Stockwatch: Elliott at home in Ottawa

Brian Elliott is taking advantage of an opportunity in Ottawa while Erik Cole is catching fire for Edmonton. Our Ross Devonport discusses that and much more in his latest Fantasy Stockwatch.

By Ross Devonport

Jan 19, 2009 at 5:46 am ET • 4 min read

Every week our Fantasy staff will evaluate the landscape around the NHL and how it pertains to Fantasy owners in Fantasy Stockwatch.

	Brian Elliott, G, Ottawa I pondered putting Elliott in here last week when it was announced he was coming up, but I wanted to see how he would do in his first couple of starts with the Sens. Well, he's won twice and has a solid 2.22 GAA, despite allowing five goals in his most recent start. It looks like he will get the majority of starts for Ottawa unless he really starts to struggle mightily, and if the Senators can start playing like we know they're capable of, Elliott could be a great No. 2 or No. 3 option in deeper leagues down the stretch.
	Vesa Toskala, G, Toronto You would think a starting goalie for one of the most storied franchises in NHL history would have started in more than 54 percent of leagues at some point this season, right? Wrong. After going 4-2 in October with a 2.90 GAA, Toskala has gone 11-14 in his last 30 games with a GAA around 3.50 and things don't look like they're going to better any time soon. Whether it's because his groin is still bothering him or the Leafs are just that bad, especially on the blue line, Toskala should only be used in the deepest of Fantasy leagues at this time.
	Erik Cole, LW, Edmonton Cole, who is offensively capable enough to put up a 60-point season, was plodding along the first 2 1/2 months of 2008-09 with just three goals and 11 points in 30 games. However, he has been finding the net more often lately with six goals in his last 15 games. He also has five assists over that span. The main reason for the spike was a move back to the power play, after he was removed from the extra-man unit in December. His starting percentage has risen from 19 to 36 percent over the last few weeks, so grab him in deeper leagues before someone else does.
	Kyle Wellwood, C, Vancouver Wellwood, who got booted out of Toronto in the offseason after failing to impress Leafs management, got off to a good start in Vancouver, but his offensive output has stalled lately. He has two goals and no assists in his last 13 games and is seeing fewer and fewer power-play minutes as the season chugs along. He was also a healthy scratch last week. Bench or drop Wellwood in all formats until he starts to turn his season around.
	Rich Peverley, C, Atlanta It's not very often that a waived player finds Fantasy value almost immediately after he's claimed by another team, but Peverley has found himself involved in a perfect situation. Dumped by Nashville, Peverley was picked up by the Thrashers and was immediately thrown on the top line in Atlanta alongside superstar Ilya Kovalchuk. The undrafted 26-year-old was a point-per-game guy in the AHL, so the offensive side of his game is clearly there, and he's definitely worth keeping a very close eye on in deeper leagues once the post All-Star Game action gets going again.
	Nikolai Zherdev, RW, N.Y. Rangers Zherdev was a point-per-game guy in New York until about mid-December, but he's been awfully inconsistent with most of his points coming in bunches and he is currently on an 11-game slide without a goal. His power play time has also been cut lately, which drops his value even more. Zherdev is starting in a season-low 63 percent of leagues right now, but that number should be even lower. Bench him in the majority of formats if you can afford to.
	Cory Stillman, C, Florida Stillman started this season as the best Fantasy skater on the Panthers, but his value took a big hit when he went down with a concussion in early November. Now it looks like he's back to full health with his current five game point streak, during which he has two goals and four assists. Florida is playing some nice hockey recently and Stillman has looked like the guy who put up 76 points a few seasons ago. He should be owned in more than the 50 percent of leagues he currently is.
	Alex Goligoski, D, Pittsburgh We knew Goligoski's Fantasy value would take a hit when Ryan Whitney returned to action, but we didn't think things would get this bad. The Minnesota native has been a healthy scratch a lot recently and has just one assist in his last 10 games. With Brooks Orpik out injured the last couple of games Goligoski has been back on the ice, but he's someone whose value is just going to continue to slide the rest of this campaign.
	Steve Montador, D, Anaheim Montador, who popped up with 23 points last season, was only owned in three percent of leagues to start 2008-09, but he's already got 13 points and is now up to 35 percent. He's been on fire since the calendar turned, with two goals and three assists in his last six contests and has been a power-play fixture since early December. I like him in deeper leagues as a nice guy to bring off your bench when Anaheim has four games in a period.
	Mason Raymond, LW, Vancouver Raymond is halfway to completing his first full NHL season and was playing pretty well until 2009 started. In eight January games he has yet to pick up a point and has a minus-3 rating. While he is still featured on the power play, Raymond played just 12:17 in his last game, his fewest minutes in over a month. Forget about him in most leagues for the time being.

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