ESPN Fantasy Hockey Blog

Posted by Sean Allen

I ask my fellow Cristobal Huet owners to join me. In order to solve the problem, we first must admit that we have one. So say it with me: "There is a goaltender controversy in Chicago …" Good. Now the tough part: "… and Nikolai Khabibulin appears to be winning."

Coming off a 3-0 shutout of the previously undefeated Oilers, Khabibulin is now 2-1-1 with a 1.97 goals-against average and a .931 save percentage. He and Huet have rotated every start this season, but considering the Hawks' next opponent is division rival and defending champion Detroit, coach Joel Quenneville could break form and stick with the red-hot "Bulin Wall."

Huet has been no slouch himself, with a 2.60 GAA and decent save percentage of .907, but a goalie needs to start a lot of games before he can be your No. 1 in fantasy. Quenneville does expect one of his goaltenders to play the bulk of games later in the season but sees no reason to rush to a conclusion. This would be a lot easier if some other team decided that Khabibulin's resurgence is legitimate enough and worked out a trade.

Bottom line: Huet can be no better than a No. 2 fantasy goalie until this situation changes, and Khabibulin is a decent investment since he has a chance to earn decent numbers in a rotation with Huet or as the starter for another team.

Saturday's game with Detroit will be a nice window into Quenneville's mind. He must either continue his goalie rotation, or stick with the guy with the better stats coming off a shutout to play an important game. If he starts Huet, the numbers game should play out in Huet's favor sooner than later. If he starts Khabibulin, Huet owners better start hoping another team steps up to trade for the "Bulin Wall."

Ice Chips

Maybe it's not just Marty Turco's fault? Turco was pulled halfway through a 5-0 drubbing from New Jersey, after allowing three goals on 17 shots. His backup, Tobias Stephan, fared no better, allowing two goals on 10 shots. Turco is having an atrociously bad start, with an .841 save percentage and 4.20 goals-against average, but it might be just as much the team's fault, as Stephan has a similar .824 save percentage. There is nothing you can do right now but shift Turco to the bench and surf the wire for a temporary replacement. … The Hawks sent down Jack Skille and called up Troy Brouwer from Rockford before Wednesday's game. Brouwer immediately took Dustin Byfuglien's spot on the second line with Martin Havlat and Patrick Sharp and played a role on the second power-play unit. Brouwer was fifth in the AHL with 35 goals last season, 25 of them on the power play, so keep an eye on him and his new role. … Sam Gagner returned from a lower-body injury and led all Edmonton forwards in ice time. It was a forgettable game by all Oilers, though. … Dwayne Roloson started his first contest of the season, stopping 27 of 30 Chicago shots. It doesn't look good for Roloson, though, as Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers and Mathieu Garon are still unbeaten between the Oilers' pipes this season. … Give Antero Niittymaki an opening, and he'll be sure to mess it up. That is why he has been such a fantasy tease these past few years, and somehow I get burned every time. It was a wild game and a terrible defensive showing in the first period by the Flyers, but you still can't forgive a goaltender for playing 20 minutes and allowing four goals on 15 shots. A 7-6 shootout win for San Jose was the final result, and Martin Biron didn't exactly set the world ablaze by allowing two more goals on 20 shots to finish the game. Still, Niitty had a clear opening to steal the No. 1 gig here, and he completely blew it. Despite the Sharks riding roughshod over him, Niittymaki still has better overall numbers than Biron, but at some point you have to ask yourself just how badly you want the starting goaltender for the only NHL team yet to win a single game. … The Sharks got a little fancy with the lines halfway through Wednesday's wild contest. Patrick Marleau had two of his four points on the night in the first period with Joe Thornton and Devin Setoguchi on his line but scored his final two over the last two periods while on a line with Marcel Goc and Mike Grier. We'll have to see how this combination plays out over coming games, but you have to be concerned about Marleau losing time with Thornton and Setoguchi. Ryan Clowe, by the way, replaced Marleau on the top line after the first period. … Simon Gagne missed the contest with the flu, Steve Downie was sent down to the AHL Phantoms and Andreas Nodl was called up and started in Gagne's stead. … The Flyers also made a great line change for the value of their second line. Rather than mishmash the team's next best three (after Gagne, Daniel Briere and Mike Knuble) over two lines, Mike Richards was lined up with Scott Hartnell and Joffrey Lupul. Lupul responded with two goals, Hartnell had three assists, and Mike Richards had one of each. … Craig Anderson stopped 41 of 42 Ottawa shots in a 3-1 Florida victory. There is no controversy in the Miami net, but the Panthers tend to forecast when Anderson will get a start. That makes it worth paying attention to the news in South Florida and trying to slide Anderson into your lineup when you know he's playing. … At the other end, Martin Gerber allowed three goals on just 21 shots. Are you sure you have no questions about who the No. 1 is, Craig Hartsburg? … With no defenseman stepping up in St. Louis, the Blues have seemingly decided to say "forget it, we don't need any defensemen." The first power-play unit for the game with division-rival Detroit was Paul Kariya, Lee Stempniak, Brad Boyes, Andy McDonald and Keith Tkachuk. Tkachuk scored his seventh goal of the season while that unit was on the ice. Seven!

Sean Allen is a fantasy baseball and hockey analyst for ESPN.com. You can e-mail him here.