'll be a non-factor in most fantasy formats.

D John Klingberg, Dallas Stars

Klingberg is averaging a near-identical amount of ice time to last season, but he is being used in a fundamentally different way as the Stars are relying on him in the defensive end. He has just 25 SOG through 20 games, after averaging nearly 2.5 per game last season.

He is starting just 26.06 percent of his shifts in the offensive zone, though he is finishing nearly 30 percent in that end. Last season, he started over 32 percent of shifts in the offensive end.

While he remains on the top power-play unit, he isn't receiving nearly the same type of opportunity in 5v5 situations. He will fall well short of last season's 58 points.

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