BTT Injury Update: Marty Brodeur! Oh Noes!

Back to business as usual here:

-Martin Brodeur, originally believed to have an elbow bruise, announced earlier this week that he will miss the next 3-4 months due to surgery on the bicep of his catching arm. I'm glad that the Devils didn't beat around the bush with this injury *cough* Islanders *cough* and let their fans know that they would be missing Marty for a long time.

The Devils actually have one of the better backup situations in the NHL that isn't a traditional platoon. Obviously I would prefer to have say Josh Harding, Nikolai Khabibulin... maybe Conklin... and a few others but I still prefer Weekes to Auld/ Gerber and Budaj/ Raycroft.

Fantasy wise what does this mean? Well Kevin Weekes got his first win last night but his play was far from what you might call inspired and it was against the Lightning. Its going to take Weekes a while to shake off the rust but he has been a decent starter for both Carolina and the Rangers in the past. He's been run out of every city he's ever played in but he might be a fine stop gap. Where this hurts the Devils the most is someplace you might not expect... offense.

Weekes is not Brodeur in many ways, but perhaps most noticeably in his ability to handle the puck. Without Marty to make the breakout pass the powerplay is going to suffer immeasurably. The Devils are a troubled team right now. I wouldn't rush to pick up any Devils that might be on waivers (Elias and Parise excluded but Weekes and Paul Martin included) until we see how this is going to work.

- As reported earlier Rick Dipietro is... all messed up. Basically if there is a problem you can have from mid-thigh down Rick has it... oh yea... and his hip... and that concussion... This time its his left knee. 4-6 weeks for Ricky. My usual advice on Islanders goaltending, (as a reminder: not unless you are in a 30 team league that starts 3 goalies) applies. McDonald's win against the Rangers the other night is deceptive as the Rangers rarely were able to generate any consistent or dangerous pressure. There were a lot of shots but the majority came from the perimeter, artificially inflating his Sv %.

- Blue Jackets Goalie Pascal Leclaire is still out with an ankle injury and so Steve Mason got his first start of the season last night. It was a mixed bag in that he got the win but at no point felt like anything less then a liability in net. Mason still needs some seasoning in the AHL but the talent is definitely there. Despite my earlier advice on Norrenna I think you want to avoid Columbus goaltending altogether until Leclaire's return.

- Sergei Zubov who was supposed to be back somewhere around October 19, after offseason hip surgery has yet to make his return to the Dallas Stars. Zubov's absence is affecting the entire team starting with Phillippe Boucher and ending at Marty Turco. With the kind of struggles that Dallas is going through presently you have to believe that if Zubov could play he would. That makes me a little nervous if I'm a Zubov owner or a Stars fan.

That's it for injury updates this week, Ice Fishing coming at you shortly.

News and Notes: Site News, Apologies, etc

I know we're a bit behind on our usual weekly goodness at Breaking the Trap but between Halloween (Yakety Yak! for those of you in the know) and the election (Yes we motherflippin' can America!) we've been very busy over here.

Since Breaking The Slump went up on Monday, I've decided to not put up another one tomorrow, that is unless I get some sort of earth shattering idea. Tomorrow instead you will get your adds and drops for the week and your injury report (free preview of that "Oh NOES! Marty Brodeur! :(")

So, because its been a while trap-o-philes let me give you some quick news and notes before I hand the site over to 2MM:

-Martin Brodeur will miss 3-4 months as a result of surgery to repair an injury to his left bicep. This... is frightening if you are a Devils fan or a fan of Marty in general. Marty is rarely injured and this is an injury to an absolutely essential body part for a goalie. I'd like to say that everything is going to be ok... that he'll come back and still break all the records he was set to... but for now I'm being cautious and holding my breath. Get well soon Marty. Fantasy implications of this tomorrow.

-Rick Dipietro will miss 4-6 weeks after surgery to repair his left knee. And that's why you don't give a goalie a 15 year contract. Who did you trade to get this draft pick? Oh right that Luongo guy... no big loss there... wait... was that the Heatley draft? Sigh. Good thing that deal is insured against injury... well good for Rick. I think Arnie said it best in the Running Man, "I live to see you eat that contract! But I hope you leave enough room for my fist because I'm going to ram it into your stomach!"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIEaIf7lMaM (yes its Arnie... because I love you)

Thats it for me today. 2mm in a few minutes.

Ice Fishing: Don't Look Now But Here Comes Philly

Well if this keeps up teams should start paying me to write about their stars in Breaking The Slump. In my Thursday column "Breaking the Slump" I discussed Mike Ribiero, Jonatahn Toews and Nicklas Backstrom. Of the three I gave the strongest chastising to Mr. Ribiero... who responded with a 5 point night against the Islanders.

Also included in that article was a simple message to the Ducks of Anaheim... "WTF Anaheim." Anaheim, and its stars heard me loud and clear. The Ducks won both of their weekend contests against the underwhelming Senators and the formidable Canadiens, and did so with the following stat lines from their star players:

Kunitz: 1 G, 2A, +1, 4 PIM, 1 PP, 7 SOG
Perry: 1G, 3 A, +2, 7 PIM, 2 PP, 4 SOG
Getzlaf: 2 G, 1A, +2, 4 PIM, 1 PP, 6 SOG

Things are turning around for the Ducks and none too soon, but things are also turning around for the Flyers. Predicted by most pundits to be one of the better teams in the East this year, including this one, the Flyers had an atrocious start, going without a win through their first 6 games, the Flyers finally broke out... unfortunately they did so against my New Jersey Devils. In two very hard fought games (the last of which included the throwing of a LIT smoke bomb in a bottle from somewhere in the crowd... I'm not kidding) the Flyers gained 4 points and put up 9 goals catapulting them to relevance.

They have an uphill battle ahead of them in a tough division but I still firmly believe this is a playoff team. The only teams that have scored more goals then the Flyers are: The Red Wings, The Avalanche (wait ... what???!), and the San Jose Sharks. The Flyers are also tied for first in the East in Goals scored with the New York Rangers who have already played 3 more games then Filthy. Just some stuff to think about as we go into the Adds and Drops for this week:

Grab 'Em

Joffrey Lupul
RW, Phi
About the only one of Philly's big scorers that should be on waivers, Lupul came alive in the last week scoring 3 goals and adding an assist. Lupul is a very good player, particularly when he's on a hot streak. Well... his first hot streak of the year has arrived. Don't miss it.

Phil Kessel
RW, Bos
"But you recommended him last week." Yes I did, and I'm doing it again. If he's out there grab him.

Andy McDonald
C, St. L
Ok... can't ignore it anymore. He has 12 points. If you need assists or powerplay points and can absorb the +/- problems that come when a team scores a million points on the powerplay McDonald is your guy right now. He added another 5 assists last week, 4 of them on the powerplay. Sexy.

Kris Versteeg
RW, Chi
A rookie that's getting overlooked on a very very talented Chicago roster. Versteeg is playing on one of the hottest lines in hockey right now with Patrick Kane and Patrick Sharp. Versteeg has 2 goals and 6 assists so far this season and should continue to improve upon that so long as his line combinations remain favorable.


Weigh 'Em

Milan Lucic
LW, Bos
A traditional power forward Lucic had been having a slow start to the season until Saturday's game against the Thrashers in which he recorded a hat trick. Lucic is a second round draft pick and a big lumbering forward. If he gets hot he should be getting you a ton of PIM in addition to scoring some points. Keep an eye on him.

Keith Ballard
D, Fla
Good week for Ballard. Ballard recorded a goal and 3 assists in addition to 18 PIM. I don't think its time to get excited yet. Ballard, an 11th overall pick in 2002, was always expected to be an offensive defensemen but has yet to deliver on that promise. Its a crowded blue line down in Florida but with McCabe still out maybe it will be Ballard that fills that gap.

Sergei Federov
C, Wash
Less of a recommendation and more of a congratulations to Washington center Sergei Federov. Sergei passed Alexander Mogilny over the weekend to become the highest scoring Russian born player in the NHL. Now... Sergei is currently playing with Alexander Ovechkin and has had 3 goals over the last week... so he's worth paying attention to.

Nikolai Khabibulin
G, Chi
Don't look now Huet owners but Khabi is getting the chance to play. He let up five goals against Detroit the other night earning the loss in his second consecutive start... but it was his second consecutive start... and it was against Detroit. If you drafted Huet it might be time to handcuff yourself with the other half of the platoon.

Frederik Norenna
G, Cls
Time to get scared Leclaire owners. Leclaire is out with one of his, sure to be frequent, ankle injuries. Norenna has looked good in limited ice time this season. He's worth considering as a third goalie while Leclaire is hurt.


Toss 'Em Back

Rick Dipietro
G, NYI
Another undisclosed injury for DP. Word is that its a tweak to his surgically repaired knee. If I'm the Islanders brass I already know that this is not going to be a great year for us and I have our "star" player on the long-term contract maybe sit the year out and get healthy. There is no reason to risk further injury to Dipietro this year.

Joni Pitkanen
D, Car
Ouch. Pitkanen, already having a rough start, was injured in this weekends game against the Islanders (who talk about futility put 60 shots on Cam Ward and still lost). He is going to miss a month or so. Drop him or IR him.

Jay Bouwmeester
D, Fla
DO NOT DROP HIM. Just bench him. Jay seems unmotivated this season, contrary to the theory of contract years, and has really yet to click with any of his teammates. Maybe it was the offseason drama, maybe he just lost his taste for it, or maybe he hasn't snapped into season shape yet. Regardless, he's a solid player just... see if there's someone else you can play for right now.

That's all for this week. Check back later for more thoughts and observations on the NHL.

Ice Stock: Pickups of the Week

So the first few days of NHL action have brought with them some surprises (St. Louis and Toronto can score), some things that were expected (St. Louis and Toronto can't play defense) and a few disappointments (Chicago, Calgary and Anaheim... I'm looking squarely at you). So with a few games under most team's belts who looks worthy of being added and who needs to be dropped? Lets have a look.

Pickups of the Week:

Keith Tkachuk:
LW, St. Louis

Apparently Keith has a reserve tank in there somewhere because here we are at the beginning of the third season that was supposed to be the one where he finally petered out and Tkachuk has 4 goals (all of them on the powerplay) through 3 games. The St. Louis Powerplay is absolutely tearing it up right now and if Paul Kariya or Brad Boyes are still available in your leagues you should grab them as well.

David Booth:
LW, Florida

Long expected to be entering "a breakout campaign" Booth is showing early signs that this may actually be the year. He and fellow first linemates Nathan Horton and Stephen Weiss have accounted for 9 points through 2 games. Booth is the hottest of the trio with 3 goals and one assist. Booth is the only one getting the mention here as Horton is already owned in most leagues and Weiss doesn't generally take enough shots to penetrate the depth at center. All 3 are worth a look but Booth is the most interesting.

Devin Setoguchi:
RW, San Jose

Setoguchi is enjoying his time on Joe Thornton's wing. With 2 goals, 1 assist and 12 shots through 2 games he is an attractive pickup, particularly at the low-depth RW position. My only concern is his lack of powerplay time. If that changes he could be a stud.

Keep an Eye On:

Kyle Turris:
C, Phoenix

The forgotten candidate for rookie of the year preseason put in a strong "for your consideration" bid in his first weekend of NHL action. In two games Turris has a goal and 2 assists and 2 PP points. Turris is not a shooter, yet, but as his ice time and powerplay time expands he could increase in value. Keeper leaguers should grab him now, all other leagues should definitely take note.

Steve Bernier:
RW, Vancouver

Bernier IS the third wheel on the Sedin line and will accumulate points just by being on the ice with them. Bernier also has 7 PIM through 3 games. His potential for performing across many fantasy categories depends upon his continued presence on this line however. As a result I'm still preaching caution.

Don't Believe the Hype:

Sergei Kostitsyn:
LW, Montreal

It was a strange night against Toronto, with Tanguay and Kostitsyn the lesser cleaning up on the powerplay. I preach caution for now as Montreal's expected scorers have really yet to get rolling, and S. Kostitsyn only managed 1 shot on goal in Montreal other game, a 2-1 loss to Buffalo.

Filip Kuba:
D, Ottawa

I see tough times ahead for the Ottawa Senators. 2 weeks without their captain and spiritual leader Daniel Alfredsson could make times very difficult on the offense. While Kuba DOES appear to be the heir apparent to the powerplay throne, his plus/minus could more then offset any offensive gains he gets for you. Don't rush on this one.'

News and Notes:

Rick Dipietro continues to dress as the backup for the New York Islanders, however they are opting to start Joey MacDonald right now as Dipietro continues to have swelling and liquid buildup around his surgically repaired left knee. Don't worry Islander fans, if he misses the season you'll get to draft John Tavares! Its probably the best thing he could do for the organization actually

The Buffalo Sabres have had a strong start to the season, defeating Montreal 2-1 and, at the time of this writing, dominating the New York Islanders 7-1 through 2 and 3/4 minutes of play. Star players, Derek Roy, Jason Pominville and Thomas Vanek are all rolling, and they are getting strong play from the supporting cast members like Ales Kotalik and Maxim Afinogenov. If you are looking for causes of concern though the injuries are already starting to pile up. Tim Connoly has officially missed his first game with a hairline fracture to one of his vertebrae and Jochen Hecht left today's game with an undisclosed "upper body injury."

Manny Legace appears to be the starting goalie for the St. Louis Blues. He has looked good so far but not great. If you need wins he may not be a bad option. That said Monday's win against the Maple Leafs was one of the most entertaining games of all time as both team's offenses were playing run and gun for the entirety of the 60 minute tilt. Be aware, there will be blowouts.

Finally, on a sad note, our condolences to the family of New York Rangers prospect Alexei Cherepanov. The 19 year old died of a heart attack while sitting on the bench in a game for his KHL squad Avangard Omsk. Cherepanov was selected 17th overall by the Rangers in the 2007 draft and had more points in his rookie season in the KHL then Alexander Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin, and Ilya Kovalchuk.

Well that's all for now, Check back later today for more team previews (getting silly now I know) and more news, notes and rumors.

Two Minute Minor: The Las Vegas Islanders

Hey Nick here. I’m the new guy, and I’m bringing you a new weekly feature from BTT. You can look forward to a new 2 minute minor (and the occasional 5 minute major) every Wednesday. What you can expect during my 2 minutes is some hostility. Maybe a touch of compassion for a terrible team. And a lot of horrible, awful, terrible jokes. I see it as a great opportunity to make fun of bad hockey teams, gush about favorite players, insult hated players, and make countless Gary Bettman combover jokes.

For my first penalty, I'd like to focus on the New York Islanders recent attempts to sell hockey tickets. I’d go ahead and make a joke here, but as you’ll soon learn, their attempts are in fact, the joke. Unless the Rangers, Flyers, or Devils are in town, no one really goes to Islanders games. And why would you? The team barely show up for games anymore.

To prove my point, I figured I'd see just how hard (easy) it is to get Islander tickets these days. Trying (succeeding) to get a single game ticket wouldn’t make me feel right enough, so I went for a pair of full season tickets. A few simple mouse clicks revealed that for the low, low price of $3511.20 per seat, I can see every Islanders home loss from section 101 row F. I'll save you the effort of pulling up a seating chart. Kids, That's 6 rows from the glass, penalty box side, right in front of the right face-off circle. Really good seats. Ok, really good seats if your favorite team is a 29 way tie between every NHL team but the Islanders. This is a Professional hockey team! I could understand having a few season tickets left in the higher levels, MAYBE somewhere a little lower if it's somewhere less desirable like behind a goal. There is no reason a pair of season tickets 6 rows from the glass should be available a week before the season starts.

Islanders management knows they have a problem and there have been some laughable attempts to sell tickets. For example, their buy one get one free (maybe) offer. You haven’t heard about this one? Strap in. If you purchase tickets to a select game, and the Islanders win that game, you will receive free tickets to another select game later in the season. If the Islanders lose however, you walk away with a big heaping helping of NOTHING. The fact that so many tickets are still available tells me that they can't give these things away. They couldn't even make them prizes in boxes of cracker jacks. Instead of throwing away another crappy, fake tattoo, kids would just be throwing away tickets. Headline: Islander Tickets Replace Coal In Naughty Children's Christmas Stockings. If I left 2 free Islander tickets on every doorstep in Nassau County, I'd be fined for littering. I’d consider shingling a roof with them as they are cheaper than real shingles but just as easy to obtain. But they’re only made of paper and I doubt they’re laminated.

I have 3 suggestions for the Islanders organization and I don’t think they’re particularly bad ideas.

1. LOWER TICKET PRICES! A half price ticket gets you more money than an unsold ticket. It doesn't have to be for every game either. Pick 10 games and make the entire upper section $5 a ticket. An NHL game for 5 bucks is pretty unbeatable, even if the Islanders are one of the teams playing. Sell them all on the side of the arena that the camera faces so during the broadcast, the place looks full. When people see some activity in the building, it might make them want to go.
2. FREE PARKING ON WEEKENDS. Pretty self explanatory. Hammer it into people's minds how convenient it is to come out to a game. When they get there and parking is free, they will remember that and they will come back! And if one of those weekend games happens to be a $5 ticket day... you'd have a lot of very happy fans. Win or lose, all it cost them was 5 bucks and some gas. No one could complain.
3. GET RID OF THE BUY ONE GET ONE FREE. It makes you look really desperate and further devalues your already worthless stocking stuffers. A fan that already has no faith in the team, isn't going to take the bait. "I know they're going to lose and I won't get my free game." Your fans are beaten down. By asking them to gamble on a possible free ticket, you are asking them to place even more faith in the team. If they had faith, they’d be coming to games already and you wouldn’t have to find “clever” ways to give away tickets.

Finally, I want to make it clear that I’m not hating on the Islanders or their fans. The truth is that I like the Islanders rivalry with my Rangers. It’s another regular season match-up I can always look forward to. But here’s a fact Islander fans aren’t going to want to hear: Support your team, or they will leave. It happened to Hartford, Quebec, Colorado, Atlanta, and Minnesota. Colorado, Atlanta, and Minnesota have all gotten second chances, but Hartford and Quebec have been begging for years to get their teams back. There’s been a lot of talk lately about expansion/relocation, and cities like Kansas City and Las Vegas are both looking for an NHL team. Do you want the Islanders to move to Vegas? The team is already asking you to gamble on free tickets. Maybe they’re trying to tell you something. So Islanders fans, I’m telling you this as a fan of the sport and not of a rival team: Support your Islanders. Go to their games. Win or lose, go to their games. Support them. Or you won’t have a team to support. Rangers fans of course, not caring where your team goes, will still whistle “Potvin sucks.”

Lighting the Lamp: Gonchar out 4-6 months, Campoli injured, and Khabi update

D-Liver Us!: Top Two Penguin Defenders Out Until '09

ESPN is reporting that Sergei Gonchar has elected to have surgery on his injured shoulder (the one he injured on the first shift of the first preseason game of the year) which would put him out for 4-6 months.

Gonchar is a top flight d-man, but this kind of injury makes him nearly useless on your fantasy team. If you already have him stash him on your IR and start scouring the waivers. If you haven't drafted yet then he is a LATE round pick at best... again to stash on your IR and then replace with someone else.

The other interesting storyline here is who will pick up the powerplay slack. The first week of the season should be very illuminating on this point.

Camp Woes: Campoli Injured in Preseason as Well

The Islanders defensive prospect Chris Campoli, who showed some nice improvement last season, was also injured in the preseason. The exact nature of the injury and the time he will miss is, at this point, unknown. Streit will now have no competition on the powerplay.

UPDATE:

ESPN is now also reporting the earlier reported story that Nikolai Khabibulin has been placed on waivers so I'd say thats not so much of a rumor anymore. I wouldn't expect Khabibulin to be taken off of waivers (The nearly 7 million dollar contract might cause a bit of a problem) but I really do think that something will get done with either LA or Ottawa before the season starts, whether it be via re-entry waivers or a trade.

TEAM PREVIEW: THE NEW YORK ISLANDERS

Introduction:

In contrast to the Rangers, the Islanders are a team that, at least for the moment, are rapidly on the decline. They have a host of promising young prospects, but virtually no one that can be considered "of fantasy value" this season unless you are playing in a deep league.

Further complicating matters, it is unclear what direction the Islanders will even be moving this year. Due to "philosophical differences", coach Ted Nolan, who had seemingly drawn blood from a stone with these Islander teams for the last two seasons, has been let go by puppet-GM Garth Snow. No coach has yet been hired to replace him, but whoever it is will be hard pressed to get more out of this collection of players then Nolan did.

The youth movement is on on the island, but it will be a long time before that translates to wins. Where's Yashin playing?

Key Departures:

Miroslav Satan

Satan, who absolutely has to play a season with the Devils before he retires, had his worst FULL season last year, by a significant amount. It is unclear whether this was because he lacked a supporting cast or because he is really and truly done. I suppose we shall find out this year in Pittsburgh. Nevertheless, Satan was tied for THIRD on the Islanders in scoring with 41 points. They will miss that production.

New Faces:

Mark Streit
Doug Weight

You'd think that the Islanders were paying in fish sticks the way the free agents have flocked AWAY from the Nassau Coliseum. I'm starting to think that Ryan Smyth wasn't crying because he had been traded FROM the Oilers but rather because he was traded TO the Islanders.

Regardless, Doug Weight joins the list of people who have come to the Island to die. I'm pretty sure they'll have the entire 1998 US Olympic squad pretty soon. Doug had 25 points last year, he doesn't shoot the puck, and he's 37. Don't draft him. Seriously. Not even if you have a Doug Weight Islanders jersey already. If you do, you will be laughed at.

Streit is a different story. Streit had 62 points last year... meaning that if he were to repeat that this year he would have 13 more points then anyone else on this team had last season. Yes, they were THAT bad last year. Streit started several games at forward last year, in addition to his normal duties on defense. Streit had 34 points on the powerplay, almost equalling his ENTIRE output from the year before (36 for the record), and all of this as a 29 year old in only his third full year in the NHL. I think its difficult to say what should be expected of Streit here on the Island. Being reasonable, one should expect a step backwards in production... just how big a step is the question. The high 30's low to 40's is my guess. An exceptional season, on a team that was built for the powerplay last year led to the 62 point outburst. None of those factors exist here.

The Offense:

The offense is made up of over-the-hillers, under achievers and young guys just dying to become unrestricted free agents. As such there aren't a lot of SURE THINGS fantasy wise to be found on this team. Rather then stick with the usual formula I'm going to forego the "You Want to Draft" section and skip right to the "You Want to Keep an Eye On" guys because I can't recommend drafting anyone on this team for anything but bench duty or because you want their hot streaks. I'm not saying that no one is going to be fantasy worthy I'm just ... well read on.

You Want to Keep an Eye On:

Bill Guerin
Kyle Okposo
Mike Comrie

Comrie led the Islanders in points last year with 49. Ouch. As a center that makes Comrie virtually unusable for fantasy purposes, particularly when you consider his high minus and low shot total. I include Comrie here because a breakout season always seems on the horizon for the talented pivot. Last season Comrie stormed out of the gate with 19 points through 23 games in October and November. Things tailed off significantly after that. There is 30 goal talent in there if anyone can find the way to coax it out of him.
FACT: Comrie has played on 5 NHL teams in his 7 year NHL career.

The question is who on this team is going to score the goals? Someone has to right. The answer I pose to you is Kyle Okposo. Okposo is young, talented, and about to have a LOT of ice time due to the Islanders depth issues. The 20 year old had 5 points in 9 games with the big club last year after he went pro. Okposo was drafted 7th overall in 2006 and showed a lot of speed and flash in his cameo appearance last year. I won't draft him, but I'll be checking Islanders box scores every night for his name.
FACT: Okposo had 28 points in 35 games with the Islanders minor league affiliate last season.

Guerin... how I have loved thee. No really, I considered getting a Bruins jersey with Guerin's name on it while I was in school up there. I settled for a Team USA jersey. Billy, Billy, Billy... you got old on me. Guerin is one of the players that was absolutely murdered by the lockout. As both a power forward and an aging star the new rules were designed almost specifically to make Guerin retire. To his credit he fought back in 06-07 and strung together a 36 goal, 66 point campaign, likely ensuring his last big contract with the Isles. Bill had only 5 goals after the All Star game last year. He's 37... but his goals last year came in spurts. He's still got the hands, they're just slower. Don't draft him, but watch him closely, you might be able to plug him in for a couple of quick goals on one of his hot streaks.
FACT: Bill Guerin is a former BC Great, playing two season with the Boston College Eagles before going pro with the New Jersey Devils.

The Defense:

You Want to Draft:
Mark Streit

You want to draft him, you just don't want to draft him where you will have to in order to get him. Streit was tied for THIRD amongst defensemen in overall points last season. Tied. For Third. I guarantee you that someone drafting on auto pilot will grab him way before you do in one of the early rounds... and that's ok, because he's not worth that pick. Draft Streit like a third or fourth defenseman with upside and expect no more then 35 points with 20 or so coming on the power play. If you do, you should be happy with his performance.
FACT: Mark Streit is the only player in the NHL from Switzerland who is not a goalie. Be the first to correctly name the other three in the comments and leave your email address and I'll send you a prize. Really.

You Want to Keep an Eye On:
Chris Campoli

He's going to get powerplay time. He's got talent. In 46 games last season Campoli had 4 goals and 14 assists for 18 points. 11 of those 18 points came on the man advantage. If he improves on that production even slightly this season he becomes a late round bargain as your fifth defenseman.
FACT: While playing in the minors in Erie, PA Chris won several Humanitarian of the Year awards for his work at Children's Hospitals. Give him a look huh? For the kids.

The Powerplay:

First Unit is... uh:
Mike Comrie
Bill Guerin
Kyle Okposo (I guess)
Chris Campoli
Mark Streit

Its kind of an ugly powerplay, and I don't even want to speculate on who they will dig up to play on the second unit. Streit is going to be expected to do great things, likely having to pinch in on the man advantage. This will leave Campoli to play the point, a job he has shown promise at. See I'm telling you, keep your eye on Campoli. Karma man.

The Goalie(s):

Rick DiPietro is the man... for the next thirteen years or so. This should be at least somewhat troubling to Islander fans. Not because he isn't good, he is. Rather, they should be troubled because man has this guy had some surgeries or what? Since he signed his monster 15 year deal in 06 Rick's undergone two hip surgeries. This offseason alone Rick has had one surgery on his hip and another one on his left knee. Last time I checked those were important parts for a goalie, and parts that shouldn't be breaking down this early in a guy's career. I'm sure Rick doesn't care, his contract is guaranteed even if he suffers a career ending injury, but Islanders fans should be nervous. So should you. Don't draft Rick as anything but a third goalie to spot-start...unless you have to. His numbers aren't stellar enough to warrant the risk. The Islanders don't boast spectacular backups, with Joey MacDonald being the best of the bunch. Be afraid.

The Verdict:

With very few exceptions this team should be avoided in the early rounds on draft day. They are unquestionably the worst team in the Atlantic Division and, barring Mats Sundin suddenly deciding he'd look great in Gorton's, will be feuding with Toronto and Florida for the entire season for the worst team in the East.

Rockin In the Free (Agent) World

So... you meet a girl, or a boy (I don't discriminate) fall rapidly in love and spend a significant amount of time, energy and money on him/her/it over the course of your young relationship. Things are going well. You introduce her to your city, let her know everything about you and do everything you can to form a real bond with her. You don't know where its going but you assume that should anything come up you'll have a shot at talking it through, because you believe compromise and negotiation are key elements in any relationship.

One day you're sitting in a paddle boat with your lady love/knight in shining some such when he/she turns to you and says "Hey sugarplum... I'd like to meet your friends." You happen to be going to the bar that night to meet up with them and you invite her along, eager to show him/her off.

All your friends like her/him. They express how great they are for you. But one keeps asking you strange questions. "How old is he/she? Do you think they'd like it in Canada? How fast do they run a mile... on average?" You get suspicious but you just assume that your friend is drunk. At one point you excuse yourself from your betrothed to use the restroom. When you return your strange friend is forcing his tongue down he/she/its throat and you can't tell whether or not your intended is enjoying it or not.

That friend... that's Kevin Lowe(General Manager of the Edmonton Oilers for those of you not in the know (TYNITK from now on)). You are Brian Burke (General Manager of the Anaheim Ducks for TYNITK). And that until recently so special person who is now sucking face and dreaming of staging their own personal "Battle for Alberta" that's Dustin Penner. Does all of this back and forth between the two make a little more sense now?

Look I support ridiculous offer sheets for RFA's. I do. I spent a couple of hours back in March deciding which RFA defensemen the Devils should make offer sheets to once July rolled around (I was not optimistic about the playoffs). But I only support doing it in the right instances for proven commodities. Hell I'd even support "semi" proven commodities.

When Kevin Lowe went after Vanek he went after the hottest girlfriend in the room. You gotta respect that. The fact that Vanek went on to have a so so year was neither here nor there (lots of people let themselves go a bit once they feel they are set for life). But when you make a 5 year offer sheet at 4.25 per to a guy who wasn't drafted and has scored 52 points in 101 NHL games, effectively making him the highest paid forward on your team... well then even the guys with ugly girlfriends get nervous.

Lowe is right though in his overall philosophy. This NHL is a young man's game. The rest of the league knows this which is why the young guys are getting the big contracts and the old guys are going to Russia. Lowe's aggressive tactics, while they haven't yet paid off for him, have changed the way the league looks at its youngest and brightest stars. When preparing for your draft you should keep that in mind too. While a lot of this year UFA's (Unrestricted Free Agents for TYNITK) are going to look sexy and should be taken in the early rounds, once those big names are off the table maybe you should keep the younger guys in mind before reaching for an aging veteran on his last contract before heading way east.

Without further adieu, let's get to our free agency/off season wrap up. We'll start with... what else the Atlantic Division

The New York Islanders
Mark Streit is a bigger asset then you think he is. Don't laugh. I said don't laugh. Ok fine. He's 30 years old. He's only played two full seasons prior to last year and its impossible to know whether he'll be playing D or Wing or be the next head coach or GM of this team. Is he worth what they paid? No. Should you draft him as high as someone else will considering he got 62 points last year (tied with Brian Campbell for third amongst defenseman)? Probably not. But if he falls in your draft I would keep an eye out. He's going to be a minus on this team, but he's still probably good for 40 points or so. If you are looking for defensemen on this team I think Chris Campoli will be a much better option.

Weight for it... Weight for it... can't do it. Sorry. Don't pick Doug Weight. But you didn't need me to tell you that.

The New Jersey Devils
Rolston was a good signing... but not for 4 years. While the term concerns me as a fan it shouldn't concern you in your fantasy draft. He will play on the first line, probably with Elias and/or Parise. His shot from the point is exactly what the Devils were missing on their power play. I'd say he's a lock for 60+ points with about half of those coming on the man advantage. I would expect his +/- to be positive as well now that he's back in front of Marty. Did you know he rarely played with Gaborik out in Minnesota, yet he had three straight 30 goal seasons there? Fact.

Holik. He came cheap. He shouldn't even be on your list on draft day unless your league only drafts players from Jihlava, Czechoslovakia. Even then you might want to consider taking David Vyborny first.

Philadelphia Flyers
The Flyers were relatively quiet. This is not necessarily a bad thing. I think most teams in the NHL at this point should envy their depth at center. A little light on the wings, but shouldn't hurt them too badly. This is a deceptively deep offensive team.

Pittsburgh Penguins
They lost an in his prime star in Hossa. Ouch.

But this Pittsburgh team will likely be fine. They were well within reach of the playoffs when they acquired Maid Marion in the first place. While they were unable to use free agency to acquire anything that will come close to replacing what Hossa's output would have been for an entire year... they didn't have to.

Miroslav Satan is a fine addition and should see a similar spike to that Sykora received last year by playing on Crosby or Malkin's wing. A mid 50's season in points would not be unheard of. He'll put up Malone numbers this year.

I wouldn't expect a similar spike from the other Islander the Pens acquired in Fedotenko. He's a career 30 point producer. If anything the departures open the door for increased ice time for Dupuis, who scored 12 points in 16 games after joining the Pens last year, and the still very very young and talented Jordan Staal.

The New York Rangers
One of the more active teams in free agency. The Rangers added Wade Redden and Dmitri Kalinin to their blue line, resigned Paul Mara and Michal Rozsival, and added by subtracting Christian Backman and Marek Malik.

Looking JUST at what they've done on defense for a moment I would say that the addition of Redden improves their power play immensely (as does... I'm serious... the subtraction of Jagr but more on that in a second). Redden gives them a puck moving defenseman and a power play quarterback the likes of which they haven't had for some time. Additionally, keeping Mara and Rosey means their powerplay is fairly deep and should be able to consistently put two good pressure units on the ice.

Kalinin is a good stay at home defenseman, and Redden's commitment to defense has rarely been questioned (he has one career minus season). All of this means the Rangers should be incredibly solid in their back end. This probably moves Marc Staal's fantasy relevance back at least a year though.

Moving now to the forwards, the Rangers added Nikolai Zherdev and Markus Naslund to their interchangeable flock (sorry couldn't resist). Its probably premature to speculate but I would imagine that both of these men would play with Drury or Gomez though likely not on the same line and some combination of Dubinsky, Dawes and Callahan would round out the top six forwards.

The subtraction of Jaromir Jagr signifies a transition to a more attack oriented team. Gomez will likely now have forwards who zoom through the neutral zone with him instead of circling back as soon as they reach the blue line. One thing is for sure; this is going to be a completely different brand of hockey when it hits the ice this fall.

Early speculation: Gomez sees a bump in value as does Zherdev (who will play on his wing). Naslund stays around the high 50's (he was playing with the Sedin's last year lets not forget) but remains relevant as a run and gun left wing. Drury should see his point totals comfortably return to the mid 60's. Redden improves on last years numbers seeing point totals in the high 40's low 50's. Rosey's numbers dip as he is no longer the go to guy but he remains fantasy relevant. Either Dubinsky or Dawes will be worth owning by years end in all but the shallowest of leagues.

OK thats all for now. We'll see you tomorrow for the rest of the Eastern Conference.