The Olympic break has shut down the NHL for the next two weeks, but we are always thinking about ways to give you information. Today we talk about the chances that the United States hockey team can win the gold medal in Sochi.  Remember that the games in Sochi will be on the big ice, where the rinks are about 15 feet wider than in the NHL.  This really brings speed and skill into play.  So lets start in goal because in a short series like the Olympics a hot goalie can win it all for you.  The US has 3 goaltenders, Ryan Miller, Jimmy Howard and Jonathan Quick. Miller was the hero of the US 2010 team that lost in overtime to Canada in the gold medal game.  They always say that you do not win silver, you lose gold if you come in second place.  While Buffalo has really had a bad year, and Miller has only 14 wins, his .923 save percentage should make him the likely starter, as both Howard and Quick have struggled this year.  But goaltending should be pretty good for the US. The US has a pretty solid group of defensemen with a nice mix of age and a lot of size, and a combination of shut-down defensemen and offensive talent. At 33 years of age, Brooks Orpik is the classic shut down defenseman, and he has the size at 6' 2" and 220 lbs. He will be joined by Paul Martin of Pittsburgh who also has good size at 6' 1" and 200 lbs, and is a shutdown guy as well. Ryan Suter should be the leader on defense, and the 29 year old has had a great season with 33 points on the year. 22 years old Cam Fowler of the Ducks is another offensive d-man who has 31 points this season. All-in-all the US defense has a very nice mixture of age, defensive and offensive skills.  This group is not going to hurt the US. On offense the US has two great stars in Patrick Kane and Phil Kessel. Joe Pavelski of San Jose has had a terrific year as well with 54 points. The problem is that after these three, the talent level drops off a bit.  T J Oshie from St. Louis is very fast, and Max Pacioretty from Montreal can really score with 26 goals on the season, and he appears to be okay after crashing into the net in his last game. Blake Wheeler, at 27 years of age, has really been coming on strong for Winnipeg with 48 points this year, and his teammates have been raving about his play. David Backes of the Blues has great speed and he can score as well. Toronto's James van Riemsdyk will be playing in his first Olympics, and the 24 year old is having a terrific season with 47 points. Not quite sure why ...

The Olympic break has shut down the NHL for the next two weeks, but we are always thinking about ways to give you information. Today we talk about the chances that the United States hockey team can win the gold medal in Sochi.  Remember that the games in Sochi will be on the big ice, where the rinks are about 15 feet wider than in the NHL.  This really brings speed and skill into play.  So lets start in goal because in a short series like the Olympics a hot goalie can win it all for you.  The US has 3 goaltenders, Ryan Miller, Jimmy Howard and Jonathan Quick. Miller was the hero of the US 2010 team that lost in overtime to Canada in the gold medal game.  They always say that you do not win silver, you lose gold if you come in second place.  While Buffalo has really had a bad year, and Miller has only 14 wins, his .923 save percentage should make him the, likely, starter, as both Howard and Quick have struggled this year.  But goaltending should be pretty good for the US. The US has a pretty solid group of defensemen with a nice mix of age and a lot of size, and a combination of shut down defensemen and offensive talent. At 33 years of age Brooks Orpik is the classic shut down defenseman, and he has the size at 6' 2" and 220 lbs. He will be joined by Paul Martin of Pittsburgh who, also, has good size at 6' 1" and 200 lbs, and is a shutdown guy as well. Ryan Suter should be the leader on defense, and the 29 year old has had a great season with 33 points on the year. 22 years old Cam Fowler for the Kings is another offensive d-man who has 31 points this season. All in all the US defense has a very nice mixture of age, defensive and offensive skills.  This group is not going to hurt the US. On offense the US has two great stars in Patrick Kane and Phil Kessel. Joe Pavelski of San Jose has had a terrific year as well with 54 points. The problem is that after these three the talent level drops off a bit.  T J Oshie from St Louis is very fast, and Max Pacioretty from Montreal can really score with 26 goals on the season, and he appears to be ok after crashing into the net in his last game. Blake Wheeler at 27 years of age has really been coming on strong for Winnipeg with 48 points this year, and his teammates have been raving about his play. David Backes of the Blues has great speed and he can score, as well. Toronto's James van Riemsdyk will be playing in his first Olympics, and the 24 year old is having a terrific season with 47 points. Not quite sure why ...

Quick allowed five goals on 30 shots in a loss to the Blackhawks on Monday. He has now lost four in a row and eight of his last nine starts. However those losses have more to do with the Kings lack of offence than Quick's goaltending. Tonight the Kings welcome the Blue Jackets, he enters play 10-8-1 with a 2.34 GAA and .899 SV% at home this season.

Quick allowed five goals on 30 shots in a loss to the Blackhawks on Monday. He has now lost four in a row and eight of his last nine starts. However those losses have more to do with the Kings lack of offence than Quick's goaltending. Tonight the Kings welcome the Blue Jackets, he enters play 10-8-1 with a 2.34 GAA and .899 SV% at home this season.

Quick stopped 11 of 13 shots in Saturday's 2-0 loss to the Flyers. Yep. The Flyers only had 13 shots and won... The Kings offence is so quiet right now, which limits Quick's short-term fantasy value. He has just one win in his last eight games and a W won't be easy to come by tonight with the Blackhawks in town.

Very busy schedule in the NHL yesterday as the league frontloaded games yesterday so as to not compete against the Super Bowl. Boston started things off with a matinee game and they whitwashed the Oilers 4-0, with backup Chad Johnson getting the shutout with 22 saves. Johnson has played well when needed as his 9-3 record would indicate, but Tuukka Rask is the guy in goal for the Bruins. Defenseman Zdeno Chara had 2 assists for Boston, but he has only 25 points on the season, and at his age he doesn't score like he used to. Tampa Bay edged Montreal 2-1 as center Nate Thompson had 2 goals for the Lightning. He has only 11 points on the season, so don't get too excited.  Defenseman Victor Hedman had 2 assists for Tampa, and he is someone to get excited about. After struggling his first 4 years in the league, the former 2nd pick in the 2009 draft is finally getting the NHL game.  He has 11 goals and 36 points this season in 48 games played.  Get this guy next year if you can.  Big potential.  Lightning goaltender Ben Bishop had another outstanding game with 28 saves. With 27 wins on the year a 1.98 GAA and a .933 SP, it's hard to believe he is not on the US Olympic team.  Colorado just buried the hapless Sabres 7-1.  Joe Sakic is beginning to look like a genius for drafting Nathan MacKinnon number one. The kid had a goal and 2 assists yesterday, and with 40 points on the season he leads all rookie scorers.  Defenseman Erik Johnson had 3 assists for the Avs, but with 24 points on the year he continues to be a disappointment. Great things were expected from him. Colorado goaltender Semyon Varlamov continued his terrific season with a 28 save effort.  With 28 wins this year he is a top goalie option.   Philly fillet: The Flyers shutout the Kings 2-0 as Philadelphia goaltender Steve Mason had a great game with 35 saves. Los Angeles really carried the play as their goaltender, Jonathan Quick, had to make only 11 saves. But Mason was too good in this one.  Right wing Wayne Simmonds had a goal and an assist for the Flyers, and with 40 points on the season, he is worth a look as a 6th forward option. Claude Giroux had a goal and an assist as well for Philadelphia, and after a miserable start to the season he has quietly climbed back to close to a point per game player with 52 points on the year. Killer Kessel: Toronto beat Ottawa 6-3, and the Maple Leafs center Phil Kessel had a monster game with 3 goals and an assist. Kessel has 61 points on the season, including ...

Quick was yanked after allowed three goals on seven shots in the first period in Thursday's 4-1 loss to the Penguins. Quick wrapped up the month of January with a 5-6-2 record, 1.85 GAA and .925 SV%. It looks like he will get the nod today against the Flyers, who have lost five of their last six.

Quick was yanked after allowed three goals on seven shots in the first period in Thursday's 4-1 loss to the Penguins. Quick wrapped up the month of January with a 5-6-2 record, 1.85 GAA and .925 SV%. It looks like he will get the nod today against the Flyers, who have lost five of their last six.

Quick started both games of the Kings' Monday-Tuesday back-to-back. He stopped 49 of 52 shots (.942 SV%) resulting in a 1-1 record with one shutout. Tonight he will make a rare home start against Sidney Crosby and the Penguins, on a busy Thursday night, take a look at your other matchups before deploying Quick.

Quick started both games of the Kings' Monday-Tuesday back-to-back. He stopped 49 of 52 shots (.942 SV%) resulting in a 1-1 record with one shutout. Tonight he will make a rare home start against Sidney Crosby and the Penguins, on a busy Thursday night, take a look at your other matchups before deploying Quick.