Jason LaBarbera allowed four goals on 34 shots in the Coyotes 5-3 loss to the San Jose Sharks. LaBarbera looked sharp until the Sharks buried four goals in the 3rd period. He will assume the starting job until Mike Smith can recover from his lower body injury. The Coyotes have very poor talent up front so they rely on their defense and goaltender heavily. LaBarbera must play better than this in order for his team to have a chance at winning a game. He is only fantasy relevant to Mike Smith owners, other than that, he's waiver fodder.

Jason LaBarbera will start for Phoenix on Thursday night. He entered Wednesday's game in relief of Mike Smith during the first period after Smith went down with a lower-body injury. It's unclear how long Smith will be sidelined for, but for now LaBarbera appears as though he will be "the man" in the Coyotes' crease.

After Mike Smith left with a lower-body injury, the Phoenix Coyotes didn't miss a beat with Jason LaBarbera in net. He stopped all but one of 22 shots in 49 minutes of relief work. The Coyotes might be a little nervous rolling with the mediocre 36-year-old backup long-term, yet betting against Dave Tippett seems like a dangerous proposition. If nothing else, Smith owners might be wise to handcuff "The Barber" for the short-term.

Jason LaBarbera is aware that he may receive a larger workload during this shortened season in relief of Phoenix Coyotes' starting goaltender Mike Smith. "Back-to-backs aren't usually the toughest situations for a starting goalie, it's more about the stretches of three games in four nights or four games in six nights," Coyotes' goaltending coach Sean Burke said. "That's really where you rely more on your second goalie. Your number one goalie can do a lot of the back-to-backs, but when you get into those longer stretches, you need your other guy to come in and win games for you." Fantasy owners shouldn't be too weary of the effect of this news on the number of Smith's starts. He still remains a top fantasy option in net.

Jason LaBarbera allowed four goals on 27 shots in the Coyotes' 4-0 loss to St. Louis Sunday. With Mike Smith needing a rest, LaBarbera was given the nod in an important game, but the team's struggles continued. It's conceivable that LaBarbera doesn't receive any more starts the rest of the way.

Jason LaBarbera made 22 saves in the Phoenix Coyotes' 3-2 shootout defeat to the Minnesota Wild on Thursday night. This was LaBarbera's first start since Feb. 13, though he did relieve Mike Smith in the team's last game. The Coyotes have leaned on Smith very heavily this season, so it was important to give him a breather, especially down the stretch. The problem is, the Yotes have now lost five in a row and are barely hanging on to the seventh spot in the Western Conference.

Jason LaBarbera will be between the pipes for Phoenix Thursday versus Minnesota. "We're putting 'Barbs' in because we think he can win the game for us and (it will) give 'Smitty' some rest and time to work on his game," coach Dave Tippett said. LaBarbera hasn't started a game since dropping a 2-1 shootout decision to Vancouver on Feb. 13.

Jason LaBarbera kicked out 21 of 22 shots in regulation in a 2-1 shootout defeat Monday night. LaBarbera was far less effective in the shootout, allowing four goals in six rounds. This was his first start since Jan. 13.

Jason LaBarbera turned aside 28 of 32 shots in a 4-3 loss Friday night. LaBarbera allowed two goals in each of the first and second periods. He has now lost five straight starts, dropping his record to 3-7-1 this season.

Jason LaBarbera yielded three goals on 35 shots as the Phoenix Coyotes dropped a 3-2 decision to the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night. It wasn't a terrible night between the pipes, but in his five starts since Mike Smith went down with a strained groin, the new No. 1 has only one win. Granted, he's posted plus-.900 save percentages in three of those starts. Phoenix has to be crossing its fingers that the solid backup isn't exposed with such a heavy workload. After all, Curtis McElhinney, a journey-man type whom they recalled Dec. 26, doesn't exactly elicit the most confidence.