This article is part of our Ice and Fire series.
"Hockey trade" – you'll often hear this term over the next month with the trade deadline looming at the end of February. It doesn't fit just any NHL deal – rather, the term describes a player-for-player trade as opposed to dealing a veteran with an expiring contract for picks or prospects. The Ryan Callahan-Martin St. Louis trade from a couple years ago fit the definition, as did this past week's swap of two former No. 4 overall picks between the Jackets and Preds. Nashville dealt 2013's fourth pick, Seth Jones, to the Blue Jackets for 2010 No. 4 selection Ryan Johansen, giving the Preds the potential No. 1 center they've sorely been lacking the last several seasons while sending the Jackets a young blueliner oozing with potential.
But are we getting close yet to the point where the hockey media will stop referring to Jones' potential, or will he always be given the benefit of the doubt that accompanies top draft picks? Jones certainly will see more ice time and more important minutes in Columbus than he did in Hockey-Tonk country, but how will it translate? Jones should see more power-play time with the top unit for Columbus, as he won't be sharing the blue line with two all-world defenders in Roman Josi and Shea Weber, not to mention Ryan Ellis, a 100-point blueliner in juniors. Jones saw plenty of power-play time with Nashville, yet couldn't convert it into production, as he has not registered
"Hockey trade" – you'll often hear this term over the next month with the trade deadline looming at the end of February. It doesn't fit just any NHL deal – rather, the term describes a player-for-player trade as opposed to dealing a veteran with an expiring contract for picks or prospects. The Ryan Callahan-Martin St. Louis trade from a couple years ago fit the definition, as did this past week's swap of two former No. 4 overall picks between the Jackets and Preds. Nashville dealt 2013's fourth pick, Seth Jones, to the Blue Jackets for 2010 No. 4 selection Ryan Johansen, giving the Preds the potential No. 1 center they've sorely been lacking the last several seasons while sending the Jackets a young blueliner oozing with potential.
But are we getting close yet to the point where the hockey media will stop referring to Jones' potential, or will he always be given the benefit of the doubt that accompanies top draft picks? Jones certainly will see more ice time and more important minutes in Columbus than he did in Hockey-Tonk country, but how will it translate? Jones should see more power-play time with the top unit for Columbus, as he won't be sharing the blue line with two all-world defenders in Roman Josi and Shea Weber, not to mention Ryan Ellis, a 100-point blueliner in juniors. Jones saw plenty of power-play time with Nashville, yet couldn't convert it into production, as he has not registered in a point in two months.
Two months. It'd be slightly easier to criticize if Jones wasn't seeing offensive chances, but in his final three games with Nashville, he clocked 3:31, 3:34 and 3:06 on the man advantage. True, the Predators don't have the most offensively adept lineup, but James Neal, Mike Ribeiro and Filip Forsberg certainly can hold their own. Of course, the Jackets have Scott Hartnell, Brandon Saad, Boone Jenner and Nick Foligno, no slouches themselves. Jones will be leaned on more defensively in Columbus than he was in Nashville, and the Sport Coats aren't exactly the steadiest defensive team in the league, even in a John Tortorella system. Given Jones' struggles this season offensively, this top-pairing role may not lead to a big offensive surge.
As for Johansen, he goes from seeing top-line minutes with solid linemates to seeing top-line minutes with solid linemates. Johansen is the new top center in Nashville, and he started his Predators career between James Neal and Colin Wilson. Sure, the Preds were shut out by Arizona on Saturday evening, but the day before, Johansen scored on his first shot in his new uniform, a power-play snipe against Semyon Varlamov in an eventual loss to Colorado.
His poise and vision on that goal were rather impressive, and Johansen added an assist on Forsberg's goal later in the game. Obviously Forsberg should benefit from having a center with Johansen's offensive skill set – something that most Forsberg owners would like to see. In that loss to Colorado on Friday, the two played together on the power play, but Johansen spent his time at even strength next to Calle Jarnkrok and Ribeiro. Nashville desperately needed a player with Johansen's ability and was able to trade from a ridiculous surplus, as the emergence of Ellis and Mattias Ekholm as a second pairing made Jones an attractive piece of trade bait. From a purely fantasy hockey perspective, Johansen sees a slight bump in value, while Jones will have to find some consistency in his offensive game first.
A disappointment early on this season, Jackets captain Nick Foligno had finally started humming, netting six points in four games. Unfortunately, a bad hit from Carolina's Brad Malonehas sidelined him indefinitely, and he'll to deal with a new center when he returns.
Habs trending down, Panthers trending up
Injuries are not fun. Count me among the many who thought Carey Price would be returning for the Canadiens and fantasy owners rather soon, only to learn he'll remain out past the All-Star Game. Mike Condon was a serviceable option when he first replaced Price, but he and the Habs haven't been delivering consistent numbers. Condon still has the top job for Montreal, but a few more iffy outings could mean he turns some extra starts over to the newly acquired Ben Scrivens until Price returns.
While Montreal is playing up-and-down hockey, clinging to an Atlantic Division playoff spot, the Panthers have been highly entertaining to watch, as they've now won 12 straight games after edging out Edmonton on Sunday. Roberto Luongo is reminding people how talented he still is, while the emergence of Aleksander Barkov as an offensive threat has been outstanding to watch. Jaromir Jagr showed off his wheels on the first goal of Sunday's contest, stripping Darnell Nurse of the puck and finishing on a breakaway without even shooting the puck.
Kidding aside, Jagr has been excellent lately, with five points in the last four games, including four goals. Following a woeful start, his linemate Jonathan Huberdeau has been finding his name on the scoresheet often, with 12 points in the last 10 games. Huberdeau's 25 assists have him tied for seventh in the league with the likes of Taylor Hall and Nicklas Backstrom. A few more goals from Huberdeau would be welcome, though; he potted just his sixth Sunday, a product of some slick passing.
Despite the wins, the Panthers haven't been lighting up the scoreboard, but they do have had some sneaky options for daily leagues and extremely deep pools in Reilly Smith and Vincent Trocheck.
Domingue-nation
If he hasn't already been snatched up, Arizona's Louis Domingue can make for a nice stopgap in goal. With a 6-0-2 record, Domingue has quickly wrestled the starting gig away from Anders Lindback in the wake of Mike Smith's injury. Domingue has won his last three starts and allowed just three goals in the process, including shutting out Nashville on Saturday. The Coyotes are a playoff team at present, as the Pacific Division is experiencing a bit of down year. We've seen goalies flourish in a Dave Tippett system before -- namely, Smith and retired soundbite Ilya Bryzgalov. Domingue is in a good situation in Glendale, and he finishes the week with a tilt against the offensively challenged Devils.
