Maxim Shabanov, Dmitry Orlov and T.J. Hughes Lead the NHL Waiver Wire for a Week Where Five Teams Play Four Games

Five NHL teams play four games in the fantasy week that runs Monday, October 19 through Sunday, October 25: Anaheim, Colorado, Minnesota, San Jose and Toronto. Five others (Buffalo, Columbus, Calgary, Chicago and Washington) get only two. That split, confirmed by both The Hockey News and ESPN's weekly schedule breakdowns, should drive every streaming decision this week, and it points to a handful of widely available players on the right teams.

The light nights matter too. Tuesday and Thursday carry 11 and 12 games, and Saturday has 12, so daily-lineup managers get the most separation from players who skate Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Toronto already used one of its four on Monday against San Jose, so the remaining count for the Maple Leafs is three.

The Four-Game Teams

Here is the schedule picture at a glance, with the key context for each club.

The Wild stand out because their power play has been the league's best story at the start of the season. Per the Associated Press, Minnesota scored a power-play goal in each of its first six games, a franchise record, and was 7-for-17 at that point. Any skater with a first-unit role there is worth a look.

Forwards to Add

Maxim Shabanov, RW, Minnesota. The Hockey News has Shabanov promoted to the top power-play unit, and he scored on the man advantage in the October 12 win at Vegas. He signed a one-year deal with the Wild in July after a season with the Islanders and has been building chemistry with Kirill Kaprizov. Four games plus a first-unit role on the league's hottest power play makes him the best short-term streamer on the board, and he is rostered in only a small share of Yahoo leagues.

T.J. Hughes, C, Colorado. Hughes earned an opening-night roster spot and has stayed on the Avalanche's first power-play unit alongside Nathan MacKinnon despite modest production. The Hockey News reported he has since scored his first NHL goal. Colorado's four games, with Tuesday against New Jersey among them, make him a deep-league or daily-format streamer. The risk is a short leash if O'Connor's return on Friday pushes the forward group around.

Mason McTavish, C, St. Louis. Not a four-game player, but the best season-long add available. The Hockey News reports a six-game point streak for McTavish on a Blues second line that grades out well in expected goals for. He was rostered in under half of Yahoo leagues. Add him now before the streak forces your league's hand.

Defensemen to Add

Dmitry Orlov, D, San Jose. Orlov is back on the Sharks' top power-play unit and had three points in two games per The Hockey News. He set a career high with 37 points last season, 18 of them on the power play, so the role has produced before. Four games and a near-empty waiver profile make him the cleanest defensive streamer of the week.

Neal Pionk, D, Winnipeg. The Jets play three games, not four, but Josh Morrissey was placed on injured reserve Monday and Pionk has his top-pair and first-unit power-play minutes. That role is locked in for at least the next couple of weeks, which makes Pionk a better hold than a one-week streamer.

Goalies

Jesper Wallstedt, Minnesota. With Gustavsson recovering from offseason hip surgery and slated to miss at least another month, Wallstedt is expected to carry a heavy workload for the Wild. If he is somehow available, he is the top goalie add for a four-game week.

Lukas Dostal, Anaheim. ESPN listed Dostal as available in a majority of its leagues, and the Ducks own one of the better goalie schedules of the week. He is a volume play: four games give him a strong chance at three starts. Expect save totals rather than ratios.

Alex Nedeljkovic, San Jose. A speculative stash only. The Hockey News flagged him as a possible beneficiary of Askarov's early struggles. Do not start him blind; wait for confirmed starters from Daily Faceoff on the morning of each game.

Pyotr Kochetkov in Carolina is still widely available in about half of leagues and The Hockey News noted he has been sharp in every start this season, but the Hurricanes are not a four-game team, so treat him as a season-long add rather than a weekly streamer.

Who to Avoid This Week

The two-game teams are the trap. Buffalo, Columbus, Calgary, Chicago and Washington each play twice, which halves the value of anyone who is not a locked-in starter. That includes recent waiver darlings: Jack Quinn's five points in two games in Buffalo and Kent Johnson's scoring streak in Columbus are nice, but neither should push a four-game player out of a lineup this week. Washington's Ryan Leonard and Boone Jenner fall into the same bucket.

In weekly lineup leagues, bench mid-tier skaters from those five teams for comparable players on Colorado, Minnesota, Anaheim or San Jose.

The Verdexed Angle

Schedule density also shapes betting markets. Minnesota opening a five-game road trip with Wallstedt carrying the crease is a fatigue question to track, and Colorado's run of four games with O'Connor and Nicolas Roy nearing returns should only strengthen its depth. For game-by-game model views, including the four-game teams, see Verdexed's NHL predictions page.

The desk's lean: the Wild's power play is the single most exploitable fantasy edge this week, and Shabanov is the cheapest way into it.

What's Next

Make these adds before puck drop on Tuesday's 11-game slate, since every four-game team still has at least three games left. Watch for Logan O'Connor's expected debut Friday in Colorado, a Hellebuyck decision in Winnipeg when his suspension ends that day, and Tavares updates in Toronto that could shuffle the Leafs' center depth.