Max Domi’s absence opens door for a fantasy fill-in

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Here are the fantasy implications following the news that Arizona Coyote LW Max Domi will go on injured reserve and is being deemed week-to-week with an upper body injury.

Being the feisty forward that he is, Domi sustained his injury in an aggressive fight Thursday night. Unfortunately, that fight will now force him to miss at least a handful of games. With five goals and 11 assists, his absence means the struggling Coyotes will be without their second leading scorer.

Fantasy owners should simply stash Domi in an Injured Reserve spot for the time being until his return. The phrase week-to-week is vague, but owners may want to plan for up to a two week absence to be safe. The NHL's IR policy dictates that a player must miss at least one week of action.

Daily Fantasy Implications

Losing 17 minutes of ice time and a leading scorer immediately opens up some opportunities for daily fantasy bargains in Domi's place.

Arizona is set to take to on the Predators Saturday night, so astute daily fantasy players should monitor how head coach Dave Tippett allocates Domi's ice time and juggles his lines. An immediate reaction may be to bump third-line left winger Brendan Perlini up into Domi's place on the second line alongside C Christian Dvorak and RW Shane Doan.

Perlini himself is a recent AHL call up who's played just three games this season. He's yet to register a point, but an increase up to 16-to-18 minutes per game on the second line makes for a fantastic daily fantasy bargain.

The Coyotes also recalled C Laurent Dauphin on Saturday. Dauphin has just two points in 18 games this season. He's not worth starting in daily formats, unless he immediately takes on a significant role and produces.

Waiver Wire Targets

W Marian Gaborik, Los Angeles Kings

  • Gaborik is five games into his 2016-17 campaign after a World Cup of Hockey injury delayed his debut. The veteran has recorded three assists and 16 shots so far. He's playing over 15 minutes a game and will surely find the back of the net shortly if he keeps at his current rate.

W Conor Sheary, Pittsburgh Penguins

  • Playing alongside Sidney Crosby makes anyone fantasy relevant. While his name lacks wide spread recognition, Sheary has seven goals and eight assists in 20 games this season. He's averaging 2.3 shots per game this season but 3.8 over his last five.

C/W Andrew Shaw, Montreal Canadiens

  • For those looking to find hits and PIM's with a bit of scoring upside, Montreal forward Andrew Shaw is a hot ticket. He's playing over 15 minutes a game thanks to the barrage of injuries in Montreal and has recorded three goals, three assists, and 15 hits in his past five.

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