Posted by Victoria Matiash
The Blackhawks should thank goaltender
Patrick Lalime for bringing their eight-game winless streak to an end. Lalime put in a fantastic performance against Nashville, stopping 35 of 37 shots and forcing the game to a shootout.
Martin Havlat assisted on goals from
Robert Lang and
Patrick Sharp.
Brent Sopel tallied his second point in as many games after missing a couple weeks because of a broken finger. Fellow defenseman
Brent Seabrook didn't make the score sheet, but he racked up six penalty minutes for a variety of minor infractions. Nashville's
David Legwand contributed a goal and an assist; he has five points in his last three games.
Hopefully Dwayne Roloson enjoys the comfort of pine. Mathieu Garon is convincing even the staunchest critics that he's the real deal. Garon backstopped the Oilers to a thrilling 2-1 victory over Calgary in the latest installment of the battle of Alberta. Edmonton's newly anointed No. 1 has five victories in his last six starts, and the team is right back into the playoff hunt. On offense, Ales Hemsky netted a goal and an assist to bring his current scoring streak to seven points in four games. Shawn Horcoff, Hemsky's linemate, also had a goal and a helper.
Scott Niedermayer extended his point streak to three games with an assist on Francois Beauchemin's game-winner against San Jose. Beauchemin had an all-around good game with the goal, an assist and four shots. Unfortunately, with Niedermayer, Chris Pronger and Mathieu Schneider also skating on the Ducks' blue line, the young defenseman doesn't carry any significant value. On the subject of useless fantasy players, Jeremy Roenick had his first multi-point game since October. Evgeni Nabokov had an extremely rare evening off as Thomas Greiss started his first NHL game.
Ottawa's stars are dropping left and right. With Dany Heatley already out 4-6 weeks, Jason Spezza missed the last two periods against the Islanders after taking a clean hit from Freddy Meyer. His absence was said to be a "precautionary measure," but there's still no word on the severity of the injury. Even before Spezza left the game, Randy Robitaille had replaced Heatley on the top line with Daniel Alfredsson. Robitaille is worth consideration in deeper leagues if that situation remains the same. Marc-Andre Bergeron scored two power-play goals in New York's 3-1 win. If only he could face Ottawa every night; Bergeron has seven goals in eight games against the Senators. Rick DiPietro was in top form and stopped 31 of 32 shots for the win.
The "Sedin Show" was in full swing as the Canucks visited St. Louis. Henrik and Daniel combined for five points in the 4-3 shootout victory. Taylor Pyatt assisted on both Sedin goals but didn't return after taking a puck to the face late in the first period. A trip to the dentist is in order, but he shouldn't miss any more playing time. Pyatt is a hot commodity at the moment; he's played the last couple of games on Vancouver's top line and has four points to show for it. For the Blues, Paul Kariya and Brad Boyes garnered two points each, and Keith Tkachuk scored his third goal in four games.
Marian Gaborik and Pavol Demitra led the Wild with a goal and an assist each in a 4-1 victory over Phoenix. Mikko Koivu was held pointless in his second game back from injury, but those who waited patiently for his return shouldn't worry. He looked extremely comfortable during 15 minutes of ice time, and his puck-handling was top-notch. The points will come soon. Josh Harding played spectacularly in net for Minnesota, stopping all but one of 27 shots. Harding is performing better than Niklas Backstrom these days, and Backstrom owners should be concerned. Ilya Bryzgalov took the loss by allowing four goals on 34 shots.
Andrew Brunette's value has grown exponentially with Joe Sakic and Ryan Smyth out. Playing on Colorado's top line with Milan Hejduk and Paul Stastny, Brunette scored twice in the Avalanche's 4-3 overtime win over Florida. Marek Svatos scored his 20th goal of the season on the power play. Svatos is on fire these days, with seven points in his last six games. Nathan Horton snapped a four-game pointless streak with a couple of assists for the Panthers.
An assortment of players took part in the goal-scoring fest in Washington. Mike Knuble potted two, and Kimmo Timonen earned three points in Philadelphia's 6-4 win. Philly's Jason Smith earned 17 penalty minutes for fighting, instigating and "misconduct-ing" himself. In the losing effort, Alexander Ovechkin scored and added a helper, as did Michael Nylander. Washington's Chris Clark made his first appearance in 18 games since hurting his groin. He played only nine minutes after restraining it, but it's reportedly not a serious setback. Mike Green continues to impress for the Capitals. The young defenseman had a goal and an assist on five shots. Starting goaltender Olaf Kolzig was yanked in the second period in place of a healthy Brent Johnson. After starting 11 consecutive games, Kolzig will get a few games off now and then, now that Johnson is feeling up to snuff.
Victoria Matiash is a fantasy hockey analyst for ESPN.com. You can send her e-mail for potential use in "The Vicky Files" by clicking here.
