This is the last week of the Olympic break as the NHL will start up again on Monday. In the February 20 column we went over each team’s situation in the Eastern Conference, today we will do the same for the Western Conference. Like last week we will go in order of their place in the standings.
San Jose Sharks:
San Jose has been in this spot before, matter of fact it seems they are in this spot every season. They are one of, if not the best team in the NHL. The regular season has never been a problem for them. The question has always been can they win when it counts, in the playoffs. Most of the heat seems to center on goalie Evgeni Nabokov. Can he win the big game? Well, if the Olympics count for anything, Team Canada lit him up like a Christmas tree on Wednesday night. Playing for Team Russia one could argue that the pressure is just as high as it would be in the playoffs, maybe even more. The next question for the Sharks is will they have enough scoring outside of their top line? Sure Joe Thornton, Dany Heatley, and Patrick Marleau may form the best line in the NHL, but the Sharks will need more than just one line scoring for them to advance deep into the playoffs.
Chicago Blackhawks:
Now here is a team that has everything it needs to make a serious run at the Stanley Cup this season. Their biggest question is in net. Cristobal Huet was the starter at the beginning of the season, and has played well. 24-11-4 with a 2.29 GAA and 90.3 SV % is nothing to sneeze at, but he has been inconsistent at times. That has allowed rookie goaltender Antti Niemi to slowly but surely eat into his playing time. Niemi has a 17-4-1 record with a 2.16 GAA and 91.3 SV %. His numbers are better than Huet’s but not so much so that Niemi is a clear starter, but the Hawks need to figure out over the second half of the season if they want Huet or Niemi to be their full-time starter in the playoffs. There is always an outside chance that the Hawks don’t think either one can carry the team or they trade for a goalie before the deadline, but that might be a bit rough with their current salary cap situation. Outside of that this team is primed for a run this season and in future seasons at the Stanley Cup.
Vancouver Canucks:
How far can the Canucks go in the playoffs? With possibly the best goaltender in the game today in Roberto Luongo, they will always be a threat to win any playoff series. Like a pitcher in baseball, a hot goaltender can determine who wins and who loses. The question for the Canucks will be scoring. Henrik Sedin came out of his brother’s shadow to show the hockey world that he can do more than just pass the puck to Daniel. If the season ended today Henrik would be a top five finisher for NHL MVP. Like so many other teams, second line scoring would be nice.
Phoenix Coyotes:
One has to wonder if this team is built on a house of cards that is just waiting to come tumbling down. They really don’t have the type of scoring to pose a threat to any of the other teams in the playoff hunt, nor do they possess a lockdown defense that can prevent a team from scoring against them. What they do have is a terrific goalie in Ilya Bryzgalov, and a ton of heart. Remember, this is a team that had no idea where they would be playing just a few weeks before the season began. They were within a court’s decision of being moved to Canada. They lost Wayne Gretzky as their coach because the team was in bankruptcy. It’s incredible to think they have come even this far.
Los Angeles Kings:
The Kings were thought to be one year away from being a true playoff contender, but their future seems to have arrived now. Anze Kopitar keeps progressing each and every season and is developing into a superstar. It seems the addition of Ryan Smyth has been superb as his presence in front of the opposing team’s net has given the other players room to maneuver. The biggest question for the Kings coming into the season was in their own net, but Jonathan Quick has grabbed the job by the throat and is showing no signs of letting it go. Alexander Frolov has been a disappointment and he may find himself on a new team by the trading deadline.
Colorado Avalanche:
The Avalanche were thought to be to young a team coming into the season to compete for a playoff berth, but the addition of Matt Duchesne in the draft and Craig Anderson in net has given the franchise the lift they needed coming off the retirement of future Hall of Famer Joe Sakic. It’s unlikely they will go far in the playoffs and they would seem to be candidates for a first round ouster, but the future looks more promising than it did a year ago at this time.
Nashville Predators:
Nashville is currently 7th in the Western Conference and I have a tough time seeing this team stay in a playoff spot as currently constructed, especially with stronger teams like Anaheim and Detroit knocking on the door trying to fight their way in. Nashville has some useful parts like Jason Arnott, J. P. Dumont, Steve Sullivan on offense and Shea Weber on defense, but they don’t have that true number forward that opposing teams have to account for. The Predators were hoping that Alexander Radulov would be that player but he opted to go back to play in the KHL. The Predators have had some talk with Radulov during the Olympics, but nothing appears imminent at the moment. On Wednesday the Predators signed Pekka Rinne to a two-year contract. With Dan Ellis a free agent after this season it remains to be seen if the Predators believe Rinne can be their main netminder or if they are still searching for a franchise goalie.
Calgary Flames:
The Flames have been free falling for a little while now, even falling out of a playoff spot for a bit. They have responded to this dilemma by dealing their top defenseman, Dion Phaneuff to the Maple Leafs, and Olli Jokinen, a player who had never meshed with Calgary since being acquired at least season’s trading deadline, to the Rangers. The question is, will these trades be enough of a shake up to get this team back on the right track? With Jarome Iginla lighting the lamp and Mikka Kirpusoff keeping the other team from doing so, they will always have a punchers chance, but this is looking like a lost season for Calgary.
Dallas Stars:
The biggest question surrounding the Dallas Stars is what would they do with Marty Turco? Turco will be a free agent after this season and the Stars have already made it know that they will no retain his services. After the Stars acquired Kari Lehtonen from the Thrashers a couple of weeks ago there was a train of thought that the Stars would trade Turco before the deadline. There would certainly be a market for his services as there is more than one team with Stanley Cup aspirations that could use a goalie of Turco’s caliber, but with the release of Alex Auld on Wednesday the Stars are prepared to roll with Turco for the remainder of this season.
Detroit Red Wings:
Detroit has just never been able to get untracked this season. Injuries and free agent defections have taken much of the shine off of this organization, but they are finally starting to get healthy now. Johan Franzen is back and producing and Tomas Holmstrom should be healthy as well once the NHL starts up again. Jimmy Howard has stabilized their goaltending after Chris Osgood proved that he is a good goalie for a great team, but is an average goalie for an average team. This is a team to watch over the next six weeks as they still have a boatload of talent and will be pushing for a playoff spot.
Anaheim Ducks:
Anaheim is an enigma of a team. They are loaded with talent on offense and defense however it always seems to take a couple of months into the season before they put it all together. The led the NHL in players selected to the Olympics, so the skill is there. They have suffered their share of injuries this season as well. Teemu Selanne has been on the IR twice with injuries and Joffrey Lupul has missed most of the season with a back injury plus a blood infection. Lupul’s injury hurts as they traded Chris Pronger to obtain him from Philadelphia. The good news is that they have seemingly solved their goaltending issues after Jonas Hiller has played great once given the starting job, the Ducks were convinced enough of such that they traded Jean-Sebastien Giguere to Toronto.
St. Louis Blues:
Slow starts by just about every offensive player on this team doomed them to the bottom of the Western Conference standings. Brad Boyes has been one of the biggest culprits as his numbers have fallen off a cliff. His fantasy players probably wouldn’t mind if he followed his numbers as he has killed quite a few teams. Like a few other teams the Blues have major question marks in net as neither Chris Mason nor Ty Conklin would be a goalie that you would want to begin a franchise with.
Minnesota Wild:
No one should be shocked that this has been a rough season for Minnesota. They have had trouble scoring goals for years and letting Marian Gaborik sign with the Rangers in free agency is certainly not a good start towards solving that problem. They did sign Martin Havlat, and Havlat may be a nice player, but he’s certainly not the caliber of player that Gaborik is. Minnesota will have to find some offensive talent in the off-season if they are to return to prominence.
Columbus Blue Jackets:
The Blue Jackets season went downhill as soon as last year’s Calder Trophy winner Steve Mason forgot how to play goal. Mason was thought to be the goalie of the future in Columbus, but he is suffering from an extreme case of the sophomore jinx. Mason’s numbers so far, 16-19-6, 3.08 GAA and 89.7 SV % have got to make the Blue Jackets wonder if they have the right guy. The good news is they do have a stud in winger Rick Nash, so they have talent to build around.
Edmonton Oilers:
What can you say about the Oilers season, crash and burn about sums it up. Injuries have decimated their roster as it seems just about everyone has suffered one kind of injury or another. Their best offensive player, Ales Hemsky is out for the year with a torn labrum in his shoulder, their best defenseman missed a considerable amount of time with a concussion, and now he is out with a broken bone in his hand, and their big free agent acquisition in net, Nikolai Khabibulin is out for the season with a back injury and last week was arrested for DWI, ouch.
Around The Net February 24, 2010
By George Kurtz
This is the last week of the Olympic break as the NHL will start up again on Monday. In the February 20 column we went over each team’s situation in the Eastern Conference, today we will do the same for the Western Conference. Like last week we will go in order of their place in the standings.
San Jose Sharks:
San Jose has been in this spot before, matter of fact it seems they are in this spot every season. They are one of, if not the best team in the NHL. The regular season has never been a problem for them. The question has always been can they win when it counts, in the playoffs. Most of the heat seems to center on goalie Evgeni Nabokov. Can he win the big game? Well, if the Olympics count for anything, Team Canada lit him up like a Christmas tree on Wednesday night. Playing for Team Russia one could argue that the pressure is just as high as it would be in the playoffs, maybe even more. The next question for the Sharks is will they have enough scoring outside of their top line? Sure Joe Thornton, Dany Heatley, and Patrick Marleau may form the best line in the NHL, but the Sharks will need more than just one line scoring for them to advance deep into the playoffs.
Chicago Blackhawks:
Now here is a team that has everything it needs to make a serious run at the Stanley Cup this season. Their biggest question is in net. Cristobal Huet was the starter at the beginning of the season, and has played well. 24-11-4 with a 2.29 GAA and 90.3 SV % is nothing to sneeze at, but he has been inconsistent at times. That has allowed rookie goaltender Antti Niemi to slowly but surely eat into his playing time. Niemi has a 17-4-1 record with a 2.16 GAA and 91.3 SV %. His numbers are better than Huet’s but not so much so that Niemi is a clear starter, but the Hawks need to figure out over the second half of the season if they want Huet or Niemi to be their full-time starter in the playoffs. There is always an outside chance that the Hawks don’t think either one can carry the team or they trade for a goalie before the deadline, but that might be a bit rough with their current salary cap situation. Outside of that this team is primed for a run this season and in future seasons at the Stanley Cup.
Vancouver Canucks:
How far can the Canucks go in the playoffs? With possibly the best goaltender in the game today in Roberto Luongo, they will always be a threat to win any playoff series. Like a pitcher in baseball, a hot goaltender can determine who wins and who loses. The question for the Canucks will be scoring. Henrik Sedin came out of his brother’s shadow to show the hockey world that he can do more than just pass the puck to Daniel. If the season ended today Henrik would be a top five finisher for NHL MVP. Like so many other teams, second line scoring would be nice.
Phoenix Coyotes:
One has to wonder if this team is built on a house of cards that is just waiting to come tumbling down. They really don’t have the type of scoring to pose a threat to any of the other teams in the playoff hunt, nor do they possess a lockdown defense that can prevent a team from scoring against them. What they do have is a terrific goalie in Ilya Bryzgalov, and a ton of heart. Remember, this is a team that had no idea where they would be playing just a few weeks before the season began. They were within a court’s decision of being moved to Canada. They lost Wayne Gretzky as their coach because the team was in bankruptcy. It’s incredible to think they have come even this far.
Los Angeles Kings:
The Kings were thought to be one year away from being a true playoff contender, but their future seems to have arrived now. Anze Kopitar keeps progressing each and every season and is developing into a superstar. It seems the addition of Ryan Smyth has been superb as his presence in front of the opposing team’s net has given the other players room to maneuver. The biggest question for the Kings coming into the season was in their own net, but Jonathan Quick has grabbed the job by the throat and is showing no signs of letting it go. Alexander Frolov has been a disappointment and he may find himself on a new team by the trading deadline.
Colorado Avalanche:
The Avalanche were thought to be to young a team coming into the season to compete for a playoff berth, but the addition of Matt Duchesne in the draft and Craig Anderson in net has given the franchise the lift they needed coming off the retirement of future Hall of Famer Joe Sakic. It’s unlikely they will go far in the playoffs and they would seem to be candidates for a first round ouster, but the future looks more promising than it did a year ago at this time.
Nashville Predators:
Nashville is currently 7th in the Western Conference and I have a tough time seeing this team stay in a playoff spot as currently constructed, especially with stronger teams like Anaheim and Detroit knocking on the door trying to fight their way in. Nashville has some useful parts like Jason Arnott, J. P. Dumont, Steve Sullivan on offense and Shea Weber on defense, but they don’t have that true number forward that opposing teams have to account for. The Predators were hoping that Alexander Radulov would be that player but he opted to go back to play in the KHL. The Predators have had some talk with Radulov during the Olympics, but nothing appears imminent at the moment. On Wednesday the Predators signed Pekka Rinne to a two-year contract. With Dan Ellis a free agent after this season it remains to be seen if the Predators believe Rinne can be their main netminder or if they are still searching for a franchise goalie.
Calgary Flames:
The Flames have been free falling for a little while now, even falling out of a playoff spot for a bit. They have responded to this dilemma by dealing their top defenseman, Dion Phaneuff to the Maple Leafs, and Olli Jokinen, a player who had never meshed with Calgary since being acquired at least season’s trading deadline, to the Rangers. The question is, will these trades be enough of a shake up to get this team back on the right track? With Jarome Iginla lighting the lamp and Mikka Kirpusoff keeping the other team from doing so, they will always have a punchers chance, but this is looking like a lost season for Calgary.
Dallas Stars:
The biggest question surrounding the Dallas Stars is what would they do with Marty Turco? Turco will be a free agent after this season and the Stars have already made it know that they will no retain his services. After the Stars acquired Kari Lehtonen from the Thrashers a couple of weeks ago there was a train of thought that the Stars would trade Turco before the deadline. There would certainly be a market for his services as there is more than one team with Stanley Cup aspirations that could use a goalie of Turco’s caliber, but with the release of Alex Auld on Wednesday the Stars are prepared to roll with Turco for the remainder of this season.
Detroit Red Wings:
Detroit has just never been able to get untracked this season. Injuries and free agent defections have taken much of the shine off of this organization, but they are finally starting to get healthy now. Johan Franzen is back and producing and Tomas Holmstrom should be healthy as well once the NHL starts up again. Jimmy Howard has stabilized their goaltending after Chris Osgood proved that he is a good goalie for a great team, but is an average goalie for an average team. This is a team to watch over the next six weeks as they still have a boatload of talent and will be pushing for a playoff spot.
Anaheim Ducks:
Anaheim is an enigma of a team. They are loaded with talent on offense and defense however it always seems to take a couple of months into the season before they put it all together. The led the NHL in players selected to the Olympics, so the skill is there. They have suffered their share of injuries this season as well. Teemu Selanne has been on the IR twice with injuries and Joffrey Lupul has missed most of the season with a back injury plus a blood infection. Lupul’s injury hurts as they traded Chris Pronger to obtain him from Philadelphia. The good news is that they have seemingly solved their goaltending issues after Jonas Hiller has played great once given the starting job, the Ducks were convinced enough of such that they traded Jean-Sebastien Giguere to Toronto.
St. Louis Blues:
Slow starts by just about every offensive player on this team doomed them to the bottom of the Western Conference standings. Brad Boyes has been one of the biggest culprits as his numbers have fallen off a cliff. His fantasy players probably wouldn’t mind if he followed his numbers as he has killed quite a few teams. Like a few other teams the Blues have major question marks in net as neither Chris Mason nor Ty Conklin would be a goalie that you would want to begin a franchise with.
Minnesota Wild:
No one should be shocked that this has been a rough season for Minnesota. They have had trouble scoring goals for years and letting Marian Gaborik sign with the Rangers in free agency is certainly not a good start towards solving that problem. They did sign Martin Havlat, and Havlat may be a nice player, but he’s certainly not the caliber of player that Gaborik is. Minnesota will have to find some offensive talent in the off-season if they are to return to prominence.
Columbus Blue Jackets:
The Blue Jackets season went downhill as soon as last year’s Calder Trophy winner Steve Mason forgot how to play goal. Mason was thought to be the goalie of the future in Columbus, but he is suffering from an extreme case of the sophomore jinx. Mason’s numbers so far, 16-19-6, 3.08 GAA and 89.7 SV % have got to make the Blue Jackets wonder if they have the right guy. The good news is they do have a stud in winger Rick Nash, so they have talent to build around.
Edmonton Oilers:
What can you say about the Oilers season, crash and burn about sums it up. Injuries have decimated their roster as it seems just about everyone has suffered one kind of injury or another. Their best offensive player, Ales Hemsky is out for the year with a torn labrum in his shoulder, their best defenseman missed a considerable amount of time with a concussion, and now he is out with a broken bone in his hand, and their big free agent acquisition in net, Nikolai Khabibulin is out for the season with a back injury and last week was arrested for DWI, ouch.
 |
[...] here to read the rest: Around the Net 2/24 | Fantasy Hockey Report Share and [...]