Dan Cloutier is out for the rest of the season, as he will undergo knee surgery on Thursday. There is a chance he will make it back for the playoffs, but nothing is certain. This leaves Alex Auld as the number one goalie in Vancouver, with Ouellet as his backup. Apparently Vancouver is not looking to upgrade their goaltending at the moment, but if Auld starts to struggle, Vancouver will be forced to pick up someone, and quick. Thibault, Caron, Lalime and Prusek would be the easiest goalies to pick up, while Denis, Luongo and even Brodeur are other names that have been thrown around in the past couple of weeks.
On to tonight's games...Gaborik scored twice, and Daigle added three assists as the Wild beat the Islanders 4-3. In what was a wild finish, Chouinard scored the game winning goal with only three seconds remaining. The Islanders outshot the Wild 35-22 in the loss.
Matt Cooke returned to the lineup, and scored the game winning goal as Vancouver beat the New York Rangers 3-2. Ohlund added two assists for Vancouver, while Beruzzi and D. Sedin had the other Vancouver goals. Auld got the win for the Canucks, who will now be relying on him quite a lot.
Matt Cullen and Craig Adams each scored twice, as the Carolina Hurricanes beat the Chicago Blackhawks 5-3. Gerber picked up the win for Carolina, while Khabibulin continues to struggle in net for Chicago.
Atlanta beat Detrout tonight in an all out scoring war, winning 7-6. Stefan scored twice for Atlanta, including the game winner, while Vigier, Kozlov and Holik all had a goal and an assist for the Thrashers. Datsyuk led Detroit with two goals and an assist, while Shanahan added four assists.
Florida finally found the back of the net, as they hammered Nashville 7-3. Horton scored a hat trick for the Panthers, while Roberts added a pair. Perrault had a good night for the Preds, notching two assists. The Preds started third string goalie Finley in this one, as Vokoun is injured and will miss the next 7-14 days.
The Flyers continue to win dispite being bit seriously with the injury bug. Forsberg, Carter and Kapanen scored to give the Flyers a 3-1 win over the Blue Jackets. Esche got the win for the Flyers, while Hrdina scored Columbus' lone goal.
Montreal beat the red-hot Coyotes tonight, winning 5-2. Plekanec led the Canadiens with a goal and an assist. Montreal remains without captain Saku Koivu, as he is currently battling the flu.
Kozlov scored the shootout winner, as the Devils beat the Oilers 2-1. Matvichuk also scored for the Devils, while Cross had the lone Oiler goal. Ty Conklin looked good in his first game back with the Oilers, stopping 27 shots before the shootout.
With Lalime sent down to the minors, Sanford is the number one guy in St. Louis, and he looked good tonight, picking up a shutout in St. Louis' 3-0 win over Pittsburgh. Weight had a goal and an assist for the Blues, who are apparently trying to deal Lalime to anyone who will take him. After this loss, one must wonder how much longer Pittsburgh will wait before making a coaching change.
Player of the Night goes to Nathan Horton, who's three goals lifted the Panthers to a rare win over the Preds. Others considered were Shanahan(4A), Daigle(3A), Datsyuk(2G,1A) and Sanford(Shutout).
I am hearing a strong rumour that Brian Leetch could find himself back in New York. The longer the Bruins struggle, the more likely it is that Leetch could go back to the Rangers. The Rangers have the cap room, and are apparently very interested in bringing the veteran blueliner back for a good playoff run. Not sure what the Rangers would give up, but it probably wouldn't be too expensive.
Do not be shocked if the Leafs make a move this week. They don't play again until Saturday, and when Kronwall returns, the Leafs will have to make some sort of move, as they plan on keeping both Colaiacovo and Kronwall with the team. This likely means Czercawksi being placed on waivers, or Aki Berg being dealt. Apparently, according to a source close the Leafs, JFJ claims he's had offers of a 2nd round pick for Berg. If thats the case, pull the trigger now, as Berg isn't worth half that.
Thats all for now! Power Play Fantasy League standings will be updated tomorrow, so watch out for those! My Power Rankings will be up sometime tomorow was well. Check hockeyleaks.com for all of that. Have a good night everyone.
