Draft Player News (Apr. 3)

During the big dust-up between potential first round opponents, the Flyers and Penguins, Philadelphia forward Daniel Briere had to leave the game early after getting cross-checked from behind, suffering a back contusion. The team has now said that Briere is out indefinitely with the ailment and given that there is only a week left in the regular season, it gives them an excuse to sit him.  There wasn't much more for details, but unless they're talking about a bone bruise in his back, I can't see this being a big thing.  Further details are needed.

If the injury report is accurate, that would end his season for Brenda F. in the pool and her team's fight for 11th may have just come to a premature end and a drop down to 14th is more likely.  Brenda got off to a good start to the final week with 4 points on a quiet night, but we'll have to see if that holds on.

On Monday, the Leafs recalled forward Joe Colborne to replace forward Mikhail Grabovski, who suffered a leg laceration on Saturday night, right above the knee in a mess of legs and skates during the game against the Sabres.  His overall status remains rather cloudy, but it sounds like he is doubtful for the home-and-home back end game against Buffalo on Tuesday and for now, he'll remain on the list as out day-to-day.

Bad news for Dale B., who now sits 2 points out of 2nd place after a rough couple of weeks, he now trails Stuart G. by a shade more after Monday night.  The injury to Grabovski could sting a lot and this isn't the kind of thing a team in the money really needs about now.

You got to give the Winnipeg Jets some credit, they may be out of the Eastern Conference playoff picture, but they are still out there blocking shots.  It's doing nothing for their health, but they are really giving it all for their season-old adoring fans.  Kyle Wellwood becomes the second Jets player to have his season finished with a broken foot in the last week, as he suffered his injury on the weekend and he will now watch the remainder of the regular season from the press box.

Wellwood was a waiver draft pick-up for John P. this season and he had done quite well since the first waiver draft, picking up 30 points in 51 appearances since the beginning of Week Ten.  Unfortunately for John, his season didn't have many of these small victories and he is poised to finish the season in 11th place.

Quincey Suspended for One

The Detroit Red Wings came down on Red Wings defenseman Kyle Quincey on Monday afternoon for his hit on Panthers forward Tomas Kopecky. The league handed the veteran defenseman a 1-game suspension for the hit that was worth five and a game during the game itself and it was vicious enough to warrant supplementary discipline.

All of the details are outlined and explained in the video below.



Being as though the suspension is only for one game, that won't cut into any playoff time, rather it would provide him a rest for the start of the playoffs, which goes in over a week's time.  Quincey is eligible to come back to the Red Wings line-up on Thursday, when they take on the New Jersey Devils.

There isn't much of an impact on the money here, as Quincey belongs to Chris M., who is down in the bottom-third of the draft standings through Week Twenty-Six. Besides his own little battles, if any, there really isn't much going on here of any concern.

Quincey is a defensive option in the playoff pool, but as it was outlined before, he won't be missing any time.  You can still consider him as an option for one of your last defenders on the sheet.

Senators Are In, Capitals and Kings Can Step Closer

Even with Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson in the press box, being preserved for a playoff run, the Ottawa Senators were able to slide past the Islanders on Sunday, clinching their playoff spot with a 5-1 win.  The Senators have an outside chance at climbing into the six spot in the East, if they were able to sweep the remainder of their games and the Devils lose all of theirs, including a head-to-head meeting on Saturday afternoon.  As of right now, the Senators are projected to play the Boston Bruins in the opening round, which would be a tough match-up, but they have a team that could surprise.  You may want to give Milan Michalek, Erik Karlsson and Craig Anderson some real thought when filling out the playoff pool sheet.

Two games in the NHL tonight, as the Washington Capitals travel to Tampa Bay to take on the Lightning and the Los Angeles Kings play host to the Edmonton Oilers in the late game.  Both the Capitals and Kings cannot clinch tonight, but they can move a step closer with 2 points.  Both teams are facing competition that are out of the playoffs, which should suggest that these points are theirs to lose.  Of course, that's why we play the game and both the Lightning and Oilers could play spoiler.

With regulation wins, both the Capitals and Kings should be one game away from clinching their spots in the playoffs.  It's a fun time in the NHL, isn't it?

Week Twenty-Six Newsletter

Well, this is the last full newsletter of the season.  We're now in the home stretch to the money, as the final week, Week Twenty-Seven is finally upon us.

In the draft, it has really opened up at the top, as Clayton C. will open the final week of the season with a 21-point lead, the largest lead that the pool has seen this season.  The previous highs were 15 points, which was done three times, twice by Wayne H. and the other was last week by Clayton.  21 points is going to be difficult to overcome, but the job will be placed upon Stuart G. and Dale B., who are now chasing Clayton and battling for 2nd place, to which only 1 point separates the two.

4th place is a big battle between Wayne H. and Allan S., who go into the week in a tie with 666 points, but Wayne holds the tie-break in goals scored by 4.  That is one close race.  On the outside looking in are Stacey C., who trails by 7 points and Benson G., who has a 15-point gap.

The sheet pool gets a pretty good recap down in the Stat Pack, so there's no sense in doubling that effort up.

The playoff pool is live and is getting regular updates on the blog, as teams clinch and get eliminated, so keep up-to-date with the blog and be ready to get your teams submitted.

Let's see how the second-to-last week of the season played out, shall we?

There were a couple of 8-point weeks in the draft pool in Week Twenty-Six, so the tie-breaking analysis had to be done. It wasn't quite as easy as it would be between a skater and a goalie, since it was two goalies, but it came down to wins and with a 3-0-0 record with 1 shutout, Martin Brodeur took the title for the second-last week of the season.

This is Brodeur's first nod as Player of the Week this season and it came late in the year, as he starts to ramp up his game for the playoffs.

Speaking of the playoffs, Brodeur has helped the Devils clinch their spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs this week and you could put a lot of emphasis on Brodeur's re-emergence in the game as one of the reasons they were able to do that.

On Tuesday, Brodeur made 37 saves in a win over the Blackhawks, 16 saves on Thursday in a win over the Lightning and then on Saturday, 22 saves for the shutout (and the playoff berth) against the Hurricanes.  He's back to just getting the job done, like back in the day.

With the 8 points in the week, it brings his season total up to 68 points on the year, which has him ranked 37th overall in pool scoring, good enough to be a 2nd round pick in the draft this year.  In the draft, Derek W. took him 39th in the 2nd round, so he's paid off accordingly, to this point in the season.  It does seem unlikely he'll make it into being a 1st round pick, as he would need another 8 points, plus whatever the 1st round players pick up.

Very good week in pool scoring in Week Twenty-Six, as we had the busiest week in the NHL schedule and the pool ramped up the scoring a little and made the Mover and Shaker competition very close.  In what looked to be close to a 4-way tie, we did have one team emerge victorious through the statistical audit, as Munden G. picked up 35 points and earned his first nod on the positive side of the ledger this season.

Munden has had two Basement Dweller nods, which saw him as low as 19th spot in the standings, but the last month and a bit has been very good for his team and they've climbed up and made themselves a little bit more respectable.

Munden owes his big week to three players, Dustin Brown, Pascal Dupuis and Rick Nash, who all picked up 6 points in the week and made up for over half of his points in the week.  He also received some help from goalie Michal Neuvirth, who had 4 points as well.  There were a few zeroes in his total this week, but overall, it was just one of his better weeks of the season.

It wasn't Munden's best week of the year, in Week Twenty-Three, he did have a 39-point week, which was an awesome week, but it was overshadowed badly by Allan S..

For the segment scoring, Munden's team has seen some huge improvements, having destroyed his previous two segments of the season in the final segment of the year.  Through Week Twenty-Six, he has seen 224 points in eight weeks, while the previous two 9-week segments only saw 172 and 179 points.  That's some huge gains, but in this sprint of one season, this kind of jump doesn't mean a great deal.

I don't think we've seen this too often, but the team that had the Player of the Week actually sits as the Basement Dweller.  That's unheard of.

Derek W. only managed to pick up 18 points in Week Twenty-Six and 8 of those points came from Martin Brodeur.  There were seven active players on his team that were restricted to zero points, which hurt his team greatly and in this higher-scoring week, 18 points was not going to cut it to stay out of the basement.

The high scoring week also saw the closing the gap between Derek and last place, Darren S., to only 10 points.  The race for the overall basement position is on and getting a little bit more exciting.  I would like to say that last place in the draft this year would get first pick in next year's draft, but I just cannot guarantee it.  It's something that I might move forward with, but we'll see.

Things are tightening up a little bit in the selection sheet pool, as the top four teams have collapsed in on each other a little bit more and I think the number of races for the money is now officially shrunk down to a more manageable number.

The top four teams saw no change in position, but the points were a little closer.  Jeff E. has all but won the pool with a a 52-point lead going into the final week of the season, but 2nd through 4th will be a good jockeying race.  Don D. has a 13-point lead on Clayton C. in 4th, while Zac H. is in the middle, only 7 back of Don and 6 up on Clayton.  Those are numbers that can be moved and shifted around a little bit for the final week.

The last money spot is now down to two teams, Caterina F. and Justin L., who are now separated by 13 points, but Justin has a 29-point gap on 7th place, so I think it's fair to assume that we should see nothing new in there.  Caterina does have a fair buffer, but like the money races above, I wouldn't call 13 points safe.

With both the weekly-best in goals scored and point totals, Caterina wholly deserves moving up into the money this season, picking up 79 points and 28 goals in the process.  Her team has been one of the hotter sides in the pool over the last month and it is now paying off for her.  She owes her big week to Cory Schneider (6 points), Pascal Dupuis (6), Henrik Sedin (5), Steven Stamkos (5), Tyler Ennis (5) and five players with 4 points each.  Caterina is another one of those teams that have used up all seven of their trades this year and it has certainly helped her side climb among the elite in the pool, especially in a very competitive year.

A couple of teams saw gains in the standings of four positions, as Scott G.'s 2nd team and Chris M. each pushed a little harder in Week Twenty-Six and did well doing so.  Scott's team moved from 12th to 8th, while Chris' team is on the verge of the top 10, climbing from 15th to 11th.

Only one more week of action left and it looks like it could be a doozy.  The last day of the season is Saturday and everyone plays, so the money positions could change hands on the final day of action, which is awfully exciting.

NEWS AND NOTES

The Chicago Blackhawks were without play-making forward Andrew Brunette on Sunday evening, as he has been listed as out day-to-day with a lower-body injury. There doesn't seem to be much concern in the Blackhawks' line-up, as this could act as just resting before the playoffs, which is a good move, especially with Chicago already clinched.  Brunette may miss some more time down the stretch here, as they have mentioned an injury and they would want him to be 100% before they started playing.

It looks like the Red Wings made a quick roster substitution before somewhat of a meaningless game for themselves against the Panthers, as Kyle Quincey drew back in for Ian White, scratch for scratch, but it also looks like Quincey could be in suspension trouble, after receiving a major and a game for elbowing in the contest. Nevertheless, White did come out for a game and I would imagine that he'll draw back in this coming week.

The Ottawa Senators were on the verge of clinching a playoff spot on Sunday afternoon, when they took on the Islanders, but even with no guarantee of a spot, the team still decided to scratch both Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson against the lowly Isles and it paid off for them. The Senators still earned a 5-1 win and their spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs and I would believe that the Senators will be looking to preserve some energy and healthy bodies for the playoffs, which start in nine days.

Link to the Injury/News Page

HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA

The final Hockey Night In Canada is a part of the final day of the regular season, a day where every team in the NHL hits the ice.  So with that being said, it should be an automatic that the day should feature a triple-header and it most certainly does.  Five Canadian teams on the broadcast, two of which are heading to the playoffs and the other three are going straight into post-season preparations.

In the afternoon game, the Ottawa Senators will travel down to New Jersey to face the Devils in a match between two playoff-bound teams in the East.  Both sides will have a couple of games in the week before the finale and this game has the potential to be worth a different spot in the standings, as the Devils are 4 points up on the Sens for 6th in the East.  If the week plays out the Sens' way, we could have a game that means something in the East.  Leading all players in the money conversation, Ilya Kovalchuk, who belongs to Allan S. and will be key if Allan wants to move up into 4th this week.  Kovalchuk is 12th in overall pool scoring this season with 80 points in 74 games and has been a solid player for Jersey all year long.

In the second game of the day on HNIC, the Leafs and Habs go head-to-head in a non-playoff match-up, in a game mostly played for pride.  There is a chance that the Habs could overtake the Leafs in the standings, but like the Devils and Sens situation, both teams would need the results to go in a specific fashion to have a chance.  Otherwise, this game will likely mean nothing in the end, except padding the numbers.  In the money race, Wayne H. is still riding Phil Kessel into the ground.  Wayne is currently defending 4th spot away from Allan and Kessel is providing a great level of defense in the standings.  Kessel goes into the final week of the season 14th overall in pool scoring, with 78 points in 79 games.

Finally, in the late game, the Oilers and Canucks will meet in Vancouver in a game that will likely mean a whole lot more to the Canucks, who are battling for the conference lead and the President's Trophy, than the Oilers, who are likely going to finish the year in 14th spot in the West.  The Canucks go into the final week of the season atop of the West and 2nd in the league, thanks to the tie-breakers, so they'll need a perfect week to get the job done.  Leading the way for players in the money conversation is Jordan Eberle, who belongs to Stacey C., who sits just outside of the money, but should still be in the conversation.  Stacey only sits 7 points out of the money and will need Eberle's production (75 points in 75 games) to help turn the tides.

And once the Canucks and Oilers are done... there will be a complete statistical audit on Sunday and we'll officially crown the winners of both the Draft and Sheet pools.

Devils and Blackhawks Clinch, Races Pared Down

The Devils only needed a point (and a little bit of help) to clinch their playoff spot in the Eastern Conference on Saturday night, but they went above and beyond that with a 5-0 shutout win over the Hurricanes, shutting the door on any doubt that they would make it. Martin Brodeur has played fairly well this season for the Devils, which is great after somewhat of a shaky start to the year.  The Devils currently sit in the 6th seed in the conference and would potentially be playing the Southeast Division champion, which could be a profitable match-up for the team, possibly giving them a walk into the second round.  This makes the likes of Ilya Kovalchuk, Patrik Elias and Adam Henrique safe for your selections in the pool, which is pretty exciting.

The eliminations in the East saw all that had potential to drop out of the race do so, as Long Island, Tampa Bay and Winnipeg all were mathematically eliminated from playoff contention.  All three teams have been knocked off the online selection sheet this morning, so you can't pick the likes of John Tavares, Steven Stamkos or Dustin Byfuglien.

This now leaves only three spots in the Eastern Conference left to be clinched and there are only four teams left in this game of musical chairs.  The Ottawa Senators can sit down in their chair with a win over the Islanders on Sunday afternoon, taking their spot with the tie-break on their side and 92 points.  That would leave the Southeast Division and the 8th spot to be determined.

The Chicago Blackhawks also did better than what they needed to clinch, but it was pretty close. The Hawks needed a single point out of their game against the Predators and they came close to blowing a game where they had a 4-0 lead early in the 2nd period.  Chicago survived to win the game, 5-4, and thus clinching their spot in the Western Conference playoffs.  Much like the Devils, they currently hold the 6th spot in the Conference, which would give them the Pacific Division champ, which is going to be determined in the final days of the season.  Look for Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp and possibly a healthy Jonathan Toews to help lead your playoff pool team this Spring.

As for eliminations, the only team that was up for elimination was the Calgary Flames and they put up a good fight against the Canucks on Saturday night, getting to overtime and getting that extra point, but by virtue of the Sharks and Stars playing each other once more and the Sharks playing the Kings twice, the Flames don't have a chance for catching up.  Jarome Iginla and Miikka Kiprusoff have been struck from the playoff pool sheet again for the year.

The West has three spots left, but they have five teams on the go for these spots, which is a little bit more interesting.  Sunday won't have much bearing on the elimination race, but the next up on the chopping block is the Colorado Avalanche, who have two games left and could be eliminated by sitting still and being idle, since they don't play again until Thursday.  They've got to put a hope and a prayer out there, but it does seem rather unlikely.

Draft Player News (Apr. 1)

The Sabres were missing one of their key pieces on the blueline on Saturday evening, as Tyler Myers was not in the line-up for a key playoff impact game against the Leafs due to a foot injury, which he suffered earlier in the week.  Myers has been listed as out day-to-day at the moment, but this is the worst time for the Sabres, as they have three games left in the season and they are 2 points back of the Capitals for the final playoff spot in the East.

The loss of Myers may not be too bad for Allan S., who sits in 4th place in the standings, 17 points back of 3rd and only 2 points up on 5th.  Missing out on a defenseman for a game or two, possibly the whole of next week, may not break him in the end.  Allan is 11 points up on 6th place as well, which is a solid gap, going into Sunday's action.  You don't want to lose a player, but this may not be too bad.

A slight knee injury has now sidelined Jonas Gustavsson of the Toronto Maple Leafs, forcing the team to call up Ben Scrivens from the AHL, making an all-AHL goaltending tandem at the moment for the team.  There is no word as to how severe the injury to Gustavsson is and with only one week left in the regular season and no possibility of the playoffs, there won't be any rush to get him back into the line-up, which should give more ice-time to Scrivens and his partner, Jussi Rynnas.

This is not good news for Dale B., who has now lost his grip on 2nd place in the draft standings to Stuart G., trailing him by only a point with just over a week to go in the season.  Dale will be down to one active goalie and the Blues have made mention that Brian Elliott isn't going to be the goalie that they run with in the playoffs, so Jaroslav Halak will get the starts, which will hurt Dale's chances greatly next week.

Sheet Player News (Apr. 1)

A lower-body injury, more specific, it sounds like a foot injury after blocking a shot, forced Box 14 defenseman John Moore to make the start against the Blues on Saturday night. Moore is currently listed as out day-to-day with the foot injury, but the team made good with the injury, calling up Cody Goloubef from Springfield of the AHL to make his NHL debut. He didn't get much ice-time, but he is one of the top prospects for the team going forward and a quick look is never a bad thing.  If Moore is good to go in the final week, Goloubef will immediately be sent back to the minors, since he's only up on an emergency basis.

The Minnesota Wild are likely just playing out the rest of the NHL schedule, trying to play a little bit of spoiler, but mostly trying to stay healthy down the stretch and avoid any long Summers for some players.  I don't know which category this fits into, but Marco Scandella was a healthy scratch for the team on Saturday night, with the Kings in town.  Scandella hasn't had the season that was expected of him in 2012, but it is only his second full season, which is generally a tough season to overcome for many young players.  It wouldn't be too surprising if he sat a little bit more down the stretch.

It looks to me that Box 7 forward Michal Handzus was a healthy scratch for the San Jose Sharks on Saturday night, since there has been no mention of injury anywhere on Sunday morning. Handzus hasn't been terribly productive this season for the Sharks, picking up 24 points in 66 games. One of the biggest concerns for the Sharks has been secondary scoring past their big players and Handzus was going to be relied upon for some of those numbers, but has failed in that endeavour. His scratch on Saturday may be a sign of things to come for him, especially since the team blanked the Stars, 4-0.

In an attempt to save the injury prone from injury down the stretch and with the return of Roman Polak to the Blues line-up, made it easy for the coaching staff to scratch Box 12 defenseman Carlo Colaiacovo on Saturday night.  Besides some injury problems in the year, Colaiacovo has been a productive member of the Blues, who have done really well this year, among the Western Conference elite.  Colaiacovo has 19 points in 62 games, which isn't a great scoring pace on the year, but his value stretches into the defensive role as well, which isn't measured for these hockey pools.