Howard only needed to make 19 saves to preserve a 2-1 win for the Red Wings on Wednesday night in Vancouver. It was a lethargic game for both side, but Howard was able to walk away with the W. He will take on a below-average Flames team on Friday, he should make for a great start.

It was all that you could've asked for in a Bruins-Penguins game except if you are a Boston fan, as Marc-Andre Fleury (21/23 SV) edged Tuukka Rask (28/31 SV) 3-2 at home. The game was up-tempo with not a lot of whistle stoppages as the two teams did their best to gain the upper hand.  Both goalies should be in your starting lineup regardless of opponent......Bruins C Patrice Bergeron had a goal and an assist in the contest and even though he has started out rather quietly, he will heat up. Remember that he is still recovering from a boatload of injuries during last year's playoffs.  With 6 points in 11 games, he is below a point-per-game pace so it may be a good time to see if you can snatch him from a somewhat disgruntled owner....Pens LW Chris Kunitz scored on the power play, a rare feat between these 2 teams, with assists by Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang. This will be a familiar sight as the season moves on as Letang is back from his injury.  Letang could be a candidate for the scoring title among defensemen if he didn't get hurt so often lately....Toronto made it 3 straight as they didn't suffer a letdown on back-to-back nights as they headed into Calgary, who was coming off a 5-2 win over the Caps.  Joffrey Lupul returned to the lineup and got the Leafs off to a good start with a 1st period goal, his 7th, while G Jonathan Bernier played brilliant in stopping 41 of 43 SOG to raise his record to 6-4-0. It's safe to get Lupul back into your lineup....The more amazing feat last night was that Phil Kessel was held off the score sheet. Kessel had scored 10 points in his previous 4 games before last night.  Wow!.....Jimmy Howard stopped the bleeding of his 4-game losing streak by stopping 19 of 20 SOG from the Vancouver Canucks as the Detroit Red Wings edged Roberto Luongo 2-1 in Vancouver. Both goalies are must-starts in your fantasy league....San Jose traveled down to Los Angeles and found that the Staples center is a continuing thorn in their side as they lost 4-3 in overtime.  The goaltenders Antti Niemi (19/24 SV) and Jonathan Quick (17/20 SV) were not at their best in last night's tilt so it was a matter of which team would get the last good chance.....Anze Kopitar, Justin Williams, Mike Richards and Drew Doughty each had 2 points in the game. Williams now has 8 points in past 6 games; get him into your lineup.... Richards is always an enigma to fantasy fans as he has the talent to be a top fantasy forward, but is annoyingly streaky.  He can go on a...

It was all that you could've asked for in a Bruins-Penguins game except if you are a Boston fan, as Marc-Andre Fleury (21/23 SV) edged Tuukka Rask (28/31 SV) 3-2 at home. The game was up-tempo with not a lot of whistle stoppages as the two teams did their best to gain the upper hand.  Both goalies should be in your starting lineup regardless of opponent......Bruins C Patrice Bergeron had a goal and an assist in the contest and even though he has started out rather quietly, he will heat up. Remember that he is still recovering from a boatload of injuries during last year's playoffs.  With 6 points in 11 games, he is below a point-per-game pace so it may be a good time to see if you can snatch him from a somewhat disgruntled owner....Pens LW Chris Kunitz scored on the power play, a rare feat between these 2 teams, with assists by Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang. This will be a familiar sight as the season moves on as Letang is back from his injury.  Letang could be a candidate for the scoring title among defensemen if he didn't get hurt so often lately....Toronto made it 3 straight as they didn't suffer a letdown on back-to-back nights as they headed into Calgary, who was coming off a 5-2 win over the Caps.  Joffrey Lupul returned to the lineup and got the Leafs off to a good start with a 1st period goal, his 7th, while G Jonathan Bernier played brilliant in stopping 41 of 43 SOG to raise his record to 6-4-0. It's safe to get Lupul back into your lineup....The more amazing feat last night was that Phil Kessel was held off the score sheet. Kessel had scored 10 points in his previous 4 games before last night.  Wow!.....Jimmy Howard stopped the bleeding of his 4-game losing streak by stopping 19 of 20 SOG from the Vancouver Canucks as the Detroit Red Wings edged Roberto Luongo 2-1 in Vancouver. Both goalies are must-starts in your fantasy league....San Jose traveled down to Los Angeles and found that the Staples center is a continuing thorn in their side as they lost 4-3 in overtime.  The goaltenders Antti Niemi (19/24 SV) and Jonathan Quick (17/20 SV) were not at their best in last night's tilt so it was a matter of which team would get the last good chance.....Anze Kopitar, Justin Williams, Mike Richards and Drew Doughty each had 2 points in the game. Williams now has 8 points in past 6 games; get him into your lineup.... Richards is always an enigma to fantasy fans as he has the talent to be a top fantasy forward, but is annoyingly streaky.  He can go on a...

Despite playing great, Howard was on the wrong end of a 3-2 overtime finish on Saturday. Howard made a number of awesome saves to keep the Red Wings in the game, but they had a hard time beating Cam Talbot at the other end. He is surprisingly 3-4-2 through nine starts, and his value is taking a hit as the Wings continue to struggle offensively.

I have my coffee and ready to roll. What happened to Joey Crabb? Where did he go? A wild shootout in the desert yesterday afternoon.  I didn't know the Coyotes had it in them.  Oilers, yes.  Coyotes, no. RNH has rebounded nicely after last year's lost season. Rob Klinkhammer is more of a wrestling name than a hockey name. It's shame he didn't score in that Edmonton/Phoenix game. That's three games in a row with 6 SOG for David Perron. What a devil! Speaking of the devil, New Jersey pulled an unlikely upset of the Boston Bruins last night. Or was it old-timers day as Jarome Iginla (G, 2A), Jaromir Jagr (2A), Marek Zidlicky (G) & Martin Brodeur (W) all were prominent figures in the game. Give them the day off today, pleeease! Big shutdown night as Crosby and Ovechkin were both held without a point with Stamkos & Malkin only 1 assist each. That Phil Kessel is something else. Logan Couture is heating up for what should be a career year. Antti Niemi and Tuukka Rask will surely battle until the very last day for top goaltender honors, barring injury of course. Carey Price was terrific in net again last night, but his team couldn't gain any momentum in the game. Once Pacioretty returns, Price will get on a winning streak if he continues to play this way. Jimmy Howard has been struggling since his return from injury. He's lost 4 in a row.  Try to grab him on the cheap. There are only 8 teams with a record under .500 in the NHL. Johan Franzen had 7 SOG in the game against the Rangers; showing that he's not so stubborn to shoot the puck after two straight games with none. Top shooter on the Rangers? Anton Stralman. Yikes. Patrick Roy has done an amazing job in Colorado so far. Let's see how long this lasts. The Sabres just can't score. Perhaps they need to change coaches again. Poor Thomas Vanek. The Philadelphia Flyers are turning it around and Steve Mason is finally getting the wins that he deserves.   It helps that everyone is back in the lineup too. These young Islanders are looking good so far this year: Kyle Okposo and Frans Nielsen. You know besides JT & Matt Moulson. Nielsen is tied for third in league scoring.  Just thought you'd like to know that. I think Lecavalier likes playing in Philly. What do you think? Standings are finally forming into what they should be except I have to do a double take each time I see the Avalanche at the top of the Central. I definitely did not expect to see a 2-1 Shootout game in the Winnipeg/Dallas game. There are too ...

ALL GOALIES CONFIRMED UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED AT TIME OF PRINT Kari Lehtonen is back! He has gone 3-1, while posting a 1.41 GAA and a .956 SP, so you know the Stars are ecstatic to have their no.1 playing over journeyman Dan Ellis. The Winnipeg Jets should be no match for the Stars tonight. Take Lehtonen big.... The Blues looked real flat after a week layoff in the loss to Vancouver, so expect the real version to show up tonight. Jaroslav Halak will be in net against a Nashville team devoid of any scoring punch and without the services of their top goalie Pekka Rinne. The Blues win.... After three consecutive defeats, look for Jimmy Howard and the Red Wings to "right the ship" against a struggling Rangers team. No Lundqvist, no Nash, no Callahan. NO WIN. Take Howard.... Forced into premature starting duty because the of Josh Harding injury, a less than 100% Niklas Backstrom takes the net against Chicago on the road. Corey Crawford and Blackhawks should prevail in this one.... Are we sniffing a huge letdown for the Isles against underdog Philly after their huge comeback victory last night in Pittsburgh? Yep, Steve Mason has been real solid for the Flyers, posting a 2.17 GAA. Take Philly in the upset.... Ben Bishop and the Lightning can also be playing in a "trap game" after their huge OT win against Chicago, but the Buffalo Sabres played last night and are relying on the services of struggling goalie Ryan Miller, who has lost last three starts while giving up 12 goals. Take Bishop all day. FANTASY MUST-STARTS Kari Lehtonen, Dallas vs. Winnipeg Jaroslav Halak, St. Louis @ Nashville Jimmy Howard, Detroit vs. NYR Corey Crawford, Chicago vs. Minnesota Ben Bishop, Tampa Bay vs. Buffalo Tuukka Rask, Boston vs. New Jersey SLEEPER ALERT Steve Mason, Philadelphia @ NYI , DAILY GOALIE PICKS Steve (12-11) Kari Lehtonen Ray (9-14) Steve Mason Mike (11-11) Tuukka Rask

ALL GOALIES CONFIRMED UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED AT TIME OF PRINT Kari Lehtonen is back! He has gone 3-1, while posting a 1.41 GAA and a .956 SP, so you know the Stars are ecstatic to have their no.1 playing over journeyman Dan Ellis. The Winnipeg Jets should be no match for the Stars tonight. Take Lehtonen big.. The Blues looked real flat after a week layoff in the loss to Vancouver, so expect the real version to show up tonight. Brian Elliott(LIKELY) will be in net against a Nashville team devoid of any scoring punch and without the services of their top goalie Pekka Rinne. The Blues win.. After three consecutive defeats, look for Jimmy Howard and the Red Wings to "right the ship" against a struggling Rangers team. No Lundqvist, no Nash, no Callahan. NO WIN. Take Howard.. Forced into premature starting duty because the of Josh Harding injury, a less than 100% Niklas Backstrom takes the net against Chicago on the road. Corey Crawford(LIKELY) and Blackhawks should prevail in this one... Are we sniffing a huge letdown for the Isles against underdog Philly after their huge comeback victory last night in Pittsburgh? Yep, Steve Mason(LIKELY) has been real solid for the Flyers, posting a 2.17 GAA. Take Philly in the upset.. Ben Bishop and the Lightning can also be playing in a "trap game" after their huge OT win against Chicago, but the Buffalo Sabres played last night and are relying on the services of struggling goalie Ryan Miller, who has lost last three starts while giving up 12 goals. Take Bishop all day. FANTASY MUST-STARTS Kari Lehtonen, Dallas vs. Winnipeg Brian Elliott, St. Louis @ Nashville Jimmy Howard, Detroit vs. NYR Corey Crawford, Chicago vs. Minnesota Ben Bishop, Tampa Bay vs. Buffalo Tuukka Rask, Boston vs. New Jersey SLEEPER ALERT Steve Mason, Philadelphia @ NYI , DAILY GOALIE PICKS Steve (12-11) Kari Lehtonen Ray (9-14) Steve Mason Mike (11-11) Tuukka Rask

Howard was yanked 14 minutes into the first period on Wednesday- He allowed three goals on eight assists. It was a tough outing for Howie, after posting a shutout on Monday. He has an awesome chance to bounce back tomorrow, when he takes on a struggling Rangers team.

UPDATE: Nashville Predator starting Goalie Pekka Rinne will miss a minimum of 4 weeks as he met with the docotors with concern about his hip. Backup Carter Hutton slides into the starting role for the time being. In fact, Hutton will be facing the Winnipeg Jets once again as he defeated them in his only start just last week. Spezztacular!: Jason Spezza's play in the Senators 6-1 clipping of the Detroit Red Wings last night emphasized that he is, indeed, the Captain of the Senators as he led the offense with a 2-goal effort against Jimmy Howard and the Red Wings, spoiling former Captain Daniel Alfredsson's first game against his former team. Spezza now has 8 points in his last 4 games while Bobby Ryan has 3 goals (2 in last night's game) and an assist in those same four games. Defenseman Erik Karlsson chipped in with 2 assists and the Senator trio seems to be heating up. A bit of concern was Ryan's 0:07 seconds spent on the power play.  There was expectation that Ryan would see top power play time after leaving the shadow of Anaheim.  Ryan did have 4:30 & 3:23 of PP time against Edmonton and New Jersey in the two games prior, so perhaps this was a statement by Head Coach Paul MacLean that Ryan needs to step up his play on the power play. Jimmy Howard was pulled at the 14:14 mark of the first period after giving up 3 straight goals to start the game.  Howard has not been the same since his return from injury.  When Jimmy Howard returned 3 games ago, there was a little concern that perhaps backup Jonas Gustavsson should have been given another start or two considering how well he played in Howard's absence. The Red Wings had won 4 in a row and were rolling along and then lost 5-2 to Phoenix in Howard's return.  Howard followed that up with a brilliant match against San Jose losing by a score of 1-0 in the shootout before last night's debacle against Ottawa.  Look for Howard to bounce back in his next start, which should be Saturday against the New York Rangers. More Fantasy Game Notes: Deuces were wild in Buffalo last night as the Boston Bruins came to town. The Sabres looked clueless early in the game before showing some life midway through the 2nd period.  Milan Lucic (2G, A) opened the scoring in the 1st and added his second of the game in the 2nd period to give the B's a 2-0 lead. Both of Lucic's goals were assisted by Jarome Iginla, who is still looking for his first goal as a Bruin. Lucic now has 9 points in 8 games and is on pace to eclipse his ...

UPDATE: Nashville Predator starting Goalie Pekka Rinne will miss a minimum of 4 weeks as he met with the docotors with concern about his hip. Backup Carter Hutton slides into the starting role for the time being. In fact, Hutton will be facing the Winnipeg Jets once again as he defeated them in his only start just last week. Spezztacular!: Jason Spezza's play in the Senators 6-1 clipping of the Detroit Red Wings last night emphasized that he is, indeed, the Captain of the Senators as he led the offense with a 2-goal effort against Jimmy Howard and the Red Wings, spoiling former Captain Daniel Alfredsson's first game against his former team. Spezza now has 8 points in his last 4 games while Bobby Ryan has 3 goals (2 in last night's game) and an assist in those same four games. Defenseman Erik Karlsson chipped in with 2 assists and the Senator trio seems to be heating up. A bit of concern was Ryan's 0:07 seconds spent on the power play.  There was expectation that Ryan would see top power play time after leaving the shadow of Anaheim.  Ryan did have 4:30 & 3:23 of PP time against Edmonton and New Jersey in the two games prior, so perhaps this was a statement by Head Coach Paul MacLean that Ryan needs to step up his play on the power play. Jimmy Howard was pulled at the 14:14 mark of the first period after giving up 3 straight goals to start the game.  Howard has not been the same since his return from injury.  When Jimmy Howard returned 3 games ago, there was a little concern that perhaps backup Jonas Gustavsson should have been given another start or two considering how well he played in Howard's absence. The Red Wings had won 4 in a row and were rolling along and then lost 5-2 to Phoenix in Howard's return.  Howard followed that up with a brilliant match against San Jose losing by a score of 1-0 in the shootout before last night's debacle against Ottawa.  Look for Howard to bounce back in his next start, which should be Saturday against the New York Rangers. More Fantasy Game Notes: Deuces were wild in Buffalo last night as the Boston Bruins came to town. The Sabres looked clueless early in the game before showing some life midway through the 2nd period.  Milan Lucic (2G, A) opened the scoring in the 1st and added his second of the game in the 2nd period to give the B's a 2-0 lead. Both of Lucic's goals were assisted by Jarome Iginla, who is still looking for his first goal as a Bruin. Lucic now has 9 points in 8 games and is on pace to eclipse his ...