NHL BLOGNOTES [Mar-06]: Line Combos
Fantasy Insider (posted 3.30.06)
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by Gus Katsaros
Games remaining are entering the single digits. At this critical stage of the season, the main focus is to win the pool. Match-ups will be suggestive in various form of temptation. Don't be fooled. Mentioned below in 'Plug-In Trap' is a killer for your chances at success.
HOT
Teemu Selanne (Ana): Hidden deep in the Southwest, invigorated by the California sun, the "Finnish Flash" has been on a tear. A goal and assist against the Avalanche in a 4-3 loss to break a six game win streak, gives him 14 points (5-9) in six games. Selanne is riding point streak when the Ducks look to deliver a strong finish and a berth in the playoffs.
Jason Arnott (Ana): Another player that is having a season that is going under the radar is Arnott. One goal shy of a career high, he has eight points (4-4) in seven games. He is nearly as proficient on the road (34 13-18-31) as at home (36 14-22-36). Dallas plays seven of the last eleven games on the road and will lean heavy on him.
Alexander Frolov (LA): Returned Saturday after missing 10 games with a shoulder injury, to record two quick goals and an assist against the Nashville Predators. LA has important road games coming up against the Flames and Oilers. They then have the Stars and Canucks at home. Frolov will be counted on to support the offense in the Kings push for the playoffs.
Keep an Eye On
Colby Armstrong (Pit): One benefactor of the youth movement and the departure of Mark Recchi is Armstrong. Playing alongside phenom Sidney Crosby, he has grown accustomed to the traffic and attention afforded a young superstar. The Pens' season is quickly winding down, but he may be a player to monitor for next season. If he is playing with Crosby and performing as he is, he may be a low range steal in keeper leagues.
Honorable Mention
Brian Rolston (Min): Rolston has been everything to the Minnesota Wild this season. He scored the game-winning goal (fourth goal in as many games) against Edmonton, tying his career high with 31. He broke Minnesota's season points record with 74 points (31-43) and counting. Impressive numbers aside, he augments something to the Wild that isn't counted on the stats sheet. Expect consistent numbers to end the season.
Caution
Marian Gaborik (Min): It might not be while there is a mathematical chance at a playoff spot, but Lemaire may not allow the free wheeling Gaborik loose in the last few games. Gaborik has been playing with an air of selfishness lately that could land him in the Lemaire's doghouse. Watching him skating past waiting forwards at the opposition blueline, trying to do too much alone, looks quite selfish. On the other hand, there aren't many that can keep up with his speed. As stated the way he's been performing could land him in trouble with the coach, but it could also be a wake-up call to management to upgrade the forwards.
Cold
Saku Koivu (Mtl): Hasn't scored a goal since January 28th, a span of 23 games, however he's racked up six assists (0-6-6) in four games at this crucial juncture. He is producing assists and is even in plus/minus. Fortunately for Montreal, Michael Ryder has been doing his part with three goals in the last two games, as has Alexei Kovalev, scoring his 19th and 20th goals of the season.
Jarome Iginla (Cgy): He made such second half noise in 2003/04, the wave propelled the Flames to within a video review of the Stanley Cup. This season, he began in typical Iginla form, slow, but steady. He has eight points in the last eight games, with a –3, while Calgary went 3-4-1 in that stretch. A point a game is a decent expectation from Iginla, as the playoff sprint makes the remaining games tighter.
The Flames goals for/against differential (187-181) is the lowest among playoff contending teams. While sporting an average road record (17-15-2-3) they only play four of their remaining eleven games on the road.
Mark Recchi (Car): Probably enjoyed playing against the Hurricanes, rather than with them, taking nine games to record his first point, a goal against Tampa Bay. He scored his 20th goal of the season against Carolina on Feb 10th, and then proceeded to score his only hat trick on the Canes on Mar 4, five days before the deadline acquisition. Recchi seems off, a step behind a quick Carolina squad, perhaps a relic of bygone glory. Maybe it's the line juggling throughout the lineup, or perhaps the rumors of him being a dressing room hindrance have credibility. Whatever the reason, Recchi seems to be this year's Peter Bondra after the Senators. Along with Doug Weight where six of his seven points (15 3-4-7) came in three games, he was supposed to provide Carolina with added depth for a deep playoff run. Recchi, no doubt, adds some much needed playoff experience, but at the cost of an aging forward that may not have enough gas left in the tank to keep up with an emerging Carolina team.
Injuries
Jason Allison (Tor): Out for the season after breaking a bone in his hand in a fight with Montreal's Mathieu Dandenault.
Zdeno Chara (Ott): Missed the last two games after sustaining a hand injury in a fight with the Islanders Eric Cairns. There is no pressure in rushing a recovery so you may want to keep him on reserve
Jeremy Roenick (LA) – Early reports indicated he be out for the rest of the season, with a fractured ankle
Plug-In Trap
Early in the season, there was the temptation to take Brandon Bochenski because he lined up with Dany Heatley and Jason Spezza. Over the course of the season, this practice of inserting the plug-in third player to existing pairs of forwards may have been a worthy gamble. At this point in the season, it is not a gamble you would want to take. To end the season, go with the producers in your line-up. Stop looking at who is playing with Scott Gomez/Brian Gionta or Markus Naslund/Todd Bertuzzi. If the choice is a steady producer over a plug-in, opt for the producer. There is no room for gambling at this point in the season.
Nashville Line Combinations (posted 3.29.06)
Paul Kariya .. Mike Sillinger .. Jordin Tootoo
Martin Erat .. Greg Johnson .. Scott Hartnell
Jerred Smithson .. Yanic Perreault .. Steve Sullivan
Scottie Upshall .. Scott Nichol .. Scott Walker
Brendan Witt .. Kimmo Timonen
Danny Markov .. Mark Eaton
Dan Hamhuis .. Shea Weber
Columbus Line Combinations (posted 3.29.06)
Rick Nash .. Jan Hrdina .. David Vyborny
Jason Chimera .. Manny Malhotra .. Trevor Letowski
Alexandre Picard .. Sergei Fedorov .. Nikolai Zherdev
Jaroslav Balastik .. Mark Hartigan .. Jody Shelley
Ron Hainsey .. Adam Foote
Rostislav Klesla .. Radoslav Suchy
Aaron Johnson .. Duvie Westcott
Florida Line Combinations (posted 3.28.06)
Gary Roberts .. Jozef Stumpel .. Olli Jokinen
Martin Gelinas .. Joe Nieuwendyk .. Nathan Horton
Rostislav Olesz .. Chris Gratton .. Jon Sim
Gregory Campbell .. Serge Payer .. Juraj Kolnik
Joel Kwiatkowski .. Mike Van Ryn
Jay Bouwmeester .. Sean Hill
Steve Montador .. Ric Jackman
Boston Line Combinations (posted 3.28.06)
Marco Sturm .. Patrice Bergeron .. Brad Boyes
Brad Isbister .. Marty Reasoner .. Glen Murray
Josh Langfeld .. Wayne Primeau .. Travis Green
Dan Lacouture .. Yan Stastny .. Tom Fitzgerald
Mark Stuart .. Brad Stuart
David Tanabe .. Brian Leetch
Nick Boynton .. Hal Gill
Weekend Warriors (posted 3.27.06)
by Cory Kornelsen
It was another busy and exciting NHL weekend marked by some incredible performances. The Eastern Conference playoff race is starting to shape up while the Western Conference is wilder than ever with only five points separating the third to tenth spot as we examine another weekend that was.
The Columbus Blue Jackets may be out of the playoff picture but they certainly made some noise with wins over division leaders Calgary and Detroit. Rookie Pascal Leclaire and Marc Denis split the duties in goal and led the way combining for a .917 save percentage by turning away 66 of 72 shots.
With two wins over Toronto and Pittsburgh the Montreal Canadiens now find themselves tied for seventh place in the East. The Habs exploded offensively with 12 goals thanks in large part to the number one line of Saku Koivu (0-4-4), Michael Ryder (3-1-4) and rookie Chris Higgins (2-2-4) who combined for 12 points. Defenseman Andrei Markov also chipped in with four points against the Leafs and Radek Bonk finally awoke from his season long slumber picking up three goals in the two games.
Although they split the weekend with a win and a loss the New Jersey Devils have been struggling lately and are now in a battle for the final playoff spot in the East. One bright spot over the weekend however was center Scott Gomez who scored two goals and added two assists continuing the best year of his NHL career.
The Edmonton Oilers picked up a very valuable four points with wins over the Avalanche and the Canucks to sit seventh in the Western playoff race. Goalie Dwayne Roloson is finally starting to pay dividends stopping 54 of 59 shots and made amends in the shootout by stopping all three attempts in the victory over the Avalanche.
The Pittsburgh Penguins appear to be a loose bunch lately and have been playing .500 hockey over the last 14 games. They split the weekend with a win and a loss with rookie phenom Sidney Crosby leading the way with one goal and three assists to pick up his 80th point of the season.
The Chicago Black Hawks picked up two points the only way they know how – by losing. They lost the in a shootout against Dallas and then lost in OT versus the Sharks. In the midst of all the "losing" however, Radim Vrbata picked up five points and was a +4 and now has 11 points in his last 12 games.
The dynamic duo of Jumbo Joe Thornton and Jonathan Cheechoo continue to lead the red-hot Sharks who now find themselves tied for the final playoff spot in the West by picking up two wins and still have a couple of games in hand. Thornton had one goal and five assists and is one point back of Jaromir Jagr in the race for the Art Ross and Jonathan Cheechoo had two goals and two assists as he continues to close in on a remarkable 50 goal season.
And Finally… The only thing hotter than the Sharks are some Ducks: and some mighty ones at that. The Anaheim Might Ducks picked up two convincing wins against Nashville and Phoenix and are an amazing 9-1 in their last 10 games to sit in fifth place in the muddled West. Teemu Selanne continued his bid for comeback player of the year by collecting seven points (4-3-7) in the two wins. Linemate Andy Macdonald chipped in with two goals and two assists to continue his career year and rookie Ryan Getzlaf picked up one goal and added five assists. Getzlaf now has 14 points in his last 12 games and continues to impress with each passing game.
Minnesota Line Combinations (posted 3.27.06)
Brian Rolston .. Marc Chouinard .. Pierre-Marc Bouchard
Pascal Dupuis .. Wes Walz .. Stephane Veilleux
Randy Robitaille .. Mikko Koivu .. Marian Gaborik
Alex Henry .. Erik Westrum .. Mattias Weinhandl
Andrei Zyuzin .. Filip Kuba
Nick Schultz .. Daniel Tjarnqvist
Martin Skoula .. Kurtis Foster
Ottawa Line Combinations (posted 3.27.06)
Dany Heatley .. Jason Spezza .. Patrick Eaves
Vaclav Varada .. Tyler Arnason .. Daniel Alfredsson
Peter Schaefer .. Bryan Smolinski .. Chris Neil
Antoine Vermette .. Chris Kelly .. Brian McGrattan
Chris Phillips .. Andrej Meszaros
Wade Redden .. Brian Pothier
Filip Novak .. Christoph Schubert
Calgary Line Combinations (posted 3.27.06)
Kristian Huselius .. Daymond Langkow .. Jarome Iginla
Marcus Nilson .. Stephane Yelle .. Shean Donovan
Tony Amonte .. Matthew Lombardi .. Chuck Kobasew
Chris Simon .. Jamie Lundmark .. Byron Ritchie
Dion Phaneuf .. Roman Hamrlik
Robyn Regehr .. Jordan Leopold
Andrew Ference .. Bryan Marchment
Dallas Line Combinations (posted 3.27.06)
Jussi Jokinen .. Mike Modano .. Jere Lehtinen
Brenden Morrow .. Jason Arnott .. Stu Barnes
Niklas Hagman .. Niko Kapanen .. Antti Miettinen
Jeremy Stevenson .. Steve Ott .. Nathan Perrott
Sergei Zubov .. Willie Mitchell
Stephane Robidas .. Philippe Boucher
Jon Klemm .. Trevor Daley
Colorado Line Combinations (posted 3.27.06)
Andrew Brunette .. Joe Sakic .. Milan Hejduk
Antti Laaksonen .. Brett McLean .. Ian Laperriere
Pierre Turgeon .. Brad Richardson .. Cody McCormick
Brad May .. Jim Dowd .. Dan Hinote
Rob Blake .. John-Michael Liles
Karlis Skrastins .. Brett Clark
Patrice Brisebois .. Kurt Sauer
Montreal Line Combinations (posted 3.26.06)
Chris Higgins .. Saku Koivu .. Michael Ryder
Richard Zednik .. Mike Ribeiro .. Alexei Kovalev
Garth Murray .. Tomas Plekanec .. Alexander Perezhogin
Steve Begin .. Radek Bonk .. Aaron Downey
Sheldon Souray .. Craig Rivet
Andrei Markov .. Mike Komisarek
Todd Simpson .. Mathieu Dandenault
Toronto Line Combinations (posted 3.26.06)
Alexei Ponikarovsky .. Mats Sundin .. Nik Antropov
Alexander Steen .. Jason Allison .. Darcy Tucker
Chad Kilger .. Kyle Wellwood .. Jeff O'Neill
Ben Ondrus .. Clark Wilm .. Tie Domi
Bryan McCabe .. Tomas Kaberle
Luke Richardson .. Aki Berg
Alexander Khavanov .. Wade Belak
Vancouver Line Combinations (posted 3.26.06)
Markus Naslund .. Ryan Kesler .. Todd Bertuzzi
Daniel Sedin .. Henrik Sedin .. Anson Carter
Matt Cooke .. Brendan Morrison .. Alexandre Burrows
Jarkko Ruutu .. Josh Green .. Trevor Linden
Mattias Ohlund .. Kevin Bieksa
Bryan Allen .. Eric Weinrich
Keith Carney .. Sean Brown
Edmonton Line Combinations (posted 3.26.06)
Ryan Smyth .. Shawn Horcoff .. Ales Hemsky
Sergei Samsonov .. Jarret Stoll .. Raffi Torres
Ethan Moreau .. Fernando Pisani .. Rem Murray
Todd Harvey .. Michael Peca .. Georges Laraque
Chris Pronger .. Jaroslav Spacek
Steve Staios .. Matt Greene
Jason Smith .. Dick Tarnstrom
Calder Candidates (posted 3.24.06)
by Cory Kornelsen
With just over three weeks left in the regular season the year of the rookie certainly has not disappointed with some incredible individual performances. Here is a look at the ten best rookies thus far.
1. Alexander Ovechkin – (46-43-89)
The ever opportunistic Washington forward continues to lead all rookies in goals and points and is first overall in shots on net and highlight reel goals. Has tallied 20 points in 14 games since the Olympic break and with a 50 goal and 100 point campaign in his reach, you can also include the Calder Trophy as well.
2. Henrik Lundqvist – (28-10-8) 2.17 GAA, .924 Sv%
Leads all rookie keepers in all the major categories and ranks second overall in goals against average and third overall in save percentage. Besides the impressive numbers and his Olympic gold medal, the qualities that stand out the most from the Ranger rookie is his composure and his willingness to compete to make the second chance save.
3. Sidney Crosby – (31-45-76)
Ranks first in rookie assists, second in points and third in goals. With 11 points in 10 games since the break Crosby has fallen off the pace set out by Ovechkin but the 18 year old has not disappointed this year in Pittsburgh and has lived up to all the hype on pace for over 90 points while playing for the worst team in the league.
4. Dion Phaneuf – (17-25-42) +2
Calgary's prized rookie rearguard has been fantastic all year and is already a triple threat from the point with his abilities on defense, offense and punishing physical play. Continues to lead all rookie d-men in goals, points and hits and looks to be a perennial 25 goal producer from the blue line.
5. Ryan Miller – (25-10-2) 2.51 GAA, .916 Sv%
Buffalo's leading man ranks second only to Lundqvist in wins, goals against average and save percentage for rookie net minders and has been one of the best goaltenders since mid December.
6. Marek Svatos – (32-18-50)
Despite missing the last eight games with a shoulder injury, Svatos still ranks second in goals for rookies. Unfortunately, the Avalanche dynamo is likely out for the remainder of the regular season, but was easily on pace to eclipse the 40 goal mark.
7. Andrej Meszaros – (7-26-33) +39
Ottawa's rookie rearguard has been quite the surprise this year and others are beginning to take notice. Not only does he lead the NHL in plus/minus, he also has picked up his offensive play with nine points in his last 12 games and ranks first in assists and second in points for rookie d-men.
8. Brad Boyes – (22-35-57)
Boston's rookie forward has been developing well all season and has not looked out of place playing on the number one line with Bergeron and Sturm. Boyes has 13 points in 12 games since the break to currently rank third in rookie scoring.
9. Jussi Jokinen – (16-34-50)
With 14 points in his last 11 games only Ovechkin has more points by a rookie since the break. The Dallas forward has been a perfect compliment on the number one line with Modano and Lehtinen with his strong two-way play. Currently ranks fourth in rookie scoring and leads the NHL with 9 shootout goals in 10 chances.
10. Kari Lehtonen – (18-12-0) 2.68 GAA, .910 Sv%
After missing the first three months of the season with a groin injury, Atlanta's franchise rookie keeper has started 30 of 31 games including 22 straight. Lehtonen has been brilliant since the break going 9-3 with a 2.40 GAA and a .930 Sv%. Lehtonen is also a perfect 5-0 in shootouts and has finally given the Atlanta organization some stability in goal and on the verge of their first playoff appearance.
Fantasy Insider (posted 3.23.06)
by Gus Katsaros
Playoffs are right around the corner. Teams are fighting tooth and nail for a spot in the post-season. Ottawa clinched a playoff spot, with a 5-2 win over the visiting Penguins. This raises questions of a dilemma, which is discussed below in the 'Teams Resting Players' section. Before we get to that, a quick look around the league at players performing at this crucial stage of the schedule.
HOT
Marian Hossa (Atl) - nine points in the past nine games, is doing everything he can to ensure that his Thrashers snag a playoff spot (he missed the Bruins' game due to the Flu). Helping out the cause further is Bobby Holik with six of his 22 total points (9-13-22) in last six games.
Both are integral parts of the Thrashers. Holik is playing more like his form with the Devils in the Cup contending years. He looks comfortable once again after returning missing 18 games with a broken foot, which is good news for Atlanta, and owners of Holik.
Olli Jokinen (Fla) – After being pointless in two games, Jokinen has three points (1-2-3) in his last two games, including the overtime winner in a wild one against the Tampa Bay Lightning. He is showing exactly why Mike Keenan signed him to a long-term contract. Now it seems, he's trying to convince Roberto Luongo to remain, by showing that he is indeed a building block of the franchise. After a horrible start to the season, the Panther are staring at an outside chance of post-season participation. Look for a final push from the Panthers (they play the CAPS and NYR at home then two on the road in Boston and Pittsburgh) and a strong finish from Jokinen.
Brad Richards (TB) – Richards has six points (2-4-6) in last three games. Martin St. Louis has four points (3-1-4) in that same span, while Tampa Bay sported a 2–1 record. The loss was in overtime to the Panthers in a wild 6-5 finish. They play the Panthers three more times to finish the season and they are 1-3 against them this season. Previous meetings of these two teams have been high scoring affairs.
LONG SHOT
Jeff O' Neill (Tor) – Leafs coach Pat Quinn, inserted O' Neill onto a line with Mats Sundin and Alex Steen in the 3-2 win over the Hurricanes. Not only did he pick up two assists, he also looked very comfortable skating on the wing. A huge back-to-back set in Montreal this weekend makes it a good possibility that Quinn will keep that line in tact. The Leafs need wins, and if this line can contribute more efforts like that shown against the Hurricanes, O'Neill can put up some decent short-term numbers.
COLD
Wade Redden (Ott) – Redden brings more to the Senators lineup than goals and assists. Over the last 10 games, that's what he's been delivering. His assist in the game against the Penguins was the first point in four games, while contributing four points (2-2-4) in the past 11 games. The emergence of Andrej Meszaros (two powerplay goals against the Penguins) has eased the need for offense from Redden. He is also one of those players with a nagging injury suffered in Turin. Be watchful of him spending time in the press box, to try to heal.
Bryan McCabe (Tor) – McCabe is not cold per se, but his goal scoring pace has crawled from early in the season. Regardless of a push for a playoff spot, this trend will likely continue to end his season. The opposition has figured out the Leafs powerplay, centered on getting McCabe the puck at the blue line and have played him tight. A variation of the powerplay against the Hurricanes, tried to move him off center to the top of the right face-off circle. This produced a rebound Jason Allison banged home, for the game winner. Most of his points come from the powerplay. Without that outlet, he is showing his frustration with some questionable shenanigans, resulting in penalties. He will still log a ton of ice-time, but will be hard to keep up the point-per-game pace of earlier on in the season.
Peter Bondra (Atl) – Atlanta expected more from this forward than a pair of goals and an assist in the last 10 games. In four of those games, he didn't register a shot-on-goal. Atlanta sits among teams in the hunt for a playoff spot. The win over the Bruins, put them within a point of the Canadiens. The Habs have a difficult schedule to end the season, raising the hopes of the Thrashers to make good on their promise to their fans about making the playoffs. Marion Hossa and Ilya Kovalchuk will carry the burden of offense, along with Marc Savard in Atlanta. Unless there are injuries, do not expect any better production from Bondra.
Turnaround
Markus Naslund/Todd Bertuzzi (Van) – The Canucks desperately need Naslund to get going. With him, goes Bertuzzi, and if they aren't clicking, the Canucks may be watching the post season not participating. In 10 games in March, Naslund has two goals and three assists for five points. Bertuzzi has a goal and three assists in that span, both sharing a five game scoring drought. The Canucks are getting steady production from secondary sources, like the Sedin twins, and Anson Carter, but will still need to lean heavily on the big duo in a final push for a playoff spot. That means a lot of ice-time and more chances.
Teams resting players .. and key match-ups
Jason Spezza was a scratch against the Penguins. Doug Weight was a scratch against the Maple Leafs. Marian Hossa had the flu to miss the game against Boston. Little ailments, bumps and bruises attained through the course of the season may flare up now, right before the playoffs. Every team wants to go into the playoffs healthy and may take measures to ensure that all the players are 100%, or as close as they can get to it.
Fantasy owners have the dilemma of whether to activate stars, which in a fantasy league is the bread and butter, with riskier choices rounding out the roster. If teams rest players, removing them from your roster, you will have to make replacements. To remove a star, and their production, from your active roster is a bold move.
At this point in the season, the reliance on individual players will have to change. Instead of assuming Jagr will be in the lineup, it is time to look to see who the Rangers are playing over three game intervals to determine if there is a possibility that one of your stars will be sitting on the bench, or in the press box.
It also brings in the dilemma of whether or not teams may rest players already injured, such as the case with Dominik Hasek of the Senators. Now that they have clinched a playoff spot, is there really a rush to have him back, with the possibility of him going down again in the playoffs?
To help you get through this tough period, and for a final push, try adding another perspective to your roster:
Consider games for your stars in three game intervals.
Try to pinpoint games in which your star(s), may likely sit out. (e.g. Carolina plays Washington five more times before season's end. How many of those games will Weight sit out? Eric Staal? Ray Whitney?)
Non-playoff teams are not necessarily pushovers at this point in the season. Be mindful of spoilers to playoff contending teams. (The Pens stealing two points from the Habs on the weekend)
Lastly, remove any emotional attachments to specific players. You're trying to win a pool, which is hard enough to do with straight logic. Don't hinder your chances by making emotional choices.
Don't forget to keep coming back to McKeens.
Washington Line Combinations (posted 3.21.06)
Alexander Ovechkin was benched for parts of the second and third period, but it didn't sound like it was due to injury so he is safe to keep in your lineup.
Alexander Ovechkin .. Dainius Zubrus .. Chris Clark
Matt Bradley .. Brian Sutherby .. Ben Clymer
Matt Pettinger .. Jeff Halpern .. Brian Willsie
Rico Fata .. Brooks Laich .. Jakub Klepis
Steve Eminger .. Shaone Morrisonn
Ivan Majesky .. Mathieu Biron
Jamie Heward .. Nolan Yonkman
Atlanta Line Combinations (posted 3.21.06)
The Thrashers didn't miss Marian Hossa, who had the flu, in their 5-0 cleaning of the Buffalo Sabres on Monday.
Ilya Kovalchuk .. Marc Savard .. Scott Mellanby
Vyacheslav Kozlov .. Jim Slater .. Peter Bondra
Ramzi Abid .. Bobby Holik ..
Eric Boulton .. Derek MacKenzie .. Brad Larsen
Andy Sutton .. Niclas Havelid
Jaroslav Modry .. Shane Hnidy
Steve McCarthy .. Greg de Vries
Weekend Warriors (posted 3.20.06)
by Cory Kornelsen
With just four points separating fifth to tenth place in the Western Conference and with five teams within six points of eighth place Montreal in the Eastern Conference, not much was settled over another busy NHL weekend that was.
Although the play of the Philadelphia Flyers has been rather erratic lately with injuries a plenty, defenseman Joni Pitkanen has picked up his play with four points over the weekend and has nine points in his last seven games.
Rookie forward Brad Boyes continues to be a bright spot in Boston along with linemates Patrice Bergeron and Marco Sturm. Boyes scored three goals in the win over Carolina to desperately keep the Bruins playoff hopes alive.
Congrats to Hart Trophy candidate Jaromir Jagr who became the first player to hit the 100 point mark this season as well as the first to hit the century mark in points since 2002. Jagr picked up a goal and three assists in the Rangers 5-2 win over the Leafs to remain in first place in the Atlantic division.
The Tampa Bay Lightning gave themselves some breathing room this weekend with two impressive wins over the Flyers and Islanders to sit five points ahead of eighth place Montreal. Rookie forward Ryan Craig, Vinnie Lecavalier, Vaclav Prospal and Brad Richards led the way with four points each.
Dominik who? The Ottawa Senators find themselves back in first place in the Eastern Conference with two wins against Buffalo and New Jersey thanks to rookie keeper Ray Emery. He stopped 42 of 44 shots including all 22 versus the Devils to pick up his third shutout of the season. Emery has come to Ottawa's rescue going 9-1-1 since the injury to Hasek.
The Anaheim Mighty Ducks picked up a valuable four points with wins on the road in Chicago and Columbus to remain in playoff contention in the muddled Western Conference. Rookie d-man Francois Beauchemin the "other player" Anaheim received in the Federov deal continues to get better and better and picked up two points, was a +2, and averaged over 25 minutes of playing time in the wins.
After losing 9-4 to the Predators with Brian Boucher in net on Saturday: in steps Hart and Vezina candidate Miikka Kiprusoff to the rescue Sunday night stopping 37 of 39 shots in a 3-2 victory over the Wild. Kipper was brilliant in the win as usual keeping the Flames in first place in the Northwest division. Forwards Daymond Langkow and Kristian Huselius chipped in with four points each in the two games.
Hot wings were on special in the west this weekend as Detroit picked up two wins over Vancouver and Edmonton to claim first place in the overall standings. Pavel Datsyuk led the way with a total of four points in the two games.
Mike Modano continued his campaign for comeback player of the year with a dominant three point performance in San Jose getting the tying goal with a highlight move on a breakaway in the third period. He then capped off the afternoon with another beauty to the top shelf in the shootout to help seal the win for Dallas.
And Finally… Talk about offense. The Nashville Predators exploded for nine goals in a victory over Calgary, the top defensive team in the in the Western Conference, with Mike Sillinger leading the way with four points. In another offensive outburst congrats to Nashville prospect Alexander Radulov who picked up an incredible 11 points (7-4-11) for the Quebec Remparts in the final regular season game in the QMJHL. The star forward also won the league scoring title and finished the year with an even more incredible 50 game point scoring streak.
Carolina Line Combinations (posted 3.20.06)
Eric Staal scored his 41st goal of the season over the weekend.
Cory Stillman .. Rod Brind'Amour .. Justin Williams
Ray Whitney .. Eric Staal .. Mark Recchi
Andrew Ladd .. Doug Weight .. Matt Cullen
.. Kevyn Adams .. Craig Adams
Aaron Ward .. Frantisek Kaberle
Mike Commodore .. Bret Hedican
Oleg Tverdovsky .. Glen Wesley
Anton Babchuk ..
New Jersey Line Combinations (posted 3.20.06)
The Devils were on the wrong side of a 4-0 loss versus Ray Emery and the Ottawa Senators.
Patrik Elias .. Scott Gomez .. Brian Gionta
Jay Pandolfo .. John Madden .. Jamie Langenbrunner
Zach Parise .. Sergei Brylin .. Grant Marshall
Jason Wiemer .. Erik Rasmussen .. Cam Janssen
Brad Lukowich .. Brian Rafalski
Colin White .. Paul Martin
David Hale .. Ken Klee
St. Louis Line Combinations (posted 3.20.06)
Losing their best goalie won't help wins and losses, but give the Blues their due as most of their players are still giving a good effort each night.
Petr Cajanek .. Keith Tkachuk .. Dallas Drake
Scott Young .. Jay McClement .. Lee Stempniak
Mike Glumac .. Dean McAmmond .. Mark Rycroft
Timofei Shishkanov .. Trent Whitfield .. Jamal Mayers
Dennis Wideman .. Barret Jackman
Christian Backman .. Matt Walker
Bryce Salvador .. Kevin Dallman
Toronto Line Combinations (posted 3.19.06)
Jason Allison might be useless in his end of the ice, however he's pretty good offensively. He scored two powerplay goals and was a -1 overall versus the Rangers.
Alexei Ponikarovsky .. Mats Sundin .. Nik Antropov
Alexander Steen .. Jason Allison .. Darcy Tucker
Jeff O'Neill .. Kyle Wellwood .. Chad Kilger
Ben Ondrus .. Clark Wilm .. Tie Domi
Tomas Kaberle .. Bryan McCabe
Alexander Khavanov .. Luke Richardson
Wade Belak .. Aki Berg
NY Rangers Line Combinations (posted 3.19.06)
Jaromir Jagr chipped in with four points (1-3-4) to reach 100 points for the fifth time in his career.
Martin Straka .. Michael Nylander .. Jaromir Jagr
Petr Prucha .. Steve Rucchin .. Petr Sykora
Ryan Hollweg .. Dominic Moore .. Jed Ortmeyer
Marcel Hossa .. Blair Betts .. Jason Ward
Marek Malik .. Michal Rozsival
Darius Kasparaitis .. Tom Poti
Fedor Tyutin .. Sandis Ozolinsh
Edmonton Line Combinations (posted 3.19.06)
With two assists on Saturday, Shawn Horcoff is closing in on 50 for the season.
Ryan Smyth .. Shawn Horcoff .. Ales Hemsky
Sergei Samsonov .. Jarret Stoll .. Raffi Torres
Ethan Moreau .. Fernando Pisani .. Radek Dvorak
Todd Harvey .. Michael Peca .. Georges Laraque
Jaroslav Spacek .. Chris Pronger
Marc-Andre Bergeron .. Jason Smith
Matt Greene .. Steve Staios
Detroit Line Combinations (posted 3.19.06)
Jason Williams' goal in the shootout lifted the Wings to a 4-3 win over the Oilers.
Brendan Shanahan .. Pavel Datsyuk .. Kris Draper
Tomas Holmstrom .. Henrik Zetterberg .. Mark Mowers
Robert Lang .. Steve Yzerman .. Jason Williams
Kirk Maltby .. Johan Franzen .. Dan Cleary
Nicklas Lidstrom .. Andreas Lilja
Chris Chelios .. Mathieu Schneider
Niklas Kronwall .. Cory Cross
NY Islanders Line Combinations (posted 3.18.06)
Miroslav Satan scored his 27th and 28th goals of the season in a 4-2 loss to the Florida Panthers on Friday.
Sean Bergenheim .. Alexei Yashin .. Robert Nilsson
Miroslav Satan .. Shawn Bates .. Trent Hunter
Jason Blake .. Wyatt Smith .. Jeff Tambellini
Rob Collins .. Jeremy Colliton .. Eric Godard
Joel Bouchard .. Denis Grebeshkov
John Erskine .. Radek Martinek
Chris Campoli .. Bruno Gervais
Tampa Line Combinations (posted 3.18.06)
In Tampa's 6-3 win over the Flyers, little known Ryan Craig helped the Bolts cause with two goals giving him 12 on the season.
Fredrik Modin .. Brad Richards .. Martin St. Louis
Ruslan Fedotenko .. Vincent Lecavalier .. Vaclav Prospal
Ryan Craig .. Tim Taylor .. Evgeny Artyukhin
Chris Dingman .. Martin Cibak .. Dmitri Afanasenkov
Paul Ranger .. Dan Boyle
Darryl Sydor .. Cory Sarich
Nolan Pratt .. Pavel Kubina
Los Angeles Line Combinations (posted 3.17.06)
Sean Avery scored LA's only goal, his 13th of the season, in a 4-1 loss at the hands of the Dallas Stars.
Derek Armstrong .. Mike Cammalleri .. Dustin Brown
Eric Belanger .. Sean Avery .. Tom Kostopoulos
Luc Robitaille .. Jeremy Roenick .. Mark Parrish
Nathan Dempsey .. Jeff Giuliano .. George Parros
Lubomir Visnovsky .. Joe Corvo
Brent Sopel .. Mattias Norstrom
Aaron Miller .. Tim Gleason
NY Rangers Line Combinations (posted 3.17.06)
The Rangers finally stopped their losing streak, six games, with an ugly 5-4 win over the dreadful Washington Capitals.
Petr Prucha .. Michael Nylander .. Jaromir Jagr
Martin Straka .. Steve Rucchin .. Petr Sykora
Marcel Hossa .. Blair Betts .. Jed Ortmeyer
Ryan Hollweg .. Dominic Moore .. Colton Orr
Marek Malik .. Michal Rozsival
Tom Poti .. Darius Kasparaitis
Fedor Tyutin .. Sandis Ozolinsh
Phoenix Line Combinations (posted 3.17.06)
The Coyotes were shutout 2-0 by the Brendan Witt led Nashville Predators on Thursday.
Fredrik Sjostrom .. Steve Reinprecht .. Shane Doan
Boyd Devereaux .. Mike Comrie .. Mike Johnson
Oleg Saprykin .. Geoff Sanderson .. Oleg Kvasha
Matt Jones .. Dave Scatchard .. Mike Ricci
Zbynek Michalek .. Jamie Rivers
Keith Ballard .. Derek Morris
Paul Mara .. Dennis Seidenberg
Buffalo Line Combinations (posted 3.17.06)
Chris Drury's had three points (2-1-3) to lead the Sabres to a 3-1 victory over the Maple Leafs.
Jochen Hecht .. Daniel Briere .. Jean-Pierre Dumont
Jason Pominville .. Chris Drury .. Ales Kotalik
Thomas Vanek .. Derek Roy .. Maxim Afinogenov
Taylor Pyatt .. Paul Gaustad .. Mike Grier
Toni Lydman .. Henrik Tallinder
Teppo Numminen .. Dimitri Kalinin
Jay McKee .. Brian Campbell
Montreal Line Combinations (posted 3.17.06)
David Aebischer took the loss (5-1) versus the Carolina Hurricanes, however he was the victim of poor effort in front of him.
Chris Higgins .. Saku Koivu .. Michael Ryder
Alexander Perezhogin .. Mike Ribeiro .. Alexei Kovalev
Richard Zednik .. Tomas Plekanec .. Jan Bulis
Garth Murray .. Radek Bonk .. Steve Begin
Craig Rivet .. Sheldon Souray
Mathieu Dandenault .. Francis Bouillon
Mark Streit .. Mike Komisarek
San Jose Line Combinations (posted 3.17.06)
Joe Thornton leads the NHL point parade with 95 points (25-70-95).
Grant Stevenson .. Joe Thornton .. Jonathan Cheechoo
Milan Michalek .. Patrick Marleau .. Steve Bernier
Alyn McCauley .. Mark Smith .. Pat Rissmiller
Ville Nieminen .. Marcel Goc ..
Christian Ehrhoff .. Tom Preissing
Scott Hannan .. Josh Gorges
Rob Davison .. Kyle McLaren
Doug Murray ..
Bergeron Bruins (posted 3.17.06)
It has been a very busy year for the Bruins this season. The Bruins have decided to go in a different direction as they have dealt both 1997 first round selections, Joe Thornton and Sergei Samsonov. In return the Bruins have received many young players that have already been inserted into the line up and are starting to pay dividends. Mckeen's takes a look at future NHL star Patrice Bergeron and Brad Boyes. We also profile Brad Stuart and Yan Stastny, players acquired in both the Thornton and Samsonov trades
Patrice Bergeron (Bos), C
Always moving, as he has good speed and is ever so strong on his skates, exceptional balance he did not fall the entire game despite countless attempts of Sabre defenseman checking and harassing him all night .. sees the ice very well and often makes passes when players are not expecting it .. a more than capable stick handler ..does shoot a lot but at times tends to make a pass when he should shoot .. draws players too him as he makes defenders nervous .. quick breakouts often catches defenders flatfooted to create an odd man rush .. is not overly physical, he is however very strong and does not shy away from corner or side board confrontations .. will readily take a hit to advance the puck .. has already assumed valuable PP and 1st line duty time and is the Bruins future.
Brad Boyes (Bos), C
Has really emerged in the new NHL where the PP allows him an opportunity to show case his outstanding vision and creativity with the puck .. he is a decent skater, but it is not an area in which he excels at .. willingly goes to the slot and although not physical does assert himself much like his linemate Bergeron in that he will initiate fights for the puck .. he is an adept playmaker .. has a good release and positions himself to shoot all the time as he expects passes from Bergeron and slowly the tandem have developed effective chemistry.
Yan Stastny (Bos), C
Newly re-acquired from the Oilers, he has found a place on the 4th line where his speed has helped him make the transition to the NHL .. he is very explosive and generates top speed right away .. he is a competent stick handler, although relies more on his speed to get by player rather than his arsenal of moves .. slippery and elusive he is able to find himself in areas to score due to his small stature and low centre of gravity .. has a good work ethic and is constantly moving his feet .. defensively he did a good job not getting caught and played a simple yet effective game .. he does not appear to have the greatest offensive skills but could be a useful 3rd or 4th line player .. as he matures he should learn how to be able to exploit goalies with his shot or with his speed by making passes to open teammates while drawing attention from defenseman.
Brad Stuart (Bos), D
Has a strong sturdy build and is very comfortable playing a physical game .. is more of an offensive minded defenseman who sees the ice very well .. has puck skills and is very comfortable logging the puck up the ice .. makes smart passes to break opponents into the offensive zone .. tremendous lateral mobility .. he displays good speed but takes a few strides to reach his top gear .. has a hard shot and is the point man on the PP .. has the offensive imagination and skating ability to be a top point producer amongst defenseman in the league and should get every opportunity to succeed as Boston's number defender.
Anaheim Line Combinations (posted 3.16.06)
As good as Teemu Selanne has been this season, our vote for team MVP would easily go to Scott Niedermayer who has given the Ducks a real shot at making the playoffs.
Chris Kunitz .. Andy McDonald .. Teemu Selanne
Jonathan Hedstrom .. Todd Marchant .. Joffrey Lupul
Jeff Friesen .. Samuel Pahlsson .. Rob Niedermayer
Todd Fedoruk .. Ryan Getzlaf .. Corey Perry
Scott Niedermayer .. Francois Beauchemin
Ruslan Salei .. Sean O'Donnell
Vitaly Vishnevski .. Joe Dipenta
Philadelphia Line Combinations (posted 3.16.06)
Simon Gagne has a chance, however slim, of reaching 50 goals this season. Kind of funny to remember early in the season how some suggested he had a shot at breaking Wayne Gretzky's single season goal scoring record of 92.
Simon Gagne .. Peter Forsberg .. Mike Knuble
Donald Brashear .. Mike Richards .. Brian Savage
Branko Radivojevic .. Petr Nedved .. Sami Kapanen
R.J. Umberger .. Jeff Carter .. Niko Dimitrakos
Derian Hatcher .. Eric Desjardins
Joni Pitkanen .. Mike Rathje
Freddy Meyer .. Denis Gauthier
Columbus Line Combinations (posted 3.16.06)
In an injury ravaged season it says something about Rick Nash's skill that he was able to score his 20th of the season last night.
Rick Nash .. Sergei Fedorov .. Nikolai Zherdev
Jason Chimera .. Manny Malhotra .. Trevor Letowski
Jaroslav Balastik .. Mark Hartigan .. David Vyborny
Jody Shelley .. Ben Simon .. Dan Fritsche
Rostislav Klesla .. Adam Foote
Aaron Johnson .. Radoslav Suchy
Ron Hainsey .. Duvie Westcott
Chicago Line Combinations (posted 3.16.06)
Mark Bell potted his 21st goal of the season to add to a pretty nice season under the radar in Chicago.
Rene Bourque .. Mark Bell .. Kyle Calder
Milan Bartovic .. Patrick Sharp .. Radim Vrbata
Matthew Barnaby .. Curtis Brown .. Martin Lapointe
Mikael Holmqvist .. Mark Cullen .. Brandon Bochenski
Duncan Keith .. Jim Vandermeer
Jassen Cullimore .. Dustin Byfuglien
Michal Barinka .. Brent Seabrook
Vezina Watch (posted 3.15.06)
by Cory Kornelsen
With three quarters of the season officially in the books, we continue to look at the top 10 goaltending performances of this year heading into the stretch drive to the post season.
1. Miikka Kiprusoff – (33-17-7) 2.17 GAA, .918 Sv%
Kipper continues to carry the Flames who are first in the Northwest division, yet ranked 28th in goals scored. He ranks second in wins, third in goals against average, fifth in save percentage and continues to lead all goalies with eight shutouts and is a legitimate Hart trophy candidate.
2. Henrik Lundqvist – (25-9-8) 2.07 GAA, .927 Sv%
Quite the dream season for the Ranger rookie. Not only is he a gold medal winner, he is also in contention for the Vezina, Calder and will get some votes for the Hart trophy as well. Leads all goalies in goals against average and save percentage
3. Tomas Vokoun – (32-14-7) 2.54 GAA, .922 Sv%
Nashville's MVP has gone undefeated (4-0-2) since the Olympic break and is on pace for a forty win season. Currently ranks third in wins and fourth in save percentage and finally getting the respect he truly deserves.
4. Dominik Hasek – (28-10-4) 2.09 GAA, .925 Sv%
Continues to be sidelined with a groin injury and was 2-3-1 prior to the Olympic break (a mini slump for the Dominator). Although he has been bumped out of top spot in our top 10, he still ranks second in goals against average and save percentage.
5. Ryan Miller – (24-8-2) 2.49 GAA, .915 Sv%
The rookie keeper has clearly demonstrated that he is a number 1 man and has been the NHL's most dominant goalie since his return from a thumb injury in mid December with an 18-4-2 record since then, giving Buffalo the chance to challenge for first place in the Eastern Conference.
6. Manny Fernandez – (25-12-6) 2.24 GAA, .922 Sv%
With Roloson off to Edmonton, Fernandez is finally the official number 1 goalie in Minnesota. Has only gone 2-3-2 since the break but has not allowed more than three goals during those games and has only allowed 4 goals or more just twice this season. Currently ranks fourth in both goals against average and save percentage.
7. Marty Turco – (34-16-3) 2.57 GAA, .896 Sv%
Has gone 5-1 since the Olympic break and leads all goalies in wins. With four straight seasons of thirty plus wins now under his belt, he continues to provide the Stars with great consistent goaltending and is such a calming influence knowing that he's between the pipes.
8. Martin Gerber – (31-10-4) 2.71 GAA, .910 Sv%
Has already surpassed his personal bests in wins, shutouts and games played. Gerber has been quite the surprise for the Hurricanes who have been on top of the standings for most of the year and he is currently tied for fourth in wins. The true test will come in the post season where he will get his first real chance to lead a team in the playoffs.
9. Martin Brodeur – (31-20-6) 2.60 GAA, .907 Sv%
After an amazing stretch having gone 14-4-1 with 5 shutouts prior to the Olympic break, Brodeur has cooled off a bit having gone 3-2-2 since then and had to be pulled during his last two games. He still remains tied for fourth in wins and second in shutouts and will no doubt bounce back from his latest slide.
10. Manny Legace – (28-8-2) 2.25 GAA, .911 Sv%
Has also struggled lately having gone 3-2 since the break but has given up 20 goals during those games and was bailed out by Detroit's third ranked offense. He continues however to have a quiet but productive season and ranks fifth in goals against average and tied for second with five shutouts.
Pittsburgh Line Combinations (posted 3.14.06)
The Penguins are so weak at center that in their last game only three players took faceoffs.
Colby Armstrong .. Sidney Crosby .. Jani Rita
John LeClair .. Ryan Malone .. Konstantin Koltsov
Tomas Surovy .. Andy Hilbert .. Michel Ouellet
Niklas Nordgren .. .. Andre Roy
Rob Scuderi .. Sergei Gonchar
Ryan Whitney .. Brooks Orpik
Alain Nasreddine .. Josef Melichar
Eric Cairns ..
Weekend Warriors (posted 3.6.06)
by Cory Kornelsen
With the playoff races heating up we take a look at the players who stepped up their play during another busy NHL weekend that was.
Although they were sellers during the trade deadline, the Islanders kept their slim playoff hopes alive with two wins over Toronto and Boston. Both of whom are also battling for the final playoff spot in the East, thanks in large part to the brilliance of goaltender Rick DiPietro. He stopped 54 of 56 shots in total, including a game saver off Bryan McCabe from the slot in overtime and all three shots in the shootout victory over the Leafs.
The Minnesota Wild picked up a valuable three points including a big 4-3 victory over the Oilers hot off the Dwayne Roloson deal. Brian Rolston had two goals and two assists in the win to cap off a five point weekend and Pierre-Marc Bouchard also had four points to play the role of spoilers in Roloson's first game against his former mates.
The Buffalo Sabres, with a healthy Daniel Briere and Tim Connolly back in the lineup, continue to play the hot hand in the East and are only three points out of first place with two more wins over the weekend. Jochen Hecht and Ales Kotalik led the way with one goal and three assists each to power the Sabres past the Flyers and Bruins.
It might be too late for Florida, but they will make things fairly interesting down the stretch. Coming off his four year $21 million dollar re-signing, an extremely motivated Olli Jokinen led the Panthers to back to back victories over the first place Hurricanes. He picked up three goals and two assists. Jozef Stumpel also chipped in with two goals and two assists in the two wins.
The Montreal Canadiens are one of the hottest teams in the league and now sit seventh in the Eastern Conference thanks to the shear brilliance of goaltender Cristobal Huet. He picked up the shutout stopping 26 shots against the Rangers on Saturday night and he now has five shutouts in his last 12 games.
The Red Wings continue to flex their muscles a top the Western Conference with back-to-back wins over Chicago. Brenadan Shanahan cracked the 30 goal plateau for the 13th time in his career and Mathieu Schneider picked up his 20th goal of the season to lead all defenders. They also added three assists each in the wins and Pavel Datsyuk continued his career year by picking up five points (2-3-5).
With new goaltender Jose Theodore still out with a heel injury Colorado will depend on rookie keeper Peter Budaj during the stretch run. He looked solid on Sunday leading the Avalanche to a 3-0 win against Calgary stopping all 33 shots. With the win, the Avalanche moved past the Flames for first place in the tight Northwest division.
Rookies Sidney Crosby and Marc-Andre Fleury led the last place Penguins to surprising back-to-back wins this weekend over New Jersey and Philadelphia. Crosby had two goals and three assists and now trails Alexander Ovechkin by five points in rookie scoring. Fleury stopped 60 of 63 shots, many of the highlight reel variety, including all 22 he faced against the Flyers for his first shutout of the year.
And Finally… With two wins over the Coyotes this weekend the Anaheim Mighty Ducks moved back into playoff contention moving past the Oilers for the final playoff spot in the West. The brothers Niedermayer led the way with four points each. Scott tallied four assists and Rob had two goals and two assists in the victories.
Detroit Line Combinations (posted 3.13.06)
Pavel Datysuk (25), Brendan Shanahan (30) and Mathieu Schneider (20) all reached nice goal milestones on Sunday vesus the Hawks.
Brendan Shanahan .. Pavel Datsyuk .. Kris Draper
Jason Williams .. Robert Lang .. Steve Yzerman
Tomas Holmstrom .. Henrik Zetterberg .. Mark Mowers
Kirk Maltby .. Johan Franzen .. Dan Cleary
Nicklas Lidstrom .. Andreas Lilja
Chris Chelios .. Mathieu Schneider
Niklas Kronwall .. Cory Cross
Boston Line Combinations (posted 3.13.06)
Pity the poor Bruins' fan that has to get excited about Marty Reasoner being the team's new second line center!
Marco Sturm .. Patrice Bergeron .. Brad Boyes
Mariusz Czerkawski .. Marty Reasoner .. Glen Murray
Dan Lacouture .. Wayne Primeau .. Travis Green
Yan Stastny .. Tom Fitzgerald .. Pat Leahy
David Tanabe .. Brian Leetch
Andrew Alberts .. Brad Stuart
Nick Boynton .. Hal Gill
Colorado Line Combinations (posted 3.13.06)
Pierre Turgeon is safe to put back in to your starting fantasy line-up. However, if you are starting him, your team is likely in alot of trouble.
Andrew Brunette .. Joe Sakic .. Milan Hejduk
Alex Tanguay .. Brett McLean .. Ian Laperriere
Brad Richardson .. Pierre Turgeon .. Cody McCormick
Antti Laaksonen .. Jim Dowd .. Dan Hinote
Rob Blake .. John-Michael Liles
Karlis Skrastins .. Brett Clark
Patrice Brisebois .. Kurt Sauer
Calgary Line Combinations (posted 3.13.06)
The Flames continue to have problems scoring goals as displayed by their 3-0 shutout at the hands of Peter Budaj and the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday.
Mike Leclerc .. Daymond Langkow .. Jarome Iginla
Chris Simon .. Matthew Lombardi .. Chuck Kobasew
Tony Amonte .. Stephane Yelle .. Darren McCarty
Kristian Huselius .. Marcus Nilson .. Shean Donovan
Robyn Regehr .. Jordan Leopold
Andrew Ference .. Cale Hulse
Dion Phaneuf .. Bryan Marchment
Edmonton Line Combinations (posted 3.12.06)
Sergei Samsonov started the game on the 4th line, however he saw time on the big line and finished with two helpers and over 15 minutes of ice-time.
Ryan Smyth .. Shawn Horcoff .. Ales Hemsky
Raffi Torres .. Jarret Stoll .. Radek Dvorak
Ethan Moreau .. Michael Peca .. Fernando Pisani
Sergei Samsonov .. Rem Murray .. Georges Laraque
Chris Pronger .. Jaroslav Spacek
Steve Staios .. Marc-Andre Bergeron
Dick Tarnstrom .. Jason Smith
Dallas Line Combinations (posted 3.12.06)
The American Olympic team might not have been crazy about Modano, however he's vitaly important to the success of the Stars. His two goals on Saturday were his 22nd & 23rd of the season.
Jussi Jokinen .. Mike Modano .. Jere Lehtinen
Brenden Morrow .. Jason Arnott .. Bill Guerin
Niklas Hagman .. Niko Kapanen .. Antti Miettinen
Jaroslav Svoboda .. Steve Ott .. Stu Barnes
Sergei Zubov .. Willie Mitchell
Stephane Robidas .. Philippe Boucher
Jon Klemm .. Trevor Daley
Tampa Bay Line Combinations (posted 3.12.06)
Rumours were that the Bolts tried to get Khabibulin back, but the Hawks didn't want St. Louis.
Fredrik Modin .. Brad Richards .. Martin St. Louis
Vaclav Prospal .. Vincent Lecavalier .. Ruslan Fedotenko
Ryan Craig .. Tim Taylor .. Evgeny Artyukhin
Chris Dingman .. Martin Cibak .. Dmitri Afanasenkov
Darryl Sydor .. Cory Sarich
Nolan Pratt .. Pavel Kubina
Paul Ranger .. Dan Boyle
Vancouver Line Combinations (posted 3.12.06)
The Canucks have all the talent in the world, however they often get out worked by the opposition.
Markus Naslund .. Brendan Morrison .. Matt Cooke
Daniel Sedin .. Henrik Sedin .. Anson Carter
Jarkko Ruutu .. Ryan Kesler .. Todd Bertuzzi
Alexandre Burrows .. Trevor Linden .. Sean Brown
Mattias Ohlund .. Kevin Bieksa
Keith Carney .. Eric Weinrich
Bryan Allen .. Nolan Baumgartner
Toronto Line Combinations (posted 3.12.06)
The Leafs are still alive, barely.
Alexei Ponikarovsky .. Mats Sundin .. Nik Antropov
Alexander Steen .. Jason Allison .. Darcy Tucker
Tie Domi .. Clark Wilm .. Ben Ondrus
Chad Kilger .. Kyle Wellwood .. Matt Stajan
Tomas Kaberle .. Bryan McCabe
Aki Berg .. Luke Richardson
Alexander Khavanov .. Wade Belak
Carolina Line Combinations (posted 3.11.06)
Doug Weight chipped in with two assists versus the Panthers.
Doug Weight .. Eric Staal .. Cory Stillman
Andrew Ladd .. Rod Brind'Amour .. Justin Williams
Ray Whitney .. Matt Cullen .. Mark Recchi
Chad Larose .. Kevyn Adams .. Craig Adams
Aaron Ward .. Frantisek Kaberle
Niclas Wallin .. Bret Hedican
Oleg Tverdovsky .. Glen Wesley
Florida Line Combinations (posted 3.11.06)
The Panthers got another strong performance from Olli Jokinen (2-1-3) in a win over the Hurricanes.
Martin Gelinas .. Jozef Stumpel .. Olli Jokinen
Rostislav Olesz .. Joe Nieuwendyk .. Nathan Horton
Juraj Kolnik .. Chris Gratton .. Jon Sim
Gregory Campbell .. Serge Payer ..
Jay Bouwmeester .. Sean Hill
Joel Kwiatkowski .. Mike Van Ryn
Ric Jackman .. Jamie Allison
Steve Montador ..
St. Louis Line Combinations (posted 3.11.06)
He's a bit under the radar, however Curtis Sanford appears to have solidified the Blues goaltending position.
Petr Cajanek .. Keith Tkachuk .. Dallas Drake
Scott Young .. Jay McClement .. Lee Stempniak
Mike Glumac .. Dean McAmmond .. Mark Rycroft
Timofei Shishkanov .. Trent Whitfield .. Jesse Boulerice
Christian Backman .. Barret Jackman
Dennis Wideman .. Matt Walker
Steve Poapst .. Kevin Dallman
Minnesota Line Combinations (posted 3.11.06)
Marian Gaborik popped home a goal to reach the 30 goal plateau for the third time in his career.
Brian Rolston .. Todd White .. Mattias Weinhandl
Randy Robitaille .. Mikko Koivu .. Marian Gaborik
Alex Henry .. Wes Walz .. Pierre-Marc Bouchard
Stephane Veilleux .. Marc Chouinard .. Derek Boogaard
Andrei Zyuzin .. Daniel Tjarnqvist
Nick Schultz .. Kurtis Foster
Martin Skoula .. Brent Burns
Atlanta Line Combinations (posted 3.11.06)
Ilya Kovalchuk recorded his 41st goal of the season in last night's loss to the Senators.
Ilya Kovalchuk .. Marc Savard .. Scott Mellanby
Vyacheslav Kozlov .. Jim Slater .. Marian Hossa
Peter Bondra .. Bobby Holik .. Ronald Petrovicky
Eric Boulton .. Serge Aubin .. Brad Larsen
Jaroslav Modry .. Greg de Vries
Andy Sutton .. Niclas Havelid
Shane Hnidy .. Mark Popovic
Washington Line Combinations (posted 3.11.06)
Stop the presses, Ovechkin not only did he not score .. he didn't record an assist. Not surprisingly the Capitals lost.
Alexander Ovechkin .. Dainius Zubrus .. Chris Clark
Matt Bradley .. Brian Sutherby .. Ben Clymer
Matt Pettinger .. Jeff Halpern .. Brian Willsie
Rico Fata .. Kris Beech .. Brooks Laich
Ivan Majesky .. Shaone Morrisonn
Jamie Heward .. Bryan Muir
Mathieu Biron .. Steve Eminger
Ottawa Line Combinations (posted 3.11.06)
Tyler Arnason recorded his first point (assist) as a Senator in helping the team to a 3-1 win over Atlanta.
Dany Heatley .. Jason Spezza .. Antoine Vermette
Bryan Smolinski .. Tyler Arnason .. Daniel Alfredsson
Peter Schaefer .. Mike Fisher .. Chris Neil
Vaclav Varada .. Chris Kelly .. Patrick Eaves
Chris Phillips .. Zdeno Chara
Wade Redden .. Andrej Meszaros
Anton Volchenkov .. Brian Pothier
New Jersey Line Combinations (posted 3.11.06)
Patrik Elias returns and Ken Klee makes his debut with the Devils.
Patrik Elias .. Scott Gomez .. Brian Gionta
Jay Pandolfo .. John Madden .. Jamie Langenbrunner
Viktor Kozlov .. Sergei Brylin .. Grant Marshall
Jason Ryznar .. Zach Parise .. Cam Janssen
Colin White .. Paul Martin
Brad Lukowich .. Brian Rafalski
Tommy Albelin .. Ken Klee
NY Islanders Line Combinations (posted 3.11.06)
We've updated the lineup to take in account all the changes. We are listing Tambellini
on the third line, however he only received a little over six minutes of ice-time. Don't expect him to be a fantasy contributor this season.
Miroslav Satan .. Mike York .. Trent Hunter
Jason Blake .. Shawn Bates .. Arron Asham
Jeff Tambellini .. Alexei Yashin .. Robert Nilsson
Sean Bergenheim .. Wyatt Smith .. Eric Godard
Alexei Zhitnik .. Radek Martinek
Joel Bouchard .. Denis Grebeshkov
Chris Campoli .. John Erskine
New Jersey Line Combinations (posted 3.8.06)
We know you can't give the Hart Trophy to a guy that has only played 18 games, but we'd be hard pressed to name a guy more valuable to his team than Patrik Elias is to the Devils!
Zach Parise .. Scott Gomez .. Brian Gionta
Jay Pandolfo .. John Madden .. Jamie Langenbrunner
Viktor Kozlov .. Sergei Brylin .. Grant Marshall
Jason Ryznar .. Erik Rasmussen .. Cam Janssen
Colin White .. Paul Martin
Tommy Albelin .. Brian Rafalski
David Hale .. Sean Brown
NY Islanders Line Combinations (posted 3.8.06)
If the rumours are true (so far they aren't) it appears only a matter of time before Mark Parrish is moved.
Oleg Kvasha .. Alexei Yashin .. Arron Asham
Jason Blake .. Shawn Bates .. Mark Parrish
Miroslav Satan .. Mike York .. Trent Hunter
Sean Bergenheim .. Wyatt Smith .. Robert Nilsson
Joel Bouchard .. Brad Lukowich
Alexei Zhitnik .. Radek Martinek
Chris Campoli .. John Erskine
Weekend Warriors (posted 3.6.06)
by Cory Kornelsen
With the trade deadline looming there were some very impressive team and individual player performances as we look back at another busy weekend that was.
The Carolina Hurricanes continue to remain atop the overall standings with two more wins on the weekend scoring a total of 12 goals. MVP candidate Eric Staal led the way with 6 points (3 goals and 3 assists), Erik Cole (4 goals and 1 assist) and Cory Stillman (1 goal and 4 assists) had five points each and Ray Whitney also chipped in with 4 points. Unfortunately, the Canes are reporting that Erik Cole will likely be out of the lineup for the rest of the regular season with a compression fracture of a vertebra in his neck caused from a dangerous hit from behind from Pittsburgh's Brooks Orpik on Saturday night.
The Buffalo Sabres had quite the weekend with Daniel Briere back in the lineup and honoring Pat Lafontaine. They picked up two more wins over division rivals Toronto and Boston with Briere leading Buffalo's charge with 2 goals and 2 assists. Line mate Jochen Hecht also had 4 points and Derek Roy picked up a hat trick in the Sabres 6-2 win over the Leafs. In an effort to give rookie keeper Ryan Miller a rest or to possibly shop his services, Martin Biron got the rare start against the Bruins and was brilliant in the win stopping 43 of 45 shots including 20 saves in the 3rd period alone.
The Dallas Stars did their best to keep pace with the first place Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference with two wins over Colorado and Chicago. Rookie Jussi Jokinen set the pace with 2 goals and 3 assists and Mike Modano (3 goals, 1 assist) Jere Lehtinen (1 goal 3 assists) Brendan Morrow (1 goal 3 assists) and Norris candidate Sergei Zubov (4 assists) all had 4 points a piece.
After appearing in just 1 game over the Oilers past 14, Ty Conklin made the most of his opportunity with back to back wins over San Jose and Nashville. Conklin turned away 37 of 41 shots in the two wins as the Oilers added a little more breathing room to their 8th spot in the Western Conference. Rumors suggest however that the Oilers are still active in acquiring a number 1 goalie for their stretch run into the playoffs with Curtis Joseph being a likely candidate to comeback to Edmonton.
The Calgary Flames remain on top of the Northwest standings thanks once again to goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff who picked up his league leading 7th shutout of the season. He weathered the storm early stopping 14 shots in the first period and then cruised the rest of the way blanking the San Jose sharks 2-0.
And Finally… Fresh off his gold medal achievement with Team Sweden at the Olympics, Detroit defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom continues to show why he's both an MVP and a Norris candidate with a very impressive performance picking up four points (1 goal and 3 assists) with a +4 rating in Detroit's 7-3 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes.
Toronto Line Combinations (posted 3.5.06)
Lindros will be going under the knife to repair his wrist so make other arrangements if you are in a fantasy league.
Alexander Steen .. Mats Sundin .. Chad Kilger
Alexei Ponikarovsky .. Jason Allison .. Darcy Tucker
Tie Domi .. Kyle Wellwood .. Eric Lindros
Wade Belak .. Matt Stajan .. Jeff O'Neill
Tomas Kaberle .. Bryan McCabe
Aki Berg .. Ken Klee
Andy Wozniewski .. Alexander Khavanov
San Jose Line Combinations (posted 3.5.06)
Most hockey experts feel that the Sharks will be dangerous in the playoffs. The only drawback is they have to first make the playoffs.
Nils Ekman .. Joe Thornton .. Jonathan Cheechoo
Milan Michalek .. Patrick Marleau .. Steve Bernier
Scott Thornton .. Mark Smith .. Grant Stevenson
Alyn McCauley .. Marcel Goc .. Niko Dimitrakos
Scott Hannan .. Josh Gorges
Christian Ehrhoff .. Kyle McLaren
Doug Murray .. Tom Preissing
Calgary Line Combinations (posted 3.5.06)
It appears that Iginla is finding his scoring stride with three goals in the last two games.
Mike Leclerc .. Daymond Langkow .. Jarome Iginla
Tony Amonte .. Matthew Lombardi .. Darren McCarty
Marcus Nilson .. Stephane Yelle .. Chuck Kobasew
Chris Simon .. Jason Wiemer .. Shean Donovan
Robyn Regehr .. Jordan Leopold
Dion Phaneuf .. Rhett Warrener
Andrew Ference .. Bryan Marchment
Vancouver Line Combinations (posted 3.4.06)
Ryan Kesler was taken off the ice in obvious pain and clutching his knee. It is always dangerous to speculate on injuries, but we wouldn't be surprised if he missed significant time.
Markus Naslund .. Brendan Morrison .. Matt Cooke
Daniel Sedin .. Henrik Sedin .. Anson Carter
Jarkko Ruutu .. Ryan Kesler .. Todd Bertuzzi
Alexandre Burrows .. Trevor Linden .. Richard Park
Bryan Allen .. Wade Brookbank
Sven Butenschon .. Nolan Baumgartner
Steve McCarthy .. Kevin Bieksa
Buffalo Line Combinations (posted 3.3.06)
Tim Connolly continues to be out with a knee injury but is expected back in mid-March. Daniel Briere however is back in the lineup after missing the past 24 games with an abdomen injury picking up 1 assist in his return on Wednesday night.
Jochen Hecht .. Daniel Briere .. Jean-Pierre Dumont
Thomas Vanek .. Derek Roy .. Maxim Afinogenov
Taylor Pyatt .. Chris Drury .. Ales Kotalik
Mike Grier .. Paul Gaustad .. Jason Pominville
Toni Lydman .. Henrik Tallinder
Teppo Numminen .. Brian Campbell
Rory Fitzpatrick .. Jay Mckee
Primary power play:
Dumont .. Briere .. Drury
Campbell .. Numminen
Montreal Line Combinations (posted 3.3.06)
With Jose Theodore likely to be out until at least April with a heel injury, goaltender Cristobal Huet continues to be cast into the spotlight as the number one goalie picking up right where he left off prior to the Olympics recording his 3rd shutout in his last 7 games and the main reason for Montreal's recent turn around.
Chris Higgins .. Saku Koivu .. Michael Ryder
Alexander Perezhogin .. Mike Ribeiro .. Alex Kovalev
Richard Zednik .. Tomas Plekanec .. Jan Bulis
Steve Begin .. Radek Bonk .. Aaron Downey
Craig Rivet .. Sheldon Souray
Andrei Markov .. Mike Komisarek
Mathieu Dandenault .. Francis Bouillon
Primary power play:
Ryder .. Koivu .. Kovalev
Markov .. Souray
Ottawa Line Combinations (posted 3.3.06)
The Senators and their fans continue to cross fingers hoping for a speedy recovery for Dominik Hasek who is sidelined indefinitely with a groin injury suffered during the Olympics. Some good news however is that Martin Havlat resumed skating and has started to practice with the team but still must avoid contact. He could be back as early as the end of the month after being out with a separated shoulder since December 1st.
Dany Heatley .. Jason Spezza .. Daniel Alfredsson
Peter Schaefer .. Mike Fisher .. Chris Neil
Vaclav Varada .. Bryan Smolinski .. Patrick Eaves
Antoine Vermette .. Chris Kelly .. Christoph Schubert
Zdeno Chara .. Chris Phillips
Wade Redden .. Andrej Meszaros
Brian Pothier .. Anton Volchenkov
Primary power play:
Heatley .. Spezza .. Alfredsson
Redden .. Meszaros