Tuesday was a very odd night in the NHL.  It is safe to say fantasy owners saw a little of everything and maybe some of what they did not want to see.  That is just how the night went.  There was the good, bad, and ugly all rolled into one.  I am supposing we should just start off with something really good first, shall we?  Sure.

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Fantasy POTN:

Viktor Stalberg, LW, Chicago Blackhawks — Now here is a guy who typically gets 12-14 minutes a night on the ice tops and yet has 25 points in 40 games this year.  This includes a six game stretch where he was a brutal -9.  All that was forgiven last night as Stalberg notched a hat trick on four shots, including the game winner in a 5-2 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets.  Now he is not the type of player that gets power play ice time but when he is on the ice, look out, he could net you a point.  In deep leagues, he is more than worth the gamble.

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Injury Brigade:

Brian Gionta, RW, Montreal Canadiens — Gionta went out with an injury in the third period last night against St. Louis and literally was flinging anything and everything in frustration.  He seemed to hurt his arm and shoulder again after a collision with the boards that appeared relatively harmless.  Gionta will be reevauluated later today.

Zach Bogosian, D, Winnipeg Jets — It seemed Bogosian was on his way to a whale of a night with two points early and then the injury bug hit and fast.  He will be checked out today to see if he will miss any time.  Winnipeg and fantasy hockey fans will hold their breath a bit as the defenseman was really starting to come into his own with his two way game.

Paul Martin, D, Pittsburgh Penguins — Martin was a relatively late scratch with the flu.  Isn’t that nice to know that the up and down temperatures this Winter have driven so many hockey players to the sick bey?  The answer is resoundingly no.  Martin is questionable for tonight’s game against Washington as well.  Keep an eye out.

Erik Karlsson, D, Ottawa Senators — Karlsson is day to day with an upper body injury.  Ottawa does not believe it to be very serious but he was out Tuesday and is questionable for the rest of the week.  Why risk the player to further injury down the road seems to be the plan.  Check daily for further updates.

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SCHEDULE TIME:

Last night had all this action and tonight seems to just feel like a huge fantasy letdown.  Just think of all the goals, the shutouts, and the craziness.  Think about this for a second.  Curtis Glencross had a goal and three assists against New Jersey.  Milan Michalek tallied twice for Ottawa as he seems fully back from his concussion.  Jaroslav Halak pitches a shutout in his former stomping grounds of Montreal.  Even the immortal Saku Koivu scored a hat trick against the Dallas Stars.  It was that kind of fantasy night but tonight figures not to be as much of one.  Let’s exhale a bit.

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KEEP AN EYE ON:

New Jersey Goaltending — Can these guys keep it together?  The duo of Martin Brodeur and Johan Hedberg were awful last night and that is being kind.  Then again the entire team failed to show up in the first period and then came out in a big way for the last 40 but the goaltending was still bad to say the least.  It seems like a 50-50 proposition.  You either get the goaltending or you do not but tonight whomever plays in net is going to have to stop some shots early to stop the bleeding.  Proceed at your own risk fantasy fans.

Battle for 8th? — This sounded crazy at the start of the season but the Caps and Penguins are essentially battling for 8th in the East tonight.  Sure it is early but some disappointing fantasy performances and injuries galore have hurt both teams this year (more the Penguins who have double digits on the injury counter).  Evgeni Malkin Vs. Alex Ovechkin is the marquis attraction but the goaltenders will have to be just as much in the way of scene stealers if they expect to win.  That is how far these two teams have fallen and fantasy wise too.

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Good luck fantasy hockey fans and we will try to keep everyone updated all night even though yes it is a slow night.  Thanks again.

Apparently in Winnipeg there are certain people, you do not go after.  Florida’s Jack Skille found that out the hard way last night as after a clean hit, he had to fight Andrew Ladd and Dustin Byfuglien.  It was probably not on his to do list but give Skille credit, he weathered the storm.  Ultimately Winnipeg would win the game 4-3 in a shootout but we can tell you that Skille earned a ton of respect and maybe now he can start “playing his game” in the NHL.  Owners of him in fantasy leagues if there any can only hope.

The schedule was a bit light on Halloween and it is tonight as well.  There were three games last night and yes there are only five tonight.  What occurred last night was well just bizarre in many ways which befits the end of October ladies and gentlemen.  So let us look back quickly.

A LOOK BACK…….

Colin White, D, San Jose Sharks — If he is on here then you know it is something bad.  San Jose fought back from a 2-0 deficit last night only to see White almost singlehandedly commit lapse after lapse it seemed.  Players have nights like this every so often but the past few seasons it has happened a bit too often for Colin White.  The result was an ugly -3 in a bad 5-2 home loss.  No wonder why Joe Thornton called the Rangers “soft” because they really did get quite a bit of help in their victory.  The delay of game was the icing on the cake and needless to say the San Jose coaching staff was not too amused after the game either.

Ryan Callahan, F, New York Rangers — The Captain played like he earned that C on his jersey last night with a two goal, one assist effort that sent the Garden crowd into a frenzy.  For fantasy owners, he also netted the game winner which obviously helps immensely.  Callahan has the talent to be a 55-60 point guy but he has to play like it every night for the Rangers to enjoy scoring balance.  The problem is the Avery circus may be in town soon and that might curtain things yet again.

Patrick Kane, F, Chicago Blackhawks — In a wild game last night that saw nine goals on only 63 shots but a ton of scoring chances, Kane rose up and hit it hard with a three point night (2 goals and an assist).  Chicago just seems to play this type of game almost nightly and although these one goal games are great character builders, they can wear down the players a bit.  Not everyone is used to playing nail biters like this all the time.  Going forward, it will be interesting to see how guys like Kane and Toews keep responding given the fantasy stress.

SCHEDULE TIME:

The schedule is kind of light but at least there are some fun battles on the horizon like Ottawa going for its 7th W in a row against Boston.  Something tells me a couple Boston players might finally break out tonight because a good Northeast Division battle should reignite the flames some.  Now quickly let’s put out an APB for the following…..

We have an APB OUT for……..

David Krejci, F, Boston Bruins — ONLY one point this fantasy season as Krejci continues to struggle has Boston fans very worried.  Ottawa defensively is not really all that good to be kind and Craig Anderson is really hanging on by a thread here.  The Sens are streaky and they are one bad game from going in the other direction.  Boston has a real chance and particularly Krejci to have a big night and a much needed one for everyone that owns him still.  People have dropped him in some leagues actually.  “Stanley Cup Hangover” indeed.

Roberto Luongo, G, Vancouver — The numbers in October were ugly for the goalie but playing Calgary may just be what the goalie needs.  Calgary tends not to score all that much and that is a perfect recipe or is it?  Remember the New York Rangers this year and that 4-0 defeat for example.  Clearly the Sedins have to click and the second line too because Luongo needs to play with a lead to win.  Maybe an early goal will help knock his GAA down.  You never know.

Henrik Zetterberg, F, Detroit Red Wings — Zetterberg had a rather forgetful month but November is when he usually starts to heat it up.  Minnesota put the clamps down on him and the Red Wings in their last meeting (1-0) but this game seems ripe for a Detroit breakout.  This has been their M.O. when it comes to these little mini slumps in the past.  Simply he is a must start tonight even in a close low scoring game but then again it may not be.  Start him anyway!

We will be live tweeting as always and the WEEKLY SLAPSHOT is on at 9:30pm ET on BTR for all of your rapid fire fantasy needs.