Sabres forward Thomas Vanek didn't have a very encouraging message Thursday for all his adoring fans. Vanek wrote on his official website that he wasn't sure if he would return to action in the 3-4 week window the doctors initially gave him following jaw surgery Feb. 8.

"I hope that I haven't lost too much of my fitness but we'll see about that once I start skating again," Vanek wrote. "The doctors said that I would miss at least four weeks altogether but it also could be five to six weeks. We'll just have to wait and see."

The Sabres are trying to remain overly optimistic their top goal scorer (32) will make a speedy recovery, but they realize they will have to make-do over the next month without the All-Star.

Derek Roy and Tim Connolly will be important presences up the middle, but finding scorers on the wing could be a little tricky. Well, Drew Stafford might be ready to answer the call.

The third-year forward had a pair of power-play goals during Tuesday's 4-1 win against the Maple Leafs and is taking the steps to help fill the scoring void up front.

"He's been making some plays, moving his feet down low," Roy said of Stafford. "He's a strong body in front of the net on the power play and we need that from him. He's playing really well."

Stafford has been a consistent top-six forward for Buffalo during the last few seasons, but the most recent change to his role has come on the power play. He is now one of the team's new frontmen, the other being Matt Ellis, and is playing on the top man-advantage unit with Connolly, Roy, Jason Pominville and Jaroslav Spacek.

"It is actually kind of tough," Stafford told NHL.com of his new assignment. "It's a matter of balancing; trying to know when to support, when to get off and be an outlet and knowing when to be in front. Then also knowing when the puck comes whether or not to stay or turn around for the rebound. You look at Vanek, how good he is at that ... and a guy like (Detroit's) Tomas Holmstrom, who is just pretty much the master of it all. It's something that we have to do, get better at, and something that's new for me."

Stafford was drafted 13th overall by the Sabres in 2004. He joined the team in 2006-07 after three successful years at North Dakota. As a prospect, Stafford was lauded for his solid two-way play; his aggressiveness at both ends of the ice; his outstanding work ethic; and his smooth maneuvering around the ice. He has yet to disappoint in those aspects.

The Milwaukee native is on pace for a career-high in games played (76), goals (23), assists (27), points (50) and plus/minus rating (15). He has quietly posted 14 goals and 17 assists in his last 36 games, and has a real chance to create some buzz with Vanek watching from the press box.

"As long as I'm contributing, especially now with Thomas out, we're going to need all the goals we can get and if that's what I'm going to be contributing, than so be it," Stafford said.

Add 'Em

Nathan Horton, C, Florida
Owned: 75 percent of leagues
Analysis: It's very baffling to see Horton owned in less than 80 percent of Fantasy leagues and started in less than 60. Those numbers need to rise. Horton dealt with a foot fracture for a few weeks in November and December and it just added to his frustrations as he was slow to adjust to first-year coach Peter DeBoer. But Horton finally appears way past his troubles. Outside of having four goals and one assist in his last six games, Horton has nine goals and 11 assists in 21 appearances since the calendar year hit 2009. He is one of the Panthers' top playmakers and will be needed heavily down the stretch as Florida makes a serious playoff push.

Todd White, C, Atlanta
Owned: 60 percent of leagues
Analysis: White was a Fantasy wasteland from Jan. 20 to Feb. 11 as he managed no goals and one assist in a 10-game stretch. He totaled zero Fantasy points from Week 16-19 and in three of those scoring periods he had negative points. Despite his slump, White still has 15 goals and 35 assists in 59 games. He has one goal and four assists in his last three games since being moved back on a scoring line with Ilya Kovalchuk and Bryan Little. The trio has had great success in 2008-09 and coach John Anderson is likely to keep them together for the foreseeable future. Even if that doesn't happen, this isn't a fluke run from White. He had some 50-60 point seasons with the Senators and is a good offensive player. Obviously playing for the Thrashers will scare anyone off, but stats are stats and White is challenging to be a point-per-game threat.

Ryan Kesler, C, Vancouver
Owned: 49 percent of leagues
Analysis: Kesler finally deserves the time of day in Fantasy, even if it is as a stopgap option in one of your rotating forward slots. He has been electric since moving to right wing on a line with Mats Sundin and Pavol Demitra. As a result, Kesler has nine goals and four assists in his last nine games. He has three two-goal games in that span and is logging considerable power-play minutes. Kesler has also managed 10 or more Fantasy points for four straight weeks. He already has a career-high 38 points and is well on his way to setting a new career-high in goals (21). The Canucks drafted the 24-year-old forward in the first round in 2003 for this kind of potential.

Drop 'Em

Joe Corvo, D, Carolina
Owned: 92 percent of leagues
Analysis: I'm playing with fire here since Corvo is a top-logging defenseman and is one goal away from hitting double digits, but the veteran defenseman needs to be taken down a notch in Fantasy. Corvo has no goals and one assist in his last seven games. He has just three goals and five assists in his last 21 appearances, and a minus-9 rating to boot. Coach Paul Maurice has had no problems running Corvo ragged since taking over behind the bench, but there lies the problem. Corvo has had such a poor plus/minus rating as of late because of added time on the ice and Carolina isn't exactly sound defensively. Also, Corvo has managed 10 or more Fantasy points in just three weeks this season. Not exactly quality production from a player being touted as a high-end Fantasy defenseman.

Erik Cole, LW, Edmonton
Owned: 46 percent of leagues
Analysis: While my colleague Ross Devonport is telling Fantasy owners to keep tabs on Cole since he is likely to be dealt to a top contender before the March 4 deadline, I'm not so sure even a trade out of town will spark the veteran forward. Edmonton acquired Cole in the offseason looking for an extra scorer in their top-six rotation. He has produced just 13 goals in 58 games and hasn't provided the expected returns. Ever since Cole hit a career-high 30 goals in 2005-06, his production has steadily dropped in that category the last few seasons. It's a main reason why that even with another new address, I still feel Cole is a shade of his former self.

Avoid 'Em

Cory Sarich, D, Calgary
Owned: 8 percent of leagues
Analysis: Sarich totaled a season-high 21 Fantasy points in Week 19 (Feb. 9-16) thanks to one goal, three assists and a plus-6 rating in four games. Sarich has totaled 22-plus minutes in three of his last four games and coach Mike Keenan is all of a sudden leaning heavily on the veteran defenseman. Sarich has been a good two-way player throughout his career, but he has never been an outstanding offensive player. He won't have too many weeks of 10 or more Fantasy points, so Fantasy owners are barking up the wrong tree. You might be better off considering other defenders such as Tom Gilbert and Alexander Edler.

Richard Zednik, LW, Florida
Owned: 13 percent of leagues
Analysis: Zednik has five goals and three assists in his last eight games and it's really good to see him performing at a high level after he had a life-threatening injury last February when he was cut on the neck with a skate during a game against the Sabres. Like many Florida players, Zednik has finally found his groove under coach Peter DeBoer. Zednik had his best days as a player in Montreal, but everywhere else he has gone, he has produced marginal stat lines. It will be a push for Zednik to be a 20-20 player by season's end.

Watch 'Em

Jarrett Stoll, C, Los Angeles
Owned: 25 percent of leagues
Analysis: In case you missed it, Stoll has been on a surge ever since coach Terry Murray lined him up between Kyle Calder and Dustin Brown. Stoll has produced five goals and nine assists in his last 12 games. He is starting to once again look like the kid who tallied a career-high 68 points (22 goals) for the Oilers in 2005-06. His offensive game has been in the tubes since that season, and he was having a ho-hum campaign for Los Angeles until his recent run. Our only concern is that Stoll's numbers might fade if the Kings start to play themselves out of the playoff picture.

Eric Fehr, RW, Washington
Owned: 13 percent of leagues
Analysis: The Capitals had some concerns when Chris Clark went on season-ending IR following wrist surgery. It allowed Fehr to finally nab a regular spot in the forward rotation and coach Bruce Boudreau challenged him to step up his game. The 23-year-old forward answered the call. He has scored in six of eight games in February after getting all of three goals in his first 29 appearances. Fehr is in the midst of a career season, but that's because he played in just 48 games in his first three seasons. Fehr was an elite scorer as a junior hockey player and it was one of the top reason's Washington took him in the first round in 2003. However, the main issue remains if Fehr can keep up this torrid goals pace with the likes of Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Mike Green, Alexander Semin, Sergei Fedorov, etc., stealing scoring chances.

You can e-mail us your Fantasy Hockey questions to DMFantasyPucks@cbs.com. Be sure to put Attn: Waiver Wire in the subject field. Please include your full name, hometown and state. Be aware, due to the large volume of submissions received, we cannot guarantee personal responses to all questions.