Injuries have plagued the Detroit Red Wings up front for most of the season, but the return of the "Mule" can help them keep their long-standing playoff streak alive. RW Johan Franzen collected a "hat trick" against the hapless Ottawa Senators, giving him 5 points in 2 games since his return from a concussion. To be honest, it's difficult as a fantasy owner to rely on him down the stretch given his history of injuries, but if he can stay healthy.. watch out. As streaky as they come and a consistent "second half" guy, you can do much worse than gamble on Franzen for a scoring boost. While the young forwards have done an admirable job of providing secondary scoring, most of the Detroit offense will fall on the shoulders on Franzen and Pavel Datsyuk. Just hope their knees don't crumble.. Couture Sparks Sharks: We all know this was supposed to be Logan Couture's breakout season, but injuries and a brief slump left fantasy owners unsatisfied. However, the sniper is back in great form, collecting 2 goals in the 7-3 rout in Philly. The good news is that his offensive presence opens it up for all the key scoring forwards in San Jose, including "Little Joe" Pavelski who had a "hat trick" and now sits second in the NHL with 33 goals scored. Look for Couture and Pavelski to be fantasy beasts over the final stretch, while Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton should continue their normal production. In terms of their remaining fantasy worth, here's the following order: 1. Couture 2. Pavelski. 3. Marleau 4. Thornton. Whats The Matter With Maatta? Absolutely nothing! The young Olli Maatta is making a strong case for Calder Trophy consideration, given that he blazed the way for Pittsburgh with 2 points last night and 5 in the last five games overall. Dating back to the start of December, the "OEL" clone has collected 20 points (6G/14A) in the last 30 games. If not for a lack of primary power-play time, this guy would be an automatic top-ten fantasy option but Matt Niskanen continues to get the minutes. regardless, the injuries to Kris Letang and Paul Martin have created a huge opportunity for the youngster, and he has taken full advantage of it so far. Scoop him up if he is still available. More Fantasy Game Notes: Well, let's begin with the "Great 8" who should be moping over Team Russia's disastrous showing in Sochi, but apparently has other plans..like continuing his NHL dominance this season. Alex Ovechkin scored his league-leading 41st goal late in the third to grab the win for the Capitals over Florida. In addition, he dished out two helpers to serve notice that his production will be just fine the rest of the way. Apparently, the same goes for his line-mate Nicklas Backstrom who also racked up 3 points despite the heartbreak of not playing in Sweden's gold medal match against Canada. Start both superstars with confidence, as their collective Olympic angst will soon be in the rearview mirror.. Watch out for Minnesota's Mikael Granlund, who followed up his strong play for Team Finland in Sochi with a game-winning goal in his first NHL game back in the 3-0 win over Edmonton. With center Mikko Koivu just about ready to return, Coach Mike Yeo will have to engage in some prominent line shuffling, but he already hinted that he might not break up the top-line tandem of Granlund and Zach Parise. Where does that leave Koivu? If that happens, his fantasy value could possibly plummet, especially if he loses top power-play time. Monitor this situation closely if you are either a Granlund or Koivu owner. Miserable season so far for King's captain Dustin Brown with just 19 points in 60 games, but should he be on your radar? Again, another infamous late-season streaky forward who wakes up when the games matter the most as evidenced by a goal and an assist last night. Is he back from the dead? If Brown does it a few more times, I would consider picking him up. 20 points in his last 20 games is quite possible if he finds his "mojo". In one of my leagues, I traded away Patrick Elias and Cam Fowler for Jonathan Toews and Slava Voynov. With most of the league feeling that I came out huge with Toews, my shrewd partner "Razor" felt that Elias could be more valuable than Toews simply because the Devils have more to play for, while Chicago has everything sewn up. So after one night, Elias collected 3 points, while Toews took home a New York doughnut (zero points!). Hoping that I will not be kicking myself in the head for that trade, I will be keeping score of this head-to-head matchup. With all the Ryan Miller rumors swirling around, Minnesota's Darcy Kuemper just might be the "real deal". The young goaltender earned his second career shutout with 21 saves in the win over the Oilers. He has extended his winning streak to 3 games, while his stats stand at 9-3-2, a 2.29 GAA, and a .921 SP. Unless a trade is made, you should view Kuemper as a viable starting option in all fantasy formats. That Minnesota defense has been stingy all year long. Here's for an under-the-radar point-per-game producer in Winnipeg.... With a goal in the 3-2 win over Phoenix, Blake Wheeler has scored 31 points in the last 32 games. He should be poised for a strong finish, so start the talented forward with confidence. A key injury note---Carolina's Alex Semin left last night's game with a lower-body injury. With 9 goals in the last 12 games, the oft-injured winger had been a "hot" fantasy commodity of late, but missing any time could would hurt his remaining fantasy value.