This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
Around the Rink
On this bright, sunny Tuesday (at least here; I take no responsibility for your weather), we've got a 10-game NHL slate with an interesting mix of matchups as our intrepid fantasy players – those who are still standing, anyway – grind out the season's final weeks.
There may very well be some ugly games Tuesday, as we've got three contests set to go down between cellar dwellers – the Sabres head to Carolina, the Oilers are in Arizona, and the Canucks visit Winnipeg. Those three games mean far more to fantasy owners than they do to fans, but when you've got so many folded-up teams involved, it's always hard to tell who's going to come out with more motivation.
On the high end of competition, the Tyler Seguin-less Stars will battle for Central Division dominance with the Corey Crawford-less Blackhawks, presenting a fine opportunity for daily leaguers to roll out Cody Eakin, a regular scoresheet presence lately and the Stars' top-line center right now. Meanwhile, the Blues head to San Jose, and I'm not betting against Jaden Schwartz pushing his point streak to six games.
The Wings, looking to cling to their back-end spot in the playoffs, unfortunately have to roll Jimmy Howard out again with the Lightning coming to town, but Howard's actually been sharp in his career against Tampa, going 5-2-2 with a .936 save mark in nine starts. Incredibly, this will be his first home game since Jan. 23, a span of nine starts.
And now, this.
Projected Goalie Starters (all times Eastern)
Sabres (Chad Johnson) at Hurricanes (Cam Ward), 7:00 PM
Flyers (Anthony Stolarz) at Blue Jackets (Sergei Bobrovsky), 7:00 PM
Ducks (John Gibson) at Canadiens (Mike Condon), 7:30 PM
Capitals (Braden Holtby) at Senators (Craig Anderson), 7:30 PM
Red Wings (Jimmy Howard) at Lightning (Ben Bishop), 7:30 PM
Canucks (Jacob Markstrom) at Jets (Ondrej Pavelec), 8:00 PM
Kings (Jhonas Enroth) at Wild (Devan Dubnyk), 8:30 PM
Stars (Kari Lehtonen) at Blackhawks (Scott Darling), 8:30 PM
Oilers (Cam Talbot) at Coyotes (Mike Smith), 10:00 PM
Blues (Brian Elliott) at Sharks (Martin Jones), 10:30 PM
For updates on projected goalies later in the day, check our Projected Goalies Grid.
Injury News for Teams Playing Tuesday
Buffalo Sabres
Cody Franson, D (neck) – Out indefinitely
Tyler Ennis, LW (concussion) – Still hope for return this season
Robin Lehner, G (ankle) – Not traveling for Tuesday's game
Jack Eichel, C (illness) – Expected back in Tuesday
Carolina Hurricanes
James Wisniewski, D (knee) – Skating, but no clear return date
Andrej Nestrasil, C (back) – Season over
Justin Faulk, D (ankle) – Won't play Tuesday, but hopes to return before season ends
Philadelphia Flyers
Michal Neuvirth, G (knee) – Done for the season
Michael Del Zotto, D (wrist) – Done for the season
Chris VandeVelde, C (suspension) – Can return from two-game ban Tuesday
Columbus Blue Jackets
Alexander Wennberg, C (lower body) – Day-to-day heading into Tuesday
Jack Johnson, D (shoulder) – Done for season
David Clarkson, RW (lower body) – Remains day-to-day
Curtis McElhinney, G (knee) – Season over
Anaheim Ducks
Nate Thompson, C (lower body) – Won't play Tuesday, but could Thursday
Chris Stewart, RW (jaw) – About two weeks left on original timeline
David Perron, LW (shoulder) – Slated for MRI
Sami Vatanen, D (upper body) – Has been day-to-day for more than a week now
Montreal Canadiens
Brian Flynn, C (lower body) – Nearing original return timeline, but no updates
Sven Andrighetto, RW (upper body) – Status unclear for Tuesday
P.K. Subban, D (neck) – Seems iffy for Tuesday
Mark Barberio, D (concussion) – Out indefinitely
David Desharnais, C (foot) – No definitive timetable for return
Brendan Gallagher, RW (groin) – May return within a week
Victor Bartley, D (lower body) – Day-to-day heading into Tuesdya
Jeff Petry, D (lower body) – Season over
Tom Gilbert, D (knee) – Season over
Carey Price, G (leg) – Practicing, but no word on return date
Washington Capitals
John Carlson, D (lower body) – Won't return Tuesday
Ottawa Senators
Patrick Wiercioch, D (upper body) – Week-to-week
Mark Borowiecki, D (knee) – Done for season with torn MCL
Clarke MacArthur, LW (concussion) – No clear return date
Kyle Turris, C (ankle) – Remains out indefinitely
Detroit Red Wings
Johan Franzen, RW (concussion) – Remains MIA
Drew Miller, LW (lower body) – Season over
Tampa Bay Lightning
Valtteri Filppula, C (upper body) – Won't play Tuesday
Ryan Callahan, RW (lower body) – Questionable for Tuesday
Vancouver Canucks
Radim Vrbata, RW (knee) – Shut down for the season
Alexander Edler, D (leg) – Out for the year
Jannik Hansen, RW (ribs) – Missed the weekend after setback; no word on Tuesday
Brandon Prust, LW (ankle) – Shut down
Brandon Sutter, C (jaw) – Season over
Derek Dorsett, RW (undisclosed) – Return date unclear
Chris Tanev, D (undisclosed) – Didn't go over weekend; Tuesday status unclear
Markus Granlund, C (upper body) – Tuesday status similarly unclear
Yannick Weber, D (upper body) – No word on return
Luca Sbisa, D (upper body) – On low end of return timeline Tuesday, but no word
Winnipeg Jets
Marko Dano, C (undisclosed) – Didn't play Sunday; no word on Tuesday
J.C. Lipon, RW (upper body) – Out two straight; status unclear
Nikolaj Ehlers, LW (eye) – Remains out indefinitely
Anthony Peluso, RW (shoulder) – Season over
Joel Armia, RW (lower body) – Has been out two weeks; no word on return
Mathieu Perreault, C (concussion) – Out indefinitely
Mark Stuart, D (upper body) – Five weeks into 4-to-6-week timeline
Bryan Little, C (head) – Season over
Los Angeles Kings
Jordan Nolan, RW (back) – Out indefinitely
Marian Gaborik, RW (knee) – Could get back at end of regular season
Kris Versteeg, RW (undisclosed) – Day-to-day; expected back on current road trip
Matt Greene, D (shoulder) – Done for season
Minnesota Wild
Ryan Carter, LW (upper body) – Tuesday status doesn't seem promising
Zac Dalpe, C (knee) – Original timeline has him back in about a week
Darcy Kuemper, G (upper body) – Wasn't available Sunday; Tuesday unclear
Jason Pominville, RW (lower body) – Tuesday status not looking promising
Gustav Olofsson, D (shoulder) – Season-ending surgery again
Dallas Stars
Jason Demers, D (shoulder) – Will be reevaluated in four weeks
Tyler Seguin, C (Achilles) – Out 3-to-4 weeks
Mattias Janmark, C (upper body) – Won't return Tuesday, but getting close
Chicago Blackhawks
Marcus Kruger, C (wrist) – Traveling on road trip
Corey Crawford, G (upper body) – Day-to-day heading into Tuesday
Edmonton Oilers
Oscar Klefbom, D (foot infection) – Nearing return, but exact date remains unclear
Patrick Maroon, LW (illness) – Missed Monday's practice
Brandon Davidson, D (lower body) – Suffered "long-term" injury
Benoit Pouliot, LW (shoulder) – Likely out for the season
Adam Pardy, D (undisclosed) – Back at practice, but return unclear
Eric Gryba, D (knee) – Has cleared original one-month timeline already
Arizona Coyotes
Oliver Ekman-Larsson, D (upper body) – Seems iffy for Tuesday
Anders Lindback, G (Achilles) – Season over
Joe Vitale, C (concussion) – Season over
St. Louis Blues
Robby Fabbri, C (lower body) – Expected to play Tuesday
Alexander Steen, LW (upper body) – Practicing, but still not quite ready
Steve Ott, C (hamstrings) – Back at practice, but no clear return date
San Jose Sharks
Marc-Edouard Vlasic, D – Could return Tuesday
Matthew Nieto, LW (hand) – Facing long-term absence
Matt Tennyson, D (head) – Potential return date unclear
Hot
Dougie Hamilton, D, CGY – Mark Giordano's rightly gotten more attention lately (and I'm rather thrilled I was able to acquire him in fantasy for this recent stretch), but Hamilton has himself been on a tear for much of March, having ripped off a goal and 10 assists in the last 10 games – a good chunk of that on the strength of a pair of three-assist efforts. If that's not enough, he's actually managed a positive rating despite playing for a Calgary team that's generally a defensive sieve, and he's tacked on 14 PIM as well. Everyone was quick to write his eulogy earlier this year, but here we are in the final weeks, and the stats (10 goals and 38 points) are there.
Sean Monahan, C, CGY – As you can probably tell, the Flames have been doing some scoring recently, and Monahan has been right in the middle of it, racking up five goals and four assists in his last seven contests. It's been a bit of a boom-or-bust situation rather than the sort of consistency you'd generally like to see out of your fantasy assets, but with Monahan headed for his second straight campaign over 60 points, you won't hear too many complaints from fantasy owners.
Cold
Cam Fowler, D, ANA – After going through a white-hot 11-game stretch in which he averaged a point per game, Fowler's absolutely cratered – he's gone without a point in seven straight, and with only nine shots and a minus-3 rating, the 24-year-old hasn't even been helping in peripherals. He's still getting serious minutes, including power-play time, but at this late stage in the season, fantasy owners in shallower leagues need to cut bait for someone who's producing more. Fowler's name won't earn you any extra points.
Recommended Pickup
Jakob Silfverberg, RW, ANA – I recommended Silfverberg a couple months back in this space, and things didn't really materialize. They are lately, though. The fantasy world is starting to catch on, as the ultra-talented Swede's ownership has risen sharply in recent days, but he's still widely available. His hat trick (plus an assist) last Monday got him a lot of attention, and Silf's followed that by hitting the scoresheet in two of three games since. He's gone plus-7 over these last four games and has started shooting the puck with much more regularity (thanks in no small part to increased minutes), which is a great sign.
