By Paul Bruno
December 30, 2008 12:02pm CST

Some very suspect goalie performances dot the Conference landscape as we get ready to close out 2008. True contenders will have to get their creases in order in the second half of the season. This week we cover that theme in the East as well as the other key developments.

Atlanta – The Thrashers added to a dismal record by dropping three of four games last week. Slava Kozlov turned into the main playmaker with seven assists out the 11 goals scored by Atlanta. Kari Lehtonen needs to be better in goal. Todd White has emerged as a top shooter of late with three goals and two assists in his last five games. The Thrashers can ill afford the loss of defender Garnett Exelby, but will be without their physical rearguard for a couple of weeks due to a hairline fracture of his right ankle.

Boston – The high-flying Bruins really tightened the screws defensively, as they allowed a total of three goals while winning three games last week. Manny Fernandez and Tim Thomas sport almost identical marks right around 2.00 goals against and over .930 save percentages to form perhaps the league's best goalie tandem. Blake Wheeler, a big winger signed out of the Phoenix system, has really settled in nicely and has produced four goals and an assist in his last four games. Michael Ryder is another winger, who is producing beyond expectations, with four more goals in his last six games (he has 14 on the year to date).

Buffalo – The Sabres battled their way through three tight gains to earn a 1-1-1 split for the week. While Clarke McArthur continued a surprising hot scoring streak of four goals and three assists in his last six appearances, the Sabres had to be heartened by the reappearance of an energetic Maxim Afinogenov, who tallied a goal and an assist to snap a six-game scoreless streak and finally emerge from coach Lindy Ruff’s doghouse. The Sabres’ offense could get a boost, as Paul Gaustad is expected to return to action after a five-game absence with an upper body injury.

Carolina – After a brief surge with the return of coach Paul Maurice, the ‘Canes stumbled last week, giving up giving up 11 goals in losing two of three last week. They can at least be pleased with the return of Eric Staal’s scoring touch, as a hat trick brought his season total up to a team-high 17 for the year. Rod Brind’Amour continues a disturbing trend as the guy in the wrong place at the wrong time with another (-3) week to give him a league-worst (-26) rating. Defenseman Joe Corvo has revved up the offensive side of his game with six points in seven games

Florida – The Panthers followed up an impressive 3-0 win against Nashville with a pair of losses to cross state rival Tampa (one in OT) last week. Bryan McCabe has been better than advertised of late, scoring another goal and assist last week and building a team-leading (+10) rating. David Booth looks like he is ready to fire on all cylinders as he broke out with a three-point effort against the Lightning on the weekend. The goaltending seems to be in a state of turmoil, as both Tomas Vokoun and Craig Anderson have been inconsistent in the last two weeks.
Montreal – Andrei Kostitsyn beat the Pens 3-2 on Saturday with his first career hat trick. Those tallies snapped a personal six-game scoreless stretch. Captain Saku Koivu tested his injured ankle at practice last week, but it failed miserably and he will miss at least another two weeks as a result. Robert Lang, with 11 markers, is the surprising team leader in goal scoring as the Habs approach the New Year A string of five points in as many games has propelled Alex Kovalev into the team scoring lead with 27 points in 34 games.
New Jersey – Scott Clemmensen has lowered his goals against to a sparkling 2.15, which is marginally better than the injured superstar Martin Brodeur, which is all you need to know about the state of the Devils’ defensive game. The Devils hope to offset the short-term loss of stalwart defender Colin White with the return of another veteran blueliner in Bryce Salvador. Offensively, the team struggled, being shut out twice and finally emerging from a team record scoreless drought of over 159 minutes, as they were led by Travis Zajac (a goal and two assists) and Patrik Elias (a goal and an assist) in a key win over the Rangers.

NY Islanders – The season of frustration got a brief boost from the return of Rick DiPietro, who starred in a slump-busting win over the Leafs, only to return to the injury list with a groin injury, which will again sideline him indefinitely. They surrendered a pedestrian 12 goals against in three losses without him last week. Bill Guerin scored twice against the Leafs to become the eighth US-born 400 goal scorer in NHL history. Kyle Okposo totaled three points in two games to close out the week as he looked more comfortable in his second week back from injury.
NY Rangers – The Rangers continued their recent penchant for allowing goals against, as they gave up 13 goals over three games last week. Henrik Lundqvist has seen his goals against average rise to 2.63, which is higher than it has been in his career. On the flip side, they got scoring from rare sources, as Petr Prucha (two goals inn two games) and Ryan Callahan (three goals in three games). Daniel Girardi has lost his offensive touch, as he has been limited to only one point over his last 13 games.
Ottawa – The Sens began a long road trip with three lopsided losses to further disappoint their fans. Alex Auld has really hit a wall in giving up five goals in each of his last four starts. Martin Gerber allowed three against the Canucks, but the Sens were blanked in that contest. Daniel Alfredsson has been put on Mike Fisher’s line to see if they can ignite their second line pivot, who has only three goals in 30 games this year. Filip Kuba, the top offensive blueliner in Ottawa, missed all three games with a groin injury that may keep him out this week, too.
Philadelphia – After a home win against Ottawa, the Flyers scored only one goal in losing consecutive road games. Better news came from the practice ice, where Daniel Briere is once again close to a return. He may try to play later this week. Kimmo Timmonen, the Flyers’ lynchpin on defense, will miss a week with chipped bone in his right ankle. Matt Carle has three points and a (+6) rating over his last four games. He will likely earn more special team duty in Timmonen’s absence.

Pittsburgh – The Pens scored only seven goals in four games, but at least were able to still win twice last week. Marc Andre Fleury got all four starts in goal and excelled in stopping 112 of 12 shots on goal. Evgeni Malkin outscored teammate Sidney Crosby by a point on the week (four to three) and now leads his teammate by a 10-point margin. Matt Cooke has played a key physical role all year but has been on a season-long five game scoreless streak that impacts his fantasy value at this time.

Tampa Bay – The Lightning swept their three games to escape the division cellar last week. The best part of this story is that the big two, Vinny Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis were blanked in two of the wins. That means lesser lights stepped up. Steve Eminger has assumed the top offensive post on defense, a role he solidified with a three-point game against the Panthers. Ryan Malone led the attack for Tampa with five points as he worked well with the dynamic duo.

Toronto – The Leafs lost three of four in unimpressive fashion last week, which was characterized by a departure from the fairly competitive style of play earlier in the year. Justin Pogge won his NHL debut, but Vesa Toskala was not too good in losing the other three games, surrendering 14 goals on only 86 shots. That sets up a possible new goalie controversy in Toronto. Up front, Matt Stajan was injured by an on off-ice practice incident, causing blurred vision and expected to sideline him for a week. Niklas Hagman has three goals in five games since his return from injury.
Washington – The Caps swept their three starts last week. Depth scorers stepped up as Brooks Laich has now chipped in four goals in six games. Viktor Kozlov has four goals and two assists in his last six games. Another goaltending quandary sees Brent Johnson battling a hip injury. He is likely going to need a few days to recover (at least). This opens the door for Jose Theodore to stake another claim on the top goalie spot. Johnson’s numbers (2.52 goals against average and a .916 save percentage are significantly better than those of Theodore (3.14 and .886, respectively).