Week 14 Fantasy Hockey Planner

Week 14 (Jan. 4-10)

Teams playing four games: Anaheim, Boston, Calgary, Chicago, Columbus, Dallas, N.Y. Rangers, Ottawa, Toronto
Teams playing three games: Atlanta, Buffalo, Carolina, Colorado, Detroit, Florida, Los Angeles, Minnesota, Montreal, Nashville, New Jersey, N.Y. Islanders, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, San Jose, St. Louis, Tampa Bay, Vancouver, Washington
Teams playing two games: Edmonton

Atlantic Division

New Jersey Devils: David Clarkson is dealing with soreness in the same leg (right) he broke earlier this season but that is the extent of the ailment. He has not suffered a setback and could be considered a low-risk start for Week 14... Niclas Bergfors led the Devils with seven goals scored in December. Three players -- Patrik Elias, Jamie Langenbrunner and Brian Rolston -- had five goals, while Zach Parise and Travis Zajac each struggled by only scoring twice in 15 games.
N.Y. Islanders: Injured goalie Rick DiPietro (knee) played in a rehab game for Bridgeport (AHL) on Friday. He has already said he will not be back until he is 100 percent and New York has given no timetable for his return. Keep him reserved through Week 14 ... With only one goal in his last 11 games, rookie center John Tavares has moved to the left wing in an attempt to snap him out of his scoring funk ... Doug Weight played on Thursday against the Senators for the first time since suffering a shoulder injury on Nov. 6. It's safe to activate him in Fantasy, but Weight is merely a low-end Fantasy flier.
N.Y. Rangers: Left wing Christopher Higgins has been elevated to the top line in place of the injured Vaclav Prospal (knee), but the promotion was mostly by default. Higgins hasn't scored in 10 games, and has four goals on 102 shots for a shooting percentage of 3.92, the lowest in the NHL among forwards with at least 75 shots ... At least linemate Brandon Dubinsky is on a roll. He has four goals and two assists in his last five games.
Philadelphia Flyers: Goalie Ray Emery (abdominal) has returned to practice, but he isn't close to returning. Keep him reserved through at least Week 14 ... Danny Briere has scored in three of his last four games and has five points in that span ... Simon Gagne had his third NHL hat trick on Wednesday against the Rangers. He has four goals and three assists in seven games since returning from abdominal surgery. It seems safe to start Gagne in all Fantasy formats again.
Pittsburgh Penguins: Defenseman Sergei Gonchar left practice on Friday after 15 minutes. He had hurt his foot on Wednesday after taking a shot off of it. He is day to day, and if he doesn't play over the weekend he could be an injury-risk start for Week 14 ... Bill Guerin, who was left off the Team USA Olympic roster, finished third on Pittsburgh with 11 points in 13 December games. He also tied Evgeni Malkin, who made Team Russia, with six goals.
Favorable matchup: Pittsburgh (ATL, PHI, @TOR). The Penguins square off in Week 14 against a pair of defenses ranked in the bottom four in the NHL -- Toronto (3.41 GAA) and Atlanta (3.15). Pittsburgh is also averaging 3.00 or more goals against each opponent this season, including 4.33 in three games against Philadelphia.
Unfavorable matchup: N.Y. Islanders (@COL, @DAL, @PHO). The Islanders are on a three-game road trip in Week 14. New York is averaging only 2.39 goals per game on the road (21st). The Islanders also haven't scored more than three goals in any of their last six road games and have scored two or fewer goals in five of those contests. It doesn't help their cause they also have to face two top 15 defenses in Phoenix (2.35 GAA) and Colorado (2.75).

Northeast Division

Boston Bruins: Milan Lucic (ankle) could be ready to return as soon as Friday against the Blackhawks, but it is still toward the end of Week 14, so he is not a recommended Fantasy start ... Marc Savard seems settled in playing alongside a new set of wingers in Marco Sturm and Steve Begin. He has one goal and seven assists in his last six games. Sturm also seems happy with the move as he has scored in four straight games, including the overtime winner during Friday's Winter Classic against Philadelphia, and five of six contests.
Buffalo Sabres: Derek Roy returned to the lineup on Friday against the Thrashers after missing two games with an upper-body injury. It's safe to activate him for Week 14 ... Drew Stafford responded positively to being sent to the press box on Dec. 27 against the Blues by scoring twice in his return to the lineup on Tuesday against the Sabres. It was his first goals since Nov. 27 ... Jason Pominville has three goals and three assists in his last six games.
Montreal Canadiens: Defenseman Andrei Markov has been playing lights out since returning from an ankle injury that kept him out more than two months. He has three goals and eight assists during a seven-game point streak since returning. It's safe to say he is at 100 percent ... Defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron has been moved to forward with the return of Markov. He seems to have no issues with the move as he has three goals and three assists in his last seven games ... Brian Gionta is also playing well since missing 21 games with a broken foot. He has one goal and three assists in his first three games back ... Tomas Plekanec had a heck of a December with 17 assists and 21 points in 17 games ... Scott Gomez also had his best month since joining Montreal in the offseason. He finished with 13 assists and 16 points ... But it's not all good news for the Canadiens. Andrei Kostitsyn appeared to injure his knee on Thursday against the Panthers and could be out for a while. It comes at a bad time for Kostitsyn, who has been one of Montreal's hottest players. He finished December with 10 goals and 15 points in 16 games.
Ottawa Senators: Center Peter Regin is starting to step up in the absence of Jason Spezza (knee). Regin, who was elevated to the second line behind Mike Fisher, has two goals and one assist in his last three games ... Chris Campoli has been moved back to the blue line after an experiment at forward. But it seems the shift back to defense has sparked his stagnant game. Campoli has one goal and three assists during a three-game point streak ... Nick Foligno is playing some of his best hockey as of late with two goals and three assists in his last five games.
Toronto Maple Leafs: Jason Blake led Toronto with seven goals in 16 December games. He beat out Phil Kessel, who had six scores. Kessel wore down late in the month with only one goal in his final seven games.
Favorable matchup: Ottawa (BOS, @WAS, FLA, @CAR). The Senators do open the week going up against one of the NHL's top defenses in Boston, a team they have scored only six goals against in three games. However, Ottawa then gets to face three teams -- Washington, Florida and Carolina -- which it has already defeated. The Senators have scored four goals in each victory.
Unfavorable matchup: Boston (@NYR, @OTT, CHI, NYR). The Bruins are averaging 2.67 goals per game in three contests against Ottawa. They have been shutout in their only appearance against the Rangers, and New York has allowed more than three goals only once in their last 13 appearances. Finally, Chicago has the top defense in the NHL (2.05 GAA).

Southeast Division

Atlanta Thrashers: Ondrej Pavelec was Atlanta's unquestioned starting goalie at the beginning of the season, but after going 1-6-0 with a 5.29 GAA in eight December appearances that is no longer the case. Johan Hedberg has eight wins in his last 17 appearances and has been a steadier force in net; although, his play is starting to tail off as well. Hedberg is probably the better start in Fantasy, but neither goalie is anything more than a No. 3 Fantasy option or flier in leagues that use average points per game ... Ilya Kovalchuk, who made the Russian Olympic squad, has seven goals and eight assists in his last 11 games... The Thrashers sent struggling center Todd White a message by benching him for Wednesday's game against the Bruins. White has only three goals on the season and is scoreless in his last 29 games.
Carolina Hurricanes: Jussi Jokinen is outstanding when Carolina wins. He has seven goals, 13 points and a plus-9 rating in nine of Carolina's wins (he was absent for one victory) ... Brandon Sutter had a goal in three straight games before being shut out on Thursday against the Rangers.
Florida Panthers: Cory Stillman played on Thursday against the Canadiens for the first time since injuring his knee on Nov. 20 in Detroit. He returned to his second-line position alongside Steve Reinprecht and Radek Dvorak. He even picked up an assist in 18 minutes. Stillman is a nice low-end Fantasy start when healthy ... Dvorak has four goals and five assists in his last 10 games ... Michael Frolik has five goals in his last 10 games.
Tampa Bay Lightning: Martin St. Louis, who was snubbed by the Canadian Olympic committee earlier this week, has two goals and nine assists during a six-game point streak. He is tied for the league lead with 20 power-play points ... Goalie Mike Smith has started the last five games for Tampa Bay, turning in a 3-1-1 record. He also has a 2.38 GAA and .928 save percentage in that span. He is clearly the better start in Fantasy over Antero Niittymaki.
Washington Capitals: Goalie Semyon Varlamov (groin) is expected to play once for Hershey (AHL) before returning to the NHL. Varlamov could very well be back in the NHL during Week 14 barring any setbacks, but there is still some risk to starting the Olympic goalie in Fantasy ... Center Brendan Morrison had his worst month as a Capital since joining the team in the offseason. He had a season-low two goals, four assists, six points and plus-3 rating in 13 December games. Still, he centered a line with Alex Ovechkin and Mike Knuble on Wednesday against the Sharks.
Favorable matchup: Washington (MON, OTT, @ATL). The Capitals face a pair of teams in the bottom 10 for defense in Ottawa (2.88 GAA) and Atlanta (3.15). They are also averaging 3.00 or more goals per game against each team in 2009-10. Washington's biggest challenge will be Montreal, a team they have only scored five goals in two games against. However, the Capitals get Montreal on home ice, where they lead the NHL in home GFA (3.78).
Unfavorable matchup: Tampa Bay (@BUF, @NJ, @PHI). The Lightning has a very difficult three-game road trip on the horizon in Week 14. They have to face two defenses ranked in the top five -- New Jersey (2.18 GAA) and Buffalo (2.26). Philadelphia is also no slouch ranked 12th in defense (2.74). It also doesn't help Tampa Bay's cause since it is 26th in road GFA (2.29).

Central Division

Chicago Blackhawks: Adam Burish (knee) and Dave Bolland (back) are both doing well with their rehab. However, neither player is expected back until March ... Defensemen Brian Campbell and Duncan Keith are both doing well offensively in the last few weeks. Campbell has three goals and five assists in his last nine games. Keith has one goal and nine assists in his last eight games.
Columbus Blue Jackets: Defenseman Mike Commodore has really slipped into the coach's doghouse as he has been a healthy scratch in the two games since Columbus acquired Milan Jurcina in a trade from Washington. Columbus wasn't happy with Commodore's conditioning earlier in the season and sat him down for a few games. The benching didn't seem to motivate Commodore as he still has no goals, six points and a minus-9 rating in 28 contests ... Not one Columbus player managed 10 or more points in 16 December games. Antoine Vermette and Rick Nash both had nine points and tied with R.J. Umberger for the team lead with four goals.
Detroit Red Wings: Detroit expects to get as many as four injured players -- Henrik Zetterberg (shoulder), Daniel Cleary (shoulder), Niklas Kronwall (leg) and Jonathan Ericsson (knee) -- back during a five-game road trip that continues on Tuesday in Anaheim. Still, Fantasy owners start any of these players at their own risk ... Jason Williams (leg) and Johan Franzen (knee) are both back on the ice skating. However, neither player is close to returning. Williams is hoping to return from mid-to-late January, while Franzen is still out until at least early March ... Todd Bertuzzi was Detroit's most productive offensive player in December. He led the team with eight goals and 12 points in 14 games ... Defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom had a season-high nine points -- all assists -- in December. A notorious second-half player, Lidstrom appears to be heating up for the stretch run.
Nashville Predators: Center David Legwand has nine points (four goals) in his last 10 games and 20 points in his last 23 appearances (eight goals). The Predators are 7-0-1 when Legwand scores ... Joel Ward has nine points (two goals) in his last eight games ... Martin Erat, who led Nashville with 10 goals and 18 points in December, will miss 7-10 days with a knee injury. He is not a recommended start for Week 14.
St. Louis Blues: Alexander Steen is becoming a scoring force off the Blues' third line. He has five goals and five assists in his last seven games ... Paul Kariya is day to day with an upper-body injury.
Favorable matchup: Chicago (MIN, @BOS, @MIN, ANA). The Blackhawks have been on a roll lately, scoring three or more goals in nine of their last 10 games. They have taken down some pretty good defenses in Detroit, Nashville and New Jersey, so having to face Boston (2.28 GAA) doesn't seem like much of an obstacle. The Blackhawks' other two opponents are allowing 2.83 or more goals per game. Chicago is averaging 3.00 or more goals per game against Boston and Minnesota this season.
Unfavorable matchup: St. Louis (@SJ, @ANA, @LA). The Blues actually aren't a half-bad offensive team when they hit the road, averaging 2.72 goals per game (13th). But that number could come down a bit in Week 14 as St. Louis is averaging only 1.50 goals in two games against San Jose and 2.50 goals in two games against Los Angeles.

Northwest Division

Calgary Flames: Craig Conroy has scored in consecutive games after going the first 36 contests without a score. Conroy was promoted to the top line with Olli Jokinen and Jarome Iginla earlier in the week, but he couldn't even last one game alongside the duo. His two goals have come while centering the third line ... Rene Bourque has four goals and two assists in his last three games. He also has seven goals and 13 points in 14 games since returning from an undisclosed injury. Bourque was the only Calgary player to break 10 points in December. Jarome Iginla was the closest with nine points.
Colorado Avalanche: Rookie Brandon Yip has three goals and one assist in six games since making his NHL debut ... Defenseman John-Michael Liles has been a healthy scratch for two straight games since the return of Kyle Cumiskey (foot). Coach Joe Sacco has said Liles hasn't been as productive as expected and is clearly a bad Fantasy start until further notice.
Edmonton Oilers: Defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky is day to day with an ankle injury suffered Thursday against Calgary. If he is not back over the weekend, then Visnovsky is an injury-risk start for Week 14 ... Edmonton had no players break 10 points during 14 December games. The highest scorer was Robert Nilsson, who had nine points.
Minnesota Wild: Chuck Kobasew is out 4-6 weeks with a sprained MCL ... Goalie Niklas Backstrom made the Finnish Olympic squad, but Fantasy owners shouldn't worry about him wearing down. The Finland coaches have told him he is probably only going to see one appearance as long as Miikka Kiprusoff is healthy ... Petr Sykora returned from a 24-game absence because of a concussion on Thursday against the Kings. Sykora played less than 11 minutes and primarily on the fourth line as coach Todd Richards wants to ease the veteran back into action ... Brent Burns, who has missed 20 games with a concussion, has skated a few days in a row and is beginning to take the steps toward a comeback. However, Minnesota still has no timetable for his return ... Center Mikko Koivu had a season-high four goals, 11 assists and 15 points in 16 December games ... Martin Havlat had his best month since joining Minnesota and is finally living up to his high-end Fantasy potential. Havlat had five goals and 15 points in 16 December games.
Vancouver Canucks: The brother tandem of Henrik Sedin and Daniel Sedin have combined for 54 points in their last 19 games ... Even with Kevin Bieksa out with a leg injury, the Canucks have no intentions of bringing back disgruntled blueliner Mathieu Schneider, who has cleared waivers. Neither coach Alain Vigneault nor general manager Mike Gillis want Schneider back after he left the team because he was upset with his playing time ... Speaking of Bieksa, he is likely facing a long-term recovery process after suffering a leg laceration. Keep him reserved in Fantasy until further notice.
Favorable matchup: Vancouver (CLB, PHO, CGY). The Canucks might face some good defenses in Phoenix (2.19 GAA) and Calgary (2.35) in Week 14, but Vancouver is playing on home ice where it dominates. The Canucks rank fourth in home GFA (3.36). They are also averaging 3.00 or more goals against Columbus and Calgary.
Unfavorable matchup: Minnesota (@CHI, CGY, CHI). The Wild are going to need to come up with some solid strategy in Week 14, if they intend to get their offense rolling against Chicago (2.05 GAA) and Calgary (2.35 GAA). Minnesota scored only once in its lone appearance against Chicago and two goals in its only game against Calgary.

Pacific Division

Anaheim Ducks: Ryan Getzlaf (leg) and Teemu Selanne (hand) are both on the team's current road trip. Getzlaf is making good progress from a leg laceration and should be considered a low-risk start for Week 14, even if he is not back by the weekend. Also, there is a chance Selanne plays over the weekend, but it is more likely he is going to return from a broken hand on Tuesday against Detroit. He is also a low-risk start ... Center Saku Koivu has played his best hockey since his linemate and fellow Fin Selanne went down in early December. Koivu finished December with a season-high six goals, seven assists and 13 points in 15 games ... Bobby Ryan, who made the Team USA Olympic roster, also had an outstanding December with a season-high eight goals, eight assists and 16 points ... Dan Sexton has 11 points in his first 13 NHL games ... Defenseman James Wisniewski has three assists in his last two games after going 12 games without a point.
Dallas Stars: Loui Eriksson finished 2009 on a high note with a hat trick on New Year's Eve against Anaheim. He capped December with a season-high seven goals, 11 assists and 18 points in 13 games ... Defenseman Stephane Robidas set new career highs in goals (10) and points (27) as he got a goal and assist on Thursday against Anaheim ... The Stars sent struggling forward Fabian Brunnstrom on a conditioning stint to Texas of the AHL. Brunnstrom has only one goal and seven points in 23 games this season and has been a pretty big bust since coming over from the Swedish Elite League last season.
Los Angeles Kings: Justin Williams could miss as much as three months while recovering from a broken leg ... Defenseman Randy Jones remains day to day with a head injury. Los Angeles won't classify it was a concussion, but Jones could still be an injury-risk start for Week 14 ... Center Jarret Stoll (groin) is making positive progress and could be back during Week 14. However, he is still an injury risk start ... Not only did Dustin Brown receive a spot on the USA Olympic roster this week, but he was also promoted to the top scoring line with Anze Kopitar and Ryan Smyth ... Forward Brad Richardson led the Kings with 11 points in 14 December games and tied Alexander Frolov and Scott Parse with five goals. Because of his stellar play, coach Terry Murray said he might give Richardson considerable power-play time.
Phoenix Coyotes: Scottie Upshall finished December with a season-high seven goals and 12 points in 15 games. He has 11 goals and 21 points in his last 28 appearances ... Shane Doan is starting to spring to life for Phoenix. He has three goals and four assists in his last seven games.
San Jose Sharks: Center Joe Thornton is on pace for 110 points, the most since he totaled 114 points in 2006-07 ... Ryane Clowe has nine goals and 24 points in his last 27 games ... Center Joe Pavelski made the Team USA Olympic roster on Friday despite missing a good chunk of the season due to injury. However, Pavelski has nine goals and 19 points in 24 games since returning to the lineup in November, so he is clearly 100 percent and clicking on all cylinders.
Favorable matchup: San Jose (LA, STL, DET). The Sharks wrap up a four-game homestand during Week 14. San Jose is averaging 3.32 goals per game (sixth) at the Shark Tank. San Jose is also averaging 3.00 goals in three games against the Kings.
Unfavorable matchup: Los Angeles (@SJ, DET, STL). The Kings play three games in Week 14, but they face two teams -- San Jose (2.44 GAA) and Detroit (2.50) -- in the top 10 for defense.

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