Last night showed us that indeed some teams are not dead which even offers hope to some fantasy owners out there. As the weekend action begins very soon, there is little time to waste here.  Now do you want to know who won the Fantasy POTN?  Honestly we did too.  Okay we have procrasinated enough and let’s do this!

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FANTASY POTN:

Zach Parise, LW, New Jersey Devils — One has to admit this was almost too easy for Parise and the top line of the Devils last night against the Washington Capitals.  It was clear that even though Parise did get hurt, the damage had been done already.  In less than ten minutes of action, Zach Parise scored three times including a PP tally and obviously the game winner.  Three goals and three shots is what we call fantasy efficiency at its finest.  Now he did suffer an injury early in the second period and came back for a shift or two in the third.  Though he is a little sore in the mouth and cheek area, Parise is expected to play tomorrow against the New York Islanders and he is a must start for that one.

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A LOOK BACK:

Teddy Purcell, RW, Tampa Bay Lightning — Clearly the Tampa and New York media down in Tampa forgot about Teddy Purcell but we did not.  The 23:31 of ice time is important because finally Guy Boucher is giving him top minutes because let’s face it, Vincent Lecavalier is aging before our eyes or has aged depending on one’s viewpoint.  Even on the MSG feed, all that was talked about was Steven Stamkos and then Purcell and how he saw the ice.  Clearly some form of Purcell-Stamkos-St. Louis is pretty intimidating and is moreso than old #4 even though #4 is only 31.  Purcell is the future Tampa and boy did Los Angeles miss out.

Val Filppula, C, Detroit Red Wings — When it is a 6-0 laugher, it is very easy to find a fantasy star and well Filppula was it tallying two goals, an assist, and the game winner.  The interesting thing is Filppula has 53 points but only ten power play points.  As his time increases on the power play, particularly next year, it will be interesting to see his true upside.  Right now, what matters is the 21-32-53 and +18 which is appealing to fantasy owners who stuck with him.  He is only 27 and honestly in the Wings system, the best years are definitely coming.  Keep starting him as your number 2 or number 3 option at Center from here on out.

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SCHEDULE TIME:

The schedule is fun tonight but full of potential potholes.  This is when we call in Mr. Ian Gooding and trot out the Pick Six for a fun fantasy hockey weekend.

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PICK SIX:

Because the trade deadline has now passed, the Toronto Maple Leafs can’t add or drop any more players. So it would make perfect sense that GM Brian Burke would fire coach and longtime friend Ron Wilson and replace him with equally prickly coach Randy Carlyle. There’s never a dull moment in Leafland, where things go really haywire when the team has won only once in the past 11 games.

So what will Carlyle be like for fantasy teams? I just hope you don’t own any Leaf goalies if you use any of the starting goalie sites like Goalie Post. Carlyle is the anti-Christ when it comes to providing goaltender information, often telling Ducks beat reporters that his starting goalie would be the guy in the crease at the start of the game. In other words, good luck and be sure to brush up on your coin-tossing skills when it comes to predicting Leaf starting goalie information.

Before we kick off the Pick Six with the Leafs’ starting goalie for Saturday, here’s a pocket-sized rundown of the schedule this weekend:

Nine games are scheduled Saturday; seven games are scheduled Sunday.

Teams with two games: Boston, Colorado, Florida, NY Islanders

Teams with no games: Edmonton, Winnipeg

All other teams play one game.

Jonas Gustavsson, G, TOR – start
Gustavsson was scheduled to start on Saturday against fellow struggling Original 6 rival Montreal (Jonas Siegel), but that was before Wilson was replaced by Carlyle behind the bench. As mentioned above, we won’t really know who the starting goalie will be until game time, unless Carlyle mentions in his press conference that he plans to be more forthcoming with goalie information than he was in Anaheim. Since reporting for the Maple Leafs is Toronto’s largest industry, perhaps he will be forced to spill the beans a little more often. Has there been a theme established for today’s article yet?

Tim Connolly, C, TOR – drop
If the Leafs could fire large contracts instead of coaches, perhaps Connolly would be on the chopping block. Perhaps that’s where he should be when it comes to your fantasy team. Struggling teams usually contain struggling players, and Connolly (four points in his last 18 games) certainly fits the bill. There is a serious dropoff in Leafs’ scoring after Phil Kessel and Joffrey Lupul, so Connolly could be a victim of his linemates more than anything.

Tyler Ennis, LW, BUF – add/start
The Ennis-Cody Hodgson-Drew Stafford line is going to be a second line to watch for the rest of the season. Hodgson and Stafford have been mentioned in my last two articles, so it’s Ennis’ turn today. Ennis has points in each of his last four games to go with a +4, along with points in seven of his last eight games. Don’t forget that Ennis was a preseason sleeper, which is why it makes sense that he would be making up for lost time.

Justin Faulk, D, CAR – add/start
Faulk, a Canes’ rookie d-man with strong offensive upside, has six points in his last ten games. It’s always wise to look at the power-play peripherals when adding defensemen, and Faulk has that aspect covered with 11 of his 17 points on the man advantage. The Canes face a horribly inept Lightning defense, which makes Faulk worth consideration in leagues with 4+ defensemen.

Steve Mason, G, CBJ – ignore
Mason recorded his first shutout of the season on Thursday against Colorado. But does that mean that you should rush to the waiver wire in the hopes that he will add another goose egg on Saturday? Get real. The Coyotes don’t scare anyone offensively, but they are one of the hottest teams in the NHL right now. There is no stat in Mason’s game that would suggest that he should be in your lineup (9-22-3, 3.38 GAA, .889 SV%).

Kris Letang, D, PIT – bench
Letang is the most recent member to rejoin the concussion club, thanks to a borderline hit from Eric Nystrom on Wednesday. Letang is sidelined for Saturday’s game at a minimum, and we’d have to think that he’d be a risky play for next week as well. Too bad, because don’t you think that the Penguins would be the strongest team in the Eastern Conference if only Letang and Sidney Crosby were both back in the lineup?

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Good luck ladies and gentlemen tonight in your fantasy leagues.  The key tonight will be to hold positions while making slight moves for Sunday with a 9-7 setup this weekend.  Remember again Edmonton and Winnipeg do not play at all.  That cannot be emphasized enough and watch for the back to back teams as always.  Thanks for reading once again and do not forget to check out Daily Joust.

Wow its been so much fun in March already.  Just think fantasy playoffs are just around the corner or in some cases already rapidly approaching.  Personally I am in a play-in week for a league this week and currently winning.  The thought of playoff fantasy hockey permeates the air as we go into the Fantasy Hockey Mini One today.  It is time to see what is on tap but first let’s take a look back.

A LOOK BACK:

1. Ilya Kovalchuk (New Jersey) — Do not look now fantasy hockey fans but Kovalchuk has 16 points in his last 14 games and out of his 22 goals, 8 of them are game winners.  Clutch is everything and if you held on to the Russian sniper then you are being handsomely rewarded after one of the worst starts anyone has ever seen for a star of his magnitude.  Even the game winning goal was scored while falling down.  Not many people caught that one right away.  Yes it was only a goal and assist but it is the impact and the clutch nature that makes people at least somewhat forget what happened early this year.

2. Al Montoya (NY Islanders) — This kick in the groin to Ranger fans brought to you by Al Montoya?  Yes it was a bit of a nonchalant 33 save effort last night against the Minnesota Wild but it was still a solid effort.  The John Madden goal was too good to be honest and nothing could be done about it.  The numbers do not lie and neither does the .933 save percentage.  Let’s face it the 1.93 GAA is pretty damn good too.  Do you mean Rick DiPietro could not do this?  My name is Al Montoya…..yes you know the rest.

3. Jonathan Toews (Chicago) — He was the fantasy player of the month in February and all he has done is continued the party into March with 2 goals in the 6-4 win over the Calgary Flames last night. Simply Toews has been in the right place at the right time and seems to always be.  However he has lifted his play to an even higher level of late that had the entire United Center crowd chanting “MVP! MVP!”.  Time will tell if that will be true but he has to at least enter into not only the hockey world part of the conversation but the fantasy part as well.

SCHEDULE TIME:

This will be one crazy night in the NHL.  There are 11 games in all and yes there is much fantasy significance to be had here.  There are so many good candidates for the fantasy game of the night. Where can we go here?  With so many choices and many marquis players, we bring you something not so special about this fantasy hockey season.  Yes it is the injury to Sidney Crosby.

THE SIDNEY CROSBY INJURY:

Think of the impact that the Dave Steckel and Victor Hedman hits had on this fantasy hockey season.  No one really knew it at the time but here is the ever growing realization.  Sidney Crosby is likely not to play for the rest of the regular season.  That could be a minimum or maximum depending on who or what you want to believe.  Right now there is no timetable as to a potential return even so it is safe to assume that Crosby will not return for several weeks at the very earliest. He has been out for eight weeks now already.  Dan Bylsma clearly does not have a definintive answer but has to say something at least.  What has come from his mouth so far is what you would expect. There is no clear timetable and that is the reality.

So in Keeper Leagues, what do you do about Sidney Crosby?  Well, absolutely nothing.  He is surely on an IR or LTIR and that will not change for 99% of rosters to be honest.  There are things that have to be faced as a reality and it is high time to be said that Crosby is likely not back until sometime April at the earliest which would just about kill his fantasy value for the rest of the season.  It is scary to think about it in those terms but it is what it is.

For the Fantasy Hockey GM, keep him shelved and pray is all that readlly can be done at this point.  No points will be scored by Mr. Crosby for the foreseeable future in the NHL.  The words “no roto value” have to be uttered here and sadly at that.

GUYS TO WATCH:

1.  Henrik Lundqvist (NY Rangers) — This is the time for Lundqvist to carry this team on his back and turn in a performance tonight that makes Ranger fans exhale.  Everything is set up for it in the sense that Minnesota comes in limping after a tough humbling 4-1 loss to the New York Islanders. Yes, this could backfire as the Wild do not want to disappoint but they are almost as bumbling at times as the Rangers.  Giving up three goals to Buffalo was not bad but the show was stolen by the opposing netminder and the same against Tampa Bay.  There are no more excuses.  Play like an elite fantasy goaltender at home or things may be much worse next year.  By the way his home numbers are 10-12-3 with a 2.35 GAA and .912 save percentage and 4 shutouts.  Those are not bad but off from the save percentage of near .930 on the road.

2. Tomas Kaberle (Boston) — The home debut of Kaberle is tonight and to be honest I do expect something relatively good to come from the defenseman tonight.  It also helps that Tampa was softened up considerably by a bruising, angry Devils team last night.  The last time the Bolts came in, they were throttled 8-1, so I am expecting more offense in this game potentially than that night even. It may very well end up 6-4 slugfest with Boston winning.  In the end, Kaberle should be a beneficiary with a multi point night at the very least.

3. San Jose Forwards —  This is simple.  Joey MacDonald is in net for Detroit and frankly it should technically be Evgeni Nabokov but it is not.  Basically the Sharks should feast on a guy like this.  Yes I know anything could happen but Detroit comes in limping after losing to a Bobby Ryan penalty shot OT goal last night.  If there was ever a time for San Jose’s offense to come up huge, it would be tonight.  Expect several from the Top 6 forwards to have big nights all around.

NOW CRY MOMMY FOR:

1.  Tampa Bay goalies — Simply whether its Rolo, Smith, or the Berlin Wall, it does not matter here. Boston is on a roll and even if they lose, they are going to score enough that keeps the TB goalies from being a worthwhile fantasy option.  Would I go with Rask or Thomas should be the proper question here fantasy fans.  Stay far away from the Tampa option if at all possible.

2.  St. Louis Blues — The season gets longer for Blues fans as the Capitals entertain them tonight with a bit of a swagger after an emotional 2-1 OT win over the Islanders.  Yes St. Louis has some weapons to keep an eye out for but let’s be honest, Washington is hungry here for offensive blood and not tiger blood.  After all, the Blues gave up FIVE goals at home in the third period to Calgary the other night.  Just imagine what Washington could do at home tonight.

3.  Marian Gaborik — Reports suggest that he had a setback today while skating.  Whether the headaches happened in the morning or during the skate do not really matter.  Headaches are headaches when dealing with concussions.  It is not good news.  What you need to know is that Gaborik is likely at least out for the weekend and who knows how much longer after that.  The Rangers could use his offense as teams continue to key on Dubinsky, Wolski, and Callahan.

So it should be a fun night tonight in fantasy hockey.  Good luck out there and we will see you tomorrow for more FANTASY HOCKEY ONE!