Open Ice: Forget preseason thoughts
With as many as 19 games in the books for many teams, it's time to start adjusting your outlook on players. You may have had a staunch negative opinion on somebody from the preseason who has come out of the gates flying, but you have to put your assessment aside now and look at what said player is doing.
I'll list a few players who may be available, in hopes that you'll take a second or two and think about their situation with a new perspective. I know I will.
Patrick Kane, RW, Blackhawks: You're going to be way too late on this one in all but the shallowest leagues, so I'll make this short and sweet. It doesn't matter that Kane is tiny. He has adjusted to the NHL, looks at home on the ice with the Hawks and most importantly, he is setting up goals. Kane and Tuomo Ruutu have registered a point each on five even-strength goals this season, while Kane and Jonathan Toews have teamed up on five as well (two on the power play). Despite my preseason concerns about Kane's size, I'm buying on him, big time.
Michael Peca, C, Blue Jackets: I didn't figure there was much of a chance Peca would play with the first line in Columbus, and I didn't figure it would work out if he got that chance. Well, he set up two Rick Nash goals (and another for Nikolai Zherdev) in his first significant ice time with the first unit on Tuesday. The trend is likely to continue as the Blue Jackets take offense wherever they can get it. Peca should be added in leagues of 12 teams or more.
Mike Richards and Jeff Carter, C, Flyers: I pegged the Flyers as a much-improved team heading into the season, but I did not think their offense went much deeper than the Simon Gagne-Daniel Briere connection. Richards and Carter are forcing me to rethink that. Clearly the duo -- which has developed along the same professional path since the lockout -- is ready to become a weapon on offense. Richards has that extra air of leadership about him and is someone to add in any format. Carter is borderline in medium-sized leagues because of the depth at center. I'm assuming Joffrey Lupul is already gone in your league, but you may want to double-check. Not many prognosticators forecasted this much improvement in Philly.
Chris Campoli, D, Islanders: I've been singing Campoli's praises since he was an Erie Otter in the Ontario Hockey League, but when the Isles traded for Marc-Andre Bergeron and then signed Bryan Berard, I backed off of my endorsement for this season. Coach Ted Nolan took away Campoli's power-play duties when he came to town last season and Bergeron and Berard represented proven go-to guys for the man advantage. You can see why I figured Campoli wouldn't get too much time. On the contrary, Campoli trails only Bergeron for power-play time per game this season. Sure, four of his seven points came in one contest, but the skills are for real and Nolan is clearly committed to giving him time to work the point. He should be available in some medium-sized and all shallow leagues. Add him as a reliable No. 3 defenseman.
Jason LaBarbera, G, Kings: Through all my preparation for this season and in all my offseason columns, I noted that I liked whoever would win the goaltending job for the Kings. I think their offense is solid and their defense is much-improved. It has been a roller coaster to this point with Jonathan Bernier as the early favorite, only to be sent down. Until last week -- when I wrote that Jean-Sebastien Aubin should get a chance at the job -- LaBarbera had stunk. Well, since I wrote that, Labs has notched his first two wins of the season, one of them a shutout. One good week does not a fantasy starter make, but you and I have been served notice that LaBarbera is going to fight for this job. As the best goalie in the American Hockey League last season, LaBarbera certainly has shown the ability needed to nail down this job and be a fantasy asset. I know it sounds like I'm flip-flopping, but I maintain that whoever starts for the Kings is someone you want to own, and right now that looks like LaBarbera.
Craig Rivet, D, Sharks: I guarantee I wasn't the only one who had the Sharks' defensive pecking order on the power play as Matt Carle, followed by Christian Ehrhoff and then Marc-Edouard Vlasic. No one was figuring on Rivet fitting into the picture too much. Well, Rivet may not lead Carle by too much in the power-play time per game statistic (just two seconds more) but he has double the output on the power play so far (six assists to three). It may just be a streak of luck that has Rivet's shots and passes ending up in the net right now, but with a powerful top unit on the man advantage like the one in San Jose, you can't ignore Rivet right now. He's never really been used as a power-play quarterback before, so this may just be the tip of a skill iceberg we haven't been privy to.
Bryan Little, C, and Brett Sterling, LW, Thrashers: Atlanta rookies, meet the fantasy community. Fantasy community, meet the new linemates of Marian Hossa. General manager/coach Don Waddell busted up the Slava Kozlov-Hossa connection that has been a staple the past two seasons in favor of skating his best player with two rookies. Now, these are no ordinary rookies, because we hyped them quite a bit in the preseason. Little is a wizard from the OHL who -- by all accounts -- looks like he'll stay in Atlanta after playing his 10th game tonight (the Thrashers can't return him to the OHL after he plays 10 games). Sterling led all AHL rookies in points last season. There is no guarantee with these two, but this section of the column wouldn't be for the "hard-core" if there were. I like Little a bit more as he is more apt to stay on a scoring line considering Atlanta's weakness down the middle. Sterling has chemistry with recent call-up Darren Haydar -- who led all AHL scorers last season -- and may end up playing with him.
Arron Asham, RW, Devils: Asham has been a fantasy darling in waiting his whole career. He fits the profile of a chippy winger with offensive upside that could possibly yield 50 points in the right situation, to go along with triple-digit PIMs. With Jamie Langenbrunner on the shelf and Nicklas Bergfors down in the AHL, Asham has been spending time as a top-six winger in New Jersey. Langenbrunner is set to return in December, but if Asham can keep up his current numbers he may have earned more time. Especially considering that he is a product of the Western Hockey League and still has the hard-nosed qualities that should endear him to coach Brent Sutter.
Sean Allen is a fantasy baseball and hockey analyst for ESPN.com. You can Email him here.
