QUICK NOTES: Sergei Bobrovsky signed a 4-year extension with the Columbus Blue Jackets solidifying their goaltending as the team start to mature and gain experience. A solid dynasty fantasy league keeper although you would think otherwise as he let in 4 first-period goals after signing the contract....Peter Horachek has been named the Head Coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs for the remainder of the season.  It was decided that a full-time head coach would be decided on in the off-season.  This feels like it has Mike Babcock written all over it. The New York Islanders have been playing well all season and have been getting a lot of press and even though John Tavares hasn't been written about a lot, he has been quietly putting together a solid season. As the year turned into 2015, Tavares has been lighting it lately, more to the liking of his fantasy faithful.  In 4 January games, JT now has 7 points, including the 3 points in last night's OT victory over the New Jersey Devils.  Jaroslav Halak continues to provide consistent goaltending and picked up his 22nd win on the season. Continue to start with confidence.... The Tampa Bay Lightning managed to squeak by the Buffalo Sabres as Steven Stamkos potted his 22nd of the season with just over 5 minutes remaining in regulation for the win. Ben Bishop picked up his 21st win. The Sabres kept the hot Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat off the score sheet, but it was small consolation as they lost their 7th in a row and 11 of their last 12.... Toronto redeemed themselves after their losing effort against Washington the other night with a 5-2 pasting of the Columbus Blue Jackets. The top three Maple Leafs Phil Kessel, James van Riemsdyk & Tyler Bozak, were the main catalysts with a combined 7 points in the win. Continue to start with confidence as on any given night.... It wasn't the prettiest of games but the Florida Panthers won in Calgary in a 6-5 shoot'em out at the Saddledome. Jonathan Huberdeau continued his hot streak with a goal and an assist giving him 5 points in past 2 games. The problem is consistency but if he finds that, he can be a great addition to your fantasy forward depth...Flames D-man T.J. Brodie had 2 goals in the contest and now has 28 points in 42 games. Not bad for the young defenseman entering his 4th full season. Kudos to those who drafted the young talent.... Now that was a little bit more like what everyone was expecting from the Edmonton Oilers this season as they defeated the visiting ...

After the latest failure to reach the playoffs resulted in the end of the Barry Trotz era in Nashville, there was more of an offseason emphasis on improving the offensive talent for new Head Coach Peter Laviolette. Their biggest acquisition was former Pittsburgh LW James Neal, but adding offensive minded centers like Derek Roy, Mike Ribeiro and Olli jokinen in free agency provided under-the-radar quality value. The defense continues to remain strong as Shea Weber leads an emerging core of young defensemen including Seth Jones. With the return of a healthy Pekka Rinne to man the crease, the team has the makings of a playoff contender but questions remain as to how quickly they can successfully transition to the new style. As for fantasy purposes, fantasy owners could be shopping for Nashville forwards for a change. GOALIES The Predators seem set in goal with the return of a healthy Pekka Rinne. Dealing with hip issues over the last 2 seasons and an infection which cost him most of last year, his numbers in 2013-14 were uncharacteristically average - 10-10-3 with 2.78 GAA and .902 Sp. Keep in kind that in 2011, the Finnish sensation was arguably the best fantasy goalie option in the NHL with 43 wins. He looks ready to assume his lofty position as a premier workhorse netminder but the move away from Trotz's defensive ways could hurt his peripheral numbers. Regardless, we like him to again be amongst the elite in goal, so draft him early. After doing a solid job in place of an injured Rinne with a 20-11-4 record and a 2.62 GAA, Carter Hutton did receive a well-deserved contract extension. However, he holds minimal fantasy value as he projects to get in neighborhood of 10-15 starts as the clear no 2. DEFENSE Defense is where the better Nashville fantasy picks prevail as Shea Weber is one of the blue-chip players to own. Not much better than him as he is a guaranteed 45+ pts and 20+ goals with more upside than usual thanks to a more offensive scheme. Also upgrade Roman Josi and Seth Jones. They will benefit from more offense but questions remains regarding which one will play on the top power-play under the new regime. Another deep sleeper is Ryan Ellis who could win that spot with a super camp. Aside from Weber, there exist plenty of uncertainties on the blueline so don't reach for any of them in your drafts. FORWARDS Offensively speaking, James Neal represents the highest fantasy value as the best pure goal scorer to don a Preds uniform in some time. ...

After the latest failure to reach the playoffs resulted in the end of the Barry Trotz era in Nashville, there was more of an offseason emphasis on improving the offensive talent for new Head Coach Peter Laviolette. Their biggest acquisition was former Pittsburgh LW James Neal, but adding offensive minded centers like Derek Roy, Mike Ribeiro and Olli jokinen in free agency provided under-the-radar quality value. The defense continues to remain strong as Shea Weber leads an emerging core of young defensemen including Seth Jones. With the return of a healthy Pekka Rinne to man the crease, the team has the makings of a playoff contender but questions remain as to how quickly they can successfully transition to the new style. As for fantasy purposes, fantasy owners could be shopping for Nashville forwards for a change. GOALIES The Predators seem set in goal with the return of a healthy Pekka Rinne. Dealing with hip issues over the last 2 seasons and an infection which cost him most of last year, his numbers in 2013-14 were uncharacteristically average - 10-10-3 with 2.78 GAA and .902 Sp. Keep in kind that in 2011, the Finnish sensation was arguably the best fantasy goalie option in the NHL with 43 wins. He looks ready to assume his lofty position as a premier workhorse netminder but the move away from Trotz's defensive ways could hurt his peripheral numbers. Regardless, we like him to again be amongst the elite in goal, so draft him early. After doing a solid job in place of an injured Rinne with a 20-11-4 record and a 2.62 GAA, Carter Hutton did receive a well-deserved contract extension. However, he holds minimal fantasy value as he projects to get in neighborhood of 10-15 starts as the clear no 2. DEFENSE Defense is where the better Nashville fantasy picks prevail as Shea Weber is one of the blue-chip players to own. Not much better than him as he is a guaranteed 45+ pts and 20+ goals with more upside than usual thanks to a more offensive scheme. Also upgrade Roman Josi and Seth Jones. They will benefit from more offense but questions remains regarding which one will play on the top power-play under the new regime. Another deep sleeper is Ryan Ellis who could win that spot with a super camp. Aside from Weber, there exist plenty of uncertainties on the blueline so don't reach for any of them in your drafts. FORWARDS Offensively speaking, James Neal represents the highest fantasy value as the best pure goal scorer to don a Preds uniform in some time. ...

With Mike Fisher out for 4-6 months with a ruptured Achilles, the Predators have signed two veteran playmakers today, Roy and Mike Riberio. Roy had nine goals and 28 assists (37 points) in 75 games with the Blues last season. Roy is undersized at 5-foot-9 but still has the ability to be a productive playmaker with the Preds this season.

Roy will centre Magnus Paajarvi and Dmitrij Jaskin after missing Friday's game.

Roy suffered an upper-body injury in Thursday's loss to the Wild. The Blues will be without six regular forwards tonight. Consider Roy day-to-day.

Chris Porter will enter the lineup as Roy gets some rest this afternoon vs. the Avalanche.

Roy missed the last two games with a lower-body injury but will be back tonight vs. the Wild. Roy has nine goals and 28 assists (37 points) in 67 games this season. Chris Porter will come out of the lineup with Roy returning.

The New York Isles acquired Thomas Vanek from Buffalo in exchange for Matt Moulson, a first-round pick in 2014, and a second-round pick in 2015. From a fantasy perspective, the big winner is Vanek, who is a two-time 40-goal scorer, but has lacked overall consistency in point production mainly because of never playing with a star center. Sure, Derek Roy had a few good seasons, but the opportunity to line up with John Tavares can transform him into a 50-goal sniper. If he and JT can find some chemistry, both of their fantasy values can rise to elite levels. It may take some time, but JT is finally getting the help he needs to potentially get to 100-point territory. It could happen this season or next. On the opposite side of the spectrum, the big fantasy loser is undoubtedly Matt Moulson. The perfect example of a star by association, he has scored over 30 goals in the last three full seasons, but the question remains whether he can accomplish that scoring feat without JT. His fantasy value will take a massive hit as he moves to a Buffalo team devoid of any starpower. He figures to get top minutes, but his point production will be adversely affected by his less offensive surroundings. Fantasy Game Notes: The two fantasy stars of the evening were backup goaltenders Richard Bachman of Edmonton (47 saves in 2-1 SO loss in LA) and Alex Stalock of San Jose (38 saves in 5-2 win in Ottawa). Maybe Bachman will get a few more starts considering the anemic state of goaltending for the struggling Oilers.. Ottawa's Erik Karlsson is back to elite fantasy mode, collecting a goal and an assist, raising his season totals to ten points in 11 games.. Corey Perry scored the game-winner and added an assist for the Anaheim Ducks in the 4-3 road win over Columbus. With 13 points in 12 games, the streaky forward is off to a much better start than last season, making a run at 80+ points way more likely. Start him with confidence.

The New York Isles acquired Thomas Vanek from Buffalo in exchange for Matt Moulson, a first-round pick in 2014, and a second-round pick in 2015. From a fantasy perspective, the big winner is Vanek, who is a two-time 40-goal scorer, but has lacked overall consistency in point production mainly because of never playing with a star center. Sure, Derek Roy had a few good seasons, but the opportunity to line up with John Tavares can transform him into a 50-goal sniper. If he and JT can find some chemistry, both of their fantasy values can rise to elite levels. It may take some time, but JT is finally getting the help he needs to potentially get to 100-point territory. It could happen this season or next. On the opposite side of the spectrum, the big fantasy loser is undoubtedly Matt Moulson. The perfect example of a star by association, he has scored over 30 goals in the last three full seasons, but the question remains whether he can accomplish that scoring feat without JT. His fantasy value will take a massive hit as he moves to a Buffalo team devoid of any starpower. He figures to get top minutes, but his point production will be adversely affected by his less offensive surroundings. Fantasy Game Notes: The two fantasy stars of the evening were backup goaltenders Richard Bachman of Edmonton (47 saves in 2-1 SO loss in LA) and Alex Stalock of San Jose (38 saves in 5-2 win in Ottawa). Maybe Bachman will get a few more starts considering the anemic state of goaltending for the struggling Oilers.. Ottawa's Erik Karlsson is back to elite fantasy mode, collecting a goal and an assist, raising his season totals to ten points in 11 games.. Corey Perry scored the game-winner and added an assist for the Anaheim Ducks in the 4-3 road win over Columbus. With 13 points in 12 games, the streaky forward is off to a much better start than last season, making a run at 80+ points way more likely. Start him with confidence.