October 6, 2007
Dobber Sports
2007-10-06
Any FANTASY HOCKEY GUIDES that are ordered will be emailed within two hours.
Bryan Berard is still practicing with the Isles and the team still wants to sign him, but are currently at the 23-man roster max. It would seem to me that GM Snow is trying to trade a rearguard to make room, so that is what the wait is for.
Jose Theodore will make his final rehab start in the AHL today and will return to Colorado on Sunday. Both Budaj and Weiman have been shaky in his absence, so stealing the No.1 job is certainly doable.
Martin Havlat's injured shoulder will not require surgery. However, what extent it will have to be rehabbed will not be determined for three weeks or so. Without getting an official number, it is looking as if Havlat will be on the shelf until the end of November. Don't say I didn't warn you – not only is he the Band-Aid boy vice president – but he's also a client.
Tuomo Ruutu will be back in the lineup today and will play with Patrick Kane and Robert Lang.
Mike Keenan played Kristian Huselius 17:50 on Thursday. So much for an anticipated war between the two – it would seem there is nothing to worry about…as long as Huselius produces, that is. Matt Lombardi, by the way, played over 20 minutes.
Jeremy Roenick scored two goals last night. I nearly fell off my chair when I saw the summary. He played 12 minutes. I don't expect it to continue…but I didn't expect a two-goal game, either.
Jonathan Bernier will get the start today for LA.
Mikael Tellqvist will get the start today for Phoenix.
Rick Nash – two goals and two assists last night. Let the career breakout season begin!
Nicklas Backstrom picked up his first career NHL point – an assist – last night for the Caps.
Although Alexander Semin was placed on injured reserve, it was retroactive and he will be eligible to return for today's game against Carolina. George McPhee feels that he will be able to play today, but it will be a coaching decision in the end.
Mike Green notched an assist last night, played over 20 minutes and over six minutes on the power play. If he is availabe in your roto league, I would strongly advise picking him up because he looks to a 35 or even 40-point rearguard this year for the Caps.
Tomas Fleischmann played very well with Ovechkin last night, but he did not play at all on the power play, while Ovechkin played six minutes. As a result, Fleischmann was stuck with just nine minutes of ice time.
I had said in the pool guide that Mike Comrie would have a career season on the Island and that my 64 point prediction may be conservative. So far so good, he grabbed four points last night.
Adam Hall was a healthy scratch last night for Pittsburgh. Evgeni Malkin looked lazy, even though his assist was nothing short of brilliant, he often waited for the puck to come to him and didn't seem to want to work for it. Sykora looked good on Sid's line. Ryan Malone looked pretty useless – the Canes played strong D, but Malone is a better player than that. Anyway, just my quick take on the Penguins. Oh, and Sid, Sykora and Staal played all game together. For once Therrien did not mess with his lines mid game.
If you haven't selected a site to run your fantasy hockey pool yet, take a look at this:
Defenseman Matt Niskanen picked up his first two career NHL points for Dallas last night. He is ranked 320 on my fantasy prospects list, but because he made the team ahead of schedule, he should crack the top 200 by the next update. His upside long-term is the mid to high 50s.
Dallas made Louie Eriksson a healthy scratch last night.
Mike Smith will probably get the start today.
The Oilers sent JF Jacques to Springfield of the AHL.
Ottawa sent Josh Hennessey (who is now back from his shoulder injury) and Nikos Dimitrakos to Binghamton.
St.Louis' attempt to have Cajanek claimed via re-entry waivers failed. As such, he was promptly dispatched to Peoria again.
Mason Raymond picked up his first NHL point last night with an assist. He was, however, removed from the top line by the third period. Ryan Shannon was a disappointing minus-2 on the night.
Eric Brewer will be out of the St.Louis lineup for at least week as he injured his shoulder in a fight and was placed on the IR.
Bought the Pool Guide? Here is a one-page supplemental sheet to give you the update.
Every week, Ken Henderson draws up amusing hockey cartoons and has given DobberHockey permission to post. To introduce you to his work, I will be posting his cartoons daily for the next several days, before giving you his weekly stuff every Saturday.
Visit Ken Henderson's site Offside Sports for more of his work.