Here it is! It really is hard to believe but a little over six months comes down to a 15 game Saturday brawl for it all. Now last night there was only one game as Phoenix put in their claim for the Pacific Division title with a huge 4-1 win over St. Louis. If the Coyotes win tonight, then the Pacific is theirs no matter what anyone else does. Despite a slight dip early in the month, the hottest fantasy player in the last couple months may just be Mike Smith. As a matter of fact, let’s get down to business on this last day.
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FANTASY POTN:
Mike Smith, G, Phoenix Coyotes — The guy gets kicked in the head and still makes 31 saves in the 4-1 win last night. Can he do it again tonight? That may be the only question. Smith has gone 36-18-10 with a 2.25 GAA, .929 save percentage and 8 SO. With another shutout he could finish with a .930 save percentage. That deserves a hand! It really does. Some have even considered entering him into the Vezina discussion. Does that go too far? Maybe it does not. However, what Smith has done over the second half has saved so many fantasy owners from certain doom. When you can pull off a near .940 save percentage over your last 40 games, that is clutch.
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SCHEDULE TIME:
Saturday, April 7, 2012 |
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| Teams | Notes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago | at | Detroit | 1:00 PM | ||
| Ottawa | at | New Jersey | 3:00 PM | ||
| Buffalo | at | Boston | 4:00 PM | ||
| Philadelphia | at | Pittsburgh | 4:00 PM | ||
| Anaheim | at | Calgary | 4:00 PM | ||
| Washington | at | NY Rangers | 6:30 PM | ||
| Toronto | at | Montreal | 7:00 PM | ||
| Tampa Bay | at | Winnipeg | 7:00 PM | ||
| NY Islanders | at | Columbus | 7:00 PM | ||
| Carolina | at | Florida | 7:30 PM | ||
| Phoenix | at | Minnesota | 8:00 PM | ||
| St. Louis | at | Dallas | 8:00 PM | ||
| Nashville | at | Colorado | 9:00 PM | ||
| Edmonton | at | Vancouver | 10:00 PM | ||
| Los Angeles | at | San Jose | 10:30 PM | ||
This is one schedule that any fantasy hockey and hockey fan wishes would happen more often on Saturdays. There is no easy way to wade through the muck of players that will rest and players that will actually play. It is that challenge which will make every genernal manager go cuckoo.
So we were asked to come up with a Pick Six of sorts for the final day. While we apologize for the brevity of the column today, it is time to try and win a fantasy league. Remember tomorrow is Easter so either you will be happy to take home your chocolate bunny or want to blast it away with a tommy gun. First, we go with the goalies who likely will be rested Saturday.
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GOALIE SNOOZE BAR:
- Tim Thomas (Boston) — still vacationing
- Cam Ward (Carolina) — getting “rested” (Florida fans?)
- Kari Lehtonen (Dallas) — Texas size early nap.
- Semyon Varlamov (Colorado) — taking it easy…….
- Ryan Miller (Buffalo) — may not be playing…….
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PICK SIX:
Corey Crawford, G, Chicago Blackhawks — WATCH/BENCH
Crawford has just had one of those seasons for the Blackhawks and yet Chicago finds itself in pretty much having to ride him out. The guy named “crawsome” has to be one to be watched to see how he not only handles the pressure today but how he fares come Round 1 for Chicago in those playoff pools. The reason why we say to bench and watch him today is that there are better options out there as Chicago travels to Detroit. Basically it is a nice way of saying let’s see how he handles this season ender.
Steve MacIntyre, LW, Pittsburgh Penguins — ADD/START
This one does sound really crazy but the Penguins brought up the guy for a reason and we call that “muscle”. Simply the guy is a career minor leaguer with 89 games of NHL experience at the age of 31. Therefore he must do something else and that something else is use his fists and size as intimidation. With the current climate of the Pittsburgh Penguins-Philadelphia Flyers rivalry, I am guessing this was a needed addition. MacIntyre is likely to rack up a few penalty minutes today so this is only a one category pickup if you make that gamble.
Jake Gardiner, D, Toronto Maple Leafs — ADD/START
There are quite a few people who still do not know about Gardiner as a fantasy entity. Yes there are times where his defense makes you scream but when you look at 30 points for a rookie, it is still 30 points in one of the craziest hockey environment to play in. With nine points in his last 11 games, the 21 year old is plantng the seed in many experts’ heads that next year is likely to be even better. Yes Toronto has fared not all that good against Montreal but Gardiner is a solid play tonight in a sea of fantasy hockey players worrying about the “rested”.
Al Montoya and Steve Mason, G, (NYI/CBJ) — BENCH
Why would you start either one of these two when better options are out there anyway? Exactly. The Islanders are almost playing a run and gun style at times now. It was evident against Winnipeg that they were just leaving a “shot” goalie out to dry. The Blue Jackets have Mason in net because of injury and not because of his play. It is a recipe set up for fantasy disaster and though one of these guys will win, they just are not worth the headache. This will not be textbook goaltending no matter the score and both teams do have a little pop offensively. Stay away!
Niklas Backstrom, G, Minnesota Wild — START
Why not at this point right? Minnesota is starting to get it together AFTER falling out of the playoff race naturally. Maybe the pressure of their collapse was finally replaced by the “we have nothing to lose” argument. People often forget that Backstrom, when healthy is a .920+ save percentage guy and his even strength save percentage is even higher. Phoenix does have to have this game in order to clinch the division but Minnesota wants to close out its season on a high note in “the state of hockey”. Either way with two fairly low scoring teams, Backstrom is a more prudent start than most on this last day of the season.
Nicklas Backstrom, C, Washington Capitals — WATCH
Playoff poolies should watch here as most desperate fantasy hockey players must play him regardless. Backstrom seems due for a breakout game but people have to remember that he is a few games into his comeback after missing about a half a season with a concussion. He only has two shots on goal in three games so far but Backstrom does seem to be getting in playing shape. Tonight could be the night he gets his first point in his comeback as Madison Square Garden is a big stage and Backstrom tends to thrive there. Everyone remembers the Caps-Rangers postseason matchups and one reason is how well Backstrom played in Gotham.
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It is hard to believe that the season is just about over. This is really it. Later in the week, we will look at some of the playoff pools and in the meantime will continue our season enders. Good luck fantasy fans and again thanks for reading.
