Niemi stopped 23 of 24 shots in a win over the Oilers on Thursday. He is now tied for 2nd in the NHL with 22 wins and has won four of his last five starts. The last time he faced the Avalanche he stopped 33 of 37 shots in a 5-4 shootout win.

Thursday's block of games feature some good matchups to choose from, so he are our favorite goalie-start options: Corey Crawford will make his return from injury tonight and resume his starting role for the mighty Chicago Blackhawks. Their opponent, the New York Islanders, have won 2 in a row on the road against Minnesota and Boston, but had to come back after multiple-goal deficits in both. They should fall flat against the Blackhawks, who are still seething after blowing a late 2-goal lead against St. Louis.Don't look now, but Ottawa's Craig Anderson is "on fire" with three straight wins and a .957 SP during that span. Al Montoya has also been playing extremely well for the Jets, seemingly having usurped the struggling Ondrej Pavelec as their top goalie. This one should be tight, but Anderson is looking unbeatable again. Coming off a 6-3 blow-out loss to Anaheim, the Sharks return to the friendly confines of the SAP Center where they have gone 9-0-1 in the last 10. Meanwhile, the Edmonton Oilers have continued their season-long tailspin with a 2-6-2 mark in their last 10. Antti Niemi should bounce back strongly after being pulled in Anaheim, so take the Sharks with extreme confidence.A great spot for rookie Niklas Svedberg to make his NHL debut tonight against a weaker Nashville team, considering the Bruins have lost 2 straight and have yet to make that 3 in '13-14. Look for the "B's" to give it a little more juice and help the rookie win his first.FANTASY MUST-START Corey Crawford, Chicago @ NYI Craig Anderson, Ottawa vs. Winnipeg Antti Niemi, San Jose vs. Edmonton Niklas Svedberg, Boston vs. Nashville SLEEPER ALERT Steve Mason, Philadelphia @ Colorado GOALIE DAILY PICKS Steve: (52-32) Lehtonen Ray: (46-37) Anderson Mike: (38-30) Grubauer

Niemi allowed five goals on 34 shots in a loss to the Ducks on Tuesday. It was a bad way to close out December for Niemi, who had won his three previous starts. He has a good matchup tonight, at home vs. the Oilers. Niemi has a 13-1-3 record with a 2.19 GAA and .919 SV% in San Jose.

Niemi allowed one goal on 31 shots in Sunday's win over the Ducks. The win was his third straight and 21st of the season. Tonight h will take on the Ducks once again. He is 2-0-0 with a 1.93 GAA and .935 SV% against Anaheim.

Niemi allowed one goal on 31 shots in Sunday's win over the Ducks. The win was his third straight and 21st of the season. Tonight he is expected to take on the Ducks once again. He is 2-0-0 with a 1.93 GAA and .935 SV% against Anaheim.

Niemi stopped 34 of 37 shots in Friday's shootout win over the Coyotes Despite allowing seven goals in his last two starts, Niemi has won both of them and now sits at 20 for the season. He will take on a Ducks team who he beat 4-3 in a shootout in November.

Niemi surrendered four goals on 33 shots in a shootout win over the Avalanche on Monday. Niemi has alternated wins and losses in his last five contests, so hopefully for his owners that trend stops tonight in Phoenix. Niemi will see the Coyotes for the third time this season, through the first two meetings he is 1-0-1 with a 1.44 GAA and .943 SV%.

Niemi gave up four goals on 32 shots in a loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday. Niemi's rough December continues as the loss moved him to 3-4-1 with a 2.61 GAA and .902 SV% this month. He draws a tough matchup vs. the Avalanche, however his home record is pretty impressive (11-1-3).

Niemi allowed two goals on 22 shots in a win over the Blues on Thursday. Niemi has not been a model of excellence lately but good enough to get the occasional win. He will need to be great tonight against a red-hot Kings team and their rookie netminder who has not allowed a goal in Los Angeles in two starts.

Niemi allowed three goals on 23 shots in a loss to the Nashville Predators on Saturday. Niemi has lost four of his last five starts and will have a tough time getting back in the win column with the Sharks traveling to St. Louis. He stopped 21 of 24 shots in a 6-3 win over the Blues on November 29.