Sergei Kostitsyn – out for tonight.

Angus here – got a few posts up today for my blogging contest at the Province Sports. Please read and give me a thumbs up, I’d appreciate the support!

Post 1 – Scariest Canucks of the Past Decade, Part II

Post 2 – Mad Max: The Fourth Line Warrior.

LIKE the Dobber Sports Facebook page and on Wednesday I will draw 12 names. The first name drawn from the list of “likes” will receive an EASTON Stealth RS hockey stick. The one I have is a left shot, so if you shoot right and your name is drawn I have a Synergy EQ50 I can send instead. The second name will receive an autographed Sergei Gonchar picture. The next 10 names drawn will receive 10 free premium memberships at Pick’em First, which is a kick-ass fantasy tool that helps you find and read info on players of interest quickly and easily. The app itself is free, but the premium features are not – I have 10 memberships I can give away. So get on it!

Simon Gagne is out of the lineup day-to-day, having missed Friday's practice and Sunday's contest. LA will not disclose what the problem is. Gagne has been enjoying a resurgence, but I guess there is no escaping the injuries with this guy.

Besides Gagne, Ryan Smyth is also enjoying a resurgence. He has 10 points in 11 games, including five in his last two. With the kid line going, and Smyth going, the Oilers are going to be tough to beat. Not to mention that Dubnyk has a 1.98 GAA and a .938 SP – and he's been the worst of the two goalies. The 'Bulin Wall, for now, is back.

Mike Fisher was knocked out of Saturday's game. Head shot? Shoulders? I don't like how Craig Smith's linemates are dropping like flies. An unproven rookie, no matter how good (well, that's not true – elite ones excepted), can take a few games to get their rhythm back with new linemates. And in front of a coach like Trotz, Smith may not get a few games. Throw in a Martin Erat return and a Patric Hornqvist slump-breaking goal and I'm one worried Smith owner. The best thing would be status quo – same linemates, lots of chemistry – and confidence from the coach. Let's see how Craig Smith reacts. Fisher, by the way, is not with the team in Chicago today.

Bet the Preds wish they could take back that O'Reilly trade now, eh?

By the way (for those who don't follow me on Twitter) – I'm a big fan of Cal O'Reilly in Phoenix. Call it a hunch, but it just fits really well.

The Preds recalling Ryan Thang indicates that Sergei Kostitsyn will be out for the Chicago game as well.

Three games, one assist for David Booth in Vancouver. And minus-3. Not a great start, obviously. But things can't get any worse so I would classify him as a cautious buy. Cautious because he just hasn't been the same player since that head shot so don't expect a return to the 60-point glory he enjoyed once.

The Grabovski, MacArthur, Kulemin line is back on track for Toronto. If Kessel (75) and Lupul (65) can combine for 140 points this year and the second line does what it did last season, then the Leafs will beat the projection of every expert out there by a wide margin. Two quality lines, a solid James Reimer (if healthy), and a defense corps that boasts Cody Franson as the No. 7 and Keith Aulie as the No. 8… and a $3 million player as the No. 9 ;). And Jonas Gustavsson has been alright. Not a long-term solution, but he's proven to be quite adequate.

Last year at this time we had (GP and PTS):

LIDSTROM, NICKLAS                  9                         11

LETANG, KRISTOPHER               12                       11

LILES, JOHN-MICHAEL               11                       11

WISNIEWSKI, JAMES                    9                        11

ENSTROM, TOBIAS                      11                       10

KEITH, DUNCAN                           13                      10

WHITNEY, RYAN                            9                        9

This year:

KARLSSON, ERIK                          12                    13

BERGERON, MARC-ANDRE         11                    12

PHANEUF, DION                            11                    10

LETANG, KRISTOPHER                 11                    10

TIMONEN, KIMMO                       11                     9

EDLER, ALEXANDER                     11                     9

CAMPBELL, BRIAN                       10                      9

GONCHAR, SERGEI                       11                     9

It just strikes as being in a better position for a couple of 70-point rearguards this season. By the way, the numbers above were instantly arrived it, for both years, thanks to Frozen Pool.

A chance for Jaroslav Halak to get his job back – blown. Four goals given up on 30 shots and another loss. I think he'll work his way out of it, but don't count on anything for a good three weeks. And it will get worse before it gets better.

So Steve Mason has had strong starts in two of his last three. And the loss in between was an average game, or slightly below average. Still, the Jackets have lost enough games to last them  the next three weeks so perhaps some wins are in the cards. If so, it will be Mason getting them.

Sean Avery is back on re-entry waivers.

Nikita Filatov saw just five minutes of action in his NHL return. That's because the game was close, but it's telling that Daugavins saw three times the amount of ice time. Daugavins played a strong game and scored a goal.

I don't like this at all, as a Brett MacLean owner in one league – he was re-acquired by the Coyotes. And he has been sent down to the AHL. The Jets tried to sneak him down. This is a shock, given that MacLean asked the Coyotes to waive him in the first place. He asked for an NHL chance, he got one, and now it's over. That being said, MacLean got 43 minutes in ice time (i.e. three games worth, though he played in five) and had two points. I don't think two points in 43 minutes is that bad. And plus-1 on a brutal plus/minus team.

The Penguins have played 13 games in 24 days… but now they are in a stretch where they play just twice in 12 days. Logically, a Crosby return would fit in nicely with such a light schedule. It also helps Malkin's knee.

Some suspensions on the docket? First Konopka on Anisimov:

Konopka did not play Sunday. Anisimov's injury (and Rupp's) led to the Avery re-entry and the recall of Andre Deveaux.

Then Alfredsson getting a Wolski elbow:

Beauchemin on Fisher big time – wowzers:

Let's keep the clips going with this unlikely tilt – Cogliano vs. Russell?!?!?!: