Posted by John Pereira, Special to ESPN.com
The Edmonton Oilers were able to climb past a Sean Avery-less Dallas Stars team on Wednesday night to snap a five-game home losing streak. Ales Hemsky, Shawn Horcoff, Marc-Antoine Pouliot, Andrew Cogliano and Lubomir Visnovsky all scored in the 5-2 win. But my interest was piqued by an Oilers forward who didn't score a goal, but rather picked up one simple assist. Rookie center Rob Schremp collected his first NHL point on the Puoliot tally in only his fourth NHL game and first this season.
Schremp was called up earlier this week to replace Robert Nisson who has been sidelined with a shoulder injury. The most promising note from Wednesday night's game was that Schremp was seeing some significant minutes playing on Edmonton's Kid Line with Cogliano and Sam Gagner. The addition of Schremp to this promising line may be just what the Oilers need to kick-start the group who has significantly underperformed. The proof is in the stat line, with one goal and 17 assists in 18 AHL games this season, Schremp is showing that he is a legitimate playmaker who improves the other players around him. He certainly has the ability to perform better than Nilsson and his pathetic eight points in 23 games thus far.
I must admit, I am a bit biased on the topic of Rob Schremp. I was cutting my teeth as a reporter in London, Canada, at the same time that Schremp was playing for the London Knights in the Ontario Hockey League. That was the same Knights team that won the Memorial Cup with Corey Perry as its star. Many who followed the team knew that Perry might not have been even the team's best player as Schremp was able to dazzle with his offensive skills. Over his OHL career, Schremp had 384 points in 247 games and, most impressively, piled up 145 points in just 57 games in his final season in the league in 2005-06. He's also proven to be an adept scorer at the AHL level becoming a point-per-game player.
So aside from a simple pickup from the wire (Schremp is currently available in 99 percent of ESPN leagues) how does this affect fantasy? Don't be surprised to see this call-up spark the play of Gagner and Cogliano as well. Both were hot ticket fantasy items at the end of last season but have followed up that sizzle with fizzle to start this season. Gagner is owned in only 6.8 percent of fantasy leagues while Cogliano, who has more points, is owned in only 2.5 percent of leagues. If you have the space to pick up any or all of these former first-round picks and stash them on your bench, you may reap the benefits of such a simple move later this season when all three are producing at the pace that they are capable.
Ice chips
The Ottawa Senators showed that they still have a little firepower left in the tank. The big three of Dany Heatley, Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson combined for six points in a 5-1 rout over the Atlanta Thrashers. It's hard to say that Heatley as a point-per-game player is disappointing, but considering what we have seen him do in the past, we are still left wanting for more. Let's hope this game signifies a turnaround in Ottawa. … At a 71 percent ownership level, Alex Auld is still available in far too many fantasy leagues. He had another impressive game for the Senators, stopping 22 of 23 shots in the win. His goals against average still remains better than 2.00. … Speaking of impressive performances in goal, Minnesota Wild netminder Niklas Backstrom picked up his third shutout of the season in a 4-0 win over the St. Louis Blues. … Quick. Check out the window. Anyone else see any flying pigs? Shockingly, the Chicago Blackhawks are 23 games into the season and Martin Havlat is still on the ice. The oft-injured forward scored a goal on Wednesday night, his seventh, in Chicago's come-from-behind win over Anaheim. … Hawks rookie Kris Versteeg's two assist night was enough to keep him in the lead in the rookie scoring race. Versteeg's 22 points give him a three-point lead over Columbus' Derick Brassard. Versteeg is available in about 40 percent of ESPN leagues. … Jordan Staal's climb back to respectability in the fantasy world continues. The bulky Pittsburgh Penguins forward scored another goal, his eighth of the season. He's on pace for 44 points, which would mark a career high. … What does roughly $39 million get you now-a-days? A veteran defenseman on pace to record his worst statistical season since 1998-99. Wade Redden picked up two assists on Wednesday, but is still on pace for a mere 35-point season. You'd have to think that the Rangers are regretting that contract already. I can't imagine what they'll be feeling in the 2013-2014 season when he is still on the books with a cap hit of $6.2 million.
