Chris Nichols

­Chris Nichols is Sportsnet.ca's fantasy hockey writer.

Twitter: @Nichols_NHLPool/ Email: chris.nichols@sportsnet.rogers.com

The twitter feed has timely NHL & fantasy info with a few funnies along the way. Inane babble is generally kept to a minimum and known starting goalies will be posted leading up to the first games of the night, where possible.

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The New York Post believes that if Henrik Lundqvist endured a learning curve through the guts of the season in which he watched from the Rangers bench far more often than usual, there's nothing for the goaltender to learn about playing every game down the stretch.

"It's so exciting at this time of year, you don't get tired no matter how often you play," The King, who will make his 13th straight start tonight when the Rangers face the Ducks, said following yesterday's early afternoon practice.

"In November and December it can be tough to play all the time, but right now you want to be out there every night, you want to make the difference for your team every game."

With Marty Biron shelved for the duration with the broken collarbone he sustained in practice last week and sophomore pro Chad Johnson serving as the backup, Lundqvist will get his wish. There are 14 games to go and unless something untoward develops, The King is likely to get all of them, at least until the Rangers clinch a playoff spot.

"It's his ball now," coach John Tortorella said. "Marty Biron did the things we wanted him to do, but this is Henrik's show now."

The Post notes that if Lundqvist runs out the string, he will have started the final 27 games one year after starting 25 of the final 26, two years after starting 27 of the final 29 and three years after starting 22 of the final 23. If he goes the distance, he will finish with 67 starts after getting 70 or more the previous three seasons.

"It was different for me this year, definitely, but in the long run, it's great," Lundqvist said. "Getting as much rest as I did before is one of the reasons I feel so good now."

The Washington Post reports that Capitals centre Nicklas Backstrom will miss tonight's game against the Edmonton Oilers because of nagging problems with his fractured left thumb, an injury that was suffered Feb. 21 against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Coach Bruce Boudreau said it will be a short-term absence, one to two games, and that Backstrom is wearing a hard cast to protect the thumb by limiting movement and the possibility of additional injury. Boudreau added that the cast can be taken off at any time and that Backstrom did not suffer an additional injury over the weekend.

"We just want to protect his thumb," Boudreau said. "We like him playing every game, but to us, making sure that he's ready and healthy is the most important thing. We didn't want a nagging little injury to keep him out and keep re-injuring it and that. He'll probably be out for a game or two."

This will cause Backstrom to miss a game for the first time in his career, ending a streak of 341 consecutive contests that the Capitals' No. 1 centre has played in between the regular season and playoffs. #stud

Incidentally, it'll be Braden Holtby starting tonight against the Oilers. The other night when Michal Neuvirth took that shot to his mask, he eventually left the game and Holtby started the second period since Semyon Varlamov was already sidelined. We've since discovered that Neuvirth got metal fragments in his eye that were successfully removed, but at the time there was speculation there could have been concussion concerns or something like that. We really didn't know.

The point though, is that we live in the age of instant information. Right at the start of the second period I tweeted "FYI: Neuvirth out of game after taking shot to his mask in 1st. Holtby in. Caps vs. EDM Wednesday. Holtby potential spot-starter now? Maybe."

Even though Neuvirth is apparently ok, it turns out Holtby will, indeed, get a bonus start tonight. There's certainly no guarantee of a win or good stats, even against my Oilers, but in a close stretch run race that sort of info can make or break poolie seasons.

Twitter wins again. If you're not already on there, what more could you possibly be waiting for?

With his team's playoff hopes on life support, The Columbus Dispatch reports that Blue Jackets' centre Derick Brassard could make a dramatic return to the lineup against the Blues on Wednesday night in Nationwide Arena.

Brassard, who's missed the last eight games with a left hand injury, has been cleared by team physicians to play. He will be a game-time decision, coach Scott Arniel said.

"The finger is a long way from the heart," Brassard said. "The next few games are the biggest of our season and I want to be a part of them. If I play, I will try to keep it simple."

The club has lost five straight and could use a boost as it sits seven points out of the final playoff spot. Yesterday, Brassard participated in his first full practice since Feb. 16, when he suffered the injury getting hit by a Jan Hejda slap shot.

"It hurts, but I will have to deal with it," Brassard said. "I'm really excited. It's been three weeks and it's felt like it's been two months."

Brassard has 14 goals and 25 assists in 57 games. He had 5 goals and 8 assists in the 13 games prior to the injury and was playing some of his best hockey since his rookie season.

What kind of impact could he have against the Blues?

"If he's capable of doing what he did before he got hurt it would be a gigantic lift," Arniel said. "If he's only 30, 40, 50 percent, probably not. That's the decision we will have to (make) for tomorrow."

Six weeks after his appearance in the NHL All-Star Game, The Orange County Register notes that Ducks goalie Jonas Hiller is still unable to play or even move forward in dealing with his symptoms related to vertigo.

Hiller has appeared in one game since the symptoms first surfaced in a Feb. 2 contest against San Jose but he's acknowledged that he wasn't at full strength on Feb.13 against Edmonton even though it was a 4-0 shutout over the Oilers that night.

"I'm still having the same issues," he said. "Especially on the ice where I start feeling out of myself and kind of feeling all over the place. We did some more tests yesterday so hopefully that's going to show something."

But... after two more successful AHL starts with Syracuse over the weekend, Ray Emery has shown that he's fully recovered from major hip surgery and the question now is when he'll get his first NHL start since Feb. 1, 2010 when he was with Philadelphia.

"We know that at some point we're going to have to give him a shot here," Carlyle said. "That's really what we're building to."

The Orange County Register indicates that Luca Sbisa wasn't happy when the Ducks sent him back to junior hockey last season and he had to deal with an early demotion to the American Hockey League to start this one.

The young defenceman turned his energies toward making himself an everyday NHL player and a presence on the blue line. In turn, the Ducks rewarded him Tuesday with a four-year contract extension worth $8.7 million.

Sbisa, 21, has just two goals, six assists and 37 penalty minutes in 52 games, but the Ducks are clearly betting on his tremendous upside, which he has begun to unveil in the second half of the season.

Slated to be restricted free agent July 1, Sbisa now will earn $1.2 million in 2011-12, $2million in 2012-13, $2.6 million in 2013-14 and $2.9 million in 2014-15.

"He was up at the end of the year," Ducks general manager Bob Murray said. "He's only 21 years old. One of our good young players is tied up for four years, which I think is wonderful."

The Register reminds readers that Sbisa was acquired by the Ducks at the 2009 entry draft from Philadelphia for Chris Pronger in a haul that also brought them since-traded Joffrey Lupul and two first-round picks that eventually became top prospects Kyle Palmieri and Emerson Etem.

It has taken some time for the former Flyers' first-round pick to mature, but Sbisa has begun to display his combination of physical play, smooth skating and confident puck-handling ability that has had many pegging him as an eventual top-four, if not top-pairing defenceman.

"He's done nothing that we would not think that he's going to continue to develop to a higher-level defenseman," Ducks coach Randy Carlyle said.

Zach Bogosian has his confidence back, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution – and he found it under difficult circumstances.

The Thrashers defenceman is playing his best hockey of the season and it comes following a stint out of the lineup and amid trade rumors.

Go figure.

In January, Bogosian was a healthy scratch for three games – a first of his career – after uneven play. He was pressed back into action when Tobias Enstrom broke a finger, causing him to miss six games.

“I was relied on a little more,” Bogosian said. “When you play more minutes, you feel more and more comfortable out there. I wasn’t gripping the stick as tight.”

Bogosian fully embraced the ‘go’ system of coach Craig Ramsay in his return to the lineup. A switch to Ron Hainsey as a defensive partner also allowed the team to take advantage of Bogosian’s strengths.

“We tried to focus on getting him the puck with a lot of speed which I don’t think we did enough of in the first half [of the season],” Hainsey said. “He’s one of the few guys when he gets it, with his speed, can work his way right through a team’s trap. We are taking advantage of his speed more than we did in the first half when he was more stationary. To be as effective as he can be, he has to be using his feet and getting up the ice.

“Sometimes, you forget that you have someone who has special ability.”

The Journal-Constitution notes that Bogosian, 20, is averaging more than 23 minutes in the 16 games since he was a healthy scratch with a goal and four assists.

“I’m just thinking go, go, go,” Bogosian said. “Get up the ice, and get back and back-check hard. It’s fun to get up the ice, but you also have to do your job and get back and play defence. For as much as I’ve been going up, I’ve been trying my best to come back just as hard. A lot of that has to do with the forwards recognizing that I’m getting up in the play and falling back and taking my place. It’s not just me doing it, there are a lot of other guys helping me play my game.”

Bogosian conceded that the three-game hiatus was a “different” way to reflect on his play.

“It’s paying off now but during the time you are sitting, it’s never fun,” Bogosian said. “You want to be out there playing and doing your job. I just tried to do my best to stay positive and keep working hard. It lights a fire under you. You come back more determined. It’s nothing you want to go through, but I had to go through it.”

“One great thing about those kind of messages (collapses by the Wings in recent games), I can talk until I’m blue in the face, it doesn’t much matter,” Mike Babcock told Michigan Live. “But when you’re up 4-1 and you continually turn the puck over to get the other team back in the game, there’s got to be a message sent here somewhere.

“Some of these lessons are great lessons and they’re things that help you get better,” Babcock said. “A little adversity won’t kill this group whatsoever, it’ll just make us refocus and get the job done.”

He added this: “We’re set up to have success. There’s no reason we don’t get engaged and get playing. Anybody’s who’s been around this team a while knows what winning’s like, knows what it tastes like, knows what it feels like, knows what it smells like. So we want to get that feel, that taste, that smell back.”

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette observes that LW Chris Kunitz returned to the Penguins' lineup Tuesday night after a 13-game absence due to an unspecified injury, but he wasn't a shoo-in most of the day.

Although coach Dan Bylsma a day earlier had labeled Kunitz "probable" for the game against Buffalo at Consol Energy Center, his prospects didn't look great during and just after the morning skate.

Bylsma did not employ Kunitz on a regular line or in any special teams drills. Afterward, Kunitz said he felt "good enough" to play, but reiterated how frustrating the injury has been and deferred to Bylsma, who called Kunitz "a game-time decision," adding that it was a matter of Kunitz not being put in a position for further injury.

Bylsma noted that all along, Kunitz's injury had been fickle.

"The first time he sat out a game, I thought he was coming in to play, and a situation arose where it wasn't the right thing to get on the ice," the coach said.

At the pregame warmup Tuesday, Kunitz not only skated but also sported an alternate captain's "A" on his jersey.

I don't include much junior content in the blogs because my focus is on the NHL nightly, but I know a lot poolies will be interested in this one...

The Canadian Hockey League today announced that forward Nino Niederreiter of the Portland Winterhawks is the CHL Player of the Week for the week ending March 6. Niederreiter scored seven goals and added two assists for nine points in four games.

Niederreiter opened the week with two straight multi-point games including a first star performance with two goals and two assists in a 6-5 win over the Tri-City Americans on Tuesday. He followed that up with his second hat-trick of the season on Friday as third star of a 9-1 win over the Seattle Thunderbirds. He finished the week with a goal in each of the last two contests including one in a 5-0 win over the Vancouver Giants on Saturday where he was named first star of the game, and added another tally on Sunday despite a 6-2 loss to the Chilliwack Bruins on Sunday.

Niederreiter, an 18-year-old from Chur, Switzerland, is playing in his second WHL season with the Winterhawks and has collected 61 points in 49 games this season. He was a first round selection of the New York Islanders in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft chosen fifth overall. If you're interested, 2010-11 CHL Players of the Week to date have included:

Feb. 28 – Mar. 6: Nino Niederreiter, Portland Winterhawks

Feb. 21 – Feb. 27: Taylor Beck, Guelph Storm

Feb. 14 – Feb. 20: Mark Stone, Brandon Wheat Kings

Feb. 7 – Feb. 13: Quinton Howden, Moose Jaw Warriors

Jan. 31 – Feb. 6: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Red Deer Rebels

Jan. 24 – Jan. 30: Cody Lindsay, Ottawa 67’s

Jan. 17 – Jan. 23: Tyler Johnson, Spokane Chiefs

Jan. 10 – Jan. 16: Sean Couturier, Drummondville Voltigeurs

Jan. 3 – Jan. 9: Zach O’Brien, Acadie-Bathurst Titan

Dec. 27 – Jan. 2: Joey Hishon, Owen Sound Attack

Dec. 13 – Dec. 19: Jonathan Parker, Prince Albert Raiders

Dec. 6 – Dec. 12: Cody Eakin, Swift Current Broncos

Nov. 29 – Dec. 5: Charles Hudon, Chicoutimi Saguenéens

Nov. 22 – Nov. 28: Zack Phillips, Saint John Sea Dogs

Nov. 15 – Nov. 21: Christian Thomas, Oshawa Generals

Nov. 8 – Nov. 14: Brendan Ranford, Kamloops Blazers

Nov. 1 – Nov. 7: Jason Akeson, Kitchener Rangers

Oct. 25 – Oct. 31: Andrej Kudrna, Red Deer Rebels

Oct. 18 – Oct. 24: Michaël Bournival, Shawinigan Cataractes

Oct. 11 – Oct. 17: Sena Acolatse, Prince George Cougars

Oct. 4 – Oct. 10: Nathan Moon, Kingston Frontenacs

Sept. 27 – Oct. 3: Brandon Hynes, Victoriaville Tigres

Sept. 23 – Sept. 26: Alex Aleardi, Plymouth Whalers

@BloodonIce: "What's Jordan Staal good for the next few seasons? 70 points? 80? 60? Barring injury of course."

Chris: It really depends on Evgeni Malkin's health coming off major surgery and how the Pens decide to approach their lines next season. With the talent Pittsburgh has coming up from their system, I still think the Pens could go with the Staal-Malkin duo on L2 (1A, really) that they originally had planned for this season.

Chris Kunitz has spent most of his tenure in Pittsburgh alongside Sidney Crosby, but it's my belief that James Neal will be a better fit. That could leave a second unit of Kunitz-Staal-Malkin, which would be absolutely lethal. That should leave an easy bottom floor of around 60 points or so with upside for 70+. His peripherals on a strong PIT team would make him that much more attractive.

That's the best scenario though. What if Malkin has an off-year as he recovers? What if the Pens decide that the Cooke-Staal-Kennedy trio is best-served for the team? What if the Pens have another rough year of injuries or unforeseen circumstances? Then maybe Staal's a 50-60 point guy over a full year.

Dwayne: "Chris, I have found your help in the past to be very beneficial and hope that you can be of assistance again.

I am in a 10 team keeper league (3L, 3C, 3R, 4D & 2 Goalies play in weekly head to head). 33 players max team size, 8 players max per position. Points only league (1 pt for goal or assist, 1 extra point for PP), with goalies getting 2 for win & 4 for shutout. My team looks like this:

LW – Thomas Vanek, JVR, Victor Stalberg, Nikita Filatov, Eric Tangradi, Michael Boedker

C - Tyler Seguin, Derrick Brassard, Michael Frolik, Evander Kane, Cody Hodgson

RW – Kyle Okposo, Jakub Voracek, Blake Wheeler, Steve Downie

D – Erik Karlsson, Dion Phaneuf, Eric Johnson, Keith Yandle, Tyler Meyers, Alex Edler, Michael Del Zotto

G – Kari Lehtonen, Ondrei Pavalec, Jonas Gustavson, Cory Schneider, Robin Lehrner

As you can likely guess I don’t win a lot of games. My question is what kind of strategy should I use with my 6 first round draft picks for this year. There are a lot of guys out there, some in the NHL producing now and some with large upside (plus all of this year’s draft eligble players). Players available include:

Wingers - Jeff Skinner, Vladimir Tarasenko, Nate Gerbe, Nino Niederriter, Linus Omark, Scott Glennie, Michael Grabner, PA Parenteau, Ryan Clowe, Brett Connolly

Defense - Dustin Byfuglien, Kevin Shattenkirk, OEL, James Wisniewski, Cod Franson, Ryan Murphy

Centers – Braden Schenn, Logan Couture, Sean Couturier, Evgeny Kuznetsov, Joe Pavelski, Derek Stepan, Brandon Dubinsky, Ryan Johansen, Mikhall Grabovski

Goalie – Jack Campbell, Sergie Bobrovsky, James Reimer, Jonas Enroth

So what I am wondering is do you think I should pick up guys like Pavelski, Wisniewski, Grabovski and Dubinsky and try to get points for next year or go with the slower build and pick up more young guys that have more upside? I think my defense is my strongest position, but some of the best players available are defense men. So do I pick them up and hope to make a trade for other positions (take best player available) or look at the other positions. With 6 out of the first 10 picks I am not sure how to proceed. Help Please."

Chris: This is a pretty long and involved question to detail in the blog Dwayne, but let me give you some general pointers on how I'd approach this situation.

Your league is a fairly average size in terms of the number of players active nightly, but the advantage you have is the extra bench spaces with so many keepers per year. Based on the way you structured this question, I'm assuming you can hang onto a full 33-man roster.

When you're at the bottom and you can't win overnight, the best thing to do is gather as many high-end prospects as possible. Bite down for a few years and endure the losing, so that when you rise up in the standings you're doing so with a team that'll have some staying power.

I'd love to see you add Bobrovsky, Skinner and Byfuglien (even without PIM/ SOG counting for you) in the first round. Wisniewski is still only 27, but with your current D and the options elsewhere I don't know that I'd necessarily go for him. I really like Brett Connolly and, as I've detailed in the blog, I parted with Jarome Iginla in my own really deep keeper league (17 active keepers and 40 farmers per team) in a season where I knew I wasn't going to win to land Connolly for my squad.

One concern I have with Phaneuf on your team is that his main value stems from his fantasy peripherals like PIM/ SOG, which don't count for you. His game is really starting to come around, but he's much less valuable in your sort of format.

Maybe we can parse this topic in smaller chunks leading up to your draft.