Busy schedule in the NHL yesterday with 11 games played. The New York Rangers and Vancouver Canucks started it with a matinee, and young speedster Chris Kreider had a big game with 3 a hat trick against his former Head Coach John Tortorella. With the 3 goals, Kreider now has 16 points on the season but in only 20 games played.  And he is now playing on a line with Rick Nash, and the two of them really seem to complement each other with their speed.  Nash had a big game as well with a goal and 2 assists.  Boy are the Rangers happy to see him back.  If Nash and Kreider stay together as linemates then Krieder is worth a pickup...Boston beat Columbus in a lackluster game, 3-1.  Forward Milan Lucic had 2 goals and Dave Krejci 2 assists. Both players are worth a 6th forward option as they have scored 20 and 21 points respectively this season.  We are more intrigued by young Bruin defenseman Torey Krug who had an assist yesterday, and has 16 points on the season. He led all Boston players with 6:08 minutes of power play time.  Ryan Johansen scored the only goal for Columbus and with 19 points he is worth looking at. We think he is going to be a terrific player. The Road Warrier is back:  Montreal beat Toronto 4-2, and "Mad Max" Pacioretty had a big game with 2 goals and an assist. He has 12 points on the season, but he is on fire right now.  He is even making  his linemate Dave Desharnais become relevant again. After looking lost in the woods with only 1 assist in his first 19 games, Desharnais has 6 points in his last 6 games.  He may be worth a shot if you need forward help. Pittsburgh duo: There is probably no person who is more happy about James Neal's return from injury than Evgeni Malken. Malkin and Neal are simply magic together.  Malkin had a goal and 3 assists yesterday, while Neal had a goal and an assist in the Penguins easy win over the miserable Panthers.  Malkin now has 35 points on the year, and he has a shot at 100 points. Sabre blues: Buffalo is simply a terrible team, as they have only 6 wins on the season in 28 games.  They lost in OT yesterday to New Jersey 1-0.  Cory Schneider had to make only 15 saves for the shutout. You have to feel sorry for him going from the starter in Vancouver to the backup in New Jersey. That's about as big a fantasy value hit as you can have.  If Martin Brodeur comes back again next year, no reason he won't, then General Manager Lou Lamorello could have a problem. Schneider has only one more year left on his ...

Good morning! Coffee is piping hot! Ilya Bryzgalov came back with a bang, 1 3-0 shutout, and followed that up with a stinker and pulled from the game. This is what you're gonna get. I've noticed lately a lot of back-to-back nights where the same goalie started both games. Interesting. You just knew that the Rangers were going to be stoked playing against former Head Coach John Tortorella yesterday. Chris Kreider certainly was evidenced by that hat trick. Rangers backup goalie Cam Talbot is pretty darn good. He has a 6-1-0 record. Slowly but surely Columbus Blue Jacket Ryan Johansen is becoming a star. But how can a player lead his team in SOG with just 2 in a game?  Really! Montreal is quietly inching up their way in the standings. Price is playing magnificent in net and the offense is starting to heat up. The Maple Leafs now with 4 losses in a row. Their goaltending is starting to slip a little. The Max Factor is heating up big time in Montreal. 2 goals, 1 assists and 10 SOG last night. A true testament that this is a team game, take a look at the Pittsburgh Penguins. I know they have Crosby and Malkin, but ever since they got Letang and Neal back from injuries, they have been a terror to play against. Neal has scored at last one goal in 5 of his last 7 games. It's a good thing Steve Bernier scored in overtime in that 1-0 Buffalo-New Jersey game or we still might be waiting the outcome. Remember early in the season when the Flyers were bad? Not anymore! Chicago is so damn good. Glad to see Colonel Klinkhammer getting a goal after going 5 games without a point. And, he was the only Coyote with a + next to his name. With Landeskog, Duchene and MacKinnon, these Avs are going to be sick in a few years. Zach Parise is a true hockey player with his return after missing only one game with a foot injury. Calgary beat the Los Angeles Kings. I repeat. The Calgary Flames beat the Los Angeles Kings. Great late game last night with San Jose prevailing at home in a shootout with the Anaheim Ducks. I think Evander Kane is about to go off. Have a great week!

Even though he never played a single game in the NHL, so much was expected of Chris Kreider when he was called upon to add some offense to the New York Rangers Stanley Cup run in 2011-2012. With his Boston College season completed, the Head Coach of the Rangers, John Tortorella, played him sparingly in those playoffs, especially after making rookie mistakes. A lot of pressure was placed upon this young man's shoulders, but he did manage to perform quite admirably, playing in 18 games during the playoffs and going 5-2-13. Now that his college career was over, he was all but slated to be the New York Rangers savior the following season. With the way he performed in the playoffs, he was going to be the next coming.  Well, the Lockout more than derailed that from the start.  Kreider spent the beginning of that season playing in the AHL with the Connecticut Whale.  He went 12-11-23 in 48 games and then the lockout ended.  With only a week's notice before the start of the season, not many teams had enough time to get players enough preparation time to set up their lines and see what players had chemistry.  Needless to say, Kreider started slow, ended up in Tortorella's doghouse and saw his ice time, as well as his confidence, dwindle.  During 23 games, Kreider could only muster 2 goals and an assist.  The fanfare quickly subsided and the luster was also gone from this rising star. While at Boston College, Kreider showed the type of talent that made scouts salivate. The kid had size (now 6'3" and 230 lbs) and the skill set to go with it.  Playing 114 games in three years at BC, Kreider had 49 goals and 43 assists.  He also had 129 PIMs during that time.  Kreider was still maturing and with the right line mates, he can be something special for the Rangers. He started the 2013-2014 season with the Hartford Wolf Pack, the Connecticut Whale was a terrible name to begin with, and was called up to the Rangers on October 24th due to injuries. In 19 games since his call up, Kreider has gone 3-10-13.  He hasn't gone on any type of streak yet in those 19 games, but the way he has been playing of late, he can get on a hot streak at any time.  In fact, during today's matinee match against his former Head Coach, John Tortorella, he already has 2 goals.  He does have that extra step today, but watch him over the next few games as he just might go on one of those streaks.  Having Rick Nash back in the lineup balances the forward lines which should also benefit CK. ICE POPS:...

Chris Kreider- New York Rangers, LW (Owned in 16.7% of ESPN leagues) Ever since his call-up from the AHL, the 22-year old has been an offensive spark for a Ranger's team arguably missing their two best forwards in Rick Nash and Ryan Callahan. He is currently riding a three-game point streak, where he has collected 2 goals and 3 assists while playing on the second line with Derek Stepan. He has also been getting regular time on the top power-play unit, so the youngster has a chance to fulfill his offensive potential under new Ranger's coach Alain Vigneault. He is definitely worth a pickup while he is hot, but he could end up with considerable keeper-league value. David Legwand- Nashville , C (Owned in 3.8% of ESPN leagues) With 7 points (3G/4A) in his last four games, the veteran center has provided much-needed scoring punch for an anemic Predator offensive attack. Listen, I am not telling you that any Nashville forwards are worth relying on as consistent fantasy options, but Legwand has the offensive capabilities to pour it on for long stretches of games. The streaky center is worth a short-term gamble, especially if you are lacking production from your bottom-three fantasy forwards. Just keep in mind that he is a career .5 point-per-game guy playing for a lower-echelon offensive squad, so don't expect his luck to last too long. Kris Russell- Calgary, D (Owned in 54.5% of ESPN leagues) Don't look now, but the 26-year old journeyman has enjoyed a huge spike in minutes since Mark Giordano was sidelined due to a broken ankle. Since being paired with Dennis Wideman, both on the top pairing even-strength and on the PP, he has been scoring regularly with 5 points in the last 6 games. After having fallen short of expectations in Columbus and St. Louis, he is now delivering the goods with the extra ice-time. He is well worth a flier if available in your leagues. Andrew MacDonald- New York Islanders, D (Owned in 29.7% of ESPN leagues) The 27-year old blueliner picked up a goal and an assist over the last three games, continuing to reap the rewards of more quality ice-time in the absence of Lubomir Visnovsky, who is out indefinitely due to a concussion. MacDonald has been a mainstay on the top power-play unit and should see a dramatic increase in offensive production if he holds on to that role. The addition of sniper Thomas Vanek makes all the key Islander players more fantasy relevant, as the PP efficiency and overall team scoring should be on the rise. As long...

Kreider has two goals and two assists in six games with Hartford. The Rangers don't play again until Thursday, but he was skating on the top-line this morning with Brad Richards and Derek Stepan. He was the 19th overall pick in 2009 but has yet to take the next step in his NHL career. This could be the chance he needs with all the injuries that have hit New York.

Kreider has been average during the preseason and might have played himself off of New York's roster. "A lot of players are close but really haven't shown me they can play at this level on a consistent basis," head coach Alain Vigneault said. "There are still guys [with a chance] who are going to play [against the Kings] but they have to play better."

CHRIS KREIDER-LW-NY RANGERS After being promoted to the top line for Game 4, Kreider answered the bell with the overtime game-winning goal off a deft pass from Rick Nash. With the series extended for at least another game, it would be safe to assume that Head Coach John Tortorella might stick with the same line combinations that resulted in their first win over Boston. As for Kreider, he displayed high-end offensive talent with a couple of playoff game-winners last season, but played sparingly during the regular season. The 22-year old has shown the ability to raise his level of play during the post-season, so he could be a solid fantasy play for Game 5. JIMMY HOWARD-G-DETROIT read more

Kreider was a minus-1 in 8:23 in Game 1.

Brian Boyle was injured Tuesday.

Kreider had a strong run in the playoffs last season posting five goals and two assists in 18 games. With his play in the playoffs the Rangers were expecting more out of him this year. He has just two goals and one assist in 17 games.