Fantasy Hockey

Hischier scored a goal and added an assist in a 5-3 loss to the Avalanche on Thursday.

The first overall pick in 2017 continues to impress early on in his NHL career. Coming off an impressive rookie campaign, Hischier has picked up right where he left off a season ago, tallying four points in five games. The 19-year-old, Swiss-born forward is the team's biggest offensive weapon behind Taylor Hall and will continue to see plenty of time in all situations, making him a valuable fantasy commodity.

MacKinnon recorded three assists in a 5-3 win versus New Jersey on Thursday.

MacKinnon has registered at least one point in every game so far this season and now has a total of 11 on the year. The Avalanche's undisputed best player continues to do the job offensively and will look to keep his impressive point streak alive when Colorado visits the Hurricanes on Saturday.

Draisaitl scored his second goal of the season to beat the Bruins 3-2 in overtime Thursday.

Draisaitl's overtime winner was assisted by -- you guessed it -- Connor McDavid. The two dynamic centers are usually separated at even strength, but they share the ice on the power play and in overtime situations. Both of Draisaitl's goals this season have come courtesy of a McDavid helper, but the two-time 70-point scorer hasn't generated much offense himself. He'll have to start doing so for the Oilers to become true contenders in the Western Conference.

McDavid recorded two helpers -- one on the power play -- in Thursday's 3-2 overtime win over Boston.

Edmonton has 13 goals in five games, and McDavid's scored or assisted on 11 of them. The team has won back-to-back overtime games, and that success in the extra session shouldn't come as a surprise considering the 3-on-3 format of bonus hockey just gives the best player in the world more open ice to work with. McDavid assisted on Leon Draisaitl's game-winner just 37 seconds into overtime, adding to an earlier helper on a Ryan Nugent-Hopkins power-play goal in the second period.

Keller had a goal and an assist in Thursday's 4-1 win over Chicago.

Keller scored 65 points last season, but he had just one helper in five games prior to this two-point effort, as Arizona had managed just three goals as a team in those five games. While the diminutive 20-year-old will be given every opportunity to rack up points on the first line and top power-play unit, the lack of talent around him will make repeating last season's success a challenge.

Hinostroza scored on both of his shots in Thursday's 4-1 win over the Blackhawks.

Playing in his home town of Chicago against the team that drafted him with a sixth-round selection in 2012, Hinostroza posted the second multi-goal effort of his career. He ruined the long-awaited return of Blackhawks netminder Corey Crawford by potting the game-winning goal in the second period, then added an empty-netter to seal it with 2:20 to go.

Giroux recorded two assists in a 6-3 loss to the Blue Jackets on Thursday.

Thursday's multi-point game was the 30-year-old Canadian's second of its kind in as many games. With four points in his past two contests, Giroux now has 10 on the season and continues to produce at a high level.

Hall recorded three points including his first goal of the season Thursday in a 5-3 home loss to Colorado.

Last season's Hart Memorial winner now has seven points in five games and continues to pace his team's offense. The 26-year-old forward is one of the game's elite point producers and even when he's not scoring, Hall will almost always find other ways to reward his fantasy owners.

Rantanen scored an empty-net goal and added three helpers Thursday in a 5-3 win over the Devils.

The Finnish forward has not let up to start the season, having registered 13 points in seven contests. Thursday was Rantanen's second multi-assist game of the young 2018-19 campaign and he's now recorded a point in every game so far this season. He'll look to keep his hot streak alive when the Avalanche travel to Carolina on Saturday.

Landeskog registered three goals in Thursday's 5-3 road win versus the Devils.

The Swede now has six points in his last three contests and his play has been a big reason for Colorado's hot start to the season. Landeskog tied for the team lead in shots Thursday and stands to see plenty of time on the power play considering his status as one of the team's top offensive threats. As a result, points should continue finding him on the scoresheet.

Andrighetto scored a goal in what was his first taste of game action Thursday in a 5-3 win over the Devils.

The Swiss-born forward missed the start of the regular season recovering from a lower-body injury. He wasted little time announcing his return, scoring early in the second period of Thursday's road contest. Andrighetto remains a risky fantasy play who set a career high in points last season with just 22.

Yamamoto scored his first NHL goal in Thursday's 3-2 overtime win over Boston.

Yamamoto's second-period tally was just the second Oilers goal this season that didn't feature Connor McDavid. The 2017 first-rounder was expected to be a key source of secondary scoring after a strong preseason, but Yamamoto had been scoreless through his team's first four games before this unforgettable night.

Provorov managed one assist Thursday in a 6-3 loss to Columbus.

It has not been a memorable start to the season for the 21-year-old Russian blueliner. The 2015 seventh overall pick played every game in his first two NHL seasons, tallying 71 points along the way. Meanwhile, it took Provorov seven games to open his account in 2018-19 and the Flyers have to hope that he finds his offense sooner rather than later.

Vatanen failed to register a point in Thursday's 5-3 loss to Colorado.

On the season, the offensive-minded defenseman has recorded three assists in five games while also registering 12 shots on goal along the way. Primarily a facilitator, Vatanen has cracked 10 goals only once in his career. As a result, don't expect the Finnish blueliner to light the lamp too often but he is more than capable of racking up assists, provided he can stay healthy.

Cole recorded two assists in Thursday's 5-3 win over the Devils.

The two helpers were Cole's second and third assists on the season. Meanwhile, he's yet to score which isn't all that surprising considering Cole has managed just 20 goals in 412 career contests. While he was indeed effective Thursday, it's probably best to avoid the 29-year-old defenseman unless you happen to find yourself in a deep league with little-to-no alternatives.

Dermott failed to register a point Thursday in a 3-0 loss to the Penguins.

The young defenseman registered an assist in the first game of the season but has been quiet ever since. Dermott tallied three shots on goal Thursday and must continue trying to find ways to facilitate offense while he's on the ice.

According to coach Todd McLellan, Benning (undisclosed) is considered doubtful for Saturday's matchup with Nashville.

Benning appears poised to miss at least one contest with the undisclosed injury he suffered during Thursday's 3-2 overtime win over Boston, so the Oilers will likely turn to Jason Garrison to fill in on their bottom pairing against the Predators.

Zaitsev recorded one shot on goal Thursday, blocking two more in a 3-0 home loss to Pittsburgh.

In eight games, the 26-year-old Russian defenseman has only a single assist to go along with a minus-4 rating. Meanwhile, Zaitsev put up 36 points in his rookie campaign, playing in every game along the way. Last year saw him miss 22 contests due to injury, and he finished the season with only 13 points as a result. Even though wins have found them early and often, the Maple Leafs need more than they're getting out of the former KHL standout.

Pickard allowed six goals on 28 shots in Thursday's 6-3 loss courtesy of New Jersey.

With Brian Elliott struggling, Pickard missed a golden opportunity Thursday to prove himself capable of handling starter duties. The 26-year-old netminder, in three starts, has posted an .833 save percentage, along with a goals-against-average of 4.73. Despite the bad numbers, this was Pickard's first loss of the 2018-19 season but one should still expect Elliot to be back between the pipes Saturday when the Devils come to town.

Kinkaid allowed four goals on 33 shots in a 5-3 loss to Colorado on Thursday.

It was Kinkaid's first loss of the season after reeling off four straight wins to begin the year. In five starts, the 29-year old holds a .941 save percentage to go along with a 1.61 goals-against-average, both terrific numbers. He will continue to serve as the team's starting goaltender until Cory Schneider (hip) returns from injury.

Grubauer made 27 saves Thursday and prevailed over the Devils 5-3.

It was only Grubauer's second start of the season and he was able to pick up his first win. Both of the 26-year-old netminder's starts have come away from home which is typical of a backup's workload. Grubauer could see his first home start as early as next Friday when the Senators pay Colorado a visit on the first half of a back-to-back.

Halak turned aside 19 of 22 shots in Thursday's 3-2 overtime loss to Edmonton.

Halak kept out both of Connor McDavid's shots in this one, though the world's best player got the last laugh with two assists, including one on Leon Draisaitl's overtime winner. Boston's backup is 2-0-1 on the young season and remains a strong streaming option whenever he gets the nod.

Talbot made 27 stops to top the Bruins by a 3-2 score in overtime Thursday.

Alarm bells were going off after Talbot dropped his first two starts of the season, but he's bounced back with three consecutive wins, thanks in most part to the offensive exploits of team captain Connor McDavid. Talbot is yet to sit out a game on the young season, and he's expected to be a busy man after logging 140 of a possible 164 starts over the previous two campaigns.

Raanta made 33 saves in Thursday's 4-1 win over Chicago.

Raanta benefited from an offensive explosion by Arizona's standards, as the team had scored just three goals total in its first five games. His wins ceiling is obviously capped by playing with what will almost certainly end up being the league's most inept offense, but Raanta's capable of a top-10 finish in rate stats. Last season, he ranked second in both GAA (2.24) and save percentage (.930).