NOW WITH THE NHL TRADE DEADLINE 24 HOURS AWAY THINGS ARE STARTING TO HEAT UP! "TRADER" JOE IS BACK WITH AN UPDATE ON THE TRADE FRONT. JASON SPEZZA { OTT }---THE SENATORS TODAY SAID THEY ARE NOT LOOKING TO MOVE THEIR CAPTAIN, BUT ARE LOOKING TO FIND A WINGER TO PLAY WITH SPEZZA, WHICH SHOULD HELP OUT HIS VALUE THE REST OF THE WAY. CHRISTIAN EHROFF [ BUF }---THIS IS ONE PLAYER THAT THE BUFFALO SHOULD HANG ON TO! WITH A CAP-FRIENDLY HIT OF ONLY $4 MILLION A YEAR, WHY MOVE HIM?  BUT LIKE THE REST OF THE SABRES, HIS VALUE ONLY GOES UP WITH A TRADE. TIM THOMAS { FLA }---I AM A LITTLE SURPRISED THAT HIS NAME HAS NOT COME UP MORE OFTEN. THIS IS A PLAYER THAT LED THE BRUINS TO THE STANLEY CUP A FEW YEARS BACK. IF HE GETS MOVED, IT WOULD BE AS A BACK-UP SO IT DOES NOT HELP HIS FANTASY VALUE. BRAD BOYLES [ FLA ]--- LOOKS LIKE THE PANTHERS WOULD MOVE HIM FOR THE RIGHT PRICE, BUT HE IS NO MORE THAN A BOTTOM 6 WINGER NOW , SO DO NOT EXPECT HIS POINT TOTAL TO IMPROVE WITH A TRADE . MARIAN GABORIK [ CBS ]---HIS NAME HAS POPPED UP A FEW TIMES THIS WEEK BUT I JUST FIND IT HARD TO BELIEVE THEY WOULD MOVE A PLAYER WHO PUTS UP THE KIND OF NUMBERS HE DOES WHEN HE IS HEALTHY! DAVID LEGWARD { NAS }---IT MIGHT BE THE RIGHT TIME FOR NASHVILLE TO MOVE THE 33-YEAR OLD CENTER WHO IS HAVING A NICE PRODUCTIVE YEAR. I FEEL THAT HIS VALUE WILL TAKE A SMALL HIT THE REST OF THE WAY REGARDLESS. MIKE CAMMALLERI { CGY }--- I THINK THIS ISA PLAYER THAT WILL BE MOVED JUST BEFORE THE DEADLINE AFTER SOME OF THE BIG NAMES GET TRADED.  HE MIGHT HELP OUT A PLAYOFF CONTENDER BUT WILL NOT DO MUCH FOR YOUR FANTASY TEAM. LASTEST ON SOME PLAYERS WE TALKED ABOUT YESTERDAY: RYAN CALLAHAN { NYR }---CALLAHAN HAS LOWERED HIS ASKING PRICE FROM 7 YEARS TO 6, BUT I STILL FEEL TIME FOR THE RANGERS TO SAY GOODBYE! RYAN KESLER { VAN }--- TICK-TOCK, TICK-TOCK.   JUST WAITING TO SEE WHO OVERPAYS FOR HIM {RANGERS, PENS, FLYERS } MATT MOULSON { BUF }---THE RUMORS STARTED TO FLY YESTERDAY AFTER MOULSON MISSED PRACTICE.  HIS VALUE SHOULD IMPROVE WHEN HE GETS MOVED .

***UPDATE: According to the Pittsburgh-Tribune Review, Penguin D Kris Letang suffered a stroke last week and will miss at least 6 weeks. Our well wishes for a speedy and complete recovery for Kris and his family. As we head into the Olympic break, I wish to pass on a few fantasy thoughts as they directly tie in to last night's statistical performances. Can there possibly be a more tantalizing fantasy forward to own than Montreal's Max Pacioretty? The winger had another dominant performance last night, scoring three goals against Vancouver while firing 6 shots on goal. I love the guy's potential, but I rather somebody else deal with his extreme inconsistencies in the scoring department. Check this out. Out of his 37 points in 49 games, 22 of them have come in just 8 games. That leaves him with 15 points in the remaining 41 games. Yeah, I'll pass on him.Shame on us for not making a bigger deal about the trade that sent defenseman Raphael Diaz to Vancouver a few days ago, because it does have decent fantasy implications. The Swiss defender has collected 2 points in 2 games for his new team, including being promoted on the top power-play unit over the streaky Jason Garrison. Let's not forget that before Montreal's PK Subban signed last season, Diaz flourished alongside Andrei Markov and picked up 8 points in the first 6 games, including 6 on the power-play. Watch him, as Coach Torts might ride him with the man-advantage.With 2 goals against Buffalo, Ottawa winger Milan Michalek has three goals in the last two games and showing plenty of chemistry with Jason Spezza. It might be worth taking a flier on Michalek who can put up points in a hurry and will benefit from Spezza's traditional second half scoring splurges. Speaking of the Sen's captain, he has 12 points (3G/9A) in the last 9 games so start him with extreme confidence. If he can stay healthy, he will be an absolute fantasy difference-maker for sure. I did my best to acquire him in a few leagues while his production was down, but my competition was keen to my intentions. (A shout out to Kevin!)Hey, maybe Ben Scriven's numbers won't be so bad for his new team Edmonton.. After stopping 35 of 36 shots in the 2-1 win over the New York Rangers, the Oiler's goalie of the future has only allowed 8 goals in his last 5 starts and posting a .960 save percentage over that span. More importantly, he won 3 of those games as the Oilers are starting to get better results in tightly contested affairs. This guy might ...

As we head into the Olympic break, I wish to pass on a few fantasy thoughts as they directly tie in to last night's statistical performances. Can there possibly be a more tantalizing fantasy forward to own than Montreal's Max Pacioretty? The winger had another dominant performance last night, scoring three goals against Vancouver while firing 6 shots on goal. I love the guy's potential, but I rather somebody else deal with his extreme inconsistencies in the scoring department. Check this out. Out of his 37 points in 49 games, 22 of them have come in just 8 games. That leaves him with 15 points in the remaining 41 games. Yeah, I'll pass on him.Shame on us for not making a bigger deal about the trade that sent defenseman Raphael Diaz to Vancouver a few days ago, because it does have decent fantasy implications. The Swiss defender has collected 2 points in 2 games for his new team, including being promoted on the top power-play unit over the streaky Jason Garrison. Let's not forget that before Montreal's PK Subban signed last season, Diaz flourished alongside Andrei Markov and picked up 8 points in the first 6 games, including 6 on the power-play. Watch him, as Coach Torts might ride him with the man-advantage.With 2 goals against Buffalo, Ottawa winger Milan Michalek has three goals in the last two games and showing plenty of chemistry with Jason Spezza. It might be worth taking a flier on Michalek who can put up points in a hurry and will benefit from Spezza's traditional second half scoring splurges. Speaking of the Sen's captain, he has 12 points (3G/9A) in the last 9 games so start him with extreme confidence. If he can stay healthy, he will be an absolute fantasy difference-maker for sure. I did my best to acquire him in a few leagues while his production was down, but my competition was keen to my intentions. (A shout out to Kevin!)Hey, maybe Ben Scriven's numbers won't be so bad for his new team Edmonton.. After stopping 35 of 36 shots in the 2-1 win over the New York Rangers, the Oiler's goalie of the future has only allowed 8 goals in his last 5 starts and posting a .960 save percentage over that span. More importantly, he won 3 of those games as the Oilers are starting to get better results in tightly contested affairs. This guy might not be so far off from a bordeline no. 2 starting goalie option in most fantasy formats. Watch him.My last thought is on the supposedly "washed up" Jarome Iginla, who has been tearing it up for Boston lately with ...

Spezza was skating a line with Mark Stone and Colin Greening in the game-day skate. After missing four games he appears set to return tonight in Colorado. Spezza has 30 points (11G / 19A) and a minus-14 rating in 39 games.

Spezza will miss his third straight game with a lower-body injury that he suffered less than a week ago. He is not expected to miss too many more games, but continue to monitor his status heading into the weekend.

Spezza will miss his second straight game and is continued to be listed as day-to-day.

Mika Zibanejad will slide to the top line with Spezza out. Monitor his status prior to Monday's contest.

The NHL announced last night that the salary cap level for next season will rise to $71 million, an increase of $6.7 million, while the minimum will be set at $52 million, up from $44 million. Some more money for the owners to throw at some undeserving players....The Senators gained a much needed 2 points as they outlasted the Philadelphia Flyers last night in a 5-4 shootout win.  Neither goaltender, Steve Mason and Craig Anderson, were at their best so expect both to sit out the team's next start. Anderson has been struggling this season but backup Robin Lehner hasn't exactly shown to be much better; an interesting situation to keep your eye on....Clarke MacArthur scored two early goals to pace the Sens and now has 13 points in last 11 games. If he is still available, grab him quick as he has shown consistency in scoring this season....C Jason Spezza, with 2 assists in the game, has 9 points in last 9 games and seems to be heating up....Interesting to note that Flyers' D Kimmo Timonen had a goal and an assist last night giving him only 8 points in 30 games played. With 3 points in last 3 games, he might be turning the corner making it a good time to grab him to shore up your defense.....Eddie Lack notched his first NHL shutout last night against the Carolina Hurricanes. Kudos to Mr. Lack! The Canuck goaltender was tested early and late but turned aside all 31 SOG to raise his record to 4-2-0....You may not have noticed but the Columbus Blue Jackets have climbed back into the hunt for a playoff spot by winning 3 of 4 before last night's tilt against the Pittsburgh Penguins.  The Blue Jackets played the Pens tough but couldn't get anything past Marc-Andre Fleury who came within 56 seconds of recording his 4th shutout but held on for the 2-1 victory raising his record to 17-8-1....The Western Conference continued their dominance against Eastern Conference teams as Anaheim crushed the NY Islanders 5-2 last night. John Tavares opened the scoring with his 12th of the year and also added an assist in the second period giving him 34 points in 31 games, on track for 90+ points as we had predicted in our Fall Fantasy Guide...The Isles have now lost 10 in a row. Not the kind of season they were hoping for...Corey Perry (2G), Daniel Winnick (3A) and Cam Fowler (G, 2A) were the offensive stars of the game. Two of these are fantasy worthy while one is not.  I'll leave it up to you to guess which one shouldn't be on your fantasy radar.  Perry was so grateful for the ...

The NHL announced last night that the salary cap level for next season will rise to $71 million, an increase of $6.7 million, while the minimum will be set at $52 million, up from $44 million. Some more money for the owners to throw at some undeserving players....The Senators gained a much needed 2 points as they outlasted the Philadelphia Flyers last night in a 5-4 shootout win.  Neither goaltender, Steve Mason and Craig Anderson, were at their best so expect both to sit out the team's next start. Anderson has been struggling this season but backup Robin Lehner hasn't exactly shown to be much better; an interesting situation to keep your eyes on....Clarke MacArthur scored two early goals to pace the Sens and now has 13 points in last 11 games. If he is still available, grab him quick as he has shown consistency in scoring this season....C Jason Spezza, with 2 assists in the game, has 9 points in last 9 games and seems to be heating up....Interesting to not that Flyers' D Kimmo Timonen had a goal and an assist last night giving him only 8 points in 30 games played. With 3 points in last 3 games, he might be turning the corner making it a good time to grab him to shore up your defense.....Eddie Lack notched his first NHL shutout last night against the Carolina Hurricanes. Kudos to Mr. Lack! The Canuck goaltender was tested early and late but turned aside all 31 SOG to raise his record to 4-2-0....You may not have noticed but the Columbus Blue Jackets have climbed back into the hunt for a playoff spot by winning 3 of 4 before last night's tilt against the Pittsburgh Penguins.  The Blue Jackets played the Pens tough but couldn't get anything past Marc-Andre Fleury who came within 56 seconds of recording his 4th shutout but held on for the 2-1 victory raising his record to 17-8-1....The Western Conference continued their dominance against Eastern Conference teams as Anaheim crushed the NY Islanders 5-2 last night. John Tavares opened the scoring with his 12th of the year and also added an assist in the second period giving him 34 points in 31 games, on track for 90+ points as we had predicted in our Fall Fantasy Guide...The Isles have now lost 10 in a row. Not the kind of season they were hoping for...Corey Perry (2G), Daniel Winnick (3A) and Cam Fowler (G, 2A) were the offensive stars of the game. Two of these are fantasy worthy while one is not.  I'll leave it up to you to guess which one shouldn't be on your fantasy radar.  Perry was so grateful for the ...

Another busy night in the NHL as there were 9 games played. A suprising number of them went either to overtime or the shootout, six out of the nine.  It shows how difficult it is to win in the league this day.  Dallas suprised the Bruins with a 3-2 win in a shootout.  Stars left wing Jamie Benn had a goal for the Stars and he has a 5-9-14 record on the year in 15 games played. We view Benn as a point per game player.  Boston defenseman Torey Krug had a goal, and he has 5 goals and 8 points on the season. Krug played 4:35 minutes last night on the power play for Boston, so they love him there.  Pick him up if you can.  Dallas goaltender Kari Lehtonen was strong in net for Dallas with 34 saves. Now that he is healthy again he is a solid goalie pick...The Capitals are beginning to heat up again like they did last year.  Right wing Alexander Ovechkin returned from missing several games with 2 PP goals and an assist. Get him right back into your lineup. Capitals center Niklas Backstrom had a big night with 3 assists. Backstrom has 19 points on the season in 15 games.  I wish he had scored like this last year when I owned him.  Center Marcus Johansson scored his first goal of the season for Washington, but he does have 11 points this year. He is a good pickup if available in your pool.  New York forwards Kyle Okposo and John Tavares each had a goal and an assist, and Okposo is finally having a breakout year with 19 points and a plus 7. Karlsson the king: In one of the games that were not close Ottawa beat the tumbling Blue Jackets 4-1. Senators' defenseman Erik Karlsson had 2 goals and he is scoring like a forward with 17 points in 15 games. Karlsson is the best fantasy defenseman in the NHL.  Ottawa center Jason Spezza had 2 assists, and as long as he stays healthy he is an elite fantasy forward. He has 16 points in 14 games this year. The interesting player for Ottawa is young forward Kyle Turris. Turris is quietly having a solid season with 15 points in 15 games.  While he has only 2 goals scored, he is quietly racking up assists.  Get him if you can. Steen is still a dream: St. Louis beat Montreal 3-2 in a shootout last night. Blues forward Alexander Steen scored a goal again. He has 13 goals in 13 games played, and 19 points.  It is hard to believe that he will keep this pace going.  St. Louis forward Chris Stewart had a goal and he seems to be waking up a bit. He did have 64 points one season a few years ago.  He has only 5 points on the season, but he ...