For all the fantasy owners who drafted New York Rangers winger Rick Nash a bit later than the customary early rounds, you reaped huge returns in Game 1. The enigmatic forward led the way with 2 goals, including the late game-winner and an assist in the Blueshirt's huge 3-2 road win over St. Louis. While seemingly star-crossed and in a state of disfunction all of last season, Nash looked every bit the part of a dangerous scorer last night while clicking on a line with the emerging Chris Kreider and the newly appointed center Martin St. Louis. While this represents a small sample size, this was an encouraging sign for a possible rebound season for Nash... Big injury news out of the same game- New York defenseman Dan Boyle will be out 4-6 weeks with a broken hand that he sustained while blocking a shot. Obviously, a blow to fantasy owners as Boyle looked to poise to put up decent numbers while anchoring their top power play unit. Give Ryan McDonagh a slight boost in fantasy value as he should get a modest uptick in power-play minutes.. Huge nights for Sidney Crosby (2G/1A) and Corey Perry (3G) in Pittsburgh's 6-4 win over Anaheim, but this high-scoring affair also introduced the debuts of Ryan Kesler and Patric Hornqvist in new uniforms. Both opened up the year in grand style, as fantasy owners must be thanking their luck stars for scooping them up. Kesler was terrific on the power-play with Getzlaf and Perry, collecting a goal and two assists. Meanwhile, Hornqvist responded to starting on the first line with a goal and a helper. Barring injuries, the gritty Swede is well on his way to a career season playing in his new digs... Sami Vatanen looked pretty comfortable with the man advantage, also chipping in with two assists. Even with a healthy Cam Fowler, the talented Finn might push for more PP time. Keep your eyes on him as his fantasy ascension has already begun.. So much for sitting Flyer's winger Wayne Simmonds this week on the basis that he was a bit banged up- two goals and assist in the 6-4 loss to New Jersey provides further evidence that his 60-point breakout season was definitely for real. Don't get caught up with the fact that he doesn't skate on the first line with Claude Giroux. He is a dominating force on the power-play and always around the net. 30+ goals should be a lock... The "Zach Attack" was on full display in Minnesota, as Zach Parise was in dominant form with a goal and two assists in the 5-0 drubbing of Colorado. Not much on Tomas ...

The numbers may have suggested that Frederik Andersen would get the start in tonight's season opener, but Gibson is from Whitehall, PA., a suburb located just six miles south of Pittsburgh, so he gets the nod vs. the Penguins. Gibson had a superb late-season run with the Ducks and should be in for a great season. However, both of these young goaltenders are talented and will battle all year long for playing time. For now it is Gibson who starts game 1 of the 82 game marathon.

Head coach Bruce Boudreau declined to name his starting goalie tonight, but Gibson was the first goalie off of the ice so it looks like he will get the start in his hometown of Pittsburgh. He is the NHL's top goalie prospects and is coming off of a strong end of regular season and playoffs with the Ducks last season. He will share the crease with Frederik Andersen this season, but it looks like he will get the first start.

After being knocked out of the second round of the playoffs by the Los Angeles Kings in seven games, the Anaheim Ducks wasted another stellar regular season showing as the Western Conference point leader. However, Coach Bruce Boudreau and company were quick to act during the offseason, trading for former Vancouver center Ryan Kesler in exchange for Nick Bonino and Luca Sbisa. Veterans Teemu Selanne's and Saku Koivu have retired, but the signing of extensions for young forwards Jakub Silfverberg and Patrick Maroon assures the club of much needed forward depth. They also took a chance on former prolific scoring winger Dany Heatley, signing him to a one year deal. Goalie Jonas Hiller was allowed to bolt via free agency, handing over the reins to the promising tandem of Frederik Andersen and John Gibson. All in all, this team has elite fantasy stars up front while plenty of emerging value on defense. GOALIES The Ducks appear to be in good hands in the crease with 2nd-year goalies Andersen and Gibson but fantasy owners won't have it as easy. After a standout regular rookie season where he posted a 20-5 record with a 2.29 GAA and .923 SP, he is technically penciled in as the starter. However, American standout Gibson has been developing quicker than expected and can steal the starting job just like he did in the playoffs. He has won at every level so expect him to make a huge NHL splash soon. With Jason LaBarbera also on roster, it's entirely possible that Gibson starts the year in the AHL to get more seasoning. Any way you look at it, the goaltending situation in Anaheim is very fluid so you should grab both goalies if you are interested. DEFENSE Cam Fowler is clearly the Ducks best fantasy option on the blue line, given that he is firmly entrenched on the top pairing and as quarterback on the primary power play unit. He burst on the scene with 40 points as a rookie, but his game had taken a step back the next two seasons. However, he rediscovered his game last season with 36 points in 70 games while becoming a more complete two-way defender. He is currently day to day with an undisclosed injury but should be ready to go by the opener. View Fowler as a solid 2-3 fantasy defenseman. The other guy to watch is Sami Vatanen, who has the high upside to dominate in the NHL. The defensive game is not there yet, but he should flourish soon with more power play time. 30-35 points should be in the cards for the talented Finn. Young Hampus Lindholm is developing into...

Jordan Staal suffered a broken bone in his right leg during Carolina's game at Buffalo. Obviously, this is a huge blow to the team and fantasy owners alike. The exact timetable on how long he will be out of action has yet to be determined, so more news should come out shortly. A few more injuries to mention: Logan Couture got a bit banged up during San Jose's 4-2 split squad loss to Vancouver and was taken out of the game, albeit more for precautionary reasons.. Vancouver defenseman Alex Edler left his game with an upper body injury. We have him pegged for a nice comeback season.. Tampa Bay star prospect Jonathan Drouin will miss 3-4 weeks due to a fractured thumb. This means that he won't start the season alongside Steven Stamkos, buy you can bet that will happen sooner than later.. Pavel Datysuk is getting an MRI on his shoulder today, but for now is set to miss a week. Game Bits: Both Alex Stalock and John Gibson started the first games for their respective teams, San Jose and Anaheim. They both came up short as they allowed a combined 6 goals. There will be interesting goaltending battles for starting supremacy involving both, as Antti Niemi and Frederik Andersen hold the early edge entering camp. In Stalock's case, the road might be tougher but Niemi will be a UFA at season's end so the Sharks will be prompted to give him a serious look.. Another goal and an assist for Cam Atkinson, giving him four points in two games. The major breakout hasn't happened yet, but there is still time for the youngster.. Buffalo's Jhonas Enroth starts the pre-season on a high note with a 35-save shutout of Carolina... Jonathan Toews scores the game-winner in OT for Chicago over Detroit. What else is new? Always clutch and forever a consistent point-per-game guy. Very safe top-four round pick.. Joe Thonton starts his post-captain era in San Jose with two goals. Expect him to play with a chip on his shoulder as much of the team's collapse was blamed on his leadership or lack therof.

1. ALEX GOLIGOSKI, DALLAS or JAMES WISNIEWSKI, COLUMBUS This one is very tricky considering Wisniewski is coming off his second 50+point season of his NHL career, while Goligoski has yet to reach that mark. However, when you are comparing both fantasy assets, the Columbus defender is clearly more prone to injury which could curtail another monster season. On the other hand, Goligoski is as steady as they come and proven to be very durable. With 69 points in 128 games over the last two seasons, he looks like a lock to post another 40+ point campaign with a bit of upside in the mix. After finishing the last season with 17 points in 23 games, Goligoski should have a great shot at posting career numbers with the team's new additions of Jason Spezza and Ales Hemsky. EDGE: GOLIGOSKI 2. JAROSLAV HALAK, NEW YORK ISLANDERS or FREDERIK ANDERSEN, ANAHEIM Andersen seems like the safer bet because he could be starting for a vastly superior team in the Ducks, but there are many variables in play with huge fantasy ramifications. I would take the Ducks goalie in a heartbeat, but the Danish netminder will face stiff competition from another rising star in John Gibson. When the "chips were down" in last season's playoff run, Duck's coach Bruce Boudreau opted to go with Gibson over Andersen late in the Kings series. Andersen should be the opening starter come the beginning of the season, but he might not finish that way. As for Halak, the trade of veteran Evgeni Nabokov to Tampa Bay gives him the clear no. 1 job for the rising New York Islanders. His career numbers speak for themselves, as Halak should be a strong no. 2 fantasy goalie option. EDGE: HALAK 3. RYAN-NUGENT HOPKINS C, EDMONTON or DAVID KREJCI C, BOSTON I think it's time for the Edmonton young guns to get there "mojo" going and finally fulfill some of that untapped potential thats been lingering for the last three years. Taylor Hall has done his part, but RNH has failed to deliver the goods after another promising start to the '13-14 season. A 50-55 point scorer he is not, so look for him to have a better second half while directly benefiting from a career breakout season from Hall. Both parties need to remain healthy for these predictions to become reality, but Hopkins should hold massive value in the middle rounds. As for Krejci, a disappointing playoff stint should provide plenty of motivation for good scoring numbers in '14-15, but his ceiling basically tops out at between 65-70 points. There is too ...

Gibson allowed two goals on 23 shots in a 2-1 loss to the Kings in game 6. Gibson is 2-1 with a 1.67 GAA and .946 SV% in his first three playoff starts. The 20-year-old will make the biggest start of his young NHL career in game 7 tonight. The edge in goal has to go to the Kings, who have veteran Jonathan Quick who is 2-0 with a .969 SV% in two career game 7 starts.

There have been some great comebacks in the playoffs this year, especially the Kings in the first round against San Jose and the Rangers in the second round against Pittsburgh. And let's not forget Anaheim rattling off three in a row after LA won the first two on their ice. Chicago is looking to repeat and they have an excellent shot at that I must say. Who is this Devante Smith-Pelly and can you trust him to not pull a John Druce? Can Carey Price pull off the daily double of hockey; winning the Olympic Gold Medal and Stanley Cup in one season? I said it when the Rangers acquired St. Louis that they could be playing for the Cup this season. They had the goaltending and defense, and St. Louis adds more experience and scoring to the squad. Boston has played a lot of playoff hockey over the past 6 seasons. Anze Kopitar is really good but goes relatively unnoticed playing on the West Coast. I don't know if you can place a lot of blame anywhere in Pittsburgh for losing to Henrik Lundqvist and the Rangers. They just outplayed them in the end. P. K. Subban has turned into a real leader, eh? The Avalanche are becoming the Pittsburgh Penguins of the East. Some players just live for the playoffs. Right Bryan Bickell? In our NHL In 30 that we write up in September, we had Boston, LA, NYR and Washington as the four with the greatest chance of making the Stanley Cup Finals. What happened to Washington? NO hockey tonight. What!?!?!?! Goaltenders who have played in 10+ games have at least 1 shutout except for Lundqvist, but the King has come up big time and time again. Rick Nash has no goals in 14 playoff games but has taken 52 SOG. Keep shooting Rick, they are bound to go in sooner or later. We shall see how Anaheim rookie goaltender John Gibson holds up with the team's playoff life is at stake in Game 7 tomorrow night. Looking forward to the Montreal-New York series! LA-CHI or ANA-CHI? Which would you rather see? Crawford doesn't get a lot of respect but he has come through time and time again. It's about time he got his due. I'm excited to see what the Nashville Predators will transform into now. I am hoping to see some big names traded right after the playoffs and into the NHL Draft. Will Ovechkin be traded? That would be very interesting indeed. Top 3 forwards going into your draft next year...Crosby, Stamkos, Giroux

Gibson made 39 saves on 42 shots in the Ducks 4-3 victory over the Kings in game 5. Gibson has yet to lose an NHL start and has won two playoff starts in a row with a 1.50 GAA and .950 SV%. The 20-year-old has staked his claim to the Ducks crease and he will look to continue his winning streak tonight and punch Anaheim's ticket into the Western Conference Finals vs. Chicago.

Gibson posted a 29-save shutout in his first NHL playoff start, so the Ducks will turn to him tomorrow with the series knotted up at 2-2 heading back to Anaheim.