The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
December 29, 2003


Story by: Eric Theis

Season's Greetings, and a very Merry Christmas from the GBU. While Santa was without a doubt good to you and yours, I was rewarded with a systemic computer crash at work, and a serious bout of the flu for Christmas, hence my two week absence. But I have strong stubborn German-Italian blood so I bounce back quick, and am ready to resume my job of illuminating the way into your fantasy new year. Last week was shortened by the Christmas break, something the players wish to lengthen (greedy players - always wanting more), but that did not preclude plenty of highlights and lowlights in those games. Happy New Year! See you next week at the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.

The Good

Scott Walker 4 GP, 4 G, 3 A, +6, 4 PIM
RW - Nashville Predators

Walker represents an interesting paradox as a player: he is a hard-nosed power forward who is at his best when going into key scoring areas full throttle - yet his body has never shown the resiliency needed to handle this style of play. As a result, Walker has never played more than 74 games, and has logged 64 games or less in all the rest of his 9 NHL seasons. Walker did record 25 goals and 54 points for the Preds in 00-01 (the same year he managed 74 games), so it is safe to say that if he can stay in the lineup, a repeat performance is conceivable.

Patrick Marleau 3 GP, 3 G, 2 A, +3, 1 PPP
C - San Jose Sharks

Marleau started slow this season, posting just 5 points in his first 13 games, but has come on strong as of late. Marleau has been a model of consistency throughout his young career, with four 20+ goal seasons, and is on pace to eclipse his career best in both goals and points, and should continue to reward his owners with points, especially with San Jose playing as well as it has of late.

Joe Nieuwendyk 3 GP, 2 G, 3 A, +2, 2 PPP
C - Toronto Maple Leafs

Another player who is a fantasy hockey treasure chest as long as he is healthy, Nieuwendyk has 22 points in 25 games. Owners hold their collective breaths when Joe is on the ice however, as he plays on one of the highest casualty-producing teams (behind only Los Angeles and Detroit for most man-games lost to injury), and has himself missed 12 games from both back and ankle ailments. Nieuwendyk has shown remarkable versatility on the ice, having centered and played on the wing in a variety of line combinations the Leafs have fielded, and the Oshawa native not only produces himself, but seems to make his line mates better by proxy. Nieuwendyk is also receiving a lot of power play minutes for Toronto, averaging 3:33 minutes per game (3rd behind only Bryan McCabe and Mats Sundin).

Michael Leighton 3 GP, 2 W, 1 L, 1.00 GAA, .960 SV%, 2 SO
G - Chicago Blackhawks

Certainly Chicago has not benefited from the lost starting goaltender Jocelyn Thibault (5-3-2 before he went down with a hip injury), as the team's 4-15-5-3 record without him would suggest. However the Blackhawks were still miles away from any though of playoff contention, even with a healthy Thibault, so this season has become about earning back some respect, and allowing the young guys to play and gain valuable NHL experience. If any silver lining can be urged out of Chicago's lost season, it is the emergence of rookie Michael Leighton. Yes he has had his nights o'shelling - the benefit of playing for a team who's defence core are a collective -51. Leighton has also had his great nights, evidenced last week by his shutting out of both St Louis and Detroit, Chicago's two conference rivals. Leighton might still be a few years away from becoming a fantasy impact player, but he is now officially on the radar.

Mark Parrish 3 GP, 3 G, 2 A, +3, 2 PIM, 1 PPP, 2 GWG
RW - New York Islanders

At 26 Parrish may finally be developing into the consistent goal scoring threat that he has teased fantasy owners with over the last few seasons; Parrish has been a streaky producer in his career, generating both scoring streaks and droughts during the course of the season. His current point streak has been a direct result of his driving to the net, and moving to key scoring areas despite the physical punishment he might absorb as a result, a style soon to be named the "Gary Roberts Way". His goals might not be pretty (with 3 goals coming from less than 6 feet away from the opposing net), but one cannot argue with the 7 points in 6 games Parrish has notched. The Islanders need this kind of offense with Alexei Yashin out of the lineup for the foreseeable future, especially someone to take over Yashin's power play minutes.

Garth Snow 3 GP, 3 W, 1.99 GAA, .929 SV%
G - New York Islanders

If anyone deserves credit for turning their season around as of late, it is Garth Snow. The big netminder, who started off with a GAA of 4.91 in 9 starts through October and November, has played his way back to a starting gig with the Islanders. Snow has posted four consecutive wins against Washington, Philly, New Jersey and Toronto, helping to vault the Isles back into the playoff hunt, while showing they can compete with some of the best teams in the league. The only loser in the equation is Rick DiPietro, who started strong, but has faded into obscurity on New York's bench for a second straight year.

Honourable Mentions

Vincent Damphosse 3 GP, 2 G, 2 A, +1, 4 PIM, 2 PPP
C - San Jose Sharks

Anyone who stuck with Damphosse through his repeated scoring slumps can finally smile. Reports of Damphosse being past his prime seem a little premature right now.

Curtis Joseph 2 GP, 2 GP, 1 W, 0 L, 1 T, 1.45 GAA, .939 SV%
G - Detroit Red Wings

I'm sorry; I am a lifelong Leaf Fan, but I grew tired of the minions who decried Curtis leaving for Detroit, and then celebrated Joseph's well documented pains for playing time, which saw him make 2 trips to the AHL. Joseph always, repeat always has conducted himself as an exemplary individual amongst many other pro athletes with far less moral conviction - check out Joseph's charitable contributions in the areas he has played in if you don't believe me (including the ties he still maintains in Toronto I might add). Joseph's performance over the last few weeks has been a long time in coming - the only justice might be that whatever team grabs him up, and it will happen soon, manages to eliminate Detroit in the playoffs.

Zdeno Chara 4 GP, 1 G, 3 A, +4, 8 PIM, 1 PPP
D - Ottawa Senators

Chara is a standout in none of the major fantasy categories in comparison with his fellow defensemen, but he just might be the best all around blue liner to have: while his point totals place him in a tie for 11th amongst other NHL defenders, he has consistent numbers in all fantasy categories including penalty minutes and +/-.

Saku Koivu 3 GP, 1 G, 3 A, Even, 2 PIM, 2 PPP, 1 GWG
C - Montreal Canadiens

Koivu was an early victim of this column's scorn, after being held pointless in his first 5 games this season, but the Canadiens Captain has seemingly righted the ship. Koivu is running at a point-per-game pace for all of December (13 points in 13 games) , and is back on track with his usual numbers.

The Bad

Mike Knuble 3 GP, 0 G, 0 A, -4
RW - Boston Bruins

2 points in 12 games, and no points in his last 6 - fairly woeful for a winger on a line centered by Joe Thornton. So desperate is Boston to break Knuble and the "Big Line" out of it's point recession, that Head Coach Mike Sullivan has slid three different wingers on the left of Knuble and Thornton over the last 3 games (Bergeron, Lapointe and Murray), with no improvement noted. It's all par for the course on a Boston team that seems to fade every year after the first 15 or so games.

Brendan Shanahan 3 GP, 0 G, 0 A, Even, 10 PIM
LW - Detroit Red Wings

Shanny owners can but help to notice the semi-slump the future hall of famer has fallen into - Shanahan has been held off the score sheet in five straight games (a plight shared by line mate Steve Yzerman). This is a temporary phenomenon for sure, but a frustrating one for fantasy owners.

Jason King 3 GP, 0 G, 0 A, -2
RW - Vancouver Canucks

A lock for Rookie of the Year honours through October and November, King has been stone cold in December: In fact King has been held pointless for the entire month. While this is not entirely his fault, certainly the struggles of the Sedin twins (his linemates) have allowed defenders to focus solely on stopping King, the young winger must learn to adapt to the kind of checking he will undoubtedly continue to see: just ask team mates Todd Bertuzzi and Markus Naslund.

The Ugly

Cristobal Huet 3 GP, 0 W, 1 L, 2 T, 4.24 GAA, .867 SV%
G - Los Angeles Kings

In an antithesis to a story played out numerous times this season in Detroit, Calgary, Edmonton, and San Jose, LA had it's starting goaltender break down, only to have it's backup drop the ball. Huet, who is supposedly wears the "goalie of the future" crown for the Kings, has been anything but regal in his three most recent starts since Roman Cechmanek was deposited on IR; 4 goals per game over three starts by Huet has allowed the rebuilding San Jose Sharks to move into a tie for the Pacific Division lead with LA. There isn't much for LA to fall back on, as call-up Milan Hnilicka did not exactly shine in his relief appearance, so Huet will most likely keep getting the call during a run that includes games against Dallas and Vancouver. Say goodbye to first place.

Questions or comments about this, or another fantasy article? fantasy@hockeylink.ca