Studs & Duds - Friday 3-22-2013

[NoWayOut]

Studs


Abbey Road

After their 5-2 loss to the Flames at home the Wings needed to come together and make something positive happen, and it would have to happen away from the octopus's garden. Justin Abdelkader was the one to make it happen, notching the first hat trick of his career. And just because he had the hat trick there was no reason why he couldn't toss in an assist as well. Abby finished the night with four points, a plus-4, and four shots on goal as well. The very lightly owned Abdelkader now has five goals in the last three games. Those sorts of things happen when you find yourself on the same line as this Pavel Datsyuk fellow. More on him later...


Just in the Nick of time

The Blue Jackets Nick Foligno ended a four game streak without a point in grand style. Foligno picked up two goals in the space of 51 seconds just past the mid-point of the game. His first goal was the game winner, and triggered an amazing run of three goals in 1:15. And to top it off those two goals came on his only two shots, as Columbus went on to drub the hapless Flames 5-1. This was a welcome outburst for the Blue Jackets from their streaky winger, but like Abdelkader not one that had much fantasy impact outside of deep leagues.

Hey Gary, about this re-alignment thing, please don't

That was the subject line of an email exchange that I intercepted between Braden Holtby and the league office. Nobody is going to miss Winnipeg in the Eastern Conference more than Braden. He continued his single-handed domination of the Jets in Winnipeg, coming within 10 minutes of posting yet another shutout against Winnipeg while stopping 30 of the 31 shots he faced. Check this out, in the three games the Caps have played in Winnipeg, Holtby has allowed just one goal total in those three games against the Jets. His stat line over those three games is absolutely filthy, 0.33/.988 with two shutouts. When he's not playing in Winnipeg Holtby is still a bit of a roller-coaster ride, but he has been trending in the right direction over the last three games.





Duds



The invisible man

On a night when the Caps hung a six spot on the Jets en route to a 6-1 victory Backstrom stiffed his owners to the tune of one assist and one shot. But the pièce de résistance was finishing a minus-1. Really dude? A minus-1? Let's get this straight, your team scored six, allowed one, and you were still a minus? And as if that weren't enough, you were the only Caps player to finish as a minus. Bra-vo!

The invisible man, pt 2

Not to be outdone by Mr. Backstrom, the Isles superstar John Tavares finished with one assist, a minus-2, and dismal 6-12 in the faceoff circle. A bad night to be sure, his whole line was off their game, but just one of those bumps in the road that happen to everybody. Fantasy owners know they can still count on Tavares to give them more studly performances then nights like this.

Ondrej the not so giant

Ondrej Pavelec's recent struggles showed no signs of stopping. The Czech netminder allowed three goals on just nine shots, managing a measly .667 save percentage before being pulled in favor of Al Montoya, who fared little better. Over the last five games Pavelec has allowed, 4,4,1,4, and 3 goals. Needless to say, you should look elsewhere for your fantasy goaltending needs until Ondrej pulls out of this nosedive.



Deep thoughts from a shallow mind


Pens Vs. Isles:

- Tomas Vokoun stopped 33-of-35 to pick up the 4-2 win against Evgeni Nabokov and company.
- Sidney Crosby and Pascal Dupuis each had two points in the winning effort.
- Matt Moulson and Brad Boyes each finished minus-3 as the Isles top line struggled as a whole.
- Josh Bailey netted his second goal in the last three games.


Flames Vs. Blue Jackets

- Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 24-of-25 shots for the win as Columbus continues it's torrid streak.
- Derek MacKenzie and RJ Umberger each had two assists, and Fedor Tyutin and Jack Johnson finished plus-3.
- Miikka Kiprusoff's awful season rolls on, as he allowed five goals on 28 shots.
- Michael Cammalleri, Blake Comeau, and [B]Alex Tanguay]/B] all finished minus-3.


Caps Vs. Jets

- Alex Ovechkin tallied two goals, while Marcus Johansson and Mike Ribeiro each picked up two assists.
- The duo of Ondrej Pavelec and Al Montoya teamed up to allow six goals, three apiece, on just 24 shots.
- Dustin Byfuglien picked up the lone Winnipeg goal.


Red Wings Vs. Ducks

- Jimmy Howard stopped 33 shots en route to the 5-1 win.
- Pavel Datsyuk had a huge night picking up three points, but more specifically career goal #250, and career assist #500. Congrats Pasha!
- Johan Franzen chipped in three points as the Datsyuk, Franzen, Abdelkader line combined to for all five Detroit tallies.
- Much like their Winnipeg counterparts, the Ducks goalie tandem of Viktor Fasth and Jonas Hiller allowed a combined five goals on just 23 shots.
- Teemu Selanne bagged the Ducks only goal.
- Luca Sbisa, Bryan Allen, and Daniel Winnik each crossed the finish line at minus-3.

[One87]

Solid work, NWO. Love the column: "Deep Thoughts from a Shallow Mind"