With the PLL heading to Philadelphia this weekend, here are some players you might want to consider adding or dropping in your Weekly Fantasy lineup:

Start:

Zac Tucci, Faceoff, Boston Cannons (15 coins)

After an Opening Weekend loss in Albany, the Cannons decided to change their game plan and dress a faceoff specialist for Charlotte. 

Tucci was called upon to take the draws for the Cannons. He went 11-for-25, scooped up five ground balls and helped propel Boston to its first win of the season. 

What makes Tucci’s outlook promising for this weekend is his opponent. The Philadelphia Waterdogs are notorious for not dressing a faceoff specialist. If they decide to continue this strategy for their doubleheaders, expect Tucci to be able to win the majority of faceoffs and collect more ground balls than he did this past week

Dox Aitken, Midfield, New York Atlas (18 coins)

Aitken was a massive part of the Atlas’ success over the past two weekends. Not only does he create offense through his dodging and shooting ability, but he has been a huge help in directing traffic and pushing transition after New York wins a faceoff. 

Aitken finished with 18 fantasy points in the Atlas’ win over the Carolina Chaos last Friday and has helped relieve the pressure that their lethal offense has been drawing. 

With the Atlas playing the Redwoods this Sunday, California will try to prevent the Atlas attack – which has scored the most fantasy points out of any group – from creating offense. That could potentially leave some gaps for the Atlas midfield to put up numbers, especially Aitken.

Dillon Ward, Goalie, Philadelphia Waterdogs (23 and 22 coins)

The goaltending position in fantasy has been an intriguing one to watch. In Charlotte, every goaltender, regardless of whether his team won or lost, put up at least 30 fantasy points. This week, the goalie with the lowest cap hit is Ward.

In the Waterdogs’ season-opening loss to the Utah Archers, Ward finished with 10 fantasy points. That was second-fewest among goalies, only behind the Maryland Whipsnakes’ Kyle Bernlohr. 

Despite his rocky start to the Archers game, Ward made a number of big saves after halftime to help spark a Philly comeback that ultimately fell short. 

Coming off a bye, the Waterdogs are set to play two games this week for their Homecoming Weekend – the first against the Cannons and the second against the Whipsnakes. The best bet would be to play Ward in their game against Maryland. The Whipsnakes currently have the lowest goals scored among teams that have played more than one game, and they have yet to score a goal on a powerplay.

Sit:

Trevor Baptiste, Faceoff, New York Atlas (39 coins)

There’s no debate that Baptiste is the best faceoff specialist in the league. What makes his outlook look grim heading into Philadelphia is his salary cap hit and matchup against the Redwoods.

Baptiste’s current cap hit is the highest of any faceoff specialist. While he has the stats to prove his worth by leading the league in faceoff win percentage and ground balls, his matchup against TD Ierlan will be his toughest of the season. 

The Redwoods are coming off a loss to the Chaos in which Ierlan won 16 out of his 24 faceoffs, picked up 10 ground balls and notched a goal. 

Since 2021, Ierlan and Bapstiste have faced off against each other four times. In two out of those four games, Ierlan was able to win more than 50% of his draws against the Baptiste.

Mike Chanenchuk, Midfield, Maryland Whipsnakes: (37 coins)

The Whipsnakes are currently 0-2 and have the worst scoring differential in the league (-8). The injury bug has hit the team's offensive midfield unit with Brad Smith and Tucker Dordevic being unavailable the past two weeks.

A lot of weight has fallen onto Chanenchuk, a 10-year veteran. The 34-year-old midfielder held a salary cap hit of 45 coins heading into Charlotte and was only able to put up 11 fantasy points. 

Channechuk is receiving the top priority from opposing teams in almost every offensive set he’s involved in. At this stage in his career, Chanenchuk is at his best either dodging short sticks or finishing at the end of rapid ball movement. 

The Whipsnakes are set to play the Waterdogs, who should be rested coming out of their bye week. 

Matt Kavanagh, Attack, Boston Cannons (24 coins)

The Cannons split their first two games this season, most recently notching a needed win over the Whipsnakes in Charlotte.

What has been consistent is the lack of production they are getting out of Kavanagh, their lefty attackman. In Charlotte, Kavanagh put up the fewest fantasy points (four) out of all starting attackmen. His salary cap hit was astonishingly high at 39. 

Kavanagh hasn’t been an All-Star since 2019. There has been a huge influx of young offensive talent coming into the league, including his younger brother and teammate, Pat Kavanagh. 

It raises the question of whether Matt Kavanagh will still be Boston's third attackman by the end of the regular season.