Morning Player Notes in the Draft (Jan 1)

On Friday night, it should be noted that Flyers number one goalie Steve Mason was forced from the 2-0 loss to the San Jose Sharks, by what is believed to be a hand injury. Anthony Stolarz had to come in for a relief effort, which was good, but had no offensive help.  Mason was able to practice on Saturday, but remains questionable for the start today in Anaheim, which will be their last game until Wednesday.  The Flyers don't want to give up any points on this current trip, but the health of their number one should be a big concern for them.

Nevertheless, it sounds like Mason is only day-to-day with his current injury and could very well be the back-up today, if he isn't fit enough to start.  As good as 2 points might be in the pool, I'm sure Brenda & Seward would much rather prefer a bit of caution with Mason, who has been known to be injury prone in the past.

Marc-Edouard Vlasic of the Sharks was held out of Saturday night's contest with the Los Angeles Kings, due to a facial injury, after he took a puck up high in Friday's game against the Flyers.  There won't be any dental surgery needed, but it sounds like there was plenty of swelling and they need that to go down before he can play again.  He's listed as day-to-day right now.

The rough season only gets rougher for Grant, whose team has seen a decent week, but those teams around him have done very much the same, so there have been no gains.  He'll certainly be hoping for some help in the outdoor games pool, about the only place he will be able to earn some money this year.

The Pittsburgh Penguins were happy to welcome Kris Letang back into their lineup on Saturday night, as he had been out for the last couple of weeks with another lower-body injury. He picked up a pair of assists in the 4-3 overtime win over the Canadiens and will certainly provide a boost to the team's offense.

Mike's team has held their own in Letang's absence and his return was definitely a boost, as his team was in 8th and hovering there for a while at the time of the injury and the morning after his return, his team has moved into 7th and has closed the gap on the money to 12 points.  I get the feeling that Mike's team could get hot here soon.