2/8/12 Studs & Duds

[dmvincent]

It was a light schedule on Wednesday, with only four games. I'll be doing this every week for Wednesday's games from now on. I look forward to it!

STUDS

Miller Time!
Its been a while since Ryan Miller played as well as he did last night. The Sabres goalie turned aside 36 Bruins shots as he finished with his second shutout of the season. Miller's numbers are still unspectacular, but he wasn't going to be a mediocre goalie for very long. This was a great performance and very deserving. The Sabres scored six goals against Boston and the Bruins still finished the game with the higher shot total, which shows you this shutout wasn't just a walk in the park for Ryan Miller.

Productive Pominville
Jason Pominville scored two goals, his 18th and 19th of the year and had the most ice time of any Buffalo forward last night. Pominville currently has 50 points this season, which is pretty impressive on such an under-performing Sabres team.

Energetic Ennis
Tyler Ennis was very effective last night against Boston, putting up a goal and an assist as he was one of the best players on the ice for Buffalo. Ennis could be in for a nice finish if he can stay healthy and make the most of the opportunity in front of him. Buffalo will give him top six minutes and he has to take advantage of that.

Olli's on a roll
After a bit of a slump and some inconsistent play in the past month, Olli Jokinen flat out took down the Sharks last night. Jokinen finished the game with 3 goals and an assist, as well as a plus-3 rating and 3 shots on goal. Jokinen is racking up the points and sits at 45 on the year as we speak. On a hungry Flames team, Jokinen could be a nice value play in fantasy leagues in the second half of the season.

Gagner keeps going
This is just crazy, but Sam Gagner continues to get the job done for Edmonton. He was spotted on his own and he absolutely made a fool of Red Wings goalie Joey MacDonald to get the Oilers back in the game. He then finished off a passing play by Magnus Paajarvi and potted his 13th of the season.

Able Abdelkader
Hard working Red Wings forward Justin Abdelkader had a great night on Wednesday. He finished with 2 assists and 9 penalty minutes. He had the most points on the team and tied Sam Gagner for the most points by a player in the game.

Miikka Kiprusoff
Kiprusoff turned aside 34 San Jose shots in the Flames 4-3 win over the Sharks. At age 35, Kipper has looked great this year and could seemingly play another three or four years. Kipper also won his 300th game in a Flames uniform and became only the 27th goalie to accomplish that feat. He should be a reliable option in the second half for fantasy.

Joe Thornton
Jumbo Joe had two assists on Wednesday night in the loss to Calgary. Thornton at age 32 is having a pretty productive season, he currently sits at 45 points for the year.

Corey Perry
Perry had 7 shots on goal and sniped the overtime winner against Cam Ward and the Carolina Hurricanes.

Jonas Hiller
The Ducks goalie turned aside 31 of 33 shots in a 3-2 win over Carolina.

Joey MacDonald
MacDonald wasn't very busy, but still finished with solid numbers against Edmonton. Detroit continues to be incredible at Joe Louis Arena, where they have won 18 straight after last nights win.


DUDS

Rotten Rask
Tuukka Rask had a game to forget last night against the Sabres. The Boston backup surrendered 3 goals on just 10 shots and was pulled just after the first period. To be fair, Tim Thomas didn't fare much better against Buffalo either.

Boston forwards
Despite 36 shots on goal, Boston's forwards couldn't buy a goal on Wednesday against Ryan Miller and the Sabres.

Getzlaf not getting it done
The Ducks managed to win the game and score three goals against Carolina, but Ryan Getzlaf was not part of the scoring. He had just two shots on goal and also took a penalty in the game. Getzlaf is a minus-16 and only has 36 points this season.

Giordano's game
Maybe its better if Mark Giordano sticks to what he does best, blocking shots and letting others get in on the scoring. The Flames dman didn't finish with a point and he hasn't provided much offense since returning to the Calgary lineup.

[TwoPuckCanuck]

Strong debut Mac! Great stuff all around. Loved the clever headings and was happy to see you mention guys like Abdelkader. Too often do those players go uncredited.

You've set the bar pretty high for yourself for your next studs and duds. Looking forward to it!

[pharling]

Great debut, welcome to the team!