Posted by Sean Allen, Special to ESPN.com
There was an air of playoff quality to the matchup in Vancouver, as the Canucks and Oilers battled ferociously in the home team's 4-2 win. Fantasy owners likely benefited in the penalty minutes (PIMs) category; the total from both teams approached 200. Unfortunately and expectedly, most of the minutes were racked up by players whose ownership in fantasy leagues is minimal. Though
Dustin Penner,
Zack Stortini and
Alex Burrows probably helped out some deep-league teams. Even little
Sam Gagner got fed up with
Ryan Kesler and dropped his mitts near the end. Gagner has really stepped up in his new role as the first-line center and has eight points in his last six games. Consider him a great addition as a No. 2 center. Despite the loss,
Mathieu Garon played well and will continue to be one of the better No. 2 goaltenders for fantasy, especially for owners specifically seeking a boost in save percentage. Pair Garon with
Rick DiPietro or
Evgeni Nabokov, and you have a pretty solid machine for goaltender stats.
The Oilers' "energy line" has been a pretty good source of PIMs and points lately. If your fantasy team has been looking for a replacement for Aaron Voros or Daniel Carcillo, look no further than Stortini. Playing with Kyle Brodziak and the newly acquired Curtis Glencross, Stortini has four points and 28 PIMs in seven games this month. Brodziak has five points and 23 PIMs in that same span, but his penalty minutes are out of line with his character, whereas Stortini is justifiably among the league leaders for "sin bin" time.
I make a lot of predictions and educated guesses in this business, but rarely do I come out with a seemingly random "gut" feeling on someone that I feel comfortable publishing. In my Jan. 25 Open Ice column, though, I made a "gut" call in recommending the beleaguered Darcy Tucker. Lemme tell ya, if I could call 'em all like that, I'd be sleeping better at night. In nine games since that was published, Tucker has 10 points, 26 penalty minutes and has a plus-3 plus-minus. And in 85 percent of ESPN leagues, it's not too late to add him. Tucker is playing inspired hockey. His power-play goal in the Leafs' 4-3 win over Boston was a glimpse back to the last two seasons, when he scored 33 total power-play goals. He was stationed at the side of net and just waited for a Mats Sundin pass. He then set up a go-ahead goal minutes later with a nifty short-side pass that had Tim Thomas wondering what happened. And to finish it off, he streaked down the wing for an absolute beauty tally in overtime that won the game. Grab him now. Even if he waives his no-trade clause at the deadline, a healthy Tucker is a productive Tucker. If Tucker is gone in your league, grab Glen Murray, who had another two-point night back on Boston's top line.
This is exactly why I recommended a quick bailout on Cristobal Huet. He was awesome in January, but with Carey Price grabbing headlines in Montreal, it's going to be hard to justify the Canadiens giving Huet regular playing time. Price recorded his fist NHL shutout in the Canadiens' 1-0 win over Philadelphia. The rookie should do just enough damage to sap value from Huet, while not starting enough to be a fantasy star just yet. It's annoying to deal with in fantasy, so get out of the situation altogether. Price single-handedly carried the Hamilton Bulldogs to the Calder Cup trophy as a 19-year-old, while Huet's big-game experience is limited. I wouldn't be surprised to see the rookie get into shape for the post-season, too. I can't believe he is only 20. I'd almost want Price over Sidney Crosby or Alexander Ovechkin in long-term keeper leagues. OK, maybe not, but I'd think about it.
In the opposite net, Antero Niittymaki played well on the road, but that is to be expected now. He's 8-4 with a 1.99 goals-against average and a .941 save-percentage away from Philly. The Flyers might be in a slump, but they are still going to win plenty of games going forward, and whoever is in net is going to be a great asset in fantasy. Martin Biron's stats are masked by a great October, and my colleague Tristan Cockcroft pointed out in his blog Thursday a line that bears repeating: Biron is 13-13-4 with a 3.03 GAA in his past 33 games. Niittymaki is the goaltender the Flyers go into the playoffs with. I am finally confident enough in him to state that.
The nights won't always be this bad, but Ryan Miller's recent hot streak will be a distant memory come mid-March. I identified the strength of schedule remaining for teams in my Feb. 5 Grand Theft Roto, and the Sabres had the toughest "strength of schedule." I also noted that it gets even worse for Miller and Co. after March 1. Lasting 12 minutes and stopping only seven of eleven shots is just a warning sign to Miller owners. The Rangers' 5-1 victory over Buffalo was paced by Sean Avery's two goals. In a newly configured lineup, Avery played with Jaromir Jagr and rookie Brandon Dubinsky. Dubinsky might be one of my greatest regrets from my preseason assessment of the rookie class. I overlooked him because often power-forward numbers in Junior don't translate to the NHL, but Dubinsky is a great source of points and penalty minutes right now. Center is too deep to make him useful in shallow leagues, but 16-teamers should be able to enjoy his output.
It's a strange night when the losing goaltender in a 4-1 victory plays better than the winner. That was the case Saturday, as Atlanta's Kari Lehtonen stopped 45 of 49 shots in the Thrashers' loss to the Islanders. At the other end, DiPietro stopped nine of only 10 shots. Lehtonen really is a great goalie on a bad team. Here is some wild speculation for you: Lehtonen is a restricted free agent at season's end, and Atlanta has a much-hyped prospect ready to take over the net in Ondrej Pavelec. Could Lehtonen be moved if the Thrashers decide to have a fire sale?
Cory Stillman recorded another assist Saturday he has two in three games as a Senator -- but was relegated to third-line duty in Ottawa's 3-2 loss to New Jersey. Coach John Paddock likely has yet to figure out how the puzzle pieces should fit together following the trade with Carolina. Don't worry about your Sens, though; they will determine the appropriate configurations eventually. But also don't invest too much in the role players whose value depends on their linemates.
No Rod Brind'Amour, no problem for the Hurricanes. The new second line of Trevor Letowski, Sergei Samsonov and Andrew Ladd scored twice, while the new first line of Ray Whitney, Eric Staal and Erik Cole also scored twice in a 5-4 win over Florida. Ladd is one of my favorite pickups at the moment, as his two assists give him eight points, to go with a plus-7, in seven February games. John Grahame was the winning goaltender after taking over for Cam Ward, who was chased after allowing three goals on 13 shots. My colleague Victoria Matiash threw in her towel on Ray Emery, and while I believe Emery's value is low enough right now that he actually makes a good target, I am throwing in my towel on Ward. This guy is never going to be a star goaltender until he can maintain his pace through the rigors of a whole season.
Brett McLean scored the first goal for the Panthers, and while he has nine points in nine games this month, I just can't bring myself to get on board. Five of those points came in a wallop win over Toronto, so there are concerns about consistency. On the other hand, he is playing with Olli Jokinen on the top line. In the end, I think fears of Jokinen being dealt at the deadline and center-only eligibility for McLean are reason enough to stay away.
Olaf Kolzig stopped 39 of 41 shots as Washington handled Tampa Bay, 3-2. This is the first time all season Kolzig has allowed fewer than three goals for three straight games. Is that enough to give him a vote of confidence for your fantasy team? Not yet, but pay closer attention to "Olie the Goalie" in the coming days.
Even though it lacked a win, Manny Legace's performance was the best of the night in Nashville's 2-1 win over St. Louis. Of the goaltenders that have surprised with their value this season, Legace is the one I'd be happiest to have going forward.
Finally, a late power-play marker by Radim Vrbata put Phoenix ahead en route to a 4-3 win over Los Angeles. Vrbata and Dustin Brown both scored their 26th goal of the season in this game. I would have believed you, albeit with a raised eyebrow, had you said back in August that Vrbata would have 26 goals right now, but I wouldn't have believed you for a second if you had said that about Brown. Regardless, both players are having break-through seasons.
Three recent call-ups from Manchester for L.A. deserve our attention. The first, Brian Boyle, seems to be fooling us with his numbers. The 6-7 monster is impressive to see, and he has five points in his first eight NHL games, but projects really as an energy-line power forward. It's strange that Boyle is finally up as a forward; both Boston College and Manchester had been experimenting with converting him to a defenseman over the last two seasons. He has decent skill for his size, but only decent.
Give me Teddy Purcell over Boyle in any keeper league. Purcell has two points in two contests in this most recent stint with the Kings and is a developing top-six forward. He has great playmaking skills that should fit right in with some of the other talent in L.A. I actually think Purcell could contribute to fantasy teams down the stretch of this season. He was the standout player in a top-prospect-laden AHL All-Star game this season, scoring scored a hat trick before the game was half over and adding the shootout winner. The final call-up to discuss is, of course, Dan Cloutier. Though he was pulled before the start of the third period against Phoenix because of flu symptoms, he played decent in net in the first two periods, stopping 18 of 21 shots and wasn't deserving of much blame for the three goals he allowed. Considering the Kings are the bottom-feeders of the NHL, it's tough to recommend looking too much into Cloutier as a fantasy option, especially given his pedestrian numbers in the AHL this year (3.50 GAA, .869 save-percentage). Stranger things have happened, and you can't knock Cloutier for his work ethic, but I thinks it's safe to shy away.
Sean Allen is a fantasy baseball and hockey analyst for ESPN.com. You can e-mail him here.
