Injuries don’t count, so Zach Werenski and Josh Norris get a pass. Rookies don’t count either, so we aren’t bothering with Marco Rossi and Shane Wright. This is about established NHLers with a reliable baseline coming well short of expectations. They are arranged by how much they are missing the preseason projections I assigned to […]
Continue readingIn keeping with the international spirit of the big event, this week for the power rankings we’ve broken down the roster of each club in terms of nationalities represented, along with some fun facts for each. Some caveats: A player must have appeared in one game to make the breakdown, and the countries are according […]
Continue readingWith word Wednesday that Letang has suffered another stroke, it’s not a question of whether he’ll be his usual self when he comes back — he’s proven he will be — but a question of when we’ll see him again. On one hand, general manager Ron Hextall was vocal in saying this stroke was “much […]
Continue readingJakob Chychrun and Nick Schmaltz returned to the lineup for the Arizona Coyotes for the first time this season (basically, as Schmaltz was hurt two minutes into the opener and Chychrun hadn’t yet played in 2022-23). In four games since then, the upstart Coyotes have earned four of a possible eight points (great by their […]
Continue readingSince the change, the Bolts advantage has gone six-for-19 on the advantage (31.6%). On the surface and certainly by the statistics, Sergachev is beating Hedman when it comes to fantasy value. But don’t be so hasty now. Sergachev deserves to push up these rankings. His offense off the power play has leveled up, with 10 […]
Continue readingBut what truly stole the show was the emotional ceremony for Börje Salming, who is battling ALS and was in attendance for Toronto’s games this weekend. There was not a dry eye in the house, least of all Darryl Sittler beside him, as the Maple Leafs crowd showered its former superstar with praise. I was […]
Continue readingBrandon Montour (up one spot to No. 158) has been dazzling on the point for the Panthers for the past few weeks, sitting sixth in fantasy points among defensemen. Hampus Lindholm (up eight spots to No. 189) has been nearly as good for the Boston Bruins and sits 11th among defenders. So why are they […]
Continue readingBrad Marchand, at this time last week, was listed to miss another 16 games, returning after the month of November was done. Late Wednesday, his timetable became “before Thanksgiving.” Then, on Thursday, he laced up and scored two goals and one assist in 18 minutes of surprise action. The Bruins gave Marchand the night off […]
Continue readingThere’s little question as to who’s beating who, more often than not. Of course matters will more or less eventually balance out — for example, Nashville and Minnesota are better than they’re playing — but food for fantasy thought for now, right? Especially knowing eight of Tuesday’s 10-game slate are of the interleague variety. Resources: […]
Continue readingThe 2021-22 NHL season is being called a return to normalcy. Last season was an unprecedented one for the NHL due to the COVID-19 pandemic: Four geographically realigned divisions, including one solely comprising Canadian teams; teams playing only opponents within those divisions; and a new playoff format that eschewed wild-card teams. But it ended just […]
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