A quarter of the NHL season is already done, and this week, we tackle the injury bug, as several teams are dealing with goalie health issues.
Toronto Maple Leafs- James Reimer, who has played very well for the Leafs injured his right knee in Monday nights win over the Flyers and will miss a week. The good news is that the Leafs only have three more games in the next seven days- against the Hurricanes, Senators and Panthers. Safe to say backup Ben Scrivens will start at least the next two. He has 32 saves in 36 minutes of action Monday, and could be a decent play this week considering their schedule.
Calgary Flames- Miikka Kiprusoff will miss two more weeks with a knee sprain, according to Flames GM Jay Feaster. Leland Irving has been the start in his absence, going 1-1-1 in three games. He was great in one game, awful in another and mediocre in another. But the Flames have seven games in the next two weeks which means backup Joey MacDonald, who was acquired Monday, will probably see some starts as well. MacDonald wasn’t bad last year (8-5-1, 2.16GAA, .912SV%), so this situation is worth monitoring in the next few days because if one plays well, they could even take some starts once Kiprusoff returns.
Minnesota Wild- Backup Josh Harding, who suffers from multiple sclerosis, said his medicine has him feeling a little “off”. It shows in his play, as Harding has three starts this year. The first was a shutout, but then he allowed five goals in a game before allowing two on four shots in less than seven minutes and getting pulled. The Wild recalled Darcy Kuemper to backup Niklas Backstrom, but at this point, it seems like Backstrom will still play majority of the games between the pipes for the Wild.
Anaheim Ducks- Jonas Hiller is day-to-day with a lower body injury, but it’s safe to say the Ducks aren’t missing him that much. He was struggling before the injury (3-2-1, 3.69GAA, .872SV%), and rookie Viktor Fasth-who I mentioned to pick up last week- is 6-0 with a 1.74 goals against average and a .933 save percentage. He is not even owned in 60% of Yahoo leagues. Yes, he will lose eventually, but in fantasy hockey, it’s all about who can help you right now, and this guy can.
