Morning Player Notes in the Draft (Mar 4)

Ryan Getzlaf was noticeably absent from the Anaheim Ducks' lineup on Thursday night, as they took on the Coyotes in Glendale and it is being described as a lower-body injury that is keeping him out.  The injury is believed to be minor and shouldn't keep him out of action for too long.

Allan's team is trying to work its way into the top 10 at the moment, sitting only 9 points back of 10th place in 11th.  If Getzlaf is out for any significant period of time, that could be a tough stretch for Allan's team.

Both Teddy Purcell and Jiri Hudler were able to play in Florida's game on Tuesday night, because the game was in Canada, hence they were able to join the lineup then.  Since Thursday night's game was in Denver, they were unable to play, thanks to working visa issues, but they should be resolved for Saturday's game in Arizona.

These two belong to two teams near the bottom of the standings, Mike and Grant, respectively, so they will affect the race for 27th place, which Grant currently occupies after Thursday night's action.

In the Big Apple, we have a couple of notes... as Marc Staal was held out of the game on Thursday against the Penguins in Pittsburgh, thanks to being under the weather for the evening.  He's currently listed as out day-to-day with being sick.  In the game against the Penguins, goalie Henrik Lundqvist didn't come out for the 3rd period, thanks to some neck spasms and it sounds like it will also keep him from dressing on Friday night, when they visit the league-leading Capitals.  He's also day-to-day at the moment.

Staal belongs to Grant, who we've already outlined as occupying 27th place, and that's all thanks to a share of the lead for the Basement Dweller spot this week.  His 8 points are in a 3-way tie for the honour, heading into the weekend.  Lundqvist, on the other hand, was able to help Derek & Dan's cause in the PIM pool, picking up 2 minutes before leaving the game, but that's all the help he could give for now.

Finally, the Ottawa Senators suffered an injury to their blueline against their expansion cousins from Tampa Bay, as Mark Borowiecki left the game with a knee injury and the initial prognosis is rather bleak.  The Senators reported that their scrappy defender will be out indefinitely with the injury and with only 5+ weeks left to go in the regular season, there is a chance he could be done for it.

Speaking more to the PIM pool, this is a huge blow to Wes' cause, since his team lost a big chunk of it's lead from the end of Week Twenty-One, as it is now down to 12 minutes over Derek & Dan.  If this injury is substantial enough, that could mean Wes would lose both of his Week Eighteen hired guns in a matter of a week.

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