If Monday Night felt like a snoozer to the fantasy hockey and hockey fan, that is because it was. Yes the Washington-Tampa Bay game picked up late but the LA-Edmonton game was more or less an excuse for sleepytime tea. On the bright side, it was very easy to find a Fantasy POTN and he even made the top play on Sportscenter. Please note how rare this is for a hockey moment to be that high on their lists.
For fantasy purposes, like we said last night was just a bore. At any rate, let’s trot out that Fantasy POTN and hope for some better performances tonight.
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FANTASY POTN:
Steven Stamkos, C, Tampa Bay Lightning — The plan was to do nothing for the first 58 minutes and change, then swoop in to save fantasy owners from themselves. Yes he had an assist but when Stamkos scored with 63 seconds left and then again with just a few seconds, the joy was paramount in fantasy owners’ faces everywhere. His three point night made the rest of the week more interesting for owners of Capitals players and maybe less so for Florida players. At the very least Buffalo players also have an opportunity to ride the wave as well. Either way, Stamkos stood out on a night where there was not much on the plate.
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QUICKSILVER?
Jonathan Quick, G, Los Angeles Kings — Sometimes it is harder to save less and that is what Quick experiences from time to time as a member of the Kings. The problem also compounds itself when the Kings fire everything at the kitchen sink and come up empty for the first 40 minutes or more. While there are long stretches where Quick could pitch an umbrella on the beach, there are also times where breakdowns come in waves. In the end, he made 19 saves and a few of the elite variety in a 2-0 shutout for his tenth blanking of the season. He has 35 wins, a 1.89 GAA, and ten bagels. What more can you ask for from the guy other than a few goals of support from his team? Quick has put the Fantasy Vezina and maybe Vezina Awards into a bit of a holding pattern.
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SCHEDULE TIME:
Tuesday, April 3, 2012 |
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| Teams | Notes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toronto | at | Buffalo | 7:00 PM | Gameday | ||
| NY Islanders | at | New Jersey | 7:00 PM | Gameday | ||
| NY Rangers | at | Philadelphia | 7:00 PM | Gameday | ||
| Pittsburgh | at | Boston | 7:30 PM | Gameday | ||
| Carolina | at | Ottawa | 7:30 PM | Gameday | ||
| Winnipeg | at | Florida | 7:30 PM | Gameday | ||
| Minnesota | at | Nashville | 8:00 PM | Gameday | ||
| San Jose | at | Dallas | 8:30 PM | Gameday | ||
| Anaheim | at | Vancouver | 10:00 PM | Gameday | ||
| Columbus | at | Phoenix | 10:00 PM | Gameday | ||
This is going to be a fun night with ten games and some intense rivalries abound. The matchups are for the most part very good and the results of the first busy night of the week will give us a barometer of how the rest of the week could go. We highly recommend reading the season ender of the Pick Six by Ian Gooding. It is far from his last post of the season on KK but a reflection more than anything else. Presented to you below is our version of a Pick Six but we’ll call it a Six Pack for the sake that in some cases, you made need one after this.
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SIX PACK:
David Clarkson — RW — New Jersey Devils: WATCH
Clarkson may miss tonight’s game against the New York Islanders with some “body soreness” and though it appears to be nothing major, it would be a good idea to keep an eye on it. Needless to say we understand it is hard to find a high PIMS and high goals guy on the waiver wire so it is best not to panic and just see if he can go. Expect Ilya Kovalchuk to be double shifted on the third line a bit more than usual tonight if Clarkson cannot play.
Johan Hedberg — G — New Jersey Devils: Start
Hedberg is 4-0-1 in his last 5 starts and has two straight shutouts. He has been a constant even when the Devils have been inconsistent. His .917 save percentage and 2.27 GAA and a 16-7-2 record. Add in the four shutouts and it just seems the Devils tighten it up more with Hedberg in net. They play the Islanders tonight and that is a team Hedberg has fared well against. The Isles will be a tricky test but Hedberg is usually up for the task.
Ilya Bryzgalov — G — Philadelphia Flyers: Watch
Bryzgalov will start tonight against the New York Rangers tonight after coming back from a chipped bone in his foot. Now I will never claim myself to be a doctor but a little more rest may have done Bryzgalov some good. That being said, Ilya Bryzgalov was the NHL Player Of The Month with a sparkling GAA and save percentage along with the 10-2-1 record. Philadelphia has not beaten the Rangers all year. Maybe Laviolette is just rolling the dice here. Watch carefully.
Sergei Gonchar — D — Ottawa Senators — BENCH
Gonchar will be out tonight with a lower body injury. Depending on things, Ottawa may just be locked into the seventh seed by the end of the night which begs the question. Who will be rested and who will play? The defenseman is listed as day to day right now but at his age, everything is a little cause for worry. It may be best to seek other options out if at all possible.
Tim Thomas — G — Boston Bruins — BENCH
Thomas is not expected to play tonight against the Pittsburgh Penguins as the Boston “resting plan” has been put into place. It will be interesting to see when he does start this week (Saturday seems likely). Either way, this can be the problem in the last week trying to determine who plays, rests, or worse rests during the game a bit. We just know that Marty Turco is likely to play tonight so maybe you do see Thomas in a relief role? Bench him regardless.
Marcus Foligno — W — Buffalo Sabres — Add/Start
This is not all that gutsy of a call but Foligno has been a point a game guy since being called up and that combo with Drew Stafford and Tyler Ennis has been just as constant. It was a line Toronto had a tough time containing the other night and with a heavy Marlies influence in the Toronto lineup, Foligno could flourish again. The line will play out the string and has to because Buffalo has two lines of scoring and a whole lot of defensive issues. It does not all rest on Ryan Miller.
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Good luck everyone tonight and as always we will have a special edition of Weekly Slapshot Meets The Program at 9pm ET, an hour of fantasy hockey power. Thanks again for reading.
