Twitter: @Nichols_NHLPool/ Email: chris.nichols@sportsnet.rogers.com
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TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS 3 @ CAROLINA HURRICANES 1
Goaltending match-up: James Reimer (36/37, .973 SV%) vs. Cam Ward (16/19, .842 SV%)
Combos: Clarke MacArthur - Mikhail Grabovski - Nikolai Kulemin/ Nazem Kadri - Tyler Bozak - Phil Kessel/ Joffrey Lupul - Darryl Boyce - Fredrik Sjostrom/ Joey Crabb - Tim Brent - Mike Brown/ Dion Phaneuf - Keith Aulie/ Luke Schenn - Carl Gunnarsson/ Mike Komisarek - Matt Lashoff
Scratches: Armstrong, Lebda, Rosehill, Gustavsson
Top PP times: Brent (1:50), Grabovski (1:45), Kulemin (1:26), MacArthur (1:26), Phaneuf (1:22)
Trending: Dion Phaneuf (2G, 1A, +1, 2 SOG) already had 1-4-5 in 7 GP vs. CAR and he's on a season-high four-game point streak now. It's been a long and ugly wait over the last year and a half for his keeper league owners, but he's finally out of that funk that drained his value to fairly low levels. If you were patient and hung on, you're being rewarded. The last time he had a two-goal game for poolies, incidentally, was Feb 19, 2008 at Phoenix. He had two of them that month. Clarke MacArthur (1A, 1 SOG) has picked up points in seven of 10. Phil Kessel (1A, 1:01 PP, 2 SOG) had 18 points in 17 affairs before this outing.
Combos: Jeff Skinner - Eric Staal - Tuomo Ruutu/ Cory Stillman - Jussi Jokinen - Erik Cole/ Jiri Tlusty - Brandon Sutter - Chad LaRose/ Drayson Bowman - Pat Dwyer - Jerome Samson/ Joni Pitkanen - Joe Corvo/ Derek Joslin - Bryan Allen/ Tim Gleason - Jay Harrison
Scratches: McBain, Bodie
Top PP times: Gleason (4:49), Staal (4:35), Pitkanen (4:23), Corvo (4:05), Joslin (4:01)
Trending: Brandon Sutter (1A, 2 PIM, 3:26 PP, no SOG) has points in six of 11 now.
WASHINGTON CAPITALS 2 @ DETROIT RED WINGS 3
Goaltending match-up: Michal Neuvirth (32/35, .914 SV%) vs. Jimmy Howard (26/28, .929 SV%)
Combos: Alex Ovechkin - Marcus Johansson - Alexander Semin/ Marco Sturm - Brooks Laich - Mike Knuble/ Jason Chimera - Jay Beagle - Matt Hendricks/ D.J. King - Boyd Gordon - Matt Bradley/ Karl Alzner - John Carlson/ Jeff Schultz - Dennis Wideman/ Tyler Sloan - Scott Hannan
Scratches: Erskine, Fehr, Backstrom, Arnott, Varlamov
Top PP times: Ovechkin (7:33), Wideman (6:40), Laich (4:56), Semin (4:42), Knuble (4:27)
Trending: Alex Ovechkin (1G, +1, 7 SOG) had 4-3-7 in 5 GP vs. DET coming in here and Alexander Semin's (1A, +1, 2 SOG) March totals coming in were 3-3-6 in 8 GP. Semin hit iron with just over 10 seconds left in the game.
Combos: Johan Franzen - Pavel Datsyuk - Tomas Holmstrom/ Danny Cleary - Henrik Zetterberg - Todd Bertuzzi/ Valtteri Filppula - Mike Modano - Justin Abdelkader/ Jiri Hudler - Darren Helm - Kris Draper/ Nicklas Lidstrom - Jonathan Ericsson/ Niklas Kronwall - Brad Stuart/ Jakub Kindl - Brian Rafalski
Scratches: Eaves, Miller, Salei, Osgood
Top PP times: Lidstrom, Datsyuk, Rafalski, Zetterberg, Holmstrom (1:35)
Trending: Henrik Zetterberg (2G, +1, 2 PIM, 7 SOG) had endured a nine-game goalless drought and then he scored on his first night back with my fantasy team after a Tuesday deal. He had no points in six March games either before this tilt. #JediMotivation Brian Rafalski (3A, +2, no SOG) was finally back in the line-up here. He had last played Feb. 24 and had been dealing with back spasms. Mike Modano (1A, +1, 0:50 PP, 1 SOG) has points in three of six. Valtteri Filppula's (1G, +1, 0:50 PP, 4 SOG) game logs are just dreadful of late. Where's the breakout season for this guy? He has the talent and the work ethic, but it just hasn't happened yet. Todd Bertuzzi (1A, 0:08 PP, 1 SOG) came into tonight seven points shy of the 44-point total he had recorded in each of his prior two seasons. Pavel Datsyuk (1A, -1, 2 PIM, 3 SOG) entered tonight on the strength of B2B two-pointers.
COLORADO AVALANCHE 2 @ VANCOUVER CANUCKS 4
Goaltending match-up: Brian Elliott (36/39, .923 SV%) vs. Cory Schneider (27/29, .931 SV%)
Combos: Mark Olver - Matt Duchene - Daniel Winnik/ Ryan O'Reilly - Paul Stastny - David Jones/ Cody McLeod - Kevin Porter - Jay McClement/ Jonas Holos - Philippe Dupuis - Brandon Yip/ Erik Johnson - Ryan Wilson/ Ryan O'Byrne - John-Michael Liles/ Adam Foote - Matt Hunwick
Scratches: Hejduk, Koci, Stoa
Top PP times: Liles (1:10), Johnson (1:10), Stastny (1:10), Jones (1:10), Duchene (0:53)
Trending: Erik Johnson (1G, 4 SOG) had 2-3-5 in 10 GP with COL coming in here and Matt Duchene (1G, -1, 4 SOG) has points in three of four. Believe it or not, these are his first B2B points since early January. John-Michael Liles (1A, 1 SOG) had one point in four games coming in with 41 overall. David Jones (1A, -1, no SOG) has points in four of five and had 11 in 17 before tonight.
Combos: Daniel Sedin - Henrik Sedin - Alexandre Burrows/ Mason Raymond - Ryan Kesler - Mikael Samuelsson/ Raffi Torres - Manny Malhotra - Jannik Hansen/ Chris Higgins - Maxim Lapierre - Jeff Tambellini/ Dan Hamhuis - Christian Ehrhoff/ Aaron Rome - Sami Salo/ Keith Ballard - Chris Tanev
Scratches: Glass
Top PP times: Sedins, Samuelsson, Kesler, Ehrhoff (1:06)
Trending: Daniel Sedin (2A, +1, 4 SOG) and Henrik Sedin (2G, +3, 2 SOG) worked the sickest drop pass for Vancouver's third goal. Ridiculous what those two can do on the ice. Alexandre Burrows (1G, 1A, +3, 0:48 PP, 4 SOG) has connected for goals in three of four now and four of seven. Dan Hamhuis (1A, +3, 0:48 PP, 4 SOG) had three points in four games coming in here.
ST. LOUIS BLUES 1 @ ANAHEIM DUCKS 2
Goaltending match-up: Jaroslav Halak (22/24, .917 SV%) vs. Ray Emery (30/31, .968 SV% and named the game's second star in his first start back from his injury.)
Combos: Andy McDonald - David Backes - Matt D'Agostini/ T.J. Hensick - Patrik Berglund - Chris Stewart/ Chris Porter - T.J. Oshie - B.J. Crombeen/ Ryan Reaves - Adam Cracknell - Cam Janssen/ Carlo Colaiacovo - Alex Pietrangelo/ Ian Cole - Kevin Shattenkirk/ Nathan Oystrick - Roman Polak
Scratches: Jackman, Steen, Nikitin
Top PP times: Stewart (1:59), McDonald (1:59), Shattenkirk (1:23), Pietrangelo (1:23), Berglund (1:23)
Trending: Matt D'Agostini (1A, -2, 0:51 PP, 1 SOG) had 2-2-4 in 3 GP vs. ANH coming in and he had B2B two-pointers coming in here. Carlo Colaiacovo (1A, -1, 2 PIM, 0:51 PP, 1 SOG) had a couple of points the last time these teams met, but had just one point on the month before tonight.
Combos: Bobby Ryan - Ryan Getzlaf - Corey Perry/ Jason Blake - Saku Koivu - Teemu Selanne/ Brad Winchester - Brandon McMillan - Dan Sexton/ Jarkko Ruutu - Todd Marchant - George Parros/ Lubomir Visnovsky - Toni Lydman/ Francois Beauchemin - Luca Sbisa/ Andy Sutton - Cam Fowler
Scratches: Lilja, Brookbank, Chipchura
Top PP times: Fowler (4:44), Visnovsky (3:51), Perry (3:36), Selanne (3:33), Getzlaf (3:27)
Trending: Teemu Selanne (1A, +2, 1 SOG). Man. I'm running out of ways to describe his awesomeness as an old man. Cam Fowler (1A, +1, 1 SOG) has points in B2B games after a long string without one. Jason Blake (2G, +2, no PP, 5 SOG) had eight points in 13 GP coming in here, including 35 SOG in that span. When he's producing, the SOG are the bonus of adding him as a depth winger. Lubomir Visnovsky (1A, +1, 2 PIM, 2 SOG) came into tonight four points shy of the 60-point plateau.
