By now the trade deadline has come and gone for your fantasy hockey league and you are stuck with your roster and whatever happens to be available on the waiver wire. You probably know by now if you are going to be competing for first place, avoiding last place or landing somewhere in the middle.

At eDraft, we do the homework that you don’t have to so that you can snag a hidden gem to adjust your rosters. Depending on the rules of your league, you may be limited in the number of transactions that you can make for your squad. If there is no limit to your roster moves, cut the dead weight now. Players have gotten their legs underneath them and aren’t going to suddenly get better.

For example, names to drop would include Dany Heatley, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Cam Fowler or Matt Carle. It isn’t like these guys were top 10, elite picks, but they have sucked all year and that isn’t going to change. At this point you are going to want to pick the top available players or leaders in a particular category. Guys like Chris Neil have a huge upside in leagues that reward hits and penalty minutes.

Here are five excellent choices that are available in over 65 percent of all fantasy leagues.

5. Brendan Gallagher, RW, Montreal Canadiens

Amazingly, the rookie right wing is only owned in 18 percent of all leagues. He has 10 goals and nine assists, is currently a plus-8 and takes a ton of shots. The Canadiens have been playing good hockey all year and Gallagher has been a solid contributor to the second or third line for the Habs.

4. Nikolai Khabibulin, G, Edmonton Oilers

Devan Dubnyk has been spectacularly average in the Edmonton net all year. At this point in the season if you are still looking for a starting goalie you are probably screwed, but the “Bulin Wall” dropped a 40-save shutout on the St. Louis Blues the other night. His best years are well behind him, but the proud 40-year-old can still deal when his number is called. With teams playing an average of 3.4 times per week, you can probably get a couple of good starts from Khabibulin.

3. Troy Brouwer, RW, Washington Capitals

The rugged winger has been on my list before and though he may not be a premier sniper, he piles up the hits and shots. Additionally the Washington Capitals have been on a roll lately which means that Brouwer may well be in the middle of many more good things.

2. Jacob Muzzin, D, Los Angeles Kings

Okay, so he is technically owned in 50 percent of all leagues, but I still consider the Kings’ rookie defenseman a steal. He’s cooled off over the last couple weeks, but Muzzin and the Kings have been coming on strong lately. He is a solid defensive addition that can score points and collect hits and blocks.

1.Derek Stepan, C, New York Rangers

The gap between the number one and number two centers on Broadway is closing. The disparity between Brad Richards and Stepan is closing fast, in fact it’s Richards who sits six points behind in the Rangers’ scoring table. Stepan is an ace in the faceoff circle and has shown some amazing stick skills in recent weeks. His four-point night Tuesday in Philadelphia was a showcase of how good the 22-year-old can be.