Sheet Player News (Dec. 23)

On Tuesday night against the Coyotes, Panthers Box 6 forward Marco Sturm left the game with what was called a leg injury after blocking a shot. The details are now getting somewhat hazy on Friday morning, as there is a hint that Sturm may have been hit on the head with a puck, while he was on the bench and is now suffering concussion-like symptoms. There is no real confirmation on the concussion, so we'll just call it a leg injury for now, but at least we have something to keep an eye out for.  Sturm is not much of a fantasy option this season, with only 3 points to date.

The rotation among Panthers defensemen continued on Thursday night, as Erik Gudbranson was a healthy scratch yet again, as the team took on the Senators.  Gudbranson hasn't dominated any play this year for Florida, so his season has been somewhat disappointing.  Gudbranson has only 1 goal and 1 assist in 26 games this year and did doesn't appear like his play away from the puck or in the defensive zone have been good enough to keep him in the line-up, despite his offensive numbers, so he may not be a good pick this year.  Re-visit him again next season.

Another one of my long shot prospects on the sheet, Austin Watson of the Nashville Predators, was named to the USA squad for the World Junior Championships this year, which is a great honour for him. Watson was sent back to juniors out of training camp this year, after being heralded as a top prospect for Nashville this season, but obviously, the team wanted a little bit more seasoning on him before joining the big club.  Watson has 33 points in 32 games with the Peterborough Petes in the OHL this season.