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| Sundin meets with Canadiens | Monday 9/8, 7:42 PM CT |
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Mats Sundin met with the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday, but there is still no decision forthcoming on where and if he will play this year, according to TSN.ca.
Our View: Sundin has now meet with the Leafs and Canadiens in back-to-back days, but no decision has been made. |
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| Kopecky ahead of schedule | Monday 9/8, 5:31 PM CT |
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Tomas Kopecky feels he’s ahead of schedule in his recovery from ACL surgery last spring, reports the Windsor Star.
Our View: Kopecky injured the knee on April 3rd against Columbus and is expected to be fully healed by the beginning of the season. Kopecky will not be fantasy relevant. |
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| Alfredsson to work on second-line? | Monday 9/8, 3:31 PM CT |
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Daniel Alfredsson is expecting to begin the 2008 campaign on the Senators' second-line, according to Sportsnet.ca.
Our View: New head coach Craig Hartsburg hasn't announced his plans, but Alfredsson feels he will fall off the top line with Jason Spezza and Dany Heatley. Spezza also believes Alfredsson will drop, to experiment with different combinations. Alfredsson feels he is 100 healthy after suffering neck and knee injuries in 2007. |
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| Datsyuk takeaway leader | Monday 9/8, 12:29 PM CT |
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Pavel Datsyuk scored 97 points and is obviously a dynamic scoring star in the NHL, but he also plays a fair defensive game as well highlighted by the fact that he led the NHL with 144 takeways last season, according to NHL.com.
Our View: That number may seem a bit nebulous without some context, so how about this: Datsyuk's 144 takeaways were 58 more than any other skater in the NHL. Bump him up another notch or two if your league counts takeaways though he simply must be a top-15 pick no matter what rules your league uses. |
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| Nichol tops in the circle | Monday 9/8, 12:23 PM CT |
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Scott Nichol may only be 5'9" and weigh 175 lbs, but his size doesn't stop him from excelling in the face-off circle where he led the league with a 59.8% last year, according to NHL.com.
Our View: However, because of his somewhat limited game, Nichol was on the ice to take 17.3% of the team's face-offs. If you are looking for a guy who will win the most face-offs give Joe Thornton a look as he led the Western Conference in face-off wins with 785. |
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| Pominville not on verge of signing | Monday 9/8, 12:17 PM CT |
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Jason Pominville and the Sabres are still discussing a new contract for their offensive star, but no deal is immanent according to Hockey Buzz.
Our View: Sources have reported that a deal for Pominville, who scored 80 points last year after a 34 goal, 68 point season in 2006, simply must be re-signed to a deal that keeps him happy as he is clearly the rising star of the Sabres offense. A deal should get done. |
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| Goligoski could make Pens | Monday 9/8, 12:03 PM CT |
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Defensemen Alex Goligoski might be in line to start the year with the Penguins after the foot surgery of Ryan Whitney that will keep him out of action well into the season, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Our View: Goligoski isn't certain to earn a roster spot, though he should be squarely in the mix with Rob Scuderi and Darryl Sydor. None of those three players figure to make a fantasy splash this season no matter who makes the club. |
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| Koivu feeling the heat | Monday 9/8, 11:59 AM CT |
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Saku Koivu has given his all to the game of hockey (including battling through cancer to get back on the ice), but there are still some rather vocal fans in Montreal who want more out of their captain, according to the Montreal Gazette.
Our View: The 33 year old Koivu may not have ever reach the heights that were hoped for when he was taken in the first round in 1993, but he has been a consistent point producer when healthy and a fine leader in the dressing room. Over the past three season he has averaged 18 goals and 64 points marking him as a solid depth center in fantasy leagues. |
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| Ryan not going to Russia | Monday 9/8, 11:52 AM CT |
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Despite a false report that he had signed with Dynamo Minsk of the Russian Continental Hockey League, Michael Ryan still fully plans on continuing with his bid to make the Predators as a free agent, according to the Tennessean.
Our View: Ryan scored eight points in 46 games with the Sabres last year and is nothing more than a potential depth skater for the Preds. Therefore, pay him no mind in your fantasy hockey pools. |
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| Prospect ready for smaller ice | Monday 9/8, 11:46 AM CT |
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Patric Hornqvist doesn't believe the move from the larger ice surfaces of the European game to the smaller rink in North American will affect his game, according to the Tennessean. "I would say I'm kind of a power forward," Hornqvist said. "I like to go to the net and I like to shoot the puck."
Our View: Hornqvist will need to bring his "A" game as the Preds are in need of offense up front with the loss of Alexander Radulov and the continued back issues of Steve Sullivan. |
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| Briere looking to overcome defensive woes | Monday 9/8, 11:42 AM CT |
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Daniel Briere scored 72 points last season in 79 games for the Flyers, though he was also saddled with an awful (-22) mark, something he hopes to improve this year, according to Hockey Buzz's Bill Meltzer.
Our View: While Briere should continue to produce points, he should also improve on the defensive side of the puck as the entire Flyers roster will be more focused in that area of the game. Plus, a healthy Simon Gagne up front and an improved and more mobile blueline should aid in the transition game helping to limit defensive lapses with the puck. |
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| Osgood happy to share load | Monday 9/8, 11:37 AM CT |
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Chris Osgood is the Red Wings clear cut number one goalie this year, he will be supported by Ty Conklin, but that doesn't mean he is hoping for a drastically increase workload after last years 43 game effort, according the Detroit News. "You want to be fresh for the playoffs," he said. "I think the No. 1 point is staying fresh, stay injury-free and be feeling healthy and ready to go in the playoffs."
Our View: While we would certainly expect an increase in games played this year for the 36 year old netminder, we wouldn't expect more than 55 or so starts this season. While that might knock his value down somewhat when compare to other starters in the 60+ range for games played, Osgood should still push for at least 30 victories with extremely solid ratios. |
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| Fleury to return to the ice? | Monday 9/8, 11:29 AM CT |
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Don't be too excited by the headline. While Theoren Fleury has plans to return to the ice this season, if he does so it will be for the Bentley Generals of the Alberta Senior AAA league, according to Slam Sports. "I think I'm going to come back to try to win an Allan Cup," Fleury said.
Our View: Fleury, a fiery presence best known for his glory days in Calgary, is a 40 year old out of shape hockey player with no designs on returning to the NHL. However, he might try to convince his friend Curtis Huppe, and his brother Ted, to join the team coached by his last NHL coach, Brian Sutter. |
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| Boyle was forced out of Tampa | Monday 9/8, 11:22 AM CT |
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Dan Boyle is apparently happy to be a member of the Sharks, but if you ask his old lightning coach John Tortorella, Boyle was mistreated and basically forced out of Tampa, according to the Tampa Tribune. "How you treat your people and run your business is very important in this league. I look at the club and how some things have been done and how they treated Danny Boyle and really lying to the kid, and some of the other things that have gone on there, it's a total different team."
Our View: Boyle will be out to put the hurt feelings behind him and prove that the Sharks got one hell of an offensive defensemen. Given the copious amounts of ice-time he will likely receive, coupled with the forward talent of the Sharks, Boyle could easily re-emerge as a number one fantasy defensemen this season. |
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| Sullivan not ready to rejoin club | Monday 9/8, 9:25 AM CT |
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Steve Sullivan is making some progress in his recovery from a back injury but is not ready to rejoin the Predators, according to the Tennessean.
Our View: The team is preparing for a season without him, and will consider his return a bonus. He contributed 22 goals and 38 assists over 57 outings in 2007-08. |
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| Ortmeyer may not be ready for camp | Monday 9/8, 9:21 AM CT |
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Jed Ortmeyer may not be ready to participate at the beginning of training camp as he is still recovering from knee surgery, according to the Tennessean. He may also be faced with more blood cot issues. He had problems with blood clots earlier in his career and may need blood-thinning medication. He said, "I want to meet with the doctors and see if everything is OK. I've got some doctors' appointments this week and I'm meeting with the new team doctor, so we'll see how everything goes."
Our View: Ortmeyer holds no fantasy value as a checking-line forward, and only has 32 career points (13 goals) over 228 games. |
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