While this year's verson did not get the media hype of past year's, the New Year Day Winter Classic between Chicago and Washington was as spectacularly done and as well played as any other. The home team ended up on top thanks to a late game tally by Troy Brouwer and superb goaltending by Braden Holtby (33/35 saves). Alex Ovechkin was easily the most dangerous forward on the ice, causing havoc with every shift and resulting in a dominant two-point effort. For Chicago, Patrick Sharp was also a "beast", scoring a power-play goal and racking up 10 SOG. Kris Versteeg left the game due to a hand injury and according to Chicago coach Joel Quenneville, "will be out for awhile". Last night's 3-2 win for the Kings over the Canucks featured three unanswered tallies for the road team in the third period. Of fantasy conswquence, winger Radim Vrbata paced the Canucks in the losing effort with a goal and an assist, raising his totals to 28 points in 34 games. With five points in his last five games, the streaky winger should be able to surpass his career-high of 62 points with the Sedin twins as his line-mates. Start him as a solid no.4/5 fantasy forward option..

*The goaltending competition between Ondrej Pavelec and Michael Hutchinson in Winnipeg continues to stiffen. "Pavs" allowed four goals on 23 shots while giving up a two-goal lead in the 4-3 loss to Philadelphia. He hasn't lost in regulation during his last six games (3-0-3) but he hasn't been nearly as stingy in goal as Hutchinson. This situation should bear watching in the second half.. *What are the Colorado Avalanche to do? Calvin Pickard wins another tight game, stopping 34 of 35 shots in Detroit and could earn extra playing time despite Semyon Varlamov almost ready to return. If you own Pickard, hold onto him as he has been way too hot for Patrick Roy to quickly discard.. *We all expected Tyler Seguin to rise up the scoring ranks, but Jakub Voracek continues to shock the NHL with two more goals and the outright scoring lead. For my money, if anyone other than the BIG THREE- Crosby, Malkin, Stamkos- wins the Art Ross trophy, it will be Seguin. As elite as they come.. Dougie Hamilton snapped a five-game point drought with two goals and an assist in Boston's 4-3 OT win over Buffalo. The return of Zdeno Chara has slowed down Dougie a bit, but don't count him out for a strong finish. The kid is the real deal and has supplanted Torey Krug as their future go-to blueliner... *Despite playing with emotional hearts due to the sudden death of Chicago's assistant equipment manager, Patrick Kane and Patrick Sharp combined for 6 points in the 4-0 rout of the suddenly reeling Maple Leafs. We told you to buy low on "Sharpie" as he is showing clear signs of busting out of an early season slump.

The hard luck loser award goes to Tampa Bay rookie Andrei Vasilevskiy, who was unpenetrable for most of the game against the Isles with 45 saves but gave up three goals over the last four minutes. Ben Bishop is close to returning, but the youngster has made a strong case for backup duties over the struggling Evgeni Nabokov... Calvin Pickard has performed well above expectations in the Colorado crease while subbing for the injured Semyon Varlamov, turning aside 28 of 29 Buffalo shots for his 5th win of the season. With a 2.16 GAA and .936 SP, the youngster should have little difficulty in maintaining back-up status when 'Varly returns... Don't look now, but a fantasy star is quickly taking center stage for the Montreal Canadiens as Alex Galchenyuk is making the most of his opportunity of centering the top line. Another goal and assist gives him 7 points in his last five games, raising his overall numbers to 24 points in 34 games. The third-year pivot could still be available in many leagues so snatch him ASAP before it's too late... I would hesitate to write that a veteran forward not named Jarome Iginla is Colorado's most consistent fantasy option on offense these days, but Alex Tanguay has been real solid with 22 points in 30 games. He led the way last night with two goals and an assist. Maybe worth a flier as a borderline starter... Here is to stating the obvious, but Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek are the best fantasy tandem in NHL. With a combined 8 points in the 7-4 win over the Leafs, these two have kept many fantasy squads afloat with no end in sight. Expect the good times to continue much longer... With 34 points in 32 games, Nicklas Backstrom has been the far superior fantasy asset over Alex Ovechkin for Washington. Another 3-point night gives him 9 points in his last 6 games. As undercover a superstar as one can be in today's NHL. Perenially a lock for a PPG clip... Maybe it's time to buy low on Chicago winger Patrick Sharp as he is slowly shaking off his early season rust with two goals in the last three games. Coming off a career-high 78 points in 2013-14, he could be in line for a huge second half. I know many fantasy owners who have soured on him... Watch out for Thomas Vanek in Minny, as the struggling winger has begin to hit his offensive stride while riding shotgun to Zach Parise on the top line. His goal and an assist in the loss to Nashville gives him 9 points in the last ten games. With Parise streaking with 26 points in 26 games, I...

Mike Ribeiro C, Nashville- The 34-year old has found life on the Predator's top line an easy transition in comparison to his tumultuous season with Arizona last year. With 22 points in 26 games and 9 in his last ten, Ribeiro has clicked with Neal and Forsberg from Day one. While he is on pace to close in on his career-high of 83 points, he will probably fall short and be a reliable 65-70 point center moving forward. Aaron Ekblad D, Florida- What else is there to say about Florida's 18-year old prodigy who has collected 17 points in 26 games. The defenseman has flashed the ability to have a Tyler Myers type of rookie season, when he captured the Calder Trophy with a 48-point campaign. Ekblad's supporting cast is made up of mostly young talented forwards who are still far from producing consistently, so expect many peaks and valleys in his scoring production. Huge keeper league upside though.. Brandon Saad LW, Chicago- The 22-year old has been thriving on the top Chicago line with Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa, but he could lose his spot this week with Patrick Sharp returning. With five points in his last four games, Saad has been one of better Blackhawk forwards, so he is worth a gamble. Plus playing for a contract! A little risk-reward here, but has legit 60-point upside if playing in the top-six. Nick Leddy D, NYI- Coming off a two-assist performance on Saturday, the 23-year old is benefitting from injuries to the top three blueliners on the Island. Yeah, Lubomir Visnovsky might be back this week, but can you really trust him? Take a flier on Leddy if you need defense, considerig he has been on the top power-play unit with John Tavares and company. Michael Hutchinson G, Winnipeg- In the case of the youngster, he has produced far superior numbers than the starter Ondrej Pavelec (1.62 to 2.30 GAA/.942 to .915SP) while owning an impressive 5-1-2 mark. Pavelec has gone cold many times and been yanked from no.1 duty, so with the team playing so well, maybe Hutch has the chance to usurp the starting job at some point. If your goaltending is struggling, keeb tabs on this guy.

Hooray to the great Martin Brodeur for picking up his first win For St. Louis, after stopping 14 of 16 shots in relief of an ineffective Jake Allen. Somewhere way inside me, I have a feeling he can push Allen for playing time given his tremendous future HOF pedigree but am not sure how it would play out when Brian Elliott returns. I would say that if you any room on your bench, stashing him for now might not be the worst idea.. To stay on this game, Kevin Shattenkirk's three points has vaulted him to second amongst NHL defensemen in scoring with 22 points. For fantasy formats that reward power-play points, he actually leads all d-men in power-play assists with 14. As elite as they come.. Up-and-coming Florida defenseman Aaron Ekblad is making quite the rookie impact with three more assists, giving him 17 points in 26 games. While its unreasonable to expect the youngster to maintain that level of production, I could easily see him pull off a "Tyler Myers"... Chicago's other great line came up huge for the second straight match, as Marian Hossa scored two goals in the 3-1 win over Nashville. Patrick Kane and Kris Versteeg have been dynamite on the second line, but the impending return of Patrick Sharp to the top unit might give them the edge going forward. Nonetheless, plenty of goals to go around as the Blackhawks are explosive.. While Sidney Crosby and Jakub Voracek have been battling for the NHL scoring lead seemingly all season long, studly Tyler Seguin roared past the two with a three-point effort and now also leads in goals scored with 21. There is a subtle "change of the fantasy guard" going on here, as the Dallas center making a bold statement for universal top-three selection in next year's fantasy drafts... Maybe it's time to change Mark Giordano's first name to "Norris" as the Calgary defenseman continues to prove that his breakout season of 2013-14 was no fluke. With his goal last night, he now leads all defensemen with 28 points. His point-per-game production last year-.73- ranked third only behind Erik Karlsson and Duncan Keith, so he keep your faith in this guy. He's legit elite and not worth trading under most circumstances... Shades of heavy-duty Vezina form for goalie Sergei Bobrovsky lately, as he turned aside 33 shots in the improbable victory in Tampa. He has now won three straight for an injury-plagued Columbus squad and should only get better as the team gets healthier. Your "buy-low" window is closing rapidly... MORE COMING..

Most important news of the night was that Corey Perry left the game with an apparent knee injury on a check along the side boards. The seriousness of his injury is not known at this time but after a sensational start to the season, Perry will continue to travel with the team, so the eseverity of his injury might not be that bad.  This injury, and his recent bout with the mumps and I'm sure Perry can't wait for the new year to begin.... Anaheim Duck G Frederik Andersen (21/25 SV) didn't have his best game but managed to play well enough for his 13th win on the season. With the recent tryout of one-time Duck Ilya Bryzgalov and rookie John Gibson still recovering from a lower-body injury, it appears that Andersen will be manning the crease for the foreseeable future.  If, and when, Bryzgalov signs, Gibson seems to be headed for the minors to develop his game once he returns from injury.... Minnesota G Darcy Kuemper (13/18 SV) didn't have his best game either as he was pulled after letting in all 5 goals in the Ducks 5-4 win over the Wild. Kuemper's play has been off-and-on lately going 3-3-0 in last 6 starts.  The Wild need consistent play form their net minders and with Josh Harding lurking in the AHL, Kuemper's days as the undisputed no. 1 in Minnesota may be drawing to a close.... The good thing to come out of this game was the play of Ryan Kesler who had 2 goals and an assist. Kesler will need to bring his ‘A' game as Perry could be out of the lineup for a period of time depending on the severity of his injury.... Winnipeg G Michael Hutchinson (20/22 SV) is not making it easy for the Jets coaching staff not to play him more regularly as he put in another superb performance by allowing just 2 goals or less in a game for the sixth straight start. Ondrej Pavelec owners need to grab him as a handcuff pronto.....The line of Bryan Little (3G, A), Andrew Ladd (G, 2A) and Blake Wheeler (3A) were the offensive stars of the game. Perhaps the Colorado Avalanche were exactly what the doctor ordered for the Jets' offense and is a sign of things for Winnipeg forwards.... The Chicago Blackhawks defeated the Montreal Canadiens 4-3 on a last minute goal by Brandon Saad who now has 3 points in the last 3 games showing signs of breaking out of an early season slump....Kris Versteeg continued his resurgence as a Blackhawk with another power play assist, making that 8 points in last 5 games and 22 points in 22 games. Perhaps the imminent return of Patrick Sharp will slow ...

Jiri Hudler RW, Calgary: The Czech winger has poured it on lately for the Flames, collecting eight points during a current four game point streak. The departures of key veteran scorers over the last few years has resulted in a more prominent role for Hudler, who looks to build on his 54-point season from last year. With 23 points in 24 games, he looks poised to do just that. The Flames look for real and so does Hudler.. Kris Versteeg RW, Chicago: Having prospered with a plum assignment on the second line, Versteeg has scored close to a PPG clip with 18 points in 20 games. The impending return of Patrick Sharp will change things, but there is no guarantee that the prolific Kane-Versteeg-Richards line will be dismantled. At the very least, Versteeg is worth a short-term look for fantasy teams struggling on offense. He could very much have a longer fantasy impact if he continues to click with his line-mates. Justin Faulk D, Carolina: With 14 points in November, the young rearguard has taken his game to the next level for the Hurricanes. How he is still available in over 50% of ESPN fantasy leagues is beyond me, as Faulk should be a safe bet to reach the 40-point mark. Scoop him up ASAP. Matt Niskanen D, Washington; This one is pretty simple: He plays big when replacing key offensive defensemen on the power-play. Last season, it was Kris Letang who went down and Niskanen responded with a career-high of 46 points. This year, he has scored five points in the last four games as Mike Green is currently out of the line-up. Overall, his numbers are not impressive but he is worth starting while Green is out. Jhonas Enroth G, Buffalo: After sweeping a weekend home-and-home series against Montreal, the 26-year old has won 4 of his last 5 starts. Even though Michal Neuvirth was the superior goalie prior to his injury, it seems that Enroth could hold onto the starting job with his recent "hot" streak. If you want to get your hands on a sleeper goalie with some upside, he might be your guy.

The Philadelphia Flyers are just in a bad state right now as they lost for the 8th time in their last 9 games, losing again to the New York Rangers in the back end of a home-and-home series. The Story for the Rangers offense was their depth as Derick Brassard scored twice and Jesper Fast and J.T. Miller potted their first of the season with Fast's being his first NHL goal with both adding assists as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Philadelphia didn't make some sort of move like replacing Craig Berube behind the bench or pulling off a big trade to shake things up..... For those lucky enough to draft Tyler Bozak, you have been rewarded with the best start to a season in his career. With 22 points in 23 games this season, Bozak is on pace to obliterate his season high of 49 points last year, and that was in 58 games.  Playing alongside Phil Kessel (2A) doesn't hurt. James van Riemsdyk (2A), who after a somewhat slow start to the season, now has 13 points in 13 November games. All three should be in your starting lineups... Don't look now but the Buffalo Sabres are thundering back into legitimacy as they won for the 5th time in the past 6 games with a 4-3 shootout win over the Montreal Canadiens, who lost both ends of the home-and-home series. Jhonas Enroth was the story as he stopped 41 of 44 for his 4th win in past 5 starts. The Sabres now will face Tampa Bay in a home-and-home series this week so the schedule doesn't lighten up.... Speaking of Tampa, G Ben Bishop raised his record to 14-3-2 with a 4-1 win over the Ottawa Senators, where he had played briefly in 2012-13, to keep him apace with the league leaders. Bishop has developed into a go-to guy in fantasy circles playing with the Bolts..... Jaroslav Halak has won for the ninth straight time defeating the New Jersey Devils 3-1, making Halak a must-start in fantasy circles as the Islanders are for real this season. When you have a superstar like John Tavares leading the way, and back that up with some steady goaltending, you know you have a chance every night.... It's time to take notice of Calgary's Jiri Hudler, carried the offense with a goal and two assists in their 3-0 win in Arizona. The 30-year old extended his point streak to four games and has been basically a point-per game producer with 23 points in 24 games. Coming off a 54-point effort in his second year with Calgary, Hudler has become the veteran centerpiece of a young but talented forward corps, so give him a look. His 50.5 % ownership ...

Sharp injured his leg on Tuesday vs. the Habs and will miss 14-21 days with the injury. Brandon Saad will move up to the Hawks second line with Sharp out. Sharp had three goals and six assists in 13 games before being injured.

Sharp suffered what appeared to be a right leg injury in Tuesday's win over the Blackhawks. Sharp was crunched in the corner by Alexei Emelin and needed help getting off of the ice. Head coach Joel Quenneville said Sharp could be out "a bit, we will know more in the next day or so." His injury should allow Brandon Saad to move back up in the Hawks lineup.