Henrik Lundqvist is off to a fast start with 1.33 GAA and a 3-0 record.
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The first week of the NHL season has brought some highs and lows to the Eastern Conference teams. Here’s a look:
Atlanta: Coach John Anderson has the Thrashers playing an up-tempo game and it has shown with a win over the Capitals and an overtime loss to the Panthers. What is interesting is that the first two spots on the stat sheet are defensemen, Niclas Havelid and Ron Hainsey. Ilya Kovalchuk is off to a slow start with only two assists and a paltry five shots. Brian Little can be a nice supplement to your bench as he has the hot hand with two goals ands an assist in the first two games. Fantasy teams that picked up Mathieu Schneider will be disappointed as the 39 year-old defenseman has looked slow at times.
Boston: The Bruins have started the season 1-1 while playing on the road and will not play their first home game until October 20th. Marc Savard is rewarding fantasy owners with a good start and Michael Ryder is living up to his “bounce back” player status with three points in the first two games. Chuck Kobasew owners are grinding their teeth as he has incurred yet another injury and is now eligible to be added to the chronically injured list. He missed nine games last season, 32 in 06-07 and five in 05-06. He’ll miss a few weeks with a broken shinbone. Kobasew owners might take a look at young Blake Wheeler, who could move up the ladder and take over Kobasew’s right wing position.
Buffalo: Don’t look now, but the Sabres have started the season on a 2-0 run. Thomas Vanek is off and running with three goals, including a shorthander and is skating very well. Ales Kotalik and Jason Pominville have looked good as well and each sits with three points. Young defensemen Andrej Sekera is being used in all situations by Coach Lindy Ruff and is logging loads of ice time. It is only a matter of time before he starts scoring.
Carolina: The Canes scored 10 goals in their first two games led by Rod Brind’Amour, Ray Whitney, Eric Staal and Matt Cullen. Joe Corvo has started slow with only one goal and a minus-1 but Dennis Seidenberg has played a monster first two games and has two assists already after getting 15 all of last season.
Florida: David Booth has been a nice surprise for the Panthers with three goals and an assist in the first two games. It’s nice to see Richard Zednik return to the Florida lineup after the life threatening injury last season and put up two helpers. Nathan Horton will lead the team in scoring but there is plenty to offer fantasy players as Booth, Stephen Weiss and Cory Stillman will get plenty of points.
Montreal: The Habs rebounded from an opening night overtime shootout loss to the Sabres by putting up a six spot against the Leafs. Sergei, not Andrei, Kostitsyn is leading the team with five points while Saku Koivu and Andre Markov have four helpers apiece. Tomas Plekanec has started slowly but will get untracked soon.
New Jersey: If you drafted some Devils on your fantasy team, you could be in for a long season, as it appears that Coach Brent Sutter is sticking to the defense first style of play. With only three goals scored in their first two games, fantasy players that drafted Brian Gionta, Patrik Elias and Zach Parise should expect point totals to be a little lower.
NY Islanders: The Islanders will be a mercurial team this season, winning some tight games and getting blown out in others. First year Coach Scott Gordon will have to find some chemistry with his lines, as it appears to be a paucity of scoring on the team. Flip a coin-Mike Comrie, Doug Weight or Bill Guerin will lead the team in scoring. Keep an eye on Jon Sim, who missed a ton of games last season, but is shooting the puck as he stands with seven shots on goal. All those that drafted Mark Streit should start holding their breath as he is minus-2 already, and with the ice time that he will get, minus-20 could very well be reality.
NY Rangers: The Blueshirts are off to an amazing start this season. Fresh off of the sweep in Prague, the Rangers continued the momentum with Brandon Dubinsky and Aaron Voros leading the way. If you have an open roster spot or need an injury reserve, pick up Voros as it appears the Rangers are using his 6-3 frame in front of the opposing netminder on the power play. He could pick up a few garbage goals. Chris Drury is off to a slow start but should start to pick it up soon. Henrik Lundquist is solidifying his position as a top three goaltender in the league and is playing his angles extremely well.
Ottawa: Dany Heatley is off to a fast start for the Senators with three goals and a helper. Filip Kuba likes the Ottawa atmosphere as compared to Tampa and has four helpers on the year already. Holders of Daniel Alfredsson have to be disappointed, as he has gone down with an injury. It appears that Martin Gerber will be pushed by backup Alex Auld all season as Gerber has been regular and Auld was spectacular in his only start.
Philadelphia: The Flyers have the goose egg in the win column thus far but not because of Daniel Briere and Mike Richards. Both of those players have started strong, but the same cannot be said for Joffrey Lupul or Mike Knuble who are struggling. Marty Biron was lifted in the Rangers loss but rebounded to play well in his second start. Young defenseman Luca Sbisa has shown some poise and is getting prime ice time.
Pittsburgh: When you look at the Penguins lineup, somehow you feel you should see more than six goals scored in three games. Peter Sykora has not played yet due to an injury and Sergei Gonchar will miss five months with a shoulder injury. Coach Michel Therrien has had to mix his lines up and that has had an effect on the chemistry. A player to grab if you have an opening is defenseman Alex Goligoski, who sat out the opener in Switzerland but has since netted a goal and is playing well.
Tampa Bay: The Bolts have yet to crack the win column and it is no surprise with only five goals scored in three games. Vinny Lecavalier is off to a slow start after the surgery and it is having a trickle down effect. Rookie Steve Stamkos is being handled with care and newcomers Ryan Malone, Gary Roberts and Radim Vrbata seem out of place. Defenseman Matt Carle should have a rebound year in Tampa this season after the disappointing year last season.
Toronto: After holding the powerful Red Wings to just two goals in a season opening win, the Leafs have given up 11 goals in the two subsequent losses to Montreal and St. Louis. Rookie Nikolai Kulemin leads the team in goals with two and with some confidence and playing time, could lead the team in scoring this season. Niklas Hagman has played well and is second on the team in shots to Jason Blake.
Washington: The Capitals boast one of the more potent lineups in the league. Alexander Semin is off to a sizzling hot start with six points in the first three games. Mike Green is out to prove that last season was no fluke and has so thus far with five points. The return of Michael Nylander adds more offense and if sophomore Nicklas Backstrom doesn’t regress this season, the Capitals will win the Southeast.
WALES CONFERENCE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK (For games Oct 4-Oct 12)
Forward- David Booth-Fla: 3 goals, 1 assist., 10 SOG, plus-4
Defenseman- Mike Green-Wsh: 2 goals, 1 assist, 11 SOG, plus-2
Goalie- Henrik Lundquist-NYR: 3 wins, 1.33 GAA, .944 SP
