Posted by John Pereira
The power outage in Ottawa continues. In fact things have gotten so bad for the Senators of late that the rebuilding Toronto Maple Leafs were able to skate away with a pretty easy win at the Air Canada Centre on Saturday night. Don't be fooled by the score: The game certainly wasn't as close as the 3-2 final would suggest, as the Senators looked completely listless until Dean McAmmond banked a fluke goal off Mike Van Ryn with less than a minute to go in the third period. This could actually be more worrisome for fantasy hockey owners who invested an early round pick on any one of Dany Heatley, Jason Spezza or Daniel Alfredsson than actual Senators' fans themselves. Coach Craig Hartsburg is trying everything to ignite the three superstars. They began the night on different lines, but by the second period were reunited and collectively had zero points and were a minus-3 on the score sheet. While all of the big three will finish the season as point-per-game players at least, they certainly aren't the same men who all finished the 2005-06 season around the 100-point mark.
The bright spot for the Sens on the night had to be Alex Auld, who turned away 35 shots in the losing effort. Auld now more than ever has a real chance to steal the lion's share of games away from starter Martin Gerber. Gerber has been sidelined with a pulled leg muscle and is currently listed as day-to-day, leaving Auld as the main man between the pipes for Ottawa. Auld has posted the better numbers of the two thus far, but remains available in more than 90 percent of ESPN leagues.
On the flip side of all the doom and gloom in the battle of Ontario was a surprising effort for the suddenly hardworking and pesky Toronto Maple Leafs. Rookie defenseman Luke Schenn took home first-star honors without picking up an actual point on the night, but to his credit he was involved in his first NHL fight. Schenn should see his fantasy stock increase significantly come Oct. 29, which would mark his 10th game and automatically activate the first year of his NHL contract. His junior team has already named a new captain, and it's looking like he will spend the entire season with the Leafs, meaning at that point it would be wise to pick him up in deeper fantasy leagues. He plays more than 20 minutes a night and has shown the ability to shoot the puck well in key situations, although he doesn't yet have a point to his credit. Don't set your expectations too high, but he certainly could be a solid fifth or sixth fantasy defenseman, especially in a league that counts average time on ice.
Ice Chips
Milan Lucic is quickly becoming one of my favorite young NHL players. Lucic is showing that he is the ultimate package for a power forward, as he plays a rugged game but is able to help on the offense too. Just one game after he used the body of Toronto defender Mike Van Ryn to shatter the glass on an explosive hit in his own defensive zone, Lucic completed his first career hat trick during a win over Atlanta. Lucic's increase in scoring ability could be attributed to his recent decision to begin wearing contact lenses on the ice. "It's like going from ordinary TV to high-definition TV," he joked after the game. … Things Are always sunny in Philadelphia, at least when the Flyers are winning. Jeff Carter scored in overtime to give the Flyers their second win in as many games and their second win of the season. Carter may be on the verge of breaking out this year. The former 11th overall pick has eight points in eight games and is a good bet to improve his personal best of 53 points in a single season. … Marc-Andre Fleury is proving that last year's run to the Stanley Cup finals was no fluke. He stopped 42 shots Saturday night, albeit in a losing effort. His numbers to start the season have been nothing short of fantastic: a 2.17 goals against average and a .933 save percentage. … Not to be outdone on the goalie front, Carolina's Cam Ward was also busy Saturday night. He stopped 57 of 60 shots to give the Hurricanes the win despite the fact they were completely outplayed by the New York Islanders. … Alex Tanguay is settling into his new home in Montreal, scoring another two goals Saturday night. Tanguay continues to see significant ice time with Saku Koivu and Guillaume Latendresse. While Tanguay and Koivu are owned in high percentages, Latendresse remains available in nearly 100 percent of ESPN leagues. He has been a point-per-game player to begin the year. … Canucks second-year forward Mason Raymond has been on a bit of a tear of late, scoring two goals against Edmonton to push his point streak to five. He's becoming an ever more intriguing option as he is now seeing time on the point on Vancouver's power play, so don't be surprised to see the offense continue. … ESPN fantasy league owners have been quick to recognize Todd Bertuzzi's re-energized play in Calgary. His ownership numbers climbed by more than 10 percent this week and will continue to grow if he continues to score at this pace. He picked up his sixth goal of the season Saturday. … The injury bug has struck in St. Louis once again and it's targeting another goalie. Rookie goalie Ben Bishop had to leave a 4-0 win over Florida with 15 minutes remaining and is now listed as day-to-day with a lower body injury. That leaves fellow rookie Marek Schwarz as the last man standing in St. Louis for the time being. Regular starter Manny Legace, of course, has been listed as day-to-day following that bizarre injury in which he hurt himself stepping onto the carpet used for Alaska governor Sarah Palin, who was on hand Friday to drop the ceremonial puck. Regular backup Chris Mason is also sidelined following an appendectomy last week. … Sergei Fedorov has become the highest scoring Russian to play in the NHL. His two goals against the Dallas Stars moved him past Alexander Mogilny and alone into the record books with 475 career markers. … The Minnesota Wild remain the only Western Conference team without a loss in regulation as they beat Columbus 2-1. Goalie Niklas Backstrom's return to his Calder Trophy form plays a big part in the Wild's 5-0-1 record. If he continues to play this well for the rest of the season he'll no doubt soon be considered one of the elite puck-stoppers in the NHL.
