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!

Steves Picks- Draft Kings(write ups will be up after 4. Sorry, at work folks!)   C Travis Zajac, New Jersey C Mika Zibanejad, Mon W Mark Stone, Ott W Max Pacioretty, Mon W Brendan Gallagher, Mon D Erik Karlsson, Ott D Andrei Markov, Mon G Craig Anderson, Ott U Jason Pominville, Min

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 ...

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...

Good morning! Fresh cup of hot coffee and I'm ready to roll! We have a new point leader in the NHL this morning and he goes by the name of Jakub Voracek. And to think I traded him in the off-season for a 2nd round pick. Ugh! I have to say that Boston is doing a good job of hanging in there with the injuries they've had. It is amazing how at the drop of a dime, a player's fantasy value can change. I'm talking about a player like Justin Faulk who had been a bust and then all of sudden he's the hottest thing since sliced bread. Quietly, Claude Giroux is only 5 points behind team mate Voracek for the NHL lead in points. Patrice Bergeron is a true leader, so very under-rated and he just does it all. And he is still only 29. It feels like he has been around forever. Dallas needs to find some consistency in their game. Those LA-Anaheim matchups are sure fun to watch. The Ducks sure miss Corey Perry. Mumps?  Really?  OF all the things that can sideline a hockey player, mumps? I guess after giving up 6 goals a game for three straight, the Buffalo Sabres decided to put up 6 themselves against a flat Toronto team on Saturday. Zemgus Girgensons sounds more like a Dr. Seuss character than a hockey player, but I'm sure Buffalo fans are happy as a Who. I suppose now that the Sabres can go back on a losing streak since they won one. It was couples night in Montreal, or should I say pair's night. Braden Schenn, P.A. Parenteau, and Dale Weise (really) each had 2 goals. Tomas Plekanec, Max Pacioretty, Sergei Gonchar, Andrei Markov, and NHL-points leader Voracek all had 2 assists in the game. Alex Galchenyuk wanted to stand out so he had 3 assists. Cory Schneider has started all 18 games for the New Jersey Devils so far this year. I really think he should get a night off, but maybe he is like a bionic goalie or something. That NY Ranger-Pittsburgh was something to watch. It had everything in it.  Fights, hard hitting, a few goals (except for Crosby-again), spectacular saves, overtime, and a shootout.  It even had Crosby complaining to the refs all night.  Oh wait, doesn't he do that every game? Martin St. Louis is heating up. With the return of Derek Stepan and Dan Boyle to the lineup, he should be producing more frequently. The Blue Jackets are sure glad to have Sergei Bobrovsky back in the crease. They were lost, and losing, without him.  He may have come back just in time to save their season. Pekka Rinne wins again! I have to say that Winnipeg's G Ondrej Pavelec has ...

After a bad 6-2 loss to the Flames on Sunday, the Canadiens will shake up their D-pairings tonight vs. the Blackhawks. Their changes will see Markov skating on the top-pair with Subban. Markov currently leads the team in ice time, averaging 25:36 per game (3:41 on the PP).

If it wasn't for goalie Carey Price getting knocked out of the series, it could have been the Montreal Canadiens playing against the Los Angeles Kings for the right to hoist the Cup.  Apparently fully recovered from his knee injury, Price looks to lead the Habs back to the Promised Land.  Gone are Thomas Vanek, Brian Gionta and Daniel Briere. Vanek didn't pan out and was often pointed out as the scapegoat.  Gionta and Briere will be missed for their leadership and playoff experience.  PA Parenteau and Tom Gilbert were brought in for depth purposes. Will the Canadiens have what it takes to get back again this year? GOALIES At 27-years of age, Price is entering his prime and has adapted to the pressure of being Montreal's starting goaltender. At 34-20-5, he almost matched his career best in 2010-2011 when he had a 38-28-6 record and his metrics were almost identical.  Now that he is a bit more seasoned, expect more consistency from Price going forward.  Peter Budaj will serve as backup again but if he falters, I'm sure the Canadiens won't hesitate to bring up last year's playoff darling, Dustin Tokarski. DEFENSE There is no denying the fire in P.K. Subban's belly but if he can control that emotion and funnel it into the game, he will be extremely dangerous. Look for Subban to mature a bit this season.  Andrei Markov seems to have rid himself of the injury bug and now has played in 2 back-to-back seasons, although one was the shortened 48-game Lockout season. Markov will still get you around the mid-40 level in points.  FORWARDS They may not have the elite name like a Crosby, Stamkos or an Ovechkin, but the Habs can throw out a few solid lines at you. Max Pacioretty along with David Desharnais, form the top pairing and should lead the team in offense. One player to keep your eye on this year is Alex Galchenyuk. This kid packs a tremendous amount of talent that it is just a matter of time before he explodes.  He has shown flashes, but not the consistency.  Slated to play on a line with Tomas Plekanec and Parenteau, these veterans just may be able to bring out his best. Brendan Gallagher is an energetic player that packs a scoring touch. For deeper leagues, Lars Eller could have a breakout year as he has been steadily improving every year. PROSPECTS Two defensive prospects, Jarred Tinordi and Nathan Beaulieu, are close to joining the club but far from making an impact. Other players are perhaps a season or two away from being any kind of factor. ...

Markov, 35, had seven goals and 36 assists (43 points) in 81 games. After a couple of tough years battling injury, Markov has only missed one game over the last two seasons. He is getting up there in age, but 2013-14 was one of the best offensive years of his career. He heads into 2014-15 as a top-20 fantasy blueliner.

**The Philadelphia Flyers sent LW Scott Hartnell to the Columbus Blue Jackets for Center R.J. Umberger and a 4th rounder in 2015. Hartnell goes to a team that could use his leadership qualities while Umberger returns to where he started his NHL career.  The question about Umberger is how will he be used considering the Flyers are set down the middle?  This trade doesn't make any sense to me. **The Montreal Canadiens have re-signed D Andrei Markov to a 3-year deal. The main concern has always been staying healthy for the offensively talented rearguard.

**The Philadelphia Flyers sent LW Scott Hartnell to the Columbus Blue Jackets for Center R.J. Umberger and a 4th rounder in 2015. Hartnell goes to a team that could use his leadership qualities while Umberger returns to where he started his NHL career.  The question about Umberger is how will he be used considering the Flyers are set down the middle?  This trade doesn't make any sense to me. **The Montreal Canadiens have re-signed D Andrei Markov to a 3-year deal. The main concern has always been staying healthy for the offensively talented rearguard.