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Here is a look at the Squad Up daily NHL fantasy picture for Friday, March 24 (all advanced statistics courtesy of Corsica.Hockey and apply to 5v5 situations):
Dynamic Duos
- C Rickard Rakell (42K) and RW Patrick Eaves (43K), Ducks (vs. Jets): Though a center in Squad Up, Rakell plays left wing on Anaheim's top line with Ryan Getzlaf (76K) and Eaves. Rakell is on a six-game point streak, with goals in five of those outings. Eaves isn't quite as prolific, but has scored in two straight games. Winnipeg holds the league's third-worst goals against average, and lost 5-2 to the low-scoring Kings on Thursday.
- C Brayden Point (35K) and RW Nikita Kucherov (72K), Lightning (at Red Wings): Point's budget-friendly price tag takes some of the edge off of Kucherov's position-leading salary, though the Russian has been worth every penny, notching six goals in his last three games, including a Thursday hat trick. Point recorded a goal and an assist himself that night, and both players should benefit from facing the erratic Petr Mrazek.
- C Sidney Crosby (79K) and LW Conor Sheary (41K), Penguins (vs. Islanders): Barring a last-minute suspension for a grisly slash on Ottawa's Marc Methot, Crosby is hard to ignore on a small slate. He's found the net six times in his last four games, with Sheary along for the ride, collecting a goal and five assists in that span. Crosby has terrorized the Islanders this season, with two goals and four assists in three games.
Bargain Plays
(Photo courtesy: Action Images)
- RW Anthony Mantha (25K), Red Wings (vs Lightning): Prior to scoring the overtime winner against Montreal earlier in the week, Mantha was having a rough March, even being a healthy scratch during a six-game pointless skid. The rookie leads all Detroit forwards in Corsi For percentage, and with 34 points in 55 games, stands a good chance of finding the score sheet and easily justifying his minimum price tag.
- D Mark Streit (26K), Penguins (vs. Islanders): Streit offers some low-cost exposure to Pittsburgh's third-ranked power play unit. The Swiss defender has notched a goal and five assists in 11 games as a Penguin, with all of those helpers coming with the man advantage.
- LW Scott Wilson (30K), Penguins (vs. Islanders): Wilson couldn't find the score sheet Thursday in his first game as Crosby's left winger, but he at least notched two shots on goal in 13:30 of ice time. While considered a LW in Squad Up, right winger Sheary has been nearly a point-per-game player this season skating with Crosby, so the plum assignment should soon pay dividends for Wilson.
Top Fades
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
- C Tomas Hertl (46K), Sharks (at Stars): Without a point in 10 straight games, Hertl has since been demoted to the third line at even strength and only sees second-unit power play duties. With just four goals in their last four games, the Sharks haven't been clicking offensively, and while a breakout could come against Dallas, it's hard to see Hertl being too big a part of it.
- G Jaroslav Halak (94K), Islanders (at Penguins): The just-recalled Halak will get the nod in goal looking to build on his AHL success, but a road game against the high-scoring Penguins represents an unfavorable matchup, especially at a fairly hefty salary. In 2017, Pittsburgh has lost only three games at home, and has won two of three meetings with the Islanders this season.
- LW Jamie Benn (60K), Stars (vs. Sharks): Benn notched two assists Thursday, but had gone pointless in his previous five games. Playing on a line with Cody Eakin (10 points in 51 games) and a back-from-injury Ales Hemsky isn't the best path to offensive prominence, despite Benn's talent and power play duties. Dallas has scored just once in each of its two previous meetings with San Jose this season.
Contrarian Options
(Photo courtesy: Action Images)
- G Jonathan Bernier (98K), Ducks (vs. Jets): Maple Leafs fans may find it hard to believe, but Toronto castoff Bernier has been stellar in March, with a 7-1-1 record and a 1.64 GAA in nine starts for the Ducks. Winnipeg isn't without its share of dangerous scorers, but Bernier has already held the likes of Washington, Chicago, San Jose and Edmonton at bay this month. He appears worthy of his top-tier salary.
- C Mathieu Perreault (41K), Jets (at Ducks): As well as Bernier has been playing, assuming he gives up a goal or two, Perreault should factor into the scoring. Perreault has notched a point in four straight games, with three consecutive multi-point efforts. He has the benefit of playing with Mark Scheifele and Blake Wheeler, the Jets' two leading scorers, both at even strength and on the power play.
- LW Tomas Tatar (57K), Red Wings (vs. Lightning): A pointless, shotless outing against Montreal slowed Tatar's momentum, but he's nevertheless been in fine form in March, with seven goals and four assists in 11 games. He's had a pair of two-goal, one-assist outbursts at home this month, and should be helped by the fact that slumping Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy has allowed four goals in each of his last three games.
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