This article is part of our NHL Waiver Wire series.
Now that you've settled down after all that Olympic hockey excitement, it's time to turn your focus back on the NHL. We're less than two months from the end of the regular season and roughly a month until fantasy playoffs begin.
There may be an adjustment period for everyone who participated in Milan and/or those returning from injury, though most of the bigger names should be able to keep performing. The lengthy break could make things harder to assess for others, but we'll try our best to recommend 50(ish) percent-and-under players in immediately favorable positions.
(Rostered rates as of Feb. 27)
Forwards
Kiefer Sherwood, SJ (Yahoo: 52%): Reaching just across the halfway coverage threshold for Sherwood, who was previously discussed in late October as a member of the Canucks. He went to San Jose last month but didn't make his debut until Feb. 4 due to a lower-body injury where he immediately found himself on a line with Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith. That trio has continued, and Sherwood has moved to the top power play. That's a pretty cushy fantasy placement, especially for someone who can supply points, average more than two shots, and deliver a ton of hits. Get Sherwood before others figure it out.
Ivan Barbashev, VGK (Yahoo: 38%): Consistency has been Barbashev's calling card since he joined Vegas, as his scoring has ended up within the mid-40s/low-50s range. While that isn't spectacular, it'll work for him as a complementary player on a strong attacking side. Barbashev may only be on the second PP, but he regularly skates alongside Jack Eichel and is currently riding a six-game scoring streak in which he's registered five goals, two assists, 15 shots and nine hits. And even if this run stops soon, he's good for enough contributions.
Dylan Holloway, STL (Yahoo: 37%): Holloway has returned after being sidelined for 23 of the previous 24 contests with an ankle issue. Before being out, he notched 17 points, 67 shots and 77 hits over the first 30 outings. Holloway didn't waste any time on Thursday as he struck for a hat-trick with five shots and an assist. Despite a place on the Blues' third line and backup power play, he's a must-add in most fantasy formats.
Pierre-Luc Dubois, WAS (Yahoo: 33%): Dubois was out for three months after undergoing surgery for multiple ailments. He came back right before the Olympic break to record a PPG, assist, two shots, a hit, a block and nine faceoff wins. And even though Dubois didn't find the scoresheet on Wednesday, he logged just under 17 minutes participating on Washington's second line and man-advantage. It wouldn't be a bad idea to add Dubois now as he should soon get back to full speed.
Marco Rossi, VAN (Yahoo: 9%): Let's continue the theme of long-lost absentees with Rossi, last year's breakout 60-point performer for Minnesota who came over in the Quinn Hughes deal and has recently endured two extended spells on the sidelines. He was doing well with the Wild until the first trip to the IR (13 points through 17 games) as their No. 1 center but didn't get much time to settle in with his new teammates. Even with the Canucks ranked near the bottom for average goals, there's promise for Rossi within the top-six and a first power play that's pretty much back to full strength.
Alex Killorn, ANH (Yahoo: 2%): Killorn is skating significant ice time while accumulating enough scoring and receiving advance standing to deserve more fantasy attention. Over the last six outings, the 36-year-old has tallied three goals – including a PPG Wednesday – two assists, and 15 shots on 19:01 a night. Killorn has also teamed up with the newly returned Leo Carlsson at even-strength and PP. If that placement holds, he's at least worth a flyer.
Peyton Krebs, BUF (Yahoo: 2%): Any forward with a pedigree who can also hit can be valued a little higher, especially if he has his linemates upgraded. Krebs mainly has occupied the bottom half of the Buffalo depth chart since arriving in 2021, yet he was starting to score this season and is only one point away from a career-high. And on Wednesday, he just happened to post a goal and assist on Tage Thompson's wing. Keep an eye on Krebs the next few matchups before taking the plunge.
Mavrik Bourque, DAL (Yahoo: 1%): Mikko Rantanen is projected to be out for a couple weeks, which leaves a huge hole on Dallas's first trio that's currently being occupied by Bourque. As a reminder, the other members are Jason Robertson and Wyatt Johnston. You know, two players who've so far combined for 127 points. Bourque was already enjoying a decent mini-stretch heading into the break via three goals on seven shots to go with an assist and 10 hits across four appearances. And he extended that upswing on Wednesday by registering a helper and five pucks on net over 18:13.
Defensemen
Devon Toews, COL (Yahoo: 43%): It's been an underwhelming scoring season for Toews as he's only posted 13 points in 44 games after four consecutive campaigns with at least 44. He still skates alongside Cale Makar at five-on-five with a secondary power-play role while averaging 22-plus minutes and coming off an Olympics where he notched a goal and two assists, so more NHL production should eventually come on a league-leading attack.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson, TOR (Yahoo: 39%): Ekman-Larsson already has eclipsed his point haul from each of the previous six years sitting at 35. He also bumped Morgan Rielly down to the No. 2 man-advantage and picked up a PPA on Thursday. OEL has registered a goal, nine assists, 24 shots, 13 hits and 18 blocks from his last 15 contests. He's also been mentioned in possible trade talks, so his fantasy value could decrease if he lands elsewhere. Grab Ekman-Larsson now and monitor his status leading up to the Deadline.
Bowen Byram, BUF (Yahoo: 38%): Byram has managed to avoid any extended injuries since 2022-23, resulting in decent offensive gains and major minutes. While his output is mainly limited to points and blocked shots, the four assists across the last six appearances is noteworthy, and a partnership with Owen Power during even-strength and on Buffalo's backup PP can only help. Add Byram if you're looking to boost your blueline scoring stats.
Logan Stanley, WPG (Yahoo: 8%): Winnipeg is currently without its top-two power-play defenders, as Josh Morrissey got hurt in Milan and will be gone until at least Tuesday, while Neal Pionk is week-to-week with an undisclosed issue. Ville Heinola has since been inserted on the second unit and Logan Stanley – he of the zero career PPPs – got first crack at leading the top group. The 6'7" rearguard recently received PP2 action and already provides sufficient totals for shots, hits and blocks, so anything coming on that elite man-advantage would be a bonus.
Goaltenders
Dan Vladar, PHI (Yahoo: 41%): Vladar continues to impress during his first year with the Flyers as their clear No. 1 while in the top-10 for GAA and only allowing more than three goals six times through 34 appearances. The .905 save percentage may not look great, but it's still above-average among netminders who've made at least 19 outings. Philly are set to face a few weaker defensive clubs where Vladar should start most – if not all – of those five matchups.
Casey DeSmith, DAL (Yahoo: 22%): For all Jake Oettinger does, he deserves a rest from time to time. And since joining Dallas, DeSmith has proven to be a solid fill-in, posting a 2.01/.914 line over seven 2026 outings – highlighted by wins at Washington and Utah. The Stars remain excellent on the defensive end, where he will work great as a streaming option – beginning with either Vancouver (Monday) or Calgary (Tuesday) – while picking up a few spot starts along the way.
Players to consider from past columns: Dylan Cozens, Leo Carlsson, Frank Nazar, Will Smith, Carter Verhaeghe, Gabriel Landeskog, Elias Lindholm, Jared McCann, Cole Perfetti, Nick Schmaltz, Anze Kopitar, Mats Zuccarello, Anthony Cirelli, Kiefer Sherwood, Brock Nelson, Zach Benson, Tyler Toffoli, Jonathan Huberdeau, Adam Fantilli, Patrick Kane, Dawson Mercer, Chris Kreider, Troy Terry, Brock Boeser, Mikael Granlund, Sean Monahan, Ryan O'Reilly, William Eklund, Jordan Kyrou, Jason Zucker, Will Cuylle, Bobby McMann, Anders Lee, Tyler Bertuzzi, Josh Doan, Owen Tippett, Matty Beniers, Anthony Duclair, Brayden Schenn, Eeli Tolvanen, Pavel Buchnevich, Alexis Lafreniere, Boone Jenner, Anton Lundell, Mason Marchment, Vladimir Tarasenko, Conor Garland, Jack Roslovic, Beckett Sennecke, Connor McMichael, Christian Dvorak, Jake Neighbours, Yegor Sharangovich, Jamie Benn, Ryan Hartman, Mikael Backlund, Vasily Podkolzin, Matt Duchene, Zachary Bolduc, Logan Stankoven, Luke Evangelista, Jack McBain, Jonathan Toews, Alexandre Texier, Mackie Samoskevich, Evander Kane, Alex Laferriere, Teuvo Teravainen, Alexander Wennberg, Jake DeBrusk, Lawson Crouse, Charlie Coyle, Chandler Stephenson, Noah Cates, Ethen Frank, Braeden Bowman, Claude Giroux, Sean Couturier, Jordan Eberle, Jackson Blake, Dmitri Voronkov, Pavel Zacha, Anthony Mantha, Ridly Greig, Justin Sourdif, Kaapo Kakko, Eetu Luostarinen, Ross Colton, Jack Quinn, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Arseny Gritsyuk, Collin Graf, Matias Maccelli, James van Riemsdyk, Matthew Coronato, Fabian Zetterlund, Oliver Kapanen, Corey Perry, Ben Kindel, Andre Burakovsky, Emmitt Finnie, Igor Chernyshov, Andrew Copp, Ryan Leonard, Fraser Minten, Erik Haula, Ryan McLeod, Brock Faber, Drew Doughty, Filip Hronek, Mattias Ekholm, Brandt Clarke, Travis Sanheim, Rasmus Andersson, Thomas Chabot, Zeev Buium, Mike Matheson, Noah Hanifin, Cam Fowler, Jake Walman, Kris Letang, K'Andre Miller, Jared Spurgeon, Jake McCabe, Artyom Levshunov, Charle-Edouard D'Astous, Vladislav Gavrikov, Ivan Provorov, Hampus Lindholm, Darren Raddysh, Brent Burns, John Klingberg, Olen Zellweger, Sam Malinski, Ryan Pulock, Sean Durzi, Radko Gudas, J.J. Moser, Philip Broberg, Justin Faulk, Alexandre Carrier, Damon Severson, Esa Lindell, Mattias Samuelsson, Josh Manson, Simon Edvinsson, Dmitry Orlov, John Marino, Matt Roy, Cam York, Nick Blankenburg, Tony DeAngelo, Uvis Balinskis, Nate Schmidt, Spencer Knight, Jesper Wallstedt, Brandon Bussi, Stuart Skinner, Yaroslav Askarov, Carter Hart, Jet Greaves, Jake Allen, Sam Montembeault, Jakub Dobes, Tristan Jarry, Philipp Grubauer, Cam Talbot, John Gibson, Alex Lyon, Alex Nedeljkovic, David Rittich, Connor Ingram, Akira Schmid, Joel Hofer, Anton Forsberg, Jonathan Quick, Kevin Lankinen, Joonas Korpisalo
