If you are a hockey fan like we are, you have to watch young Colorado forward Nathan MacKinnon score his goal last night against the New York Islanders.  It is just unbelievable to watch.  I could watch this over and over again.  His speed is unreal.  I think that Colorado President Joe Sakic made a good choice with the first pick in the draft.  New York forward, Rick Nash, scored the game winner against Dallas. Nash is vital to the Rangers success, but he has only 33 points on the season, and he has to score more than that for New York to make the playoffs.  Michal Neuvirth got the win in goal for Washington last night over Toronto 3-2,.  This is Neuvirth's first win since November 22.  It is hard to understand Oates' strategy in goal with Washington.  Braden Holtby has allowed 5 goals in each of his last 3 games. Philipp Grubauer has played well in goal with a 6-2-3 record a 2.27 goals against and a .931 save percentage, but Oates may go with Neuvirth for a while.  Phil Kessel had a goal and an assist in the loss for the Maple Leafs. He has 40 points on the season. Top forward option.  After missing 14 games with a groin injury Columbus goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky has returned with style, as he pitched a shutout against Carolina with 36 saves. His .914 save percentage is not all that good this year, but expect him to get better...Kevin Poulin had 30 saves in yesterday's Islander 2-1 victory over Colorado.    With Evgeni Nabokov out with an injury, Poulin appears to be the goaltender for New York until Nabokov comes back. His numbers are terrible, but his situation is very good.   Big night for Ryan Nugent Hopkins of Edmonton, as he had 2 goals and an assist.  With 35 points on the season he is beginning to show the great talent that he has. Youngster Anton Belov scored his first goal in the NHL for the Oilers.  Love that! ...Eddie Lack is playing great in goal for Vancouver with Roberto Luongo's injury. St Louis defenseman Alex Pietrangelo had a goal last night and 7 shots on goal.  He has 32 points in 44 games this year, and he is one of the top fantasy defensemen in the NHL.  He has 8 points in his last 5 games.

If you are a hockey fan like we are, you have to watch young Colorado forward Nathan MacKinnon score his his goal last night against the New York Islanders. It is just unbelievable to watch.  I could watch this over and over again.  His speed is unreal.  I think that Colorado President Joe Sakic made a good choice with the first pick in the draft.  New York forward, Rick Nash, scored the game winner against Dallas. Nash is vital to the Rangers success, but he has only 33 points on the season, and he has to score more than that for New York to make the playoffs.  Michal Neuvirth got the win in goal for Washington last night over Toronto 3-2,. This is Neuvirth's first win since November 22.  It is hard to understand Oates' strategy in goal with Washington.  Braden Holtby has allowed 5 goals in each of his last 3 games. Philipp Grubauer has played well in goal with a 6-2-3 record a 2.27 goals against and a .931 save percentage, but Oates may go with Neuvirth for a while. Phil Kessel had a goal and an assist in the loss for the Maple Leafs. He has 40 points on the season. Top forward option.  After missing 14 games with a groin injury Columbus goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky has returned with style, as he pitched a shutout against Carolina with 36 saves. His .914 save percentage is not all that good this year, but expect him to get better...Kevin Poulin had 30 saves in yesterday's Islander 2-1 victory over Colorado.   With Evgeni Nabokov out with an injury, Poulin appears to be the goaltender for New York until Nabokov comes back. His numbers are terrible, but his situation is very good.   Big night for Ryan Nugent Hopkins of Edmonton, as he had 2 goals and an assist. With 35 points on the season he is beginning to show the great talent that he has. Youngster Anton Belov scored his first goal in the NHL for the Oilers. Love that! ...Eddie Lack is playing great in goal for Vancouver with Roberto Luongo's injury. St Louis defenseman Alex Pietrangelo had a goal last night and 7 shots on goal. He has 32 points in 44 games this year, and he is one of the top fantasy defensemen in the NHL.  He has 8 points in his last 5 games.

Lack gave up four goals on 35 shots in a loss to the Penguins on Tuesday. It was the third consecutive game that Lack has allowed four goals. He has lost his last four outings while allowed 15 goals and posting an .896 SV%. He has a dreadful matchup tonight against the Blues who have won seven consecutive games, while outscoring the opposition 32-12.

ALL GOALIES CONFIRMED UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED AT TIME OF PRINT Can beating the Chicago Blackhawks spark Henrik Lundqvist for the second half? Tonight the Rangers face a road-weary Dallas Stars team who are making the rounds of the Metropolitan New York area having already lost to the NY Islanders and New Jersey Devils. Look for Dan Ellis (LIKELY) to get a shot at stopping the Stars 4-game losing streak as Kari Lehtonen has started the last two, although I wouldn't be surprised if Lehtonen gets back in. Highly doubt it now that the King has returned.... Jonathan Bernier gets back in the crease with Toronto struggling with their young goaltenders lately. James Reimer didn't fare too well in his last outing, losing 6-1 to Carolina.  In fact, the Maple Leafs goaltenders have let in 18 goals in the last three games. Bernier seems to be the go-to guy for now but has shown some blemishes lately.  Braden Holtby gets the nod after the Caps played last night with Philipp Grubauer backstopping Washington to a 4-3 win over Tampa Bay. If I were the head coach, I'd start Grubauer in back-to-back games, especially with the way Holtby has been playing of late. Caps with Grubauer, Leafs without....Sergei Bobrovsky is back in net for the Columbus Blue Jackets as they take on the Carolina Hurricane, who blew the Leafs away last night. Bobber was victorious in his return from injury against the NY Rangers, winning in the shootout.  Columbus may catch Carolina in a letdown after last night's tilt.  The Canes will probably start Justin Peters (LIKELY) in net....Look for the Colorado Avalanche to go right back with Semyon Varlamov against the surging NY Islanders.  Don't think for a minute Head Coach Patrick Roy won't have his team ready to play tonight. The Avs should cool off a red-hot John Tavares and the rest of the Islanders team.  Kevin Poulin in net for the Isles....In what could be a very explosive matchup tonight in Edmonton, the Oilers and Devan Dubnyk take on Marc-Andre Fleury (LIKELY) and the Pittsburgh Penguins. One team's offense is at the top of the NHL while the other is like a dormant volcano waiting to erupt.  Pens clean up on the Oilers.... The two-headed goaltending of St. Louis is up again tonight against the Vancouver Canucks.  Brian Elliott starts after Jaroslav Halak shutout the Calgary Ffames last night. Eddie Lack is in net again for the Canucks while Roberto Luongo is still about a week away from returning and while lack's metrics have been slipping ...

Lack stopped 45 of 49 shots in a 4-3 OT loss to the Ducks on Sunday. It was a strong outing for Lack who had allowed seven goals in his previous two starts. Things will not get any easier for Lack tonight when he takes on a Penguins team who have won 16 of their last 19 games.

Laurie is a 44-year-old goaltender who has one game of AHL experience and has not played since 2001-02 when he was with the El Paso Buzzards of Central Hockey League. He was an emergency backup for the Ducks last season. He will only be with the Canucks for tonight because of an injury to Roberto Luongo. Expect the Canucks to recall a goalie tomorrow if Luongo's injury is serious.

Lack allowed four goals on 33 shots in a 4-2 loss to the Lightning on New Years day. With Roberto Luongo back, Lack returns to a back-up role. He gets the start in the second game of a back-to-back and will take on a good Ducks team in Anaheim. In his first start vs. the Ducks he allowed two goals on 22 shots in a 3-1 loss.

With Luongo still on the mend, Lack gets another start at home for the Canucks.

The 2014 outdoor Winter Classic was all that it was meant to be. It had the cold, the snow, 104,000+ in attendance and the game was decided in a shootout, won by the Toronto Maple Leafs.  What more could you have asked for unless you were a Detroit Red Wings fan?  The buildup of snow made passing a bit more difficult, but the game was exciting nonetheless.  Jimmy Howard responded with a good game after a less than spectacular return from injury the other night. Look for Howard to rebound in the second half....In the only other game scheduled, Tampa Bay visited the Vancouver Canucks and solved ‘Nucks starter Eddie Lack with 3 second period goals, winning 4-2. Lack is a fine backup goalie but doesn't look quite ready to play extended periods of time if No. 1 Roberto Luongo were to go down to injury. Lack still possesses above average metrics with a 2.02 GAA and a .924 SP....Ben Bishop continues his fine season in net for the Lightning with the win raising his record to 21-5-3, a 1.89 GAA and a .935 SP. Kudos to those who drafted Bishop and stayed the course. More Fantasy Notes: Defenseman Tim Gleason is heading to Toronto to stabilize the back end for the Leafs while Carolina gets an experienced offensive defenseman in John-Michael Liles to fill the spot vacated by the injury to Joni Pitkanen in the pre-season. Liles may be able to help your fantasy squad if he gets off to a good showing on the Hurricanes' power play. Keep an eye on this situation.

The 2014 outdoor Winter Classic was all that it was meant to be. It had the cold, the snow, 104,000+ in attendance and the game was decided in a shootout, won by the Toronto Maple Leafs.  What more could you have asked for unless you were a Detroit Red Wings fan?  The buildup of snow made passing a bit more difficult, but the game was exciting nonetheless.  Jimmy Howard responded with a good game after a less than spectacular return from injury the other night. Look for Howard to rebound in the second half....In the only other game scheduled, Tampa Bay visited the Vancouver Canucks and solved ‘Nucks starter Eddie Lack with 3 second period goals, winning 4-2. Lack is a fine backup goalie but doesn't look quite ready to play extended periods of time if No. 1 Roberto Luongo were to go down to injury. Lack still possesses above average metrics with a 2.02 GAA and a .924 SP....Ben Bishop continues his fine season in net for the Lightning with the win raising his record to 21-5-3, a 1.89 GAA and a .935 SP. Kudos to those who drafted Bishop and stayed the course. More Fantasy Notes: Defenseman Tim Gleason is heading to Toronto to stabilize the back end for the Leafs while Carolina gets an experienced offensive defenseman in John-Michael Liles to fill the spot vacated by the injury to Joni Pitkanen in the pre-season. Liles may be able to help your fantasy squad if he gets off to a good showing on the Hurricanes' power play. Keep an eye on this situation.