Posted by Tristan H. Cockcroft, ESPN.com
Rod Brind'Amour, a top-40 forward and top-80 overall fantasy player to date, was lost for the season on Thursday, after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. He'll require surgery and a 4-6 month rehabilitation process, enough time for him to be ready for training camp next season, though the operation does put the start to his 2008-09 in some question. Brind'Amour finishes his season with 19 goals and 51 points in 59 games, including four and 15 in his past 13 contests.
Even more important than the impact on his fantasy owners' rosters, though, is the impact of his absence on his on-ice team. The team leader in points, Brind'Amour's loss leaves a gaping hole in the offense. It's more pronounced since Cory Stillman, who is still ranked fourth on the team in points, was just dealt to the Senators. Strangely enough, Eric Staal and Ray Whitney picked up the pace in Brind'Amour's absence, totaling two goals and three assists Thursday. It's not the kind of performance you should expect most nights, though. The Hurricanes' attack is considerably weaker today than it was one week ago, which will have two effects: One, inconsistent goalie Cam Ward won't get enough support to be particularly trustworthy, even as a No. 2 fantasy option; and two, Ward's shakiness between the pipes will lead to some severe plus/minus risk for the team's skaters.
Staal, incidentally, snapped a seven-game scoreless drought with his one-goal, one-assist effort. Of course, during that slump came his All-Star MVP performance, a two-goal, one-assist outing on Jan. 27, so it's not like he had gone entirely quiet. I still call Staal easily the best fantasy option on the Hurricanes' roster, even with him at 50 points in 60 contests, but he'll be hard-pressed to finish the year better than minus-15.
Penguins backup Dany Sabourin was a workhorse on the losing end of that game Thursday, stopping 42 of 46 shots in a 4-2 defeat. Remember when he was looking like the team's long-term starter when Marc-Andre Fleury suffered a high ankle sprain? Now Sabourin's role as the backup appears in jeopardy, with Fleury on the verge of a return. Fleury stopped 30 of 31 shots in the first of an anticipated three or four starts of a rehabilitation assignment for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL on Wednesday. Now the question is, who starts when he returns, him or Ty Conklin? I'll take Conklin, 14-4-0 with a 2.25 goals-against average in 22 games in Fleury's absence.
Interesting stat: Since winning five consecutive games in October and going 7-2-0 with a 1.78 GAA in nine starts that month, Martin Biron has never won more than two consecutive games. With his lackluster 23-of-28 save performance on Thursday, he's 13-13-4 with a 3.03 GAA in his past 33 contests, pretty mediocre numbers.
Broken record time: Joffrey Lupul had a goal and an assist Thursday, in his fourth game since returning from a concussion. Sound familiar? It should; he did the same thing on Tuesday. Lupul sure is looking healthy enough to have active in all formats.
Broken record time, Part II: Vaclav Prospal, who netted two goals on Tuesday, added another on Thursday, his 26th of the season. That represents a new career best for him. And I'm still not drafting him next fall; he's an every-other-year player, you know.
Dan Boyle continues to pile on the points and skate countless minutes, demonstrating a remarkable level of health for a guy who missed nearly half the year recovering from surgery. He had a goal and an assist Thursday, and has three goals and nine points in nine games since being activated. What's more, the least amount of ice time he has seen since his return was 24 minutes, 56 seconds. Boyle is a workhorse, and an all-around fantasy stud.
Speaking of players displaying remarkable health since their recent return from the injury list, Blackhawks rookie Jonathan Toews, who had missed 16 games with a sprained left knee, scored two goals on Thursday, his first since being activated this past Sunday. He has a point in each of three games since then, totaling five and a plus-8, showing no signs of rust. Toews is truly a special player; it only gets better from here.
Ryan Smyth returned from a fractured ankle on Thursday, skating 19:29, firing five shots on goal, registering a minus-1 and totaling two penalty minutes. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt, though. Smyth was a little rusty after sitting 18 games, and his typical line mate, Joe Sakic, remains on the shelf. He's fine to activate in deeper leagues, but might not be back to his usual self for a few more games.
Another player I'll grant a mulligan: Jose Theodore, who allowed three goals on seven shots in 21:32 of action. Coming into the night he was 8-5-1 with a 1.89 GAA in 14 games since Jan. 1, nearly top-tier fantasy numbers. Put him on watch, but don't panic just yet.
Keep the name Alexander Edler tucked away for next season, as the 21-year-old rookie center certainly has a bright future ahead of him. He scored two goals on Thursday, bringing his season totals to five with 14 points and a plus-14, and be aware that he's earning better than 25 minutes of ice time per game in the past month. Edler had 13 goals and 53 points in 62 games in the WHL as recently as 2005-06, so he might grace a good share of breakout candidate lists come the start of next season.
Mathieu Garon's torrid hot streak continued Thursday, as he won his second straight game and fourth in five starts in February. He has a 1.61 GAA and .951 save percentage for the month, and a 9-4-0 record, 2.08 GAA and .937 save percentage in his past 13 starts. Eventually, Garon should cool to more No. 2 goalie-worthy statistical levels, but enjoy the ride while it lasts; he's performing like a true No. 1 right now.
Tristan H. Cockcroft covers fantasy sports for ESPN.com. You can e-mail him here.
