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| Daniel Sedin had an assist on Friday night to extend his point streak to three games (four points). Not all is going well with Sedin however as he has just one goal in his last 15 games during which time he has only seven points as his great season has severely slowed over the past month. |
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| Sami Salo notched a point in the third straight game for the Canucks on Friday night, and he now has four points in the last three games. During this mini streak, two of the points are on the power-play and one is on the penalty kill as Salo is making the most of his points. |
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| Pavol Demitra had two assists and was a +2 on Friday night for the Wild. Over the last seven games Demitra has struggled to just three points as he has found himself skating on and off with Marian Gaborik. |
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| Niklas Backstrom continued his fantastic run by stopping 25 of 26 shots on Friday night to help defeat the Canucks 2-1. Backstrom is now 29-13-8 on the year and over the past seven games he has allowed only 12 goals despite just a 3-0-4 record for the Wild. |
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| Jim Slater had his best game of the season with two goals, his fifth and sixth of the year for the Thrashers. If you have Slater on your roster, you had better be related since he has only six goals, 11 points and is a (-10) on the year. |
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| Kari Lehtonen allowed four goals on Friday night, the third time in four games that he has been torched for that many. Lehtonen has now lost three straight games to fall to 14-22-5 on the year as the Thrashers continue to slowly melt away. |
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| Nicklas Backstrom entered Friday with 12 goals on the year, but he left it with 14 after scoring two goals in the Caps victory over the Thrashers. Backstrom now has 64 points in 76 games on the year as he continues to vie for the NHL scoring lead amongst rookies. |
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| Alexander Ovechkin scored two goals, dished out two assists, was a +4 and had nine shots on Friday night as he became the first player in 12 years to score 60 goals in a season. Ovechkin has now scored 23 third period goals, which is more than any other Cap has all season (Alexander Semin, 22). Just give Ovechkin the MVP right now as he is simply the most amazing talent currently on skates. |
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| Thomas Vanek continues to give goalies absolute fits as he scored yet another goal on Friday night for the Sabres. Vanek scored only 13 goals in his first 48 games before going on a complete tear with 19 goals in his last 27 games to reach 30-goals for the second straight season (he has 32). |
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| Jason Blake scored a goal and added an assist on Friday night as did Antron Stralman and Matt Stajan for the Leafs. Blake has only 14 goals on the year, this after scoring 40 last season and at least 22 in 4-straight seasons, in a disappointing first year with the Leafs. Blake has picked up his play of late however with 17 points in his last 24 games. |
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| Vesa Toskala was excellent on Friday night as he stopped 35 of 36 shots thrown his way in the Leafs 4-1 victory over the Sabres. Toskala improved to 31-22-6 overall including 14-8-2 since the all-star break as he has finally solidified the Leafs fortunes in net. |
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| Daniel Briere scored two goals on Friday night and was named the first star in the Flyers 4-3 shootout victory over the Rangers. Briere has 28 goals and 65 points on the year, but his scoring pace has dwindled since the all-star break with just 17 points in 26 games. |
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| Christian Backman had three assists on Friday night in the Rangers loss to the Flyers. Backman entered the game with just nine assists on the year, and before tonight he had only one point in 10 games since coming to the Rangers. Given the fact that he now has 68 points in 239 career games, don't look for the offensive fireworks to continue from this Swedish blueliner. |
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| Jaromir Jagr had a goal and an assist on Friday night to tie Phil Esposito for ninth place all-time with 1590 points. Jagr still has had a disappointing season with just 19 goals and 62 points and he has only three points in his last five games. |
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| Tim Connolly's season is over after it was announced that he would have season ending hip surgery, this according to NHL.com. The hip injury has bothered the oft-injured scoring star for almost three months, and this injury certainly won't help bolster the Sabres fading playoff hopes. Connolly had 40 points in 48 games this season a year after he was limited to just two games due to injury. Drop him immediately and look for scoring elsewhere down the stretch. |
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| Wade Dubielewicz, who will have to shoulder the load the rest of the way for the Isles with Rick DiPietro out due to hip surgery, has impressed everyone on the Island, this according to Newsday. "If I play well down the stretch here, maybe Ricky doesn't have to play 70 games next year," Dubielewicz said. "The kid's a machine." Dubielewicz is only 1-4 in his last five starts, but a 2.19 GAA and .920 GAA show that the loses aren't his fault. If you are desperate in net, Wade is a great guy to turn to at this point of the season. |
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| Blair Betts will miss anywhere from 2-3 weeks after undergoing surgery on his foot, this according to NHL.com. The Rangers will likely either turn to grinder Ryan Hollweg or former offensive weapon Petr Prucha to fill the open lineup spot. |
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| Out since the 10th game of the season with a concussion, Patrice Bergeron had a good day on Friday as he continued to recover to the point that he is practicing with his mates and hopes to join them on their upcoming road trip this weekend this according to NHL.com. Don't go overboard here as the team will be very cautious with Bergeron. The team is still holding out hope of his return for the playoffs, but if he experiences any setbacks they would almost certainly hold him back until next season. |
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| Richard Zednik returned to the ice today for the first time since having his throat cut by a skate, this according to the AP. Zednik is out for the rest of the season, but there is some small hope that he could return if the Panthers were able to make the playoffs. Zednik had only 15 goals and 26 points before going down, so even if he does return if the Panthers somehow make the playoffs, poolies should look for other options. |
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| Chris Neil practiced with the team Friday and will be in the lineup Saturday, according to TSN.ca. Neil has missed the last 13 games with a knee injury. If you're in need of penalty minutes, he's worth a play. |
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| Mats Sundin skated for about 30 minutes before Friday's practice, according to TSN.ca. Although he won't play in tonight's contest and is doubtful for Saturday, he said his groin injury is getting better. We could see the future Hall of Famer back in the lineup next week. |
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| Jason Spezza sat out Friday's practice because of "general soreness," according to TSN.ca. Don't expect "general soreness" to keep Spezza out of the lineup tomorrow night. |
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| Philippe Boucher practiced Thursday for the first time since March 5, saying he felt more like a normal player again. The defenseman has been out with a separated shoulder but hopes to return by the end of the month, according to the Dallas Morning News. Boucher was having a disappointing year before the injury, but his status is still worth tracking closely. |
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| Sergei Zubov skated Thursday for the first time since January 17 and said it went better than expected, according to the Dallas Morning News. The Stars are confident that Zubov will return from his foot surgery before the end of the regular season, perhaps by the end of the month. |
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| Dan Cleary could be back in the lineup Saturday after missing the last 18 games with a broken jaw, according to the Detroit News. The forward will be fitted for a protective mouthguard and will test it at Saturday's morning skate. It seems likely that Cleary will be good to go next Tuesday if he's not ready this weekend. |
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| Kim Johnsson will move onto the power-play unit with the injury to Kurtis Foster, coach Jacques Lemaire said in the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Johnsson used to be a nice fantasy defenseman but has faded in recent years. He could be worth an add with this latest news. |
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| Hannu Toivonen will play often for the Blues down the stretch, as the team determines what his future will be with the organization going forward, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Manny Legace had played 28 straight games before Toivonen started last week. Toivonen has been horrible this year, posting a 3.49 GAA and .874 save percentage. He's not worth a roster spot on your fantasy team even with more playing time. |
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| Erik Christensen won't skate for the next 7-10 days because of a sprained MCL and will likely miss the rest of the season. "I think with the way our season is coming here, he's probably not going to play the rest of the year," coach Don Waddell said in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I think what's important is he's seen the opportunity here." It's safe to go ahead and cut Christensen loose. |
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| The Leafs recalled Staffan Kronvall from the minors Thursday. He has been dealing with a knee injury and is worthless as a fantasy option. |
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| Sidney Crosby skated Thursday for the first time in a week, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Sid is expected to miss the next two games with his troublesome ankle, but he hopes to play next week. |
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| Paul Ranger will have an MRI this weekend on his shoulder to determine if he needs to have surgery, according to the St. Petersburg Times. Even if he doesn't have to get cut open, he's likely done for the year. "Of course I'm disappointed," Ranger said. "I still want to play. I know we're out of the playoffs, but there's still some games left to bond with the guys and play with the guys and play to win. As much as we're out of the playoffs, you still want to prepare for next year." The defenseman broke out with 10 goals this year, so he'll be missed in fantasy circles. |
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| Jeff Halpern had to leave Thursday's game in the first period with an abdominal strain, according to the St. Petersburg Times. Consider him day-to-day for now, but we'll update you on his condition when more is known. |
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| Peter Forsberg sat out Thursday's game with a groin injury, according to the Denver Post. He had just returned to the lineup Monday after missing four games with the ailment. It's not clear if he'll be able to suit up tomorrow. We'll keep you posted. |
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| Patrik Elias will be out of the lineup tonight and tomorrow because of the flu, according to the NY Post. The forward should be good to go next Tuesday. |
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| Matt Lashoff was reassigned to the minor leagues on Thursday, this according to the Boston Herald. The return of Boston captain Zdeno Chara was the direct result of sending Lashoff down. In 14 games this season the defenseman had one goal and three total points. |
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| Mike Komisarek was lost in the first period of Thursday nights game with what the team is calling a lower body injury, this according to the Boston Herald. The Canadiens' defenseman is considered day-to-day. |
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