This move was made in the third period on Saturday, but remained permanent in practice on Monday. Sharp has stumbled out of the gate with just one goal and four assists in 11 games.

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 ...

The New York Rangers had a good night in beating the Flyers 3-2 because of Center Derick Brassard who had two goals and looked good last night. Brassard came over to New York in the Marian Gaborik trade last year and has seemed very much in place in New York. He could score 60 points this year depending on the ice time he gets.  Don't forget about him late in your draft....Young forward Sean Courtier had a goal for Philadelphia, and he is probably off most poolies radar, but we have high expectations for him, and think he can score 65+ points this season....Steve Mason had 20 saves in goal, so watch this situation as he is competing with Ray Emery for the starter's job in Philadelphia. It should be a tough fight....Marcus Foligno had 2 goals last night for Buffalo against a Columbus split squad. At 22, Foligno has not yet established himself in the NHL but he has offensive talent, so he could be a real sleeper.  He once scored 13 points in 14 games in 2011-2012....Young Mikhail Grigorenko had a goal for Buffalo. Keep an eye on this kid because he has tremendous upside potential....The other Columbus squad beat Minnesota 3-1. Niklas Backstrom had only 7 saves in goal for the Wild while allowing all 3 goals. His performance will be critical to Minnesota this year....Forward Nino Niederreiter scored the only goal for the Wild on the power play, and he did not look bad. He was a tremendous bust for the Islanders but now has a new life in Minnesota.  He is only 20 years old....Corey Crawford was in midseason form in goal for Chicago as he stopped all 19 shots he faced, as the Blackhawks shut out Detroit....Patrick Sharp had a goal for Chicago and he should get 30+ goals this season. The guy is very dependable....Defenseman Dennis Wideman had two goals last night for Calgary in a split squad game against the Islanders, but please don't expect that to happen a lot as this team is most likely going to struggle this year. He is at best a late round draft pick....Forward Curtis Glencross had a goal and two assists. We view him as a marginal pick....Michael Grabner had a goal for New York and he has a lot of ability.  If he could only play with more consistency.... Kevin Poulin had 14 saves out of 16 shots for the Islanders and is fighting Nabokov for the starter's job in New York. We expect Nabokov to win this battle....In a split squad game Calgary beat the Islanders 4-2.  John Tavares and Matt Moulson both scored for New York. Expect them both to have big years...

Pre-Season Fantasy Bits: The New York Rangers had a good night in beating the Flyers 3-2 because of Center Derick Brassard who had two goals and looked good last night. Brassard came over to New York in the Marian Gaborik trade last year and has seemed very much in place in New York. He could score 60 points this year depending on the ice time he gets.  Don't forget about him late in your draft....Young forward Sean Courtier had a goal for Philadelphia, and he is probably off most poolies radar, but we have high expectations for him, and think he can score 65+ points this season....Steve Mason had 20 saves in goal, so watch this situation as he is competing with Ray Emery for the starter's job in Philadelphia. It should be a tough fight....Marcus Foligno had 2 goals last night for Buffalo against a Columbus split squad. At 22, Foligno has not yet established himself in the NHL but he has offensive talent, so he could be a real sleeper.  He once scored 13 points in 14 games in 2011-2012....Young Mikhail Grigorenko had a goal for Buffalo. Keep an eye on this kid because he has tremendous upside potential....The other Columbus squad beat Minnesota 3-1. Niklas Backstrom had only 7 saves in goal for the Wild while allowing all 3 goals. His performance will be critical to Minnesota this year....Forward Nino Niederreiter scored the only goal for the Wild on the power play, and he did not look bad. He was a tremendous bust for the Islanders but now has a new life in Minnesota.  He is only 20 years old....Corey Crawford was in midseason form in goal for Chicago as he stopped all 19 shots he faced, as the Blackhawks shut out Detroit....Patrick Sharp had a goal for Chicago and he should get 30+ goals this season. The guy is very dependable....Defenseman Dennis Wideman had two goals last night for Calgary in a split squad game against the Islanders, but please don't expect that to happen a lot as this team is most likely going to struggle this year. He is at best a late round draft pick....Forward Curtis Glencross had a goal and two assists. We view him as a marginal pick....Michael Grabner had a goal for New York and he has a lot of ability.  If he could only play with more consistency.... Kevin Poulin had 14 saves out of 16 shots for the Islanders and is fighting Nabokov for the starter's job in New York. We expect Nabokov to win this battle....In a split squad game Calgary beat the Islanders 4-2.  John Tavares and Matt Moulson both scored for New York. Expect ...

Chicago Blackhawks: Overrated: Brent Seabrook    One 40+ pt. season in his 8-year career. Will most likely lose top power-play time to Nick Leddy Underrated: Patrick Sharp      Prior to injury-plagued 2012/13 campaign, scored 67 goals in two seasons. Consistent scoring threat. Colorado Avalanche: Overrated: Erik Johnson            Still waiting for the former overall no.1 pick to live up to his potential. Huge fantasy bust. Underrated: P.A. Parenteau     His 43 points in 48 games proved he doesn't need John Tavares. Borderline point-per-game producer Dallas Stars: Overrated: Alex Goligoski        Don't get me wrong. Should be a lock for 40, but this d-man is not consistent enough to warrant fantasy elite status Underrated: Jamie Benn         Move to wing and chance to play with Tyler Seguin could result in breakout season Minnesota Wild: Overrated: Dany Heatley No longer the sure-fire 40-50 goal scorer, but has settled in a decent secondary threat. Parise is clearly the Wild's best LW. Period. Underrated: Mikko Koivu Not an elite point-producer, but could flourish while playing with Parise in Year 2. 70-75 point upside if he stays healthy.

PRIME-TIME FANTASY STARS OF GAME 2: After allowing a first-period goal to Patrick Sharp, Boston goalie Tuukka Rask overpowered Chicago's potent offensive attack by stopping 33/34 shots for the crucial 2-1 Game 2 OT triumph. The Finnish phenom has not given up more than one goal in each of the Bruins last seven playoff wins. Now, that's "lights out" clutch goaltending. If Rask is not near the top of all pre-fantasy drafts lists for next season, someone needs to get their head examined... read more

PRIME-TIME FANTASY STARS OF GAME 2: After allowing a first-period goal to Patrick Sharp, Boston goalie Tuukka Rask overpowered Chicago's potent offensive attack by stopping 33/34 shots for the crucial 2-1 Game 2 OT triumph. The Finnish phenom has not given up more than one goal in each of the Bruins last seven playoff wins. Now, that's "lights out" clutch goaltending. If Rask is not near the top of all pre-fantasy drafts lists for next season, someone needs to get their head examined... read more

PRIME-TIME FANTASY STARS OF GAME 2: After allowing a first-period goal to Patrick Sharp, Boston goalie Tuukka Rask overpowered Chicago's potent offensive attack by stopping 33/34 shots for the crucial 2-1 Game 2 OT triumph. The Finnish phenom has not given up more than one goal in each of the Bruins last seven playoff wins. Now, that's "lights out" clutch goaltending. If Rask is not near the top of all pre-fantasy drafts lists for next season, someone needs to get their head examined... read more

***IN THE SLOT*** OUR PRIMETIME PLAYERS OF THE NIGHT PATRICK SHARP-C-CHICAGO Sharp led the Chicago offense with two assists and 3 SOG, giving him four points (2G/2A) in the last three playoff games. Since 2009, only Sidney Crosby has more postseason goals (31) than Sharp, who has 30 and also leads this season with eight. The fact that he also contributed with six helpers makes him one of the elite fantasy scoring options in the 2013 playoffs. With Pittsburgh facing a stingy Boston team, Sharp could outscore the Pen superstars during the Conference Finals. TYLER TOFFOLI-C-LOS ANGELES read more

PATRICK SHARP-C-CHICAGO With one goal and two assists, Sharp led the Chicago offense that blew open a tight game in the 3rd period in the 4-1 Game 1 win over Detroit. Thats nine points in the last five playoff contests for the surging winger, who only played in 28 regular season games due to a shoulder injury. Sharp will be a huge fantasy value pick in 2013/14, given that when healthy, he is a lock for 35 goals and 70+ points.