First Wave(1-25)- Erik Karlsson, John Klingberg These two defenseman have emerged as the top elite options on defense as they are scoring close to a point per game clip. More surprising is Klingberg's quick ascent to premier status as EK has been the best for some time now. Having said that, hold on to both as they will fight for top honors all year long. Karlsson has the edge but Klingberg has the benefit of playing with Seguin and Benn.   Second Wave(26-50)- John Carlson, Justin Faulk I have been hyping Faulk for years now but he has finally realized all that fantasy potential. While it's ridiculously unrealistic for him to keep up his staggering scoring pace on the  power play, he should be a lock for 50, even 60. I would also hold onto to Carlson who has become the clear it powerplay QB on an explosive Washington team. No Green means huge breakout for Carlson. It's that simple    Third Wave(51-75)-Brent  Burns, R Ristolainen, Ryan Suter, PK Subban, Roman Josi  I trust everyone on this list except the young Ristolainen. The kid is on his way to being a stud but can you trust him to keep up these numbers? Burns and Subban should be locks for 50+, while Suter has eclipsed 40+ a few times. Josi is just right here but expect Subban and Burns to move up to the upper tier before its all said and done. Fourth Wave(76-100)- Brent Seabrook. Dustin Byfuglien. Tyson Barrie. Andrei Markov Kevin Shattenkirk. Shea Weber  Many heavy-hitters in this group which should easily post better numbers moving forward, so you should target in buy lower situations. The only one I would not consider in the buy low category would be Seabrook. He is more of the sell high variety.

Andrei Markov- It's time to remind ourselves that the best fantasy tandem in defense resides in Montreal as the 36-year old continues to put up numbers comparable with the more heralded PK Subban. Markov had seemingly put his knee issues aside and has formed a dynamic duo with Subban in the Hab's top power play unit. He has collected 13 points in the first 14 games and while he could be a great sell high candidate by mid season, another 50-point season is well within reach.  No End In Sight   Dion Phaneuf- Once upon a time Phaneuf was the talk of all fantasy leagues but with the deterioration of the Leafs came a huge downgrade in his fantasy value. With Phil Kessel shipped out to Pittsburgh, there was little reason to believe that Phaneuf can repeat past glory and get even close to 40 points. Well, 7 points in his first 9 games amidst an overall poor showing from the Leafs indicates that the veteran is flourishing under new coach Mike Babcock. I am not sold on him yet but the new regime is treating him like their star player and that might bring out the best in the underachieving veteran.  Don't Sleep On Him   Ryan Murray- Another two point effort leaves the 22-year old Columbus rearguard with four points in five games. Obviously, coach Tortorella loves him and is known to ride his favorites. Things could change but like I have already said, Murray's situation looks like the perfect recipe for a breakout.  Busting Out?   Tyson Barrie- It's amazing that after a slow start aided by a three game suspension, the youngster has managed 7 points over the first nine games. So it's a bit misleading given that five came over the last two games, but this guy is as prolific as any Scoring dman in NHL. You need to keep him active at all times as Barrie is capable of giving a weeks worth of production in one game. Fantasy Elite   Kevin Shattenkirk- the All-Star defender is on the verge of returning to the Blue's lineup which may come as early as tonight against Chicago. His return would be a huge boon to all fantasy owners who hadn't been able to replace his elite production on their active rosters Colton Payrako fantasy value about to drop!

We don't project too many high scoring affairs tonight, so I look to use as many Islander skaters as possible against a Columbus squad giving up a ton of goals. Look for Washington to get their share in the road against slumping Calgary, as mid value pick TJ Oshie could be worth the start. On defense, I am loving PK Subban at home, while taking Mike Smith against the lowly Devils in a pure value move. Stay away from the Stars as Philly had been very stingy lately in goal.    Steves Picks- Draft Kings   C John Tavares, NYI  C Jason Spezza, Dallas W TJ Oshie, Washington W Craig Smith, Nashville W Kyle Okposo, NYI D PK Subban, Montreal D Nick Leddy, NYI G Mike Smith, Arizona U Anders Lee, NYI

#7 MONTREAL   After getting knocked out of the second round by the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Habs are back to the another stab at the Eastern Conference crown. It won't be any easier this time around as their strengths still seem to be predicated on defense and goaltending while not making any significant addition on offense besides the enigmatic Alex Semin. The main strength lies with Carey Price and PK Subban, who will need to repeat their monster years if Montreal is to have any chance for the grand prize.    Goalies Carey Price captured both Hart and Vezina honors last season with a "one for the ages type of effort": 44 wins, 1.96 GAA, and .933 SP. While a slight regression can be expected, Price is arguably the best fantasy goalie to own. He carries a first round price tag for sure, but he is well worth the investment.     Defense In terms of the fantasy elite on the blue line, PK Subban is better then any NHL defenseman not named Erik Karlsson. The ultra talented rearguard is coming off a 60-point season and has accumulated 151 points since '12-13. With the Habs having to rely on their defenders again for major production, PK should be in line for another stellar season... If you want to draft a borderline no. 1 fantasy defender in the middle rounds, don't forget about Andrei Markov. He had just about the quietest 50-point season ever recorded and considering he had 43 the year before, he has shown few signs of slowing down. A decent late sleeper can be Jeff Petry who wild slot in for top power-play duty if Markov were to get injured.    Forwards  The only sure fantasy thing on offense is LW Max Pacioretty who is their only threat to surpass the 70-point/40-goal mark... This years breakthrough forwards should be Alex Galchenyuk and Brendan Gallagher. Both will be firmly entrenched in the top six and depended on to complement the scoring of Max Pacioretty... Can Tomas Plekanec repeat his 60+ point effort or will we see a big regression? This guy has been major up and down before but his impending free agent status might help fuel another strong year. Coming off his worst season-19 pts in 57 gms-, new acquisition Alex Semin has plenty of reasons to be motivated after signing a one year contract. Assuming the 31-year old has some left in the tank, there should be modest expectations for a decent rebound if he stays healthy. Major IF though. Take a chance in him late.   Prospects Not much to think about here in terms of immediate fantasy impact as ...

After getting knocked out of the second round by the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Habs are back to the another stab at the Eastern Conference crown. It won't be any easier this time around as their strengths still seem to be predicated on defense and goaltending while not making any significant addition on offense besides the enigmatic Alex Semin. The main strength lies with Carey Price and PK Subban, who will need to repeat their monster years if Montreal is to have any chance for the grand prize.    Goalies Carey Price captured both Hart and Vezina honors last season with a "one for the ages type of effort": 44 wins, 1.96 GAA, and .933 SP. While a slight regression can be expected, Price is arguably the best fantasy goalie to own. He carries a first round price tag for sure, but he is well worth the investment.     Defense In terms of the fantasy elite on the blue line, PK Subban is better then any NHL defenseman not named Erik Karlsson. The ultra talented rearguard is coming off a 60-point season and has accumulated 151 points since '12-13. With the Habs having to rely on their defenders again for major production, PK should be in line for another stellar season... If you want to draft a borderline no. 1 fantasy defender in the middle rounds, don't forget about Andrei Markov. He had just about the quietest 50-point season ever recorded and considering he had 43 the year before, he has shown few signs of slowing down. A decent late sleeper can be Jeff Petry who wild slot in for top power-play duty if Markov were to get injured.    Forwards  The only sure fantasy thing on offense is LW Max Pacioretty who is their only threat to surpass the 70-point/40-goal mark... This years breakthrough forwards should be Alex Galchenyuk and Brendan Gallagher. Both will be firmly entrenched in the top six and depended on to complement the scoring of Max Pacioretty... Can Tomas Plekanec repeat his 60+ point effort or will we see a big regression? This guy has been major up and down before but his impending free agent status might help fuel another strong year. Coming off his worst season-19 pts in 57 gms-, new acquisition Alex Semin has plenty of reasons to be motivated after signing a one year contract. Assuming the 31-year old has some left in the tank, there should be modest expectations for a decent rebound if he stays healthy. Major IF though. Take a chance in him late.   Prospects Not much to think about here in terms of immediate fantasy impact as Nikita Scherbak ...

PRIMEPUCKS™ 2015 FIRST ROUND PLAYOFF REVIEW The 2015 Stanley Cup playoffs are beginning shortly and PrimePucks™ is taking a look at what they predict will happen in the first round and beyond. NEW YORK RANGERS vs. PITTSBURGH PENGUINS:  After last season’s improbable run at the Stanley Cup only to fall short by losing to a more determined Los Angeles Kings team, the New York Rangers are back in the dance but this time with a more focused outlook.  It appears the Rangers got a very good taste and were thisclose to hoisting Lord Stanley’s Cup that they locked down the home ice advantage throughout by winning the President’s Cup with a very solid second half. The Rangers take on the Pittsburgh Penguins who seem to be a team in disarray especially after losing their best defenseman in Kris Letang for the remainder of this season with a concussion. The team with all this talent up front seemed to have trouble finding their offensive game with the loss of Letang.  The Rangers on the other hand seemed to be getting better with every passing game.  Expect the Rangers to win this in no more than 6 games as they forge ahead to another Finals appearance.  Those of you in playoff pools should definitely start all the major Blueshirts like Rick Nash, Henrik Lundqvist, Keith Yandle, Derek Stepan, Mats Zuccarello, Ryan McDonagh, Martin St. Louis and company as this team has their eyes set on the silver trophy. MONTREAL CANADIENS vs. OTTAWA SENATORS:  The Rangers likely opponent in the Conference Finals, the Canadiens, should dispose of the surprising Ottawa Senators fairly easy behind MVP Candidate Carey Price.  The Senators had an amazing climb in the standings to reach the playoffs but will run into a team that has some motivation of their own to exact revenge on the Rangers, who they may have beaten in last year’s Conference Finals if it weren’t for Chris Kreider knocking Price out of the series with a collision in the first game of their match. For the Canadiens, it all starts with Price. And in front of Price there is a defensive core that packs a punch both in the scoring department and defensively as well.  P.K. Subban leads the charge on both those ends with veteran Andrei Markov supplying steady support. The rest of the defense will give other teams fits to round out the Montreal defense.  On the forward front, Max Pacioretty leads the charge with Tomas Plekanec, Alex Galchenyuk, David Desharnais and Brendan Gallagher rounding out the scorers but don’t expect ...

Columbus stays hot; King Henrik back to normal; Price who? and more; *The New York Islanders blew a two-goal lead in the third period as they fall to a streaking Columbus team, 4-3. Sergei Bobrovsky has been a late-season fantasy stud in goal as Columbus has won eight straight games. Read our IN STEVE'S DEFENSE column later in the day as we focus on two-defensemen from these teams that could be productive fantasy options during the pivotal and final week... *In a head-to-head match-up of arguably the top Hart Trophy contenders, Alex Ovechkin carried the Washington Capitals past Montreal's Carey Price with a superb two-goal effort. Defensemen John Carlson and PK Subban had huge nights with three points apiece... *Huge win for the Ottawa Senators as they outlast the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 in OT as Patrice Wiercioch sneaked one past past Ben Bishop late in the extra fame. After a tough start against the Rangers, Ottawa goalie Andrew Hammond is dialed in again, turning aside 29 shots for his second straight win and 16th in 18 starts. Keep him rolling as the Sen's are fighting for a playoff spot.. A late Boston rally thwarted the Detroit Red Wings as the Bruins keep their three point lead over the Senators for the final wildcard spot.. *The 6-1 Florida rout of Carolina included more offensive fireworks from young guns Jonathan Huberdeau and Aleksander Barkov who combined for four points. They have been solid fantasy starting forward options ever  since the Jaromir Jagr trade to Florida... *Even without the great Vladimir Tarasenko, the St. Louis Blues clinched a playoff berth with the 4-1 triumph over Calgary. Jaden Schwartz, Jori Lehtera, and Patrick Berglund (remember him??) all notched two points in what was a true team win over the Flames... *Henrik Lundqvist fantasy owners who are in contention for their fantasy hockey crowns are at least going down the wire with their prized goalie playing back on an elite level after missing time to his injury. The 3-2 win over the Minnesota Wild was his second straight super effort after his so-so debut return in the loss to Bolston. Start "King Henrik" with confidence.. Marian Gaborik led the King's offensive explosion in the 8-2 drubbing of Edmonton, snapping a three-game shid with no points with two goals and an assist. The talented Slovakian forward has been a fantasy disappointment for most of the season, but look for a strong finish as "Gabby" could be a playoff beast if the Kings sneak in...

Ottawa rookie goalie on fire; Dubnyk prevails over Rinne; Price remains right; and more... Every so often, a goalie comes out of the woodworks and changes the course of action for that luck NHL team, and in our case, fantasy squads starving for a clutch backstopper. Well, Ottawa's Andrew Hammond surely qualifies as he posted his second straight road shutout, this time against the Stanley Cup champs who had won eight straight. The Bowling Green product is currently living a dream during his call-up, collecting four straight wins with a 1.15 GAA and a .962 SP. With Craig Anderson basically already to go, you can be certain that Ottawa will ride Hammond as long as he remains unbeatable. So should you. Pick him up ASAP.. ************************************************************************************************************************************************************************** Carey Price and the Montreal Canadiens played a tidy game against the Columbus Blue Jackets winning 5-2.  Defense was the offense with P.K. Subban (G, 2A) and Andrei Markov (G, A) contributing to the road win.  The Habs will be a force to be reckoned with come playoff time…. Buffalo’s Michal Neuvirth is 3-1-2 in his last six starts and was the recipient of 6 goals in the win over Vancouver last night.  Neuvirth is a decent number 2 goalie with the team playing better hockey of late…Chris Stewart, with a goal and an assist, is rumored to be on his way out, most likely to rival Boston.  It will be an interesting weekend with the trade deadline on Monday… The New York Ranger’s beat the Arizona Coyotes with 2 pair against the Yotes 1.  Both Chris Kreider (2 PPG) and Lee Stempniak (2G) were enough to get by Arizona who got two power play goals of their own from Sam Gagner.  This one wasn’t easy for the Blueshirts as Goalie Cam Talbot continues to play brilliantly in place of the injured Henrik Lundqvist…Kreider shows glimpses of what is to come but hasn’t been able to provide the consistency just yet but his future looks bright…. While struggling at home lately, the St. Louis Blues continued their winning ways on the road with the 2-1 shootout win over Winnipeg. Not much to say here other than it seems no more Ondrej Pavelec in the Jet's goal for now. Thank gosh... The Monnesota Wild deliver a huge road win, 4-2 in Nashville, to further bolster their playoff chances. Don't worry about Pekka Rinne but remain thrilled about what Devan Dubnyk has done for the Wild goalie situation...

The New York Islanders continue their supremacy over the Rangers this season with a 4-1 win for their 4th win of the season over the Blueshirts. Jaroslav Halak almost had another shutout but lost it with just 10 seconds left in the game. The Isles are tied atop the Eastern Conference with the Detroit Red Wings who beat the Florida Panthers 5-4.  Stephen Weiss was the offensive hero for the Wings with a goal and 2 assists. Weiss is probably still available on the waiver wire and should be picked up as a lower end forward or for depth purposes.... The Pittsburgh Penguins were without the services of top guns Crosby and Malkin but got back some significant contributors in Patric Hornqvist (2 goals) and D Kris Letang who had 5 assists in his return from injury. Keep these fantasy studs in your lineup at all times because if they can score without Crosby and Malkin, imagine what they could do with them in it.... Columbus and Philadelphia kept their playoff hopes alive with must-needed victories over Washington and Arizona respectively. With Bobrovsky lost to injury, Curtis McElhinney pushed aside 25 of 28 SOG for the win and will be counted on to keep them in the race until their starter Bobber returns....Philly beat the Coyotes in a shootout to stay in the hunt. IF you are looking for some defensive help on the score sheet, take a look at Michael Del Zotto who seems to have found his scoring form with his fourth on the season but that makes 5 points in last 4 games.... Carey Price turned aside 40 shots as the Montreal Canadienssneaked by the visiting Dallas Stars by a 3-2 score. Defenseman Andrei Markov has firmly jumped back into fantasy relevance by collecting another power-play assist to improve to eight points in his last six games. After collecting ten points over the first two months, all the cagey veteran has done is rack up 17 points in his last 22 contests. Start him with confidence as he and PK Subban have revitalized the Habs on the power-play..Jason Spezza has shown signs of life for the sputtering Stars, extending his point streak to five games with an assist. Expect him to juice up his numbers in the second half, but don't count on a point-per-game clip... It seems that Cam Ward is clearly the forgotten man in the Carolina crease as Anton Khudobin keeps flashing his breakout form from last season. In the 4-2 win over Tampa Bay, the streaking Russian improved his win total to six over his last seven games and his streak of allowing two or less ...

*On a thrilling evening in the NHL where no lead was safe, we start with a feisty affair between arch-rivals Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. The game featured many fights and hits, including one by Zac Rinaldo that took out Pen's defenseman Kris Letang out of the game. That injury could be a costly one for fantasy owners but there is no word yet on the severity of his injury. The timing of it all considering the team won't play for another week could end up minimizing actual game-time lost for Letang. As for the match, Claude Giroux ended it deep in overtime with a huge power-play goal and his 51st point in 47 games. Firmly established as one of the NHL's fantasy elite, the center continues to rack up the points along with the league's top point getter in Jakub Voracek and "hot" defenseman Mark Streit. On the Pittsburgh front, the word is that forward Patrick Hornqvist should resume skating within a few days and could be back shortly after the All-Star Break. **The goaltending carousel continues in Minnesota as Devan Dubnyk was yanked in Detroit after allowing 4 goals on 10 shots. Enter year-long starter Darcy Keumper, fresh after injury who stopped the 14 shots only to lose in overtime to the streaking Wings. I am not sure where this leaves the Wild's netminding situation entering the break, but at the very least Kuemper will get a legitimate shot to re-earn his starting position. Dubnyk has played better hockey for most of the season, so this situation bears watching. As for the game itself, Zach Parise's two third-period goals led a furious 3-goal comeback for the Wild, but just fell short. Thomas Vanek also added two points, hinting to signs of both wingers heating up for the second half... Speaking of heating up, Detroit's Gustav Nyquist is already a blazing inferno, registering his fifth two-point effort over his last ten games. This guy should be close to a PPG lock moving forward as his slow start has become a distant memory. ***For one night, all the talk that PK Subban has regressed for fantasy purposes is a bunch of "hogwash" as the prolific defender helped the Habs bounce back from a one-goal deficit by scoring the overtime game-winner. His two-point effort gives him 31 points in 45 games which is the same as ultra-elite Erik Karlsson in Ottawa. The moral of the story- d-men like Subban and Karlsson are rare breeds who can heat up in a hurry and all of a sudden, they are right back to where they belong. Ride both with confidence as the they ...