Hockeycentric Fantasy Focus: January 28th, 2010
In this week’s fantasy focus, goaltenders steal the show. Craig Anderson, Brian Elliot and Tomas Vokoun combined for a total of four shutouts this week, and their respective teams are looking strong.
Drew Doughty continues to show why he made the Canadian Olympic team, and Kings GM Terry Murray has recently compared Doughty to Hall-of-Fame blueliners Ray Bourque, Paul Coffey and Scott Stevens.
A very light week for injuries, and let’s hope it stays that way as the Olympic tournament is now less than three weeks away. Healthy rosters will make for a more exciting Olympic tournament.
Let’s take a look at last week’s notable player performances:
WHO’S HOT
F – Henrik Sedin – Last 4 GP, 3 goals and 3 assists
F – Evgeni Malkin – Last 3 GP, 1 goal and 5 assists
F – Alexander Semin – Last 4 GP, 5 goals and 4 assists
F – Alexander Ovechkin – Last 4 GP, 4 goals and 4 assists
F – Eric Staal – Last 4 GP, 7 goals
D – Drew Doughty – Last 3 GP, 1 goal and 4 assists
D – Sergei Gonchar – Last 3 GP, 1 goals and 3 assists
D – Nicklas Lidstrom – Last 4 GP, 2 goals and 3 assists
D – Christian Ehrhoff –Last 4 GP, 2 goals and 2 assists
D – Joni Pitkanen – Last 4 GP, 5 assists
G – Craig Anderson – Last 3 GP, 3-0-0, .988 SV%, 0.33 GAA, 2 SO
G – Brian Elliot – Last 3 GP, 3-0-0, .965 SV%, 1.00 GAA, 1 SO
G – Roberto Luongo – Last 4 GP, 4-0-0, .939 SV%, 2.00 GAA
WHO’S COLD
F – Niclas Bergfors – Last 10 GP, 0 goals, 0 assists and a -2 rating
F – Taylor Pyatt – Last 7 GP, 0 goals, 0 assists and a -3 rating
F – Mark Recchi- Last 6 GP, 0 goals, 0 assists and a -4 rating
F – Jay Pandolfo – Last 6 GP, 0 goals, 0 assists and a -3 rating
F – John Madden – Last 6 GP, 0 goals, 0 assists and a -3 rating
D – Ryan Whitney – Last 15 GP, 0 goals, 0 assists and a -12 rating
D – Dan Hamhuis – Last 13 GP, 0 goals, 0 assists and a -5 rating
D – Brad Stuart – Last 11 GP, 0 goals, 0 assist and a -7 rating
D – Michael Roszival – Last 10 GP, 0 goals, 0 assist and +1 rating
D – Mattias Ohlund – Last 10 GP, 0 goals, 0 assists and a -3 rating
G – Chris Mason – Last 3 GP, 0-2-1, 0.897 SV% and 3.29 GAA
G – Carey Price –Last 2 GP, 0-1-1, .873 SV% and 3.43 GAA
G – Manny Legace – Last 2 GP, 0-2-0, .880 SV% and 3.15 GAA
WAIVER WATCH
A former 4th overall pick who struggled mightily in Minnesota, Benoit Pouliot has stepped it up in Montreal. It looks like both teams benefited from the deal that saw Latendresse go to the Wild and Pouliot join the Habs. Pouliot has 8 goals in the month of January, including 4 in his last 5 games.
The surging Ottawa Senators have won 7 in a row, and Brian Elliot has been standing on his head. His stats say it all: Last 5 GP, 5-0-0, 1.00 GAA, .964 SV% with 1 shutout. If the Senators can keep it rolling like this, they’ll soon catch Buffalo at the top of the Northwest Division.
Since being shunned by the Finnish Olympic team, Jussi Jokinen has been on a tear. He has 17 points in his last 14 games, on a particularly bad Hurricanes team. He’s also 4-for-7 in the shootout this season. The Finns are going to regret skipping over this guy.
DROP IT LIKE IT’S HOT
With all of the Ilya Kovalchuk trade talk lately, the Atlanta Thrashers are playing like a distracted bunch. Maxim Afinogenov, after a very strong start to the season, has only 2 goals in his last 10 games. He was on pace for a career year, but it looks like he’ll fall short of that now.
We mentioned him in the Waiver Wire last week, but Mike Brodeur has been knocked out of the starting position in Ottawa by the stellar play of Brian Elliott. While there is still no timetable for Pascal Leclaire’s return, Elliott looks like he is stealing the show, and Brodeur may have lost his status as a viable fantasy option.
Alexander Frolov scored his first goal since New Year’s Eve on Tuesday night vs. the Leafs. Since peaking in 2006-07 with 71 points, his stats have really gone downhill. Expect to hear his name in trade talk surrounding the deadline.
INJURY REPORT
The Florida Panthers leading scorer Nathan Horton will be out 4-6 weeks with a fractured tibia. On the bright side, Horton’s injury will not require surgery, and he will have the Olympic break to recover. However, this does significantly affect Florida’s chances of making the playoffs.
During the Capitals-Islanders tilt on Tuesday evening, Cap’s goaltender Jose Theodore was replaced late in the game by Michael Neuvirth. Theodore is now day-to-day with a lower body injury. With both Varlamov and Theodore hurt, the Capitals recalled Braden Holtby from the Hershey Bears of the AHL. Neuvirth will handle the majority of the goaltending duties.
Jack Hillen will be out 6-8 weeks with a broken jaw and missing teeth after taking a vicious Alex Ovechkin one-timer to the face. He remained hospitalized late Tuesday night after the incident. Remarkably, he skated off the ice under his own power.
Check back every Thursday morning for the Fantasy Focus, and don’t forget to check out our line combos section, updated throughout the week.
