Tavares stars again; Dubnyk can't lose; Stamkos heating up; and more: The Philadelphia Flyers got a much-needed win against a tough St. Louis Blues as they try to climb up into that last wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.  Having goalie Steve Mason back in net surely will help the Flyers cause as he turned aside 28 of 29 shots on goal.  It looks like a four team race for the last spot with Ottawa and Florida all in the hunt for the spot occupied by the Boston Bruins at the moment…. Devan Dubnyk continues on a most unlikely run as he improved to 17-3-2 as the starting Minnesota Wild goalie.  Even in his losses he has played brilliantly.  Last year’s version is long forgotten but probably not in Edmonton…Jason Pominville provided all the offense DD would need as the Wild beat the Ovechkin-less Washington Capitals 2-1. Ovechkin was out with a lower-body injury but look for him to be back in the lineup in the next game…..Zach Parise assisted on both Pommer goals and should be in your starting lineup as he has the talent to get on a run in a hurry…. Boston gained a much needed point as they lost 4-3 in a shootout to the Calgary Flames who are having a fine season as they are in the playoff hunt in the Western Conference.  Flames goalie Karri Ramo has now won 3 of his last five starts and his numbers are impressive during that streak with a 1.80 GAA and a .947 SP.  If available, he could help your fantasy squad as the Flames are riding his hot play….   With Florida down to their third goalie, the Dallas Stars prevailed in the 4-3 shootout win. Kari Lehtonen was yanked early after another inconsistent effort leading to Jhonas Enroth's first win as a Star. The Dallas fantasy goalie situation has been in flux all season, mostly due to Lehtonen's wildly erratic play. Never know what you are getting... Easy game for the Bolt's as Steven Stamkos led the offense with two helpers in the 4-2 victory over the hapless Maple Leafs. Super "Stammer" has come to life after a mid-season slump, holding a current four-game point streak (4G/2A) and having collected 15 points over the last 15 games. Seems like a down year, but he should be 'cooking' down the stretch... The Nashville Predators keep sliding with their fourth straight loss, this time at the hands of the Islanders. John Tavares collected a goal and an assist on the night, improving to an NHL-leading 67 points. Most of us expected a slight drop-off after the Kyle Okposo injury, but JT has actually improved on ...

WHAT'S NEU? The NHL trade deadline has come and passed with yesterday’s 3:00 pm cutoff and there was one surprising element that struck me.  If you haven’t noticed, there were only two goalies involved in trades this deadline day and they were traded for each other.  Last month there was Buffalo Sabre Jhonas Enroth traded for Dallas Star Anders Lindback.  Yesterday, this trade also involved the Buffalo Sabres, this time it was the Sabres trading Michal Neuvirth for New York Islander backup Chad Johnson.  I know why the Islanders did this trade but I am scratching my head wondering what the Sabres were thinking. Chad Johnson parlayed his fine season with the Boston Bruins in 2013-2014 into a nice 2-year deal to serve as backup to Islanders starting goalie Jaroslav Halak.  Johnson posted numbers of 17-4-3 with a .925 SP and a 2.10 GAA while with the Bruins but didn’t fare so well in his stint on the Island.  As the Islanders backup, 8-8-1 with a .889 SPP and 3.08 GAA, not exactly what you are looking for in a backup especially when you believe you have a chance to compete for the Stanley Cup this year.  So off he went to the Sabres for Neuvirth. Now, some of you are wondering why the Islanders would want a Buffalo Sabres goalie, especially from a terrible Sabres team and a goalie who has posted a 6-17-3 record with a .918 SP and 2.99 GAA.  Neuvirth was a victim of the Sabres young defense and lack of experienced talent up front and a closer look at his metrics, you can see that they really aren’t that bad considering the circumstances he was playing under.  In 9 games started since the All-Star break, Neuvirth has posted a 2.28 GAA and a .938 SP.  Also, his numbers playing on home ice vs. away are significantly better with .929/.907 and 2.54/3.49 differences.  Now, those kind of numbers got me thinking because Neuvirth is only 26 years old and has also won back-to-back Calder Cup championships in 2009 and 2010 so you know he has what it takes under pressure.  He has a little bit of NHL playoff experience appearing in 9 games while a member of the Washington Capitals in 2010-2011.  So why would the Sabres, who are in a rebuilding mode, give up on him as he seemed to fit into their scheme?  Neuvirth is an Unrestricted Free Agent (UFA) at the end of this season and perhaps they tried to sign him to an extension but he wanted to test the market and see what he could get. If the Sabres didn’t try to sign him, then they probably made a big mistake because they ...

MAY I HELP YOU? As the regular season turns into the home stretch, many teams are striving to reach the playoffs and others are trying to better their positions.  The latter ones are all but set in the crease going forward but some of the former teams need to either fix what is wrong or improve on their situation. Let's take a look at who can help your fantasy team down the stretch in your quest for the championship. EDDIE LACK: With Vancouver’s Ryan Miller suffering an injury due to a collision the other night, it appears the 2nd year goaltender will assume starting duty for the next 4-6 weeks as Miller recovers.  Expect Lack, who saw considerable time last year when Roberto Luongo was traded, to provide consistent goaltending as the Canucks battle for a playoff spot.  Probably not available on the waiver wire anymore, but if he is, grab him… ANDREW HAMMOND: Another situation where the starring goalie is out due to an injury, as is the case with Craig Anderson.  However, the backup goalie in Ottawa is also out, with Robin Lehner out with a concussion after colliding with team mate Clarke MacArthur.  Hammond was pressed into action and he has done remarkably well by winning his first two starts.  He may have a rougher time this week with 3 away games against the three California teams so temper your expectations.  His NHL starting experience may be short-lived as Anderson is close to returning as he is travelling with the team. MICHAL NEUVIRTH: You wouldn’t expect a recommendation of a Buffalo Sabre player especially with the season they are having but ever since Jhonas Enroth was traded away to Dallas, Neuvirth has settled in as the undisputed starter with 6 starts in a row and has posted decent numbers during that span, although only going 2-2-2.  If you are in multi-category leagues, Neuvirth may be helpful in all statistical categories except wins.  MICHAEL HUTCHINSON:  It may not be obvious to all but the Winnipeg Jets seem to play better when Hutchinson is in net as he has gone 5-3-2 in last 10 starts while Ondrej Pavelec has gone just 3-5-2.  With the Jets trying to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since their return to Winnipeg, expect the team to rely more on Hutchinson and break away from the alternating starter system they have employed since the All-Star break. POST MARKS: RETURN OF THE KING—With Cam Talbot and the NY Rangers winning without their star net minder, it appears the Blueshirts can take their time getting Lundqvist ...

The huge news of the night involved the lower-body injury suffered by Tyler Seguin after a low hit by Florida's Dimitry Kulikov. Seguin owners and Dallas fans are holding their breath as he could miss significant time if the MRI reveals major damage. If you want to look ahead, Jason Spezza would stand to be the major fantasy beneficiary during Seguin's potential absence. But let's hope the superstar is ok and misses minimum time.. I found it real funny and somewhat predictable that Kari Lehtonen turned in arguably his strongest performance of the season on the heels of the Stars acquiring goalie Jhonas Enroth in a trade. Lehtonen needed a kick in the butt to get his game going so fantasy owners owe Mr. Enroth a big thank you.. Fantasy star of the night honors belongs to San Jose's Joe Pavelski who collected a hat trick to raise his goal total to 31, good for fourth in the NHL. 'Little Joe" deserves way more fantasy recognition but it's the more famous "Joe"-Mr. Thornton- who has been killing it lately with 14 points over his last ten games. After a few seasons of showing some decline, the veteran center is scoring again at a point-per-game clip. Start him while he pumps out assists at such a high rate.. Marian Hossa is taking a page out of Joe Thornton's book and has turned back the clock lately with another two-point effort, his fourth straight. With seven goals over that span, the Slovakian winger is absolutely on a roll and needs to be starting while he is streaking... The "Wayne Train" is flying express these days, as Wayne Simmonds is heating up again. His two goals and an assist gives him six points over his last five games. Get him in your lineup now but be prepared to pull the plug soon when he goes cold. There is no middle ground with Simmonds. He is either great or not...  

Columbus is continuing to climb into the playoff picture as they beat a floundering Boston Bruin team who is just 4-4-2 in last 10. Scott Hartnell returned to the lineup for the Blue Jackets and netted 2 goals and D Kevin Connauton had a goal and 2 assists giving him 7 points in past 8 games. The 24-year old defenseman may be worth a shot in deeper leagues.... Another team that has turned their play around of late are the buffalo Sabres who beat the NY Islanders by coming back with 3 unanswered goals in the third period to tie up the game before winning in overtime. Sabres G Jhonas Enroth got the win to break a two-game skid and should only be used as a fantasy starter in desperate situations.... Detroit started off a 9-game schedule with 8 on the road with an overtime win in Ottawa as Gustav Nyquist scored another clutch goal for the game-winner. Gustav now has 15 goals to go along with 8 assists in 36 games.  That was his 3rd game-winning goal on the season....Red Wing D Niklas Kronwall returned to action after leaving the last game and had 2 assists in the game. Continue to start with confidence.... Tampa Bay Lightning G Ben Bishop returned to action himself and backstopped the team to a 2-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes. Canes G Cam Ward had a tremendous game by turning aside 36 of 38 SOG. Too bad his team isn't giving him support.... The New York Rangers continued their amazing run by winning 3-1 over the New Jersey Devils, who were playing their first game after Pete DeBoer was let go. Behind the bench for the Devils were Lou Lamoriello, Scott Stevens and Adam Oates.  Maybe three heads aren't better than one....Derek Stepan had all the answers and all the goals for the Rangers who won for the 8th straight game. Stepan is playing at a point-per-game pace with 22 points in 21 games ever since his return from a leg injury that delayed his start to the season... Braden Holtby blanked the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 3-0 Washington triumph, improving his numbers to 16-8-5 with a 2.22 GAA and a .921 SP. With the roll that the talented goaltender has been on for the surging Capitals, four wins in his last five, he is definitely on the must start short list for fantasy netminders... Two key injuries to take note of- key Pittsburgh skaters Patrick Hornqvist and Kris Letang left the game due to apparent leg injuries although the severity of either is not clear... Another easy night for Nashville goalie Pekka Rinne as he turned aside 26 of 27 shots in the 4...

HOME ON THE RANGE Don't get in the way of a stampeding Buffalo Sabres team as they have rattled off four wins in a row and are 7-3-0 in their last ten. The story of this turnaround is G Jhonas Enroth who has the team rallying around his play. In fact, the Sabres are playing so well of late that they have positioned themselves to make a run for a playoff spot.  An incredible run; especially after their horrid start to the season.  Enroth has gone 9-2 and with the shootout win last night evened his record at 10-10-1, so it is safe to start this Sabre.... A big blow to Tampa fans as starting goaltender Ben Bishop left last night's tilt against the Pittsburgh Penguins after one period of play with a lower-body injury. There was no indication of discomfort from the talented net minder but Evgeni Nabokov started the 2nd period. No word yet on the extent of Bishop's injury, but Nabokov should have been owned as a handcuff due to Bishop's injury woes last season.  Let's hope it's nothing serious.... Not much is going right for the New Jersey Devils of late. The Devils managed to play the NY Islanders tight last night and even opened up a 2-0 lead with the "new-and-improved" Scott Gomez who had a goal and an assist and now has 6 points in 8 games with the Devils, all six of those in the last 5 games....Jaromir Jagr is the beneficiary of Gomez' resurgence as he assisted on both goals. Expect Jagr to get back to a point-per-game pace....Marek Zidlicky came alive with a goal and an assist as well. Who knew that Gomez still had it in him? Maybe he never should have left the swamps of New Jersey. This is possibly a good "buy-low" situation in New Jersey...With the win the NY Islanders remained 2 points behind the Eastern Conference leading Pittsburgh Penguins with Jaroslav Halak getting his 16th win on the season. It also made a clean sweep for the home teams last night.  After a modest 4-game losing streak, the Isles are back on the winning track. Let's see how the Edmonton Oilers react to a new Head Coach now that Dallas Eakins has been let go. We had mentioned in our SUNDAY MORNING COFFEE article this past week that a few coaching changes were in order with Edmonton being one of them. Will the ball start to roll on some of the others?  Read here to find out about the others.

Good morning all! Christmas is coming! With Zdeno Chara back in the lineup, Boston should be able to get back on track soon enough. I don't know if this particular coaching change will help Ottawa but I do agree that a change was needed. I think you can now consider Buffalo NHL-ready as they have gone 7-3-0 in last ten games separating themselves from the Carolina Hurricanes. The biggest reason in Buffalo is G Jhonas Enroth. He has taken the reins after a somewhat sluggish start.  The Philadelphia Flyers have an upcoming 8-game road trip which will say a lot about their chances for the playoffs. I could see a lot of names changing addresses for the Hurricanes when the trading deadline approaches. It's impressive to see the Florida Panthers in the middle of the Eastern Conference standings with 32 points through 28 games. Nice job! Can you believe Toronto is the hottest team in the NHL right now with an 8-1-1 record over last 10 games? Who would've thought after the 9-2 Tampa catastrophe? The Leafs did it by beating the former hottest team, the Detroit Red Wings, twice in one week. Nazem Kadri is playing well on both sides of the puck and has 7 points in 6 December games and he had 7 total points in all of November. That Sean Couturier is on fire recently if you haven't noticed. He also has 7 points in 6 December games like Kadri. At 6-3-1 in last 10 games, is that considered a slump for Tampa Bay? With Crosby slumping and all their injuries throughout the early season, the Pittsburgh Penguins still sit atop the Eastern Conference. Nicklas Backstrom, the assist machine, had a hat trick against Tampa. Now, with all the firepower in that game, I wouldn't have guessed him to get a hattie. Scott Darling lost against the Islanders 3-2.  He has played well with a 5-2 record and a 1.97 GAA.  Corey Crawford has a 1.87 GAA and Antti Raanta has a 2.02 GAA. What do they feed those Blackhawk goalies? Sergei Bobrovsky and the Columbus Blue Jackets are storming their way back into the playoff picture by rattling off six straight wins. Get on the bandwagon and hitch the cannon up to the back. When Kris Letang is in the lineup, he is lethal. Well, maybe not lethal, but damn good. Frederik Andersen is 7-0-0 in December. I don't think he can get through the month without a loss. Do you? If Edmonton could only score a little bit more each game, Arizona might have been in last place in the Western Conference instead of the Oilers. I think a coaching change may be in order ...

Let's start off with saying "Hat's off to Nick" as the cerebral passing machine known as Nicklas Backstrom collected his first career regular season "hat trick" in Washington's 4-2 win over Tampa Bay. His career high in goals scored was 33 in 2009-10, but he routinely falls in the 15-20 category. Meaning, don't get overly excited over his scoring explosion. His point-per-game ways will continue this season thanks to a healthy dose of assists.. Need to mention our second fantasy star of the night, Kris Letang who has played this season like a man on a mission, scoring another two goals in Pittsburgh's losing effort to Columbus. He has collected points in five straight games, plus goals in three straight. With 21 points on the season and injury-free again, get him in your starting line-ups ASAP.. Should we start to take Buffalo's goalie Jhonas Enroth seriously in all fantasy leagues? The streaking Swede did not enjoy his best night by any means but held on for his eighth win in his last ten starts. The Sabres have been gaining much confidence during this hot stretch and are even scoring some goals. When you see them defeating Florida and Calgary by the score of 4-3, then you know the team is trending upward. I say use Enroth as a solid no. 2 if your goaltending is struggling.. Tyler Seguin is the "man" again, scoring a goal and an assist in the 4-2 Dallas triumph over New Jersey. His 23 goals and 38 points leads the entire NHL, while his robust 118 SOG ranks him second. Superstar status has arrived.. Want to add that Jason Spezza is back on Seguin's line. His two points last night was no coincidence. Start him immediately... The formula is simple for Philly's offensive success- secondary scoring is a must and it's been on display over recent games. Third-line center Sean Couturier scored a goal in their 5-1 win over Carolina, extending his point to six games. Wayne Simmonds is back on one of his famous hot streaks, collecting the game-winner plus a helper so use him while he is on fire. The Flyers have been buzzing on offense as top dogs Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek continue to lead the way.. Where have you been, Mats? Despite sub-par offensive production at the quarter mark, Mr. Zuccarello sparked the 'Blueshirts to a 5-1 win over Vancouver with his two goals. With 13 points in 25 games, he is falling way short of his 59-point pace he set last season, but consider "buying low" on him. He was moved up to the Rick Nash-Derick Brassard line, which would ...

Let's start off with saying "Hat's off to Nick" as the cerebral passing machine known as Nicklas Backstrom collected his first career regular season "hat trick" in Washington's 4-2 win over Tampa Bay. His career high in goals scored was 33 in 2009-10, but he routinely falls in the 15-20 category. Meaning, don't get overly excited over his scoring explosion. His point-per-game ways will continue this season thanks to a healthy dose of assists.. Need to mention our second fantasy star of the night, Kris Letang who has played this season like a man on a mission, scoring another two goals in Pittsburgh's losing effort to Columbus. He has collected points in five straight games, plus goals in three straight. With 21 points on the season and injury-free again, get him in your starting line-ups ASAP.. Should we start to take Buffalo's goalie Jhonas Enroth seriously in all fantasy leagues? The streaking Swede did not enjoy his best night by any means but held on for his eighth win in his last ten starts. The Sabres have been gaining much confidence during this hot stretch and are even scoring some goals. When you see them defeating Florida and Calgary by the score of 4-3, then you know the team is trending upward. I say use Enroth as a solid no. 2 if your goaltending is struggling.. Tyler Seguin is the "man" again, scoring a goal and an assist in the 4-2 Dallas triumph over New Jersey. His 23 goals and 38 points leads the entire NHL, while his robust 118 SOG ranks him second. Superstar status has arrived.. Want to add that Jason Spezza is back on Seguin's line. His two points last night was no coincidence. Start him immediately... The formula is simple for Philly's offensive success- secondary scoring is a must and it's been on display over recent games. Third-line center Sean Couturier scored a goal in their 5-1 win over Carolina, extending his point to six games. Wayne Simmonds is back on one of his famous hot streaks, collecting the game-winner plus a helper so use him while he is on fire. The Flyers have been buzzing on offense as top dogs Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek continue to lead the way.. Where have you been, Mats? Despite sub-par offensive production at the quarter mark, Mr. Zuccarello sparked the 'Blueshirts to a 5-1 win over Vancouver with his two goals. With 13 points in 25 games, he is falling way short of his 59-point pace he set last season, but consider "buying low" on him. He was moved up to the Rick Nash-Derick Brassard line, which would ...

Sean Couturier C-Philadelphia: The eighth overall pick of the 2011 has tons of talent, but has not become a consistent scoring threat just yet. Centering the third line won't help his cause, but he has been red-hot lately while currently on a six-game point streak (3G/4A). The Flyers are starting to click on offense, so maybe take a flier on the talented Couturier. Mika Zibanejad RW- Ottawa: The 21-year old has been flourishing on the second line alongside Bobby Ryan, scoring in three straight games and racking up seven points in his last four games. While this should probably viewed as a "hot" streak, the youngster has considerable upside and could be coming into his own as a top-six forward. Monitor how quickly Zibanejad wins his new coach over, as he could quickly become one of his go-to offensive players. Tyler Ennis C- Buffalo: With 21 points in 30 games, the top pivot has been buzzing along with the Sabres during their hot stretch. While he will probably never be a PPG producer over the course of a whole season, he is sure capable of sustaining that pace over long periods. He has racked up 9 points in last ten and should be a decent short-term pickup for the 5th-6th starting forward spot Jacob Trouba D- Winnipeg: This one is simple to figure out as the blue-chipper has been the main beneficiary of key injuries to the defensive corps, such as Enstrom and Bogosian. Despite not picking up a point over his last three games, Trouba still collected eight points over the last 10. As long as he is getting top-pairing minutes even-strength and on the power-play, he is starteable in all fantasy leagues. Jhonas Enroth G- Buffalo: Despite winning 7 of his last 9 starts, the fact that Enroth plays for a "bad" team is scaring most fantasy owners away. However, he has been a difference-maker over the last few weeks and has a decent four-game slate coming up. With Ottawa and Colorado at home, it might be time to take a gamble on arguably the "hottest" goalie in the NHL right now. Because of the overall lack of offensive support, the win total should dry up but the peripheral stats could stay above-average.