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| Marian Hossa scored two goals to help push the Penguins to within one win of their first Stanley Cup Finals since 1992. |
Our View: Hossa has been his normal steady self in these playoffs with eight goals and six assists, not to mention a +6, through 12 games. Look for the Pens to push hard to resign him this off-season.
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| Daniel Briere ended a 3-game scoreless streak with an assist in the Flyers 4-1 loss to the Penguins in Game 3. |
Our View: Overall Briere has eight goals and seven assists in these playoffs (15 games), though that pace has slowed a bit of late (three points in five games). He will need to come up huge for the Flyers to comeback from their 3-0 deficit.
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| R.J. Umberger scored yet another goal, his 10th of the playoffs and ninth in eight games, though the Flyers fell 4-1 to the Penguins in Game 3. |
Our View: All of the attention has been focused on Johan Franzen in these playoffs, Umberger has done his best Mike Bossy imitation with a relentless drive for the net.
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| Marc-Andre Fleury improved to 11-1 in these playoffs by stopping 17 of 18 Flyers shots on Tuesday night. |
Our View: Fleury has now allowed just nine goals over his last five starts as he and his mates appear to be peaking at the most important time of year. If you drafted Fleury for your playoff pool, then, how about giving us a Yahtzee.
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| Sidney Crosby had two assists to lead his Penguins to within one game of the Stanley Cup Finals on Tuesday night in the Penguins first victory in Philadelphia in five tries this season. |
Our View: Crosby is going wild with 19 points in 12 playoff games, but that's hardly a surprise for one of the leagues most gifted players. He will likely get a chance to skate for his first Cup against the Red Wings next week.
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| Johan Franzen will miss Game 4 due to the results of a head injury, according to the Associated Press. “He’s stilling having headaches,” GM Ken Holland said. “Nothing’s changed. He’s not going to play in Game Four and he’s day-to-day. Hopefully, he feels better in a few days. “He’s not healthy enough to work out.” |
Our View: The Wings lead the series 3-0 against the Stars, so if there are any doubts about the health of Franzen, he might as well just sit out, rest up, and get ready for the Cup Finals.
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| Chuck Kobasew will remain with the Bruins after signing a 3-year contract extension with the club, according to TSN. The 3-year deal is for $7 million dollars. |
Our View: Kobasew is a nice depth forward coming off a solid season of 22 goals and 39 points and is a solid citizen though not worth much attention in fantasy circles.
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| Ryane Clowe had a great showing in the playoffs, and as a result he appears to be an intriguing target for many teams including the Oilers, according to the Calgary Herald. |
Our View: Clowe scored five goals and nine points in the playoffs after missing most of the season due to a knee injury. He is a Group 2 free-agent, but it is unclear what the Sharks would do if a team came calling for his services given that he is thought of very highly in San Jose.
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| The Blues have inked prospect T.J. Oshie to a three-year entry-level contract, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. |
Our View: The 21-year old forward was the Blues' first-round draft pick (24th overall) in 2005.
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| Ryan Parent will fill in for the injured Braydon Coburn tonight in Game 3, according to TSN.ca. |
Our View: The 21-year old defenseman did not register a goal or an assist over 22 games in the regular season. He was a first round pick in 2005.
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| Gary Roberts will miss Game 3 against the Flyers due to pneumonia, according to TSN.ca. |
Our View: He may miss more than tonight's game, and may also have been playing with the illness for about two weeks.
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| Jordan Staal is expected to play in tonight's Game 3 against the Flyers, according to SlamSports.com. The center will then travel to Thunder Bay, Ontario, on Wednesday morning to attend his grandmother's funeral. Staal will then fly back to Philadelphia on Wednesday night. As previously reported, his brother Eric will also attend the funeral. |
Our View: Staal has three goals and one assist in 11 playoff games, and provides solid depth to the Penguins.
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| Wade Redden hasn't rejected any offer to return to the Senators simply because he hasn't received one, according to the Ottawa Citizen. He will be an unrestricted free agent as of July 1. Don Meehan (Redden's agent) also noted as "nonsense" a report last week that stated Redden had rejected a request by the Senators to take as much as a $3-million pay reduction from the $6.5 million he made last season. Meehan added, "I haven't had any discussions with Bryan. I haven't had any requests from him, so I don't know where any of this nonsense is coming from."
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Our View: It is unlikely Redden will return to Ottawa, and the Panthers are believed to be interested in acquiring him if available. He would be one of the top defensemen on the market if he becomes a free agent.
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| Eric Staal left Team Canada to attend a family funeral, according to TSN.ca. Staal flew back to Thunder Bay, Ontario to attend his grandfather's funeral. He will not play in Wednesday's quarterfinal game against Norway.
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Our View: He will rejoin the team for their game on Friday, if Canada advances. Sam Gagner will be added to the roster and will suit up against Norway on Wednesday. Gagner has yet to appear in a game at this yer's IIHF World Championship. Staal has scored four goals and added three assists over six games for Canada, and racked up 82 points over 82 games for Carolina this season.
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| Braydon Coburn is listed as doubtful to play in Game 3 against the Penguins, according to the Philadelphia Daily News. Coburn suffered a severe laceration of his left eye that required more than 50 stitches to close Sunday night in the Flyers' loss in Pittsburgh. Team GM Paul Holmgren said, "Everything checked out OK. The only issue now is the swelling around his eye. That is the concern we have right now moving forward. Everything in and around his eye is fine. That's good news. He will still be listed as doubtful for the game tonight."
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Our View: The team is also without enforcer Kimmo Timonen due to a blood clot in his left ankle. He and Coburn combined for the Flyers best shut-down duo, and the Flyers will have a hard time climbing back in the series against the Penguins with them both on the shelf, as the team currently trails 2-0.
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| Brenden Morrow tried to plow into Detroit defenseman Brad Stuart in the third period of action on Monday, and Stuart simply stepped out of the way, leaving Morrow to charge into the boards and suffer a possible shoulder injury, according to the Dallas Morning News. Morrow said, "When you give them opportunities like we did, they're going to make you pay for them. Are they beatable? Yeah. Do we have to play a lot better than we are? Absolutely." Morrow also said he will be ready for Game 4, even though he was holding his left arm straight following Monday's battle.
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Our View: The team is down 3-0 in the series, but Morrow continues to fight with intensity, and scored a point in five straight games in the playoffs. The team can not afford to lose him for critical Game 4.
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| Johan Franzen is still awaiting his test results as there is no word on what is causing his headaches, according to the Detroit News. He was forced his miss his second straight game last night due to concussion-like symptoms. He was scheduled to undergo a wide arsenal of tests at Detroit Medical Center earlier in the day on Monday. Ken Holland stated, "He came to the rink the day after Game 1 against Dallas and said he's been having headaches every day for a week or 10 days or whatever it was. And we just decided, 'OK, that's not normal.' It's not to the point where it's major symptoms, but it's just constant headaches. Sometimes he takes a pill and it goes away, but then it comes back. I don't want to start speculating with you. And that's why we're saying 'concussion-like symptoms' right now, because we really don't know what's going on."
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Our View: Franzen led the league 12 playoff goals prior to his exit, and the team has rallied without him as they hold a 3-0 lead in the series versus Dallas.
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| Philippe Boucher continues to work out but still isn't ready to return to action, according to the Dallas Morning News. He is hindered by a hip strain, and has not played since April 15. |
Our View: He registered no points over three playoff games. The season could end for Dallas on Wednesday, as the team currently trails Detroit 3-0.
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| Henrik Zetterberg racked up two assists and one goal in Monday's 5-2 win over Dallas in Game 3. Detroit leads 3-0, and Zetterberg contributed five points in the series. |
Our View: He has scored in eight straight games, notching 15 points over the span. Zetterberg recorded 92 points over 75 games in the regular season, and did not disappoint in the playoffs.
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| Brian Rafalski contributed a pair of assists in Monday's 5-2 victory over Dallas in Game 3. That was his third point of the series. |
Our View: Rafalski has racked up 10 points through the playoffs, and the enforcer helped guide Detroit to a 3-0 lead in the series against Dallas.
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| Brenden Morrow chipped in an assist in Monday's 5-2 loss to Detroit in Game 3. He has now scored a point in five straight games, notching three goals and two assists over the span. |
Our View: The Stars are down 3-0 in the series, but you cannot blame Morrow, and he has been a solid source of production through the playoffs, as he generated 14 points over 15 games.
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| Nicklas Grossman collected his first goal of the playoffs in Monday's 5-2 loss to Detroit in Game 3. |
Our View: The enforcer did not score any goals over 62 games in the regular season.
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| Brad Richards scored a goal in Monday's 5-2 loss to Detroit in Game 3. It was his first goal (and point) of the series. |
Our View: Richards has scored three goals and nine assists through the playoffs and will continue to fight hard until the Stars play their final game, which is seeminly close as Dallas trails Detroit 3-0.
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