Leon Draisaitl Scores Twice as Connor McDavid Pushes His Point Streak to 18, Carolina Scores Nine and John Tavares Returns in a Loss: Saturday NHL Fantasy Notes

Saturday's NHL slate delivered fantasy value from top to bottom. Leon Draisaitl scored twice and Connor McDavid added three assists as the Edmonton Oilers beat the Vancouver Canucks 4-2, stretching McDavid's season-opening point streak to 18 games. The Carolina Hurricanes routed the Chicago Blackhawks 9-2, Jack Hughes won it in overtime for New Jersey, Sidney Crosby climbed to sixth on the NHL's all-time points list, and John Tavares returned for Toronto in a 4-2 loss to Montreal. Here is the fantasy read.

Standout lines from Saturday

Every figure below comes from official recaps. Assists are listed only where the recaps confirmed them.

McDavid's streak and Draisaitl's finish

McDavid set up Mattias Ekholm for the opening goal and Draisaitl for a third-period power-play goal, giving him 47 points (10 goals, 37 assists), the league lead. His 18-game season-opening point streak is the longest among active players, and NHL.com notes his assist streak now ties Adam Oates for the second longest in league history, behind only Wayne Gretzky's 23. Devon Levi made 20 saves in his return from a lower-body injury that cost him seven games, and Zach Hyman returned after missing five games with a neck injury.

Fantasy takeaway: Nothing changes for McDavid or Draisaitl; they are locks. Levi's return is the more actionable piece, because he reclaims a crease on a 12-3-3 team, which makes him a strong streaming target against weak opponents. The worry is Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who left 45 seconds into the second period after a puck struck his head. Coach Mike Babcock said he did not expect a long absence, but more evaluation was planned, so check his status before Edmonton's next game. Vancouver (3-15-1) has lost five straight and 15 of 16, and Canucks skaters beyond Brock Boeser are hard to trust.

Carolina's nine-goal night

The Hurricanes tied a franchise record (since relocating in 1997) with nine goals. Jordan Martinook and Svechnikov scored twice, Aho had a goal and two assists, and Alexander Nikishin scored in his season debut. Jackson Blake extended a career-high point streak to nine games (four goals, seven assists), and Pyotr Kochetkov made 18 saves. Carolina is 14-3-2 and heads to Helsinki for two Global Series games against Seattle on Nov. 12 and Nov. 14.

Fantasy takeaway: Blake is a must-roster forward while his streak runs, and Nikishin is worth a speculative add in deep leagues that value defenseman points. Note the schedule quirk: the Hurricanes are off until Thursday, so weekly-lineup managers lose Carolina games early in the week. For Chicago, Roman Kantserov has scored in four straight and leads NHL rookies with nine goals. He is a legitimate add even on a team that has lost six straight.

Tavares returns, Fowler keeps rolling

Tavares played wing for the first time since April 2023 after missing nine games with a lower-body injury, but Montreal won its fifth straight against Toronto. Alex Newhook scored twice in the first period, and Fowler made 26 saves to improve to 8-1-1. Montreal (11-3-3) has a 10-game point streak. William Nylander and rookie Gavin McKenna scored 55 seconds apart in the third. The bigger Toronto concern is Morgan Rielly, who left early in the second with a lower-body injury, and coach Jim Hiller had no update.

Fantasy takeaway: Fowler is a must-start goaltender right now. McKenna scoring despite the power-play reshuffle is encouraging, so hold him. If Rielly misses time, Toronto's blue line points funnel toward the top power-play quarterback, Darren Raddysh.

Overtime and comeback notes

Devils 5, Islanders 4 (OT): New Jersey rallied from two goals down in the third. Dougie Hamilton tied it on the power play, and Hughes beat Sorokin on a breakaway at 1:18 of overtime. Sorokin's 45 saves are a reminder that he can rack up save totals even in losses. The Devils (12-5-0) have won four straight.

Lightning 4, Wild 3 (OT): Nikita Kucherov won it on the power play, tying Martin St. Louis for third in team history with 10 overtime goals, while Guentzel scored twice and Brayden Point reached 700 career points. Whatever the noise around Kucherov's trade request, his production is not slipping.

Penguins 5, Kings 2: Tommy Novak scored twice in the first 5:10, Crosby passed Marcel Dionne with 1,773 career points, and Sergei Murashov made 26 saves for his first win.

Capitals 4, Panthers 3: Washington rallied behind goals from Aliaksei Protas and Pierre-Luc Dubois after Brady Tkachuk scored twice. Tom Wilson was ejected for boarding Sandis Vilmanis, who did not return.

Senators 4, Mammoth 2: Nick Cousins broke a tie with 2:18 left, and Samuel Ersson made 30 saves for a third straight win with Linus Ullmark injured.

Predators 3, Blues 1: Steven Stamkos scored his 248th career power-play goal, fifth in NHL history, and Juuse Saros made 25 saves.

Rangers 4, Kraken 3: Joonas Korpisalo made 25 saves in his Rangers debut.

What to do in your league

Add: Kantserov, Blake (if available), Levi in goalie streaming leagues, and Ersson while Ullmark is out.

Monitor: Rielly, Nugent-Hopkins and Vilmanis are all injury checks heading into the week. Dallas played without Miro Heiskanen for a second straight game, so Harley's three-point night and power-play role carry more weight until Heiskanen is back.

Hold steady: Kucherov and Tavares. Both produced or played through the noise, and both run on top power-play units.

For the model's view on upcoming games, see the NHL predictions page and the NHL picks for November 8.

What's next

Sunday's slate is lighter, with Florida at Boston and Vegas at Buffalo in the afternoon and New Jersey and Pittsburgh both on the second night of back-to-backs. The Wilson hit is expected to draw a review from the Department of Player Safety, and any suspension would remove one of the league's best hits-and-penalty-minutes contributors from category lineups. Check our Sunday injury and goalie watch before lineups lock.