Bruins Ink Thomas

It looks like the Bruins have chosen their number one goalie for the coming season, but it really was a no-brainer. Tim Thomas has reportedly signed a new 3-year deal, which will pay him $5.2 million per season. This looks to be one of the better pro-cap deals made of late, as the new salary should jive with both market value and future economic status.

With 33 wins, 4 shutouts and an assist this season, Thomas has 75 pool points, which has him in the top 30 pool players. Other goalies on this list, who are not on one of their first contracts (Steve Mason & Cam Ward) have cap hits in the $6 million range, if not better (Roberto Luongo & Henrik Lundqvist). This is a savvy move by Bruins' management now, as the length of the deal could see Thomas as an unrestricted free agent with a market upswing in progress.

By my estimation today, the Bruins have 16 players now signed on for next season and have it all at $48.5 million (rounded up), which should bode well down the stretch. David Krejci and Phil Kessel are key restricted free agents this summer, but they are also good trade bait at the draft, which should make Boston an interesting player in the off-season.

UPDATE: Thomas' deal is now reportedly for 4 years and worth $20 million in total, a $5 million cap hit.

Click here to see an updated injury page.

Bytes from Thursday Night

The Flames beat the Stars on Thursday night, but they are waiting to see if they lost Robyn Regehr to any substantial injury as well. Regehr left the game in the second period with an apparent lower body injury after placing a hit on Fabian Brunnstrom. Regehr did not return to the game and very little was said about the injury, except that he'll be day-to-day for now.

If the Canadiens are going to be riding Carey Price into the playoffs, he's going to have to be healthy going in. That's what he wasn't last night, as Price was suffering from a pretty bad flu bug, which caused him to miss Thursday's game against the Islanders. There is no timetable for his return to the line-up, although you would think that the team is hoping to get him back as soon as possible. Montreal goes again on Saturday in Toronto. Also, Sergei Kostitsyn was deemed a healthy scratch against the Islanders, likely not living up to the work ethic expected of him.

In more of a precautionary measure, the Islanders decided to rest young sensation, Kyle Okposo, as he was feeling a bit sore in the groin area. The injury isn't thought to be serious, but the team doesn't want to risk his health at this point of the season, when the games mean virtually nothing to the team. I would expect him to miss one more game and then come back for the last week of the season.

Okay, in the Coyotes line-up on Thursday night versus Los Angeles were Steve Reinprecht and Kyle Turris. Coming out of the line-up as scratches were Martin Hanzal, Mikael Boedker and Nigel Dawes. Now there should only be four more games of the revolving door in Phoenix.

Click here to see an updated injury page.

Smyth Done For Remainder

Bad news from Avalanche camp, as Ryan Smyth will now miss the remainder of the regular season with a fractured bone in his hand. Smyth left the game last night against Phoenix with a hand injury and x-rays were negative today, revealing the fracture. The Avalanche are out of the playoff picture and won't be in dire need for Smyth's services in the last week of the season.

Smyth figured into all of the Avalanche's 77 games leading up to the injury this season, scoring 26 goals and adding 33 assists, which should be considered a respectable season, especially on a team that was so shorthanded of much of their skilled players and Smyth's linemates.

Smyth, a Draft pick of Don's, should still have a good shot at finishing in the top 100 in pool scoring this year, but that was far from being enough to help Don ascend into a money position. Smyth, prior to the 2007/'08 season, was a regular in the top 75 in pool scoring and it looks like he's return back to form. His stock has returned to normal.

Click here to see an updated injury page.

Lightning Shut Down Lecavalier

It looks as though Vincent Lecavalier will be shut down early again this season, as he'll undergo surgery on his wrist on Friday, keeping him out of the final week of the season. Last season, Lecavalier suffered a shoulder injury in the second last game of the season, which shut his season down early. Again, the Lightning are nowhere near the playoff picture this season, so there is only a reward for taking him out of the line-up now and that's to be 100% come training camp in September.

It has been an underachieving season for Lecavalier this year, as he only reached in for 67 points this year in 77 games. He almost made the 30-goal plateau, scoring 29, but it really wasn't enough for the Lightning or for Wes, who had him in the Draft. The wrist injury does beg the question, how much of his below-par season was due to the early coaching difficulties, team structure or wrist injury.

It may be a little early to say that his stock has dropped for fantasy purposes, as the Lightning and Lecavalier did have their share of problems. I would be keen to see whether a full season of the same coach and a full bill of health in October will bring his numbers back up to the 100-point mark. He shouldn't be too hazardous to your team, especially if you get him in a bargain spot.

Click here to see an updated injury page.

Thursday's Preview (11 Nights Left)

There hasn't been any shifting of positions last week and with a weaker set of games last night, there wasn't a great deal of points made up on anyone. A point here and a point there, or even, no points at all. It was just that kind of night for the top seven, which remained the top seven, since the bottom two actually made up a couple points on the lead and third place.

Eight games on the schedule for Thursday night and there are 38 skater games among the top seven and everyone except for Jeremy has a goalie start tonight (supposedly) as well. Let's have a quick peek at the table, shall we?

Clayton

Peter

John B.

Benson

Marcus

John P.

Jeremy

Points

738

-9

-18

-24

-30

-35

-35

Games

9+1

5+1

6+1

4+1

7+1

4+1

3

OTT/BOS

Blake Wheeler, F

Marc Savard, F

Dennis Wideman, D

Phil Kessel, F

Tim Thomas, G

None

None

Brian Elliot, G

Patrice Bergeron, F

Zdeno Chara, D

MTL/NYI

Alex Kovalev, F

None

None

Mark Streit, D

Roman Hamrlik, D

None

None

NYR/CAR

Eric Staal, F

None

Ray Whitney, F

None

Nik Antropov, F

Joni Pitkanen, D

None

Dan Girardi, D

STL/DET

None

None

Keith Tkachuk, F

Johan Franzen, F

Pavel Datsyuk, F

Marian Hossa, F

None

Manny Legace, G

Ty Conklin, G

Jiri Hudler, F

CAL/DAL

None

Marty Turco, G

Daymond Langkow, F

Mike Ribeiro, F

Mike Cammalleri, F

None

Jarome Iginla, F

Todd Bertuzzi, F

Curtis Glencross, F

SAN/EDM

Joe Thornton, F

Ales Hemsky, F

Evgeni Nabokov, G

None

None

Ryane Clowe, F

Milan Michalek, F

ANA/VAN

Kevin Bieksa, D

Scott Niedermayer, D

Ryan Getzlaf, F

None

None

Daniel Sedin, F

None

Mattias Ohlund, D

Henrik Sedin, F

Sami Salo, D

Roberto Luongo, G

LOS/PHO

Dustin Brown, F

Drew Doughty, D

Anze Kopitar, F

None

Kyle Quincey, D

None

Alex Frolov, F

Ed Jovanovski, D

Keith Yandle, D

There is no game tonight, which features a player on each of the top seven teams. I think once it went up to seven, there was a lot less of a chance that that will ever feature.

The busiest game tonight will be the Ducks visiting the Canucks, as there are seven skater games and a start there, mainly taken up by Clayton and John P., who have three players each in the game.

Clayton has the busiest team tonight, with 9 skaters and a goalie going. It's a good night to try and pad the lead on Peter, who only has 5 skaters and a goalie going.

And there you have it. A busy Thursday!

Thursday Morning Notes

The Sabres did a nice thing for the Mikael Tellqvist on Wednesday night, they let him dress to be Ryan Miller's back-up against the Thrashers. Sure, Tellqvist didn't get to play in that game, but at least he could watch it from ice level. So, when that happens, Patrick Lalime gets the team pass to the press box upstairs and gets a bird's eye view of the game. Still not a bad gig, really.

The Avalanche suffered yet another injury on Wednesday night, as Ryan Smyth left the game with a hand injury. The season is already at a loss for the Avs, so injury concerns just get thrown onto a large stack of other injuries, while the team waits for the season to end. The extent of the injury was not disclosed.

The Devils were without Patrik Elias on Wednesday night against the Penguins. Elias was experiencing some stiffness in his leg and since the Devils have already clinched their spot in the playoffs, there is really no sense in dressing one of your top scorers, especially for a minor injury concern. With the playoffs only a week and a half away, Elias may get a little more rest here and there.

The Coyotes played the Avalanche on Wednesday night, beat them, 3-0, but that was only the 14th place team in the West, beating the 15th place team in the West. Figuring back into the line-up on Wednesday was Peter Mueller, David Hale and Nigel Dawes, while Steven Reinprecht was on his way out of the line-up. Five games to go for the Coyotes, which means five more healthy scratch news bytes still to write.

Click here to see an updated injury page.

US College Signings

Being signed out of Minnesota/Duluth, forward MacGregor Sharp, has signed with the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday. Sharp's deal is a 2-year entry level deal and he'll look to make a splash at Ducks training camp in September.


The Flyers now have one of their prized blue-chips under contract, as James Van Riemsdyk signed a 3-year entry level deal on Wednesday, getting himself ready to start his pro career after a great college career. Van Riemsdyk also signed a tryout deal, which will see him join the Philadelphia Phantoms of the AHL for the remainder of the season and the AHL playoffs, so the Flyers can keep a close eye on him. Van Riemsdyk was taken 2nd overall in 2007, just behind Patrick Kane. He will be one to watch out for in camp this year.

Signing and joining the Maple Leafs this week was Christian Hanson, a big power forward, signed out of Notre Dame in the NCAA. Hanson, a 6'4" forward, signed a 2-year entry-level deal and he'll be joining the Leafs line-up on Friday night, as they take on the Flyers in Philadelphia. So, have a good look at this kid, if you get the game and see if you want to have him on your pool list next year.

More Wednesday Notes

Unfortunately for Benson, it looks like Phil Kessel won't be returning any time soon, although he may figure into the last game or two, but even that is uncertain at this point. That's a pretty big scoring gap to fill for Benson down the stretch, especially being so close to the money.

A quick Kyle Quincey update, he has reportedly undergone surgery to repair a herniated disc in his back, thus making him unavailable for the remainder of the regular season. Quincey has been one of the better Kings' defensemen during the year, since coming from Detroit, via the waiver wire.

The Canadiens may have beat the Blackhawks last night, but it looks like it came at a pretty steep price. Both Andrei Kostitsyn and Roman Hamrlik left the game with apparent upper body injuries, which have been speculated to be concussions. Of course, this hasn't been verified yet, but if it is as bad as it sounds, then this could mean some young talent will have to be used in Montreal going forward. This also hurts Marcus in the Draft, as he holds onto Hamrlik as one of his better point-getters from the blueline.

More bad news for Benson, as the Islanders may be looking at shutting Mark Streit down for the remaining week and a half of the season. Streit didn't make the trip to Washington for tonight's game, thanks in large part to a groin injury and now the team will be assessing their need for him down the stretch and whether or not a chance of aggravating the problem is a good idea. I have a feeling I know what the answer is already.

The Senators have now lost a couple of defensemen to knee injuries for the remainder of the season. Jason Smith, a Box 30 d-man, and Alex Picard, a non-pool d-man, are now done for the year in Ottawa with their respective knee injuries, but the Senators were eliminated last night from any playoff contention, so it shouldn't be any surprise that they shut both of them down anyways.

Click here to see an updated injury page.

Filatov Recalled

I was waiting to see the story of Nikita Filatov being recalled from the minors claimed as an April Fool's joke, but even the team released a statement saying they did it, so here we go. Box 9 forward, Nikita Filatov, is back with the Blue Jackets, just in time to get some chemistry before the playoffs. Filatov is a blue chip prospect, who has come of age this season, between the minors and the World Junior Championships, now it remains to be seen how he manages with the big club in the big time situation.

Keep your eyes peeled for Filatov in next season's pool, possibly this season's playoff pool.

Click here to see an updated injury page.

Wednesday's Preview (12 Nights Left)

Well, we're seeing some definite separation in the top seven, some that may not be recoverable in a week and a half. Namely the back half of the top seven is falling fast from the top three, including fourth place Benson, who dropped another 3 points on John B. on Tuesday night. We might have to start clipping away at the table here pretty soon. Depending on how Jeremy's big night of goaltending goes, he and John P. may be the first ones to vacate, as they currently sit 20 points behind third place as we speak.

With Peter's big night from Scott Niedermayer, he was able to not only keep up with Clayton in the race for first, but he was actually able to make up 2 points on him in the evening. Peter will also hold an extra skater game in tonight's action as well, trying to knock down another point or two from the total.

Clayton

Peter

John B.

Benson

Marcus

John P.

Jeremy

Points

737

-10

-17

-24

-30

-37

-37

Games

3

4

2

5 + 1 start

2

5

3 + 2 starts

NYI/WAS

None

None

None

Alex Ovechkin, F

None

None

None

Mark Streit, D

BUF/ATL

Jason Pominville, F

None

None

Todd White, F

None

Brian Little, F

Derek Roy, F

Ryan Miller, G

PHI/TOR

Mike Richards, F

Matt Carle, D

None

Martin Biron, G

None

Jeff Carter, F

Pavel Kubina, D

Alex Ponikarovsky, F

Braydon Coburn, D

Vesa Toskala, G

NJD/PIT

Zach Parise, F

Patrik Elias, F

None

Jamie Langenbrunner, F

None

Kristopher Letang, D

None

Brian Gionta, F

STL/CHI

None

None

Duncan Keith, D

None

Martin Havlat, F

Cam Barker, D

Nikolai Khabibulin, G

Keith Tkachuk, F

Cristobel Huet, G

Manny Legace, G

PHO/COL

None

None

None

Marek Svatos, F

Ed Jovanovski, D

None

Keith Yandle, D

The big night in the pool will come from Benson tonight, as he tries to close the gap to something a little more reasonable to John B., as he currently sits 7 points back. Benson has a 3 skater game and 1 start advantage to John tonight, which could very well make up those points in a hurry.

In the Chicago net, Nikolai Khabibulin will return to the crease after Cristobel Huet got his game in against Montreal last night. After the loss, it will look like it's all Khabibulin into the playoffs. This is Jeremy's only saving grace now, as his team continues to plummet.

Seven games on the schedule tonight, good luck all!

Tuesday Morning Notes

The Avalanche are not expecting to have Brett Clark in the line-up tonight at home against the Coyotes. Clark suffered a hand injury over the weekend and the coaching staff is thinking that the injury will keep him out the line-up indefinitely. Clark was dropped in the Draft by Dale C. at the second Waiver Draft and wasn't very popular on the Sheet.

Another injury for Larry and his quest to stay within the 150-point bet set by himself and Clayton at the beginning of the season, as Stephane Robidas has been hit with a lower body injury and has now missed a couple games with the injury. After Tuesday's action, Larry now sits 147 points back of Clayton and is more than likely going to lose the bet.

Another hit to the top seven this morning, as Kyle Quincey is now out with an undisclosed injury and by the looks of their game notes against the Stars last night, Quincey is done for the year. Since the Kings are out of the playoff picture, there is a good shot that they are just shutting him down for the last week of the year. This doesn't help Marcus' chances at the money, who now sits 13 points out.

Click here to see an updated injury page.