The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
October 26, 2003


Story by: Eric Theis

There are several epochs in every hockey season that hold special attention for me: opening night, when every team is still in the race (except Washington, who despite winning their opener, had already been mathematically eliminated from post season play), the last month of the season (when scoreboard watching runs rampant amongst contenders), and the post season itself. But special mention has to go to that wonderful opening run, when interesting story lines begin to appear, and teams have played enough games to illustrate what they may or may not be capable of. As of the start of this week, Tampa, Atlanta, and Boston are 1,2,3 for points in the NHL: Tampa is undefeated, Atlanta has lost only once - in overtime, and Boston has found resurgence behind Andrew Raycroft and his 21 games of prior NHL experience. In the same breath, some intriguing fantasy stories are developing, some expected, some from out of nowhere. As always, "The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly" colludes every week to uncover and chronicle these developments for you, the reading public. Enjoy, and good luck this week.

The Good:

Peter Forsberg 4 GP, 4 G (including a hat trick against Edmonton), 3 A, 3 PPP, 2 GWG, +3

Does Peter Forsberg simply wait every year until a marquee player is injured to elevate his already superb play? Last year, the Avalanche centre carried his team's offense for most of the year, including a twenty-two game period in which Colorado had to play without Joe Sakic. In that span, the Avs went 18-2-2-2 (largely as a result of Forsberg's play), and climbed back into the playoff hunt, never looking back the rest of the regular season. History seems destine to repeat in Centennial State: in the three games since Paul Kariya exited the line up with a sprained wrist, Forsberg has been on fire. Kariya is expected to only miss a few games, but it's unlikely many Forsberg owners want him to rush back.

Jarome Iginla 3 GP, 2G, 3 A, 2 PPP, 7 PIM, +3

The speculation was cast last year as to whether the real Jarome Iginla was the 56 goal, 96 point, +27 version seen in 01-02, or last year's 35 goal, 67 point, -10 version? For the first two weeks of the 03-04 campaign, patrons of the later seemed to have it right, as Iginla had been held to no points in four games to start the season. Since then, Iginla has been all but impossible to keep off the scoresheet. Considering that Iginla was drafted in the top 25 overall by most fantasy league managers, his production could not come soon enough.

Patrick Lalime 2 GP, 2 W, 1.50 GAA, .930 SV%

Lalime welcomed in a new week by posting consecutive wins against Washington and Montreal, allowing 3 goals in 120 minutes of play. He has not lost a game in regulation time this year, his sole loss coming in a 3-2 overtime defeat to Detroit in the second game of the season. Those wishing to better understand why Ottawa was picked in almost every preseason poll as one of the top contenders this year, need only look between the pipes for the Sens to find their answer.

Ilya Kovalchuk 3 GP, 5 G, 2 A, 2 PPP, 1 GWG, 2 PIM, +2

Making the first return to the friendly confines of "the GBU" is Thrashers forward Ilya Kovalchuk. The Thrashers, behind the standout play of Kovalchuk, have posted a record of 4-2-1-1, a franchise record for the month of October, 5th best in any month. Certainly any fantasy team would drool over the young Russian's offensive production so far, but one telling stat with significant fantasy implication (which does not receive nearly the attention) is his +/-, a +2 this week, +2 overall. The Thrashers, including Kovalchuk, are playing a much more disciplined game overall thus far: a team GAA of just 1.95, good enough for 6th best in the league. The benefit? Kovalchuk has shown that goal scoring and defensive responsibility do not have to be a mutually exclusive pair.
Honourable Mention:

Kevin Weekes 2 GP, 1 W, 0 L, 1 T, 0.48 GAA, .976 SV%

Even on a bad team, Weekes arrives every night ready to play, and has kept Carolina in every game. His fantasy value will skyrocket if the Hurricanes start to find the back of the net.

Ed Belfour 3 GP, 2 W, 1 L, 2.52 GAA, .908 SV%

Ok, his start against the Islanders at the start of the week ranked as the worst game Eddie has played since coming to the Leafs (as even future Hall of Fame-bound players can get shelled). Removed from that outing, in both of his team's wins, Belfour proved yet again that he is the most valuable member of the Maple Leafs night by night - especially when the team goes into periodic scoring droughts.

Steve Sullivan 3 GP, 1 G, 3 A, 2 PPP, 2 PIM, +2

On a team that is collectively a - 9 for the season, and fired their GM after just 8 games, Sullivan has contributed with sound offense and defense.

The Bad:

Sergi Zubov 3 GP, 0 G, 0 A, 0 PIM, -5

That Dallas finds itself at the top of the Pacific Division has less to do with how well the Stars have played, and everything to do with how bad the rest of the division is in comparison. Dallas was outscored 9 - 4 by the opposition last week, including a 4-0 skunking at the hands of Detroit. In a post Derian Hatcher, post Darryl Sydor world, veterans like Zubov will be the ones charged with providing the bulwark on defence, as well as providing points on offense. Already benched once this season due to his inconsistent play, Zubov needs to step up his game on a retooled Dallas blue line, and play more like the 55 point, + 26 player of last year. The Stars face Calgary, and Nashville twice this week, so expect Zubov and the Stars to rebound.

Joe Sakic 4 GP, 0 G, 0 A (5 shots on goal), 0 PIM, -4

It is this kind of weekly line score that drives fantasy owners crazy. Clearly you cannot bench a high-calibre player like Sakic, as he is capable of big numbers every game. But he was a large fantasy liability last week, costing more than one owner a point in +/-, while providing no offense as a peace offering. Not to worry though. Sakic suffered through 4 game pointless streaks in both 00-01, and 01-02, and still managed197 points combined in those two years.

The Ugly:

Tommy Salo 3 GP (2 GS), 0 W, 2 L, 5.82 GAA, .787 SV%

Some goaltenders are asked to win games for their team, others simply to just not lose them. Salo accomplished neither task last week, allowing 5, 4 and 4 goals in successive games. In a 6-4 loss to St Louis, Salo could not maintain a three goal lead built up by the Oilers in the first period, eventually being lifted for backup Ty Conklin. Salo is a funny customer; there are days when he is unbeatable, and can steal wins for Edmonton with his play alone. He also goes through streaks like this, although that usually happens in the later months of the season due to overwork and fatigue. That might be a warning sign to fantasy owners to watch and see how Salo performs over the next few games, perhaps keeping him on the bench until he gets back on track - he will likely get all of the Oilers next few starts, as Conklin is out with a groin injury until at least next week.