NHL Skinny: Chance for Cheech
GOALIE HOT SEAT
FLORIDA PANTHERS RED HOT
1st Chair: Tomas Vokoun
2nd Chair: Craig Anderson
Skinny: Anderson will start Monday against Montreal, no surprise after Vokoun allowed nine goals in five periods on back-to-back nights against Tampa. It will be the backup's first start since a rough go in Vancouver on Dec. 14. The way coach Pete DeBoer has handled this battle, Anderson is likely in a win-and-stay-in situation.
NASHVILLE PREDATORS RED HOT
1st Chair: Dan Ellis
2nd Chair: Pekka Rinne
Skinny: The goodwill from Ellis' 38-save win over Detroit on Friday only lasted so long, as the netminder was yanked early Sunday after allowing four goals on 17 shots against Edmonton. Even with the hiccup Ellis sports a sub-2.00 GAA and a .937 save percentage in six December starts. According to the Tennessean, Rinne will get the start Monday against Colorado. Best guess has him back on the ice Thursday if he wins.
LOS ANGELES KINGS RED HOT
1st Chair: Jon Quick
2nd Chair: Jason LaBarbera, Erik Ersberg, Jonathan Bernier
Skinny: Long-term just about anything is possible here, but what we know for sure is that Quick starts Monday against Columbus. Nothing shocking there, of course, as Quick stopped 74 of 76 shots while recording two shutouts in his last three starts. He's up under emergency conditions right now, but the Kings seem inclined to change his status if the hot streak continues.
OTTAWA SENATORS RED HOT
1st Chair: Martin Gerber
2nd Chair: Alex Auld
Skinny: Mediocre was just fine here last year when Ottawa was leading the NHL with 258 goals. This season average doesn't cut it, not with the Sens scoring a league-low 2.32 goals per game. Auld holds a 7-5 advantage in December starts, but has allowed 24 goals in his last five tries. Both goalies figure to be active for the remaining five games of a brutal eight-game trip. Maybe a hot hand will emerge. Probably not, though.
PHILADELPHIA FLYERS HOT
1st Chair: Martin Biron
2nd Chair: Antero Niittymaki
Skinny: Biron missed five games with the flu and looked understandably rusty in losing 5-1 to Chicago on Friday. It was the ninth straight start in which he allowed three or more goals. Niittymaki went 5-2-1 with a .911 save percentage in December and at least established the fact that the Flyers won't implode with him as the No. 1.
EDMONTON OILERS HOT
1st Chair: Dwayne Roloson
2nd Chair: Mathieu Garon, Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers
Skinny: Garon is performing like a solid short-term bargain. Just 22-percent owned, he's the winner of his last three starts and owns a solid .929 save percentage in December. Drouin-Deslauriers has been sent to the AHL for a two-week conditioning assignment and Garon has been relegated to backup duties for now.
CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS HOT
1st Chair: Nikolai Khabibulin
2nd Chair: Cristobal Huet
Skinny: It's been a fairly even rotation since Khabibulin's return and considering the team's success the timeshare will likely continue. One interesting development, however, as the Chicago Tribune hinted that Khabibulin might start Thursday's Winter Classic. Given how that game played out last season, it could be an advantageous start.
WASHINGTON CAPITALS HOT
1st Chair: Jose Theodore
2nd Chair: Brent Johnson, Simeon Varlamov
Skinny: According to the Washington Post, Theodore will make his fourth straight start Tuesday in Buffalo. First-hand accounts indicate his improvement is evident in his play, not just his numbers (3 straight wins, 66 saves on 73 shots). Varlamov has been demoted to Hershey, but with Theodore's history of confidence issues, you probably want to keep both he and Johnson on speed dial.
VANCOUVER CANUCKS WARM
1st Chair: Curtis Sanford
2nd Chair: Cory Schneider, Roberto Luongo
Skinny: The consensus in Vancouver is that Schneider is not ready for prime time. So we should continue to see more of Sanford, who Sunday recorded his first shutout since 2005-06. The Luongo comeback, Part II, may begin Wednesday, when he is expected to resume skating.
ATLANTA THRASHERS WARM
1st Chair: Kari Lehtonen
2nd Chair: Johan Hedberg
Skinny: Lehtonen is 1-2 since returning from injury, though Sunday's loss belongs in the hard-luck column as he stopped 26 of 28 shots in a 2-1 loss to red-hot Boston. Hedberg will probably see action this week as Atlanta plays road games on back-to-back nights Tuesday and Wednesday. The Thrashers are still being careful with Kari, and for good reason.
COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS LUKEWARM
1st Chair: Steve Mason
2nd Chair: Pascal Leclaire
Skinny: The Jackets were at least entertaining the notion of starting Leclaire on Monday in Los Angeles. Getting him work on the six-game road trip wouldn't be a surprise, but sitting Mason after a shutout would be a mild shock. Speaking of Mason, he remains unowned in about 35 percent of Yahoo! leagues despite a run of eight straight useful starts. Again, goalie value is about more than just wins.
DETROIT RED WINGS LUKEWARM
1st Chair: Ty Conklin
2nd Chair: Chris Osgood
Skinny: Osgood practiced Monday but it appears that the Wings will go with Conklin on Tuesday against Chicago. Given his history in outdoor games, it would not be a surprise to see Conklin again Thursday at Wrigley Field. Osgood has missed five games with a groin injury.
Happy New Year, everyone. It's been a pleasure being a small part of Yahoo! Sports' fantasy offerings in a year that saw the rise of the Roto Arcade and some compelling stories around the world of rotisserie sports.
I hate to insinuate that hockey plays second fiddle to any sport, but now that big bad football is out of the way for 2008, you'll start to see more puck updates in the blog. I'll still be here every Monday, but please check the Arcade regularly in 2009 for quick-hit updates in both hockey and basketball. See you next year.
Weekend UpdateNeed-to-know info from the past few days
• Jonathan Cheechoo is a borderline bargain-bin candidate, owned in just 55-percent of Yahoo! leagues. This isn't a "what are you thinking?" rant. Cheechoo is several years and countless trips to the training table removed from the 56-goal season that put him on the fantasy radar in the first place. In standard formats there's no doubt that 20 more productive RW options are out there. But the possibility always exists that Cheechoo will get healthy at a time the Sharks need him as a top-six forward and that time could be now.
He'll line up Monday on Joe Thornton's right wing, and he'll do so with a modest three-game point streak (one goal, three assists) already in the books. The vacancy on Thornton's wing was created when Devin Setoguchi was forced to leave the team due to a death in the family. Cheechoo had already jumped Milan Michalek in the forward pecking order. Just what he does with this latest opportunity remains to be seen, but it's worth monitoring with Setoguchi falling a bit off his early season scoring pace.
• Sunday's hero was Blackhawks winger Dustin Byfuglien, a Minnesota native who returned home to burn the Wild with four points in a 4-1 Chicago victory. There's a lot to like about Byfuglien from a fantasy perspective, the most obvious being his position flexibility – you can plug him in at both wing positions and defense. He's also a big kid. At 6-foot-3 and nearly 250-pounds, he's capable of scoring goals in traffic and on deflections. Coming off last season's 19-goal breakout, the 23-year-old was universally drafted in Yahoo! leagues, posting an ADP of 116.1. Three months into the season, however, Byfuglien is owned in only 58 percent of leagues. That's what happens when a sleeper pick comes out of the gate with six points in 19 games.
There have been signs of a turnaround even before Sunday's two-goal, two assist effort. In October the converted defenseman averaged 2.2 shots per game. In November that figure was 2.3 per game. This month, however, he's been more active in the offensive zone, averaging just shy of 4.0 shots per game. Not surprisingly the additional scoring opportunities have led to his most productive month of the season (10 points, plus-6 in 11 games). In last month per-game rank he's a top 5 defenseman, certainly worthy of a roster spot in leagues that require three or more starting d-men. The buy-low period won't last long. I'm buying where available before this week's home and home against Detroit.
One-timers: Kings defenseman Jack Johnson could be cleared for contact Jan. 10, according to the Daily News. … Avs center Paul Stastny will undergo surgery Tuesday. More will be known then, but the Denver Post is speculating a 6-8 week absence. … Hip surgery could sideline Paul Kariya for the remainder of the season. … Rick DiPietro missed Monday's game with a groin injury. … Florida left wing David Booth has 10 goals in 15 games.
BARGAIN BIN: Top players available in 50 percent of Yahoo! leagues
Blake Wheeler, RW, Bos (26-percent owned) – The relevant stat for Wheeler is the "1" in the "PPP" column. The Bruins rookie has 23 points on the season – 14 of those points and seven goals coming in the last 14 games – but has largely been left out of man-advantage situations. Well it appears that coach Claude Julien is tinkering with his power-play assignments, and as of Monday it was Blake Wheeler, not Milan Lucic, on the No. 2 unit. Wheeler has the skill set to thrive on special teams, so it will be interesting to see how he capitalizes on the opportunity.
Bobby Ryan, RW, Ana (24-percent owned) – He's riding a five-game point streak (2 goals, 6 assists), with the latest point being the game-winning goal in a 4-3 win over St. Louis on Sunday. With Teemu Selanne out Ryan is getting ample time on special teams. Four points during his five-game streak have come on the power-play and you can't discount those points that count in two categories. Ryan should be rostered with confidence in any league that starts three or more RWs, and is a solid injury fill-in for those owners in standard leagues.
MARKET MOVERS: Charting player values
Pavol Demitra, C/LW, Van – With Taylor Pyatt out for a month, Demitra was reunited with the Sedin twins in Sunday's 3-0 win over Ottawa. Demitra responded with a goal and an assist, likely extending his stay on Vancouver's top line. Overall it's been a tough season for the Czech forward, who scored 11 of his 20 points during a seven-game point streak in early November and hasn't done much else.
Bryan Little, C, Atl – He's still only 38-percent owned despite scoring six goals in his last three games and ranking 10th in the league with 18 goals, tied with the likes of Patrick Marleau. Frankly the ownership figure is understandable given the depth at the center position. Since he is playing right wing, however, it could be worth a speculative add hoping he gains the position flexibility.
Ryan Smyth, LW, Col – Injuries have robbed the Avs of several scoring options, opening the door for Smyth to make an impact. So far, so good as Smyth, currently 64-percent owned, has six points in two games.
Michael Ryder, RW, Bos – He's riding a streak of nine goals in 11 games as Boston is rolling out three potent lines these days.
Brad Winchester, LW, Stl – It's the injury to Paul Kariya that creates the void here and Winchester is a candidate to pick up the scoring slack. He had quite a game Saturday with a goal and the shootout winner against San Jose, extending a modest scoring run that includes five goals in eight games. That's a big leap considering he now has 10 goals in 137 career games.
Scott Clemmenson, G, NJ – Despite a pair of recent losses, Clemmenson is riding a remarkable run of 17 straight useful starts for fantasy purposes (either a win or solid supporting numbers). Amazingly he's only owned in about 60 percent of Yahoo! leagues. Even with Martin Brodeur reportedly about a month ahead of schedule for a return, Clemmenson is a guy who should be universally owned.
Ryan Whitney, D, Pit – He returned as expected last week and after two games without a shot or point recorded an assist Saturday in a 3-2 loss to Montreal. Whitney is still a free agent in about 40 percent of Yahoo! leagues, so it's worth a look-see.
James Neal, LW, Dal – Just 3-percent owned, Neal has five goals, an assist and a fight in Dallas' last four games. Injuries and other "departures" have opened a scoring void and so far Neal, a 2005 second-round pick, has obliged.
John-Michael Liles, D, Col – He has four power-play points in his last two games and seven points in eight games overall. Liles' stats have been on a steady decline since 2005-06 but there's no doubt the skill exists to be at least a D3 in fantasy leagues.
Yahoo! Friends and Family League update
No change atop the standings, where Janet Eagleson makes it four straight weeks in the catbird seat. Team Romig continues to slip and is paying the price for drafting Pascal Leclaire and not reacting quickly enough to Steve Mason's challenge. Speaking of Quick, I signed the Los Angeles goalie to see if he can maintain the hot hand. Hint: he won't. Other transactions league-wide involved Andrew Ladd (points in 6 of 7), Alexander Edler (6 points in last 9), Andrei Kostitsyn (weekend hat trick), Antero Niittymaki and others.
