Mr. Shark's ARTICLES

All Statistics are good as of games played March 16^th.

There is approximately a month left in the season and there are still many questions on where some teams will finish. There is however two things we can count on. The first is that the Dallas Stars will have home ice advantage throughout the playoffs for finishing first and winning the President’s Trophy. The second sure thing is that Washington Capitals, New York Islanders, Tampa Bay Lightning, Nashville Predators, Vancouver Canucks and the Chicago Blackhawks will all be watching the Stanley Cup Playoffs on a television.

The Washington Capitals were four games from winning the Stanley Cup last year. This year has been a major disappointment that can partially be blamed on injury, but mostly on poor play.

There are some players to watch for in the Capitals last 15 games.

Defenseman Sergei Gonchar has been a much better point producer since January 1^st. He has almost doubled the scoring pace he was at then and has been one of the few reasons Washington was able to flirt with getting a Playoff spot. Expect Gonchar to continue a torrid pace, especially his goal scoring the rest of the season.

A Fantasy team that is really desperate may want to take defensive defenseman Ken Klee. He has 17 points in 63 games this season and looks like he could be getting even better quality ice-time if the expected happens and a few of his teammates get traded.

Fantasy owners in long term Fantasy Leagues may want to take a good long look at some the Washington’s youth. This season has been pretty much of a write off for forward Richard Zednik, defenseman Nolan Baumgartner & forward Jaroslav Svejkovsky. Richard Zednik looked very good in last years Playoffs and probably tricked many into selecting him. He has only 12 points in 34 games this season, but the big problem has been the injuries. Zednik has too much talent for anyone to give up on yet as he is still worth a gamble.

Nolan Baumgartner has spent a lot of time in the minors and has only 10 NHL games to his credit 5 of which are this season. The reason he may still be worth a gamble is that he was a 1^st round 10^th overall pick by the Capitals in 1994. The other reasons are the serious injury to Calle Johansson and the potential trading of veteran defensemen Dimitri Mirinov and or Mark Tinordi.

Jaroslav Svejkovsky had an injury plagued season last year playing in only 17 games for the Capitals. This season he has also been hurt often, but he is healthy now and playing relatively well. He has a respectable 14 points in 25 games and could be even more prominent if players like impending free-agent Joe Juneau are dumped by the trading deadline.

The once proud Chicago Blackhawks are now a laughing stock around the NHL. If this franchise is serious about fixing their problems expect a few major trades. Doug Gilmour has not proven to be the leader that Blackhawks thought they had when they paid him 18 million over 3 years. He can however help any team that could use a great second line center. He has 53 points in 67 games and even if he isn’t moved, Gilmour should be happier and more productive under his new coach.

The Chicago Blackhawks recent call ups J.P. Dumont and Josef Marha have been good. Dumont may be up for good as he appears to be ready to learn at the NHL level. Josef Marha production may rely more on who leaves Chicago than on his production. Of the two Dumont is the safer player in a keeper league.

Blackhawks underachiever’s Eric Daze and Chad Kilger may have finally put an end to their slow starts. Daze had a pitiful 13 points in his first 32 games and Kilger had 12 points 35 games. Of the two players, Daze was the biggest disappointment as he is counted on to score 30 goals. Daze has had 15 points in his last 25 games, better but not great. Expect him to play better now that the pressure is off.

Chad Kilger has only 25 points in 64 games for the Hawks, but both are already career highs. He is finally showing some of the potential that has made him be involved in a trade for Teemu Selanne. If things go right for Kilger in the last 15 games he should be able to score 7 or 8 points.

Due to Vancouver Canucks being eliminated from the playoffs and key injuries, Josh Holden and Peter Schaefer are both expected to remain up with the Canucks the rest of this season. Holden has actually appeared to have some chemistry with much maligned Alex Mogilny. He is still a risk but Holden may have finally arrived as a second line center that should be able to produce close to 10 points the rest of the season.

Peter Schaefer was not expected to see any quality time with the Canucks. He was too small and weak at the start of the year, but has bulked up and could be ready to be a good forward. He is still a huge gamble to score at the NHL level.

Two Canucks going in opposite directions are Dave Gagner and Alexander Mogilny. Gagner was not, as some would have you believed, a casualty of the numbers game in Florida. He is truly finished as a legitimate first of second line center in the National Hockey League. Dump him if you have him and pick up Josh Holden!

Alex Mogilny is making over 4 million this season and has been a huge let down. Even forgiving his injuries he has appeared disinterested at best in producing only 33 points in 45 games this season. Whether it’s due to Mogilny’s recent partnership of Holden or just simple pride, he may be a player that could break out in the Canucks’ last 14 games. It is not unreasonable for him to produce a point a game the rest of the way.

The most surprising thing about the Nashville Predators is their consistency. They have been slumping as of late, but they are still respectable and give a good effort in most every game. Speaking of consistency, Greg Johnson and Scott Walker have both displayed it this season.

On January 1^st Greg Johnson was on a 61 point pace, he has now picked up that pace to 64. With 45 points in 58 games Johnson is proving to be a quality second line center that should be able to produce 12 points in Nashville’s last 15 games.

Fan favorite Scott Walker has displayed a surprising knack for producing points this season. Too small to be a legitimate heavy weight, he has become a good power forward. He has almost matched his career totals for points this season with 32 in 56 games played. He had only 44 points in 197 games with the Vancouver Canucks.

Mike Milbury continues to work his magic on the New York Islanders. It now appears that Trevor Linden will be on the way out as early as the trade deadline. In the right situation Linden could produce at a 60 point pace, he presently is at a 45-point level. If traded Linden could see a big increase in points over the final games.

The Islanders gamble on Craig Janney has been a dismal failure as he is doubtful to finish the season with them. A Fantasy owner that has Janney may be stuck with a player that is not even playing, drop him now. He’s finished!

With the recent dumping of Scott Lachance to the Montreal Canadiens, Eric Brewer may finally get the ice time needed to become a viable Fantasy defenseman. He has 9 points in 54 games this season and is very close to breaking through. In a long term Fantasy League, Brewer’s value is even more evident.

Tampa Bay Lightning have two players to watch in their last 16 games. They are Wendel Clark and first overall pick Vincent Lecavalier.

Wendel Clark will most likely be traded this season, but either way he should still produce well. His production has slowed and his current numbers, 38 points in 62 games, are not as impressive as they were earlier in the year. If Clark stays expect a slight decline in his numbers. If he goes as is expected he could have a great finish.

Vincent Lecavalier has been steadily improving as the seasons progressed. Expect a steady growth in his production the rest of the season. He had only 10 points in his first 36 games but he has 12 points in his last 30 games. He may produce 8 points in his last 16 games as he is likely to get even more playing time.

All Statistics are good as of games played March 22^nd.

There is no doubt that for the true hockey fan the period in and around the trade deadline is one of the most exciting times of the hockey season. Part of the excitement is the big names that get moved, but a major reason is the arguments induced on what teams helped themselves the most or the least! The trade deadline can also be significant for Fantasy owners, imagine the points that can be gained by a player that receives a fresh start on a team that will use him in more offensive situations.

Here is a list of players that should see an immediate benefit from their team’s involvement in a trading deadline deals.

With the New York Islanders trading away of their under appreciated goalie Tommy Salo to the Edmonton Oilers, it will see Wade Flaherty garner much of the early benefit. The Islanders number one goalie is Felix Potvin is expected out for possibly the rest of the season with a groin injury. That leaves Wade Flaherty to receive the bulk of the late season playing time. If you’re in a Fantasy League that rewards goalies for mostly wins don’t expect many. Otherwise Flaherty should still be available and be very cheap.

Tommy Salo would have seen a lot of playing time with the Islanders with Felix Potvin being injured. But with the Edmonton Oilers, Salo will get more wins and better protection. Plus he would have lost some games to Wade Flaherty, as the Islanders had to play Flaherty enough to make him eligible for the upcoming expansion draft.

On the surface the Dallas Stars acquiring Benoit Hogue & Derek Plante appears to be minor deals. But Hogue has a lot of speed and can get hot. In fact he has 8 points in his last 10 games with the Lightning who had been trying to unload him most of the season. Hogue is most likely to see time on the third line, but with 11 goals this season he may get some time on the top two lines.

Getting veteran center Derek Plante could revitalize this shifty little player. It was only two years ago he scored 27 goals and 26 assists in 82 games with the Sabres. He also produced 10 points in only 12 playoff games. Plante had been bumped down the depth-chart and even though the same will be true in Dallas, expect his production to nearly double.

Moving back to the Toronto Maple Leafs will really help Yanic Perreault’s poor offensive production. He had only 27 points in 64 games with the Kings, but with Toronto he will be on a much better offensive club. He also will be aided by serious injuries to Maple Leaf centers Igor Korolev and Alyn McCauley.

The Philadelphia Flyers getting Steve Duchesne should make the Fantasy owners that have Duchesne jump for joy. He had been sat 6 straight games and was no longer part of the Kings’ plans. He only produced 23 points in 60 games in Los Angeles, but with the Flyers potentially high powered offense and Desjardins injury, Duchesne will see his numbers skyrocket.

Defenseman Anders Ericksson will get the kind of quality ice time in Chicago he could only dream of with the Detroit Red Wings. He had only 12 points in 61 games with Detroit. He has been a promising Fantasy defensive prospect for the last few seasons. Unfortunately he has yet to live up to the hype. But he is only 24 years old and with a fresh start this could be a turning point in his career.

Joe Juneau will see his 41 points in 63 games increase faster with the Sabres than they would with Washington. The Sabres have scored one more goal than the Capitals. Plus Juneau will have two more games in Buffalo and he should be excited about being part of the playoffs. If all that isn’t enough to pump up his numbers, plain old greed should inspire this soon to be unrestricted free-agent!

Here is a list of players that were involved in deadline deals, but are not expected to see any immediate benefit from a trade this season.

Wendel Clark being sent to Detroit will do little for his offensive numbers, because with 42 points in 65 games, he was already producing well in Tampa Bay. Remember most Detroit players are more concerned with winning than they are with great offensive numbers.

Production wise, Robert Reichel should not be expected to produce any better in Phoenix. Even though the Islanders were and are a horrible hockey team, Reichel was an offensive leader. In Phoenix he may play with better linemates but a slight reduction in quality playing time should negate most of any positives quality linemates would have!

New York Islanders’ Brad Isbister has played in nearly 100 NHL games, he has only 25 points. Don’t expect a major increase in points any time soon from this big forward.

As a small part of a big trade involving Boris Mirinov, Daniel Cleary of the Edmonton Oilers will not be rushed into playing time. In fact he was immediately sent to the Edmonton’s farm team. Mats Lindgren was a solid plus 5 with the Oilers and had chipped in with 17 points in 49 games. He is however primarily a checking forward and with the sad-sack Islanders scoring opportunities for anyone will be at a minimum.

Here is a list of players that were not directly involved in deadline deals, but will be hurt by their team’s involvement in a trade at the deadline.

The acquisition of Tommy Salo makes previous starting goalie Bob Essensa an invisible man with the Oilers. The Oilers are in a neck and neck battle for the playoffs with their Alberta counterparts and will play Salo until he drops. Edmonton only plays two back to back games the rest of the season. With a dozen games left Essensa will be luck to play two more games.

Larry Murphy should see a decline in his production with Detroit’s acquisition of Chris Chelios. Murphy’s 46 points in 69 games are better than Chelios’s 34 points in 65 games, but Chelios is still a much better defenseman.

Corey Schwab had recently been seeing the bulk of the work with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Unfortunately for Schwab, the team had little confidence in him. Their acquisition of Kevin Hodson from Detroit should seal Schwab’s fate and he should the majority of the games from the bench.

Tony Hrkac has been a fringe Fantasy forward at best with occasional offensive outbursts that left him with 23 points in 61 games with Dallas. The acquisition of Hogue and especially Plante will decimate his playing time. Now even if there is an injury, due to the Stars increase in depth, he will not see a greater role.

The Detroit Red Wings Tomas Holmstrom has not progressed as much as was predicted. In fact, with only 27 points in 70 games, Holmstrom’s season could very easily be classified a disaster. This seasons poor production is a surprise, especially with the excitement he created in the playoffs with 19 points in 22 games. The acquisition of Wendel Clark should move Holmstrom down the Red Wings’ depth-chart and lower his production even farther.

The trade line has come and gone and in some cases we will not know who won and lost a trade for years. Often times the trade that looks like an afterthought is the best one. Detroit’s acquisition of Larry Murphy from Toronto a few seasons ago for future consideration was an example of a small trade that turned out to be much more important than first thought. Another example is Buffalo’s acquisition of Miroslav Satan, who took a little while, but has become a legitimate scoring threat with the Sabres this season.

A special note for Fantasy owners that have any Florida Panthers. The loss of Pavel Bure for the rest of the season will not only decimate any chance of making the playoffs it will hurt most of the players in regards to offensive production. The one player, however that may see an increase is Mark Parrish who seems to have rebounded from a horrible mid-season. He has 8 points in his last 15 games and should be given more opportunities to score.

PLAYOFF FINAL 4 (prediction)

April 7, 1999

All Statistics are good as of games played April 5^th.

Now that the regular season is almost over and the playoffs are only a few weeks away an early look at the players and teams that should be of great interest are in order. To anyone new to fantasy hockey and planning on entering one of the numerous Playoff Pools that sprout up at work or with friends, there are different strategies that are not always obvious.

The most important thing to remember that the team a player plays on is huge factor on whether that player will see any success. If Anaheim loses in the first round and Dallas makes it to the Stanley Cup Final then the Anaheim Mighty Ducks’ Paul Kariya will not be as valuable as the Dallas Stars’ Jere Lehtinen.

An important regular season statistic to look at when creating a list for your Playoff Draft is points per game. When computing how many points you think the players will get count on about 5 games a round.

The key in winning a playoff hockey pool is too limit yourself to the teams that you figure are going to be in the Championships in both Conferences. The worst thing in the world is to watch your players face each in the early rounds and knock each other out! Often the Fantasy owner with the most players left by the 3^rd round will win. So here’s a look at the four teams predicted to make it to the Final Four!

In the Western Conference the Dallas Stars & Colorado Avalanche are my choices to play each other in the Conference Final. Here’s a brief look at the players from each team in order.

The Dallas Stars:

Mike Modano (2^nd) is my pick to be the runner-up in playoff scoring. He has 79 points in 74 games in the regular season and 56 points in 72 career playoff games. But remember most of those playoff games were in playoffs series that his teams lost.

Joe Nieuwendyk’s (7^th) injury in the last years playoffs seemed to totally deflate the Stars hopes of winning the Stanley Cup. His value to Dallas is not just his scoring but the pressure he takes off Modano. Nieuwendyk has 65 points in 74 career playoff games. I’ve ranked him high but he is a huge risk so hold your breath when selecting him!

Brett Hull (8^th) has 120 points in 108 career playoff games but his teams have had little success in those games. He may have more success with a lot less pressure on him in Dallas compared to being the St. Louis Blues one real threat.

Jere Lehtinen (10^th) is arguably the best two-way forward in the National Hockey League. He has a promising 12 points in 19 career playoff games.

The Stars two excellent defenseman Sergei Zubov (ranked 17^th) & Darryl Sydor (28^th) should help carry them to the Stanley Cup Final. Zubov has 32 points in 74 career playoff games, while Sydor has 30 points in only 48 career playoff games.

Jamie Langenbrunner (29^th), Pat Verbeek (47^th), Mike Keane (52^nd) and Derian Hatcher (55^th) are steady picks that if added to the right players will give depth to your playoff roster. Langenbrunner has the most potential, but only Keane is guaranteed a lot of ice time.

If you’re sold on the Dallas Stars going all the way then you just might want to gamble on any one of Benoit Hogue (53^rd), Tony Hrkac (61^st), Derek Plante (70^th), and if you’re really brave Grant Marshall (78^th). The problem with them is they could just as easily be sat out in a game as score well. Pick these players very late in the draft.

The Colorado Avalanche:

Peter Forsberg (1^st) is my pick to get the most points in the playoffs. Forsberg is currently 4^th in regular season scoring but more importantly produces great in the playoffs. In 49 playoff games played he has 55 points.

Joe Sakic (3^rd) could easily be switched with Forsberg for 1^st overall. Currently 6^th in regular season scoring with 3 less points than Forsberg but also played in 5 fewer games.

Sakic has produced 75 points in 57 career playoff games.

Just behind his teammates is Theo Fleury (5^th), who has had great success in his time in Colorado with 19 points in 10 games is also a threat in the playoffs. He has 62 points in 59 playoff games.

Sandis Ozolinsh (9^th) is my choice to get the most points by a defenseman in the playoffs. He has only 30 points this season but they came in 34 games a great point per game pace when computed over a full season. Ozolinsh has 58 points in 71 career playoff games.

The next best Avalanche is Claude Lemieux (11^th) whose playoff success is legendary. He has only 51 points in 77 regular season games this season. But remember he has 133 points in 179 career playoff games and plays better in the playoffs.

Valeri Kamensky (15^th if healthy) has 44 points in 65 games and is currently badly injured so it’s anybody’s guess if he returns and how long it will take for him to return to form. When healthy he has chipped in with 51 points in 54 career playoff games.

Adam Deadmarsh (30^th) has rebounded nicely from a horrible year last season last year with 48 points in only 66 games played. He is a bit more of a risk than his teammates as he has only 29 points in 52 career playoff games.

Colorado’s two Calder hopefuls Chris Drury & Milan Hejduk are slotted in at 67^th & 73^rd respectively. They have not been exposed to the pressure of the playoffs, but they do have the benefit of not having to be the go to guys.

In the Eastern Conference the New Jersey Devils & Ottawa Senators are my choices to play each other in the Conference Final. Although if healthy I would’ve slipped the Philadelphia Flyers into the mix. Here’s a brief look at the players from each team in order.

The New Jersey Devils:

Jason Arnott (12^th) would not be most fans choice to lead the Devils in playoff scoring. He has 11 points in 17 career games, but more importantly seems to have regained his lost confidence this season. This year he has 50 points in 69 games much of which have been in the second half.

Petr Sykora (13^th) has yet to produce a point in the playoffs although he’s only played 4 games. This season has been a breakout year for him with 67 points in 73 games played and this should continue in the playoffs.

Bobby Holik (16^th) is the offensive leader for New Jersey and if he hadn’t performed so miserably in the playoffs with only 19 points in 72 career games would have been ranked much higher. Different reasons can be given for the poor output like not being given offensive opportunities earlier in his career, but that is a lot of games to have so few points.

Offensive defenseman Scott Niedermayer (18^th) has 42 points in 65 games this season. He has 26 points in 61 career playoff games, but 19 of those playoff points have come in his last 36 games.

Since I’ve picked the Devils to go the Finals they will have a lot of players that should score well but are risky for various reasons. Rookie Brendan Morrison (19^th), youngsters Patrik Elias (23^rd), Dennis Pederson (60^th), Sergei Brylin (62^nd) and Vadim Sharifijanov (68^th) are all yet to have success in the playoffs.

Brian Rolston (27^th), Randy McKay (39^th), defenseman Lyle Odelein (45^th) are all steady but unspectacular playoff performers. Dave Andreychuk (49^th) is very inconsistent in the playoffs producing as much as 19 points in one playoff in Toronto, but only has 1 point in 7 playoff games with New Jersey.

The Ottawa Senators:

Alexei Yashin (6^th) finally fulfilled his vast potential this season by producing a career high 90 points in 76 games. He has 14 points in 18 career playoff games and is the heart and sole of the Senators.

Daniel Alfredsson (25^th) has had a poor year with only 32 points in 52 injury plagued games. One thing should not be underestimated is his skill and at anytime he could get hot. He has 16 points in 18 career playoff games an incredible 12 of those points have been goals!

As poor of a year as Alfredsson has had Shawn McEachern (26^th) has been the opposite. He has chipped in with 55 points in 75 games the most he has had since his 1993-94 rookie season. McEachern has only 26 points in 71 career playoff games but being on Yashin’s line should help improve those numbers.

Recently acquired Nelson Emerson (31^st) and Ted Donato (111^th) will add offensive depth but could see limited action in games that the Senators are trying to hold a lead!

Andreas Dackell (42^nd), Magnus Arvedson (57^th) and Andreas Johansson (76^th) have had surprising seasons but that does not always translate to playoff success. All have had limited success in the playoffs and should picked carefully.

Rookie Marian Hossa (87^th) could be the surprise of the playoffs like Detroit Red Wings’ Tomas Holmstrom and Washington Capitals’ Richard Zednik were last season. This guy is has a ton of talent and given time will be a star in the NHL! He has 27 points in 54 games this season.

Defensemen Jason York (59^th), Wade Redden (71^st), Igor Kravchuk (80^th), and rookie Sami Salo (133^rd) will have moderate success. Watch for Salo to surprise as long as he can take the pressure.

Remember playoffs pools are a crapshoot, there is little reward for being conservative especially with a pool that is not a carry over from a Fantasy league. Most successful Fantasy owners find success by an aggressive philosophy. Take smart chances, but make sure you do take chances! There are almost always huge upsets in the first round. Try not to spread your players over too many different teams. A playoff pool is a marathon not a sprint so having the most points starting round 2 but losing most of your players is not a recipe for success in any playoff pool!

The 1st ROUND(an early look!)

April 14, 1999

All Statistics are good as of games played April 13^th.

The regular season finally ends this Sunday, and the National Hockey League playoffs begin Wednesday, April 21^st. The teams are set that will make the playoffs, unfortunately for Fantasy fans the match-ups are still sorting themselves out. Last week we looked at the four teams, (Dallas, Colorado, Ottawa, & New Jersey), that we predict to go to their respective Conference Final. Now will look at the players on the other teams. Some are big gambles while others could easily surprise.

The first round tends to be the most competitive and also the most exciting. That usually corresponds to the odd upset plus a longer series. Last season’s first round produced 6 series that went 6 games or longer. In the next 3 rounds combined there were 7 more series with only three lasting 6 games.

Losing in the first round obviously limits the players scoring on that team, but it also limits the number of players that will be of any help in a Fantasy hockey pool or league. Of the 26 players that reached double digits in last seasons playoffs only 1 player never made it past the first round. In fact only 2 others only made it the second round. As you can see to many players exiting the playoffs early would be a disaster!

Long Shots:

The Edmonton Oilers have produced upsets two playoffs in a row. That streak is about to end for a three good reasons. The first is no Curtis Joseph, and a struggling Doug Weight. The most important reason is the Dallas Stars! The Stars are just too good to be upset by the Oilers again.

With little chance of playing another round, only Doug Weight and a healthy Bill Guerin are safe picks. In a deep draft you might want to add defensemen Roman Hamrlik & Janne Niinnimaa for the possibility of powerplay points. All the other should be considered as risky picks in all but the deepest draft!

The Boston Bruins will mostly likely play Ottawa in the first round and even though this is a series many hockey experts will be predicting an upset, we’ll stay with the favorite. Depth becomes very important over a long series and the Bruins have very little.

The Bruins do have a few stars like Jason Allison, who should get a point per game. Dmitri Khristich & ageless future hall of famer Ray Bourque that may also pass the 5 point mark. The Bruins also have Sergei Samsonov having an off year, but he did have a good playoff last season with 7 points in 6 games. For the real hardcore Bruin fan there’s Joe Thornton, who has finally shown he belongs in the league.

The San Jose Sharks have been very good especially since trading for Vincent Damphousse from Montreal. Unfortunately for the Sharks reality should set in very quickly against their likely first round opponents Colorado Avalanche. Of all the playoff teams they were also the lowest scoring.

The best pick of the Sharks may just be their newest player. Vincent Damphousse had 9 points in 10 playoff games last season and is revitalized and happy in San Jose. Jeff Friesen only had 1 point in 6 playoff games last season, he’ll improve with Damphousse taking some of the pressure off him. Joe Murphy will produce as long as the others produce, but his production is tied to their performance and that he stays on the top line. Owen Nolan is a safe if unspectacular late middle round pick.

The St. Louis Blues are probably the best team no one talks about. Currently they are seeded 6^th which places them against the 2-time defending Stanley Cup champions Detroit Red Wings. The Blues have suffered from poor goaltending all season and even with the recent resurgence of Grant Fuhr, it is questionable whether it will be good enough to extend a series to 6 games. If however they move up to the 5^th seed they would be a definite possibility of winning a round.

Emerging star, Pavol Demitra had a decent playoff last season with 6 points in 10 games. He will find no little room to move against Detroit. Even though Pierre Turgeon has been classified as an underachiever when it counts, he has been fairly productive with 55 points in 59 career playoff games. The Blues twin towers of defensemen Al MacInnis and Chris Pronger will be the key to any playoff success the Blues have. A good late round pick on the Blues is Scott Young, a pretty decent offensive player in the playoffs.

The Carolina Hurricanes get less respect than Rodney Dangerfield. They will most certainly be the underdog against any first round opponent they will play. Currently they are matched up against the Buffalo Sabres. Home ice should bring the pressure that some teams will face as there probably will be few fans there to watch.

Ray Sheppard seams to have found a home in Carolina and should be reasonably productive. Keith Primeau hasn’t been in the playoffs since he was with Detroit 3 years ago. He only had 20 points in 64 career playoff games and was basically traded because he was an offensive disappointment. Primeau is a much better player than he was in Detroit and has proven under pressure he is a leader. Ron Francis had 6 points in 6 playoff games last season playing with Jaromir Jagr. The decrease talent level of his teammates and age has caught up with him, and he’s unlikely to reach 5 points. This will be Sami Kapanen’s first time in the playoffs. He has tons of speed but little size and should have trouble with the increased intensity of the playoffs.

Flip a Coin:

The Pittsburgh Penguins are currently seeded 7^th and that would match them with the extremely tough New Jersey Devils. The Penguins may not have the grit necessary to survive the pounding of the playoffs. If they don’t move up to the 6^th seed then count on them having a lot of trouble. Although with Jagr and a healthy Tom Barrasso they may even give the Devils a rough go.

Jaromir Jagr is the most offensively gifted player in the NHL today, but he will be a marked man. With middle round picks like Martin Straka, German Titov, Alexei Kovalev & the super pest Matthew Barnaby the only players that should have any playoff success it will be a tough playoff for Jagr to reach 10 points!

The Anaheim Mighty Ducks may have 2 of the NHL’s best players. But that may not be enough to carry them very far in the playoffs. They are likely to play Phoenix and even though the Coyotes have cooled down from a great start, Anaheim just doesn’t have the depth to play even up with them.

Teemu Selanne & Paul Kariya are going to get points no matter who they play, but with no other real threats they will find Phoenix playing them extremely tough. Fredrik Olausson is having a great year playing with these two superstars. He’s emerged as a real threat on the powerplay as one of the finest quarterbacking defensemen this season. Steve Rucchin & Marty McInnis go are dependable if unspectacular later round picks that should hover around the 4 or 5 point mark.

At the start of the season the Phoenix Coyotes were the surprise of the league with a great start. Other than the Sharks they are the only other team with less than 200 goals scored. With a healthy team and the added depth of Robert Reichel they may finally have the depth that has held them back from winning in the playoffs.

If they can get along for the team Keith Tkachuk and Jeremy Roenick could both be successful. Tkachuk has 15 points in 19 games in his last 3 playoffs, while Jeremy Roenick has been even better with 26 points over only 22 playoff games. Robert Reichel should give them added scoring and could break the 10pt mark. Rick Tocchet, Dallas Drake and Greg Adams who’s been great the last half of the season should all be good middle round picks. Teppo Numminen, Jyrki Lumme and underachieving Oleg Tverdovsky give the defense an offensive presence the franchise hasn’t had since they were in Winnipeg.

If the Toronto Maple Leafs can learn how to play defensive hockey in the next week or two then they may win a few rounds otherwise count on an early exit. Curtis Joseph does have the talent to win a round but I’d bet against it.

Mats Sundin has not has had this much depth around him since he was playing for the Quebec Nordiques. That should help him produce just over a point a game. Steve Thomas has found the fountain of youth or maybe it was just a system more suited to offense. Sergei Berezin has had a great year and has proven he can score, but will he play a lot when they’re behind. If Steve Sullivan stays in the line-up he will continue to score, that’s a huge if! Igor Korolev is injured, and Derek King & Mike Johnson are middle to late round picks respectively. Yanic Perreault has been hot since coming over from the Kings, but he was traded for a reason no commitment to defense!

The Philadelphia Flyers have proven they will try to buy a cup, unfortunately for them they can’t buy a break! It is extremely unlikely that Eric Lindros will play at all in the playoffs and if buy some chance he does how effective will he be. The Flyers have basically been counted out, but maybe they shouldn’t be!

John LeClair is a superstar and should put up numbers that reflect that. Rod Brind’Amour & Mark Recchi are both high draft picks that come through in the clutch. Keith Jones, Mikael Renberg should both be middle round picks. Eric Desjardins has proven that he’s the Flyers number one defenseman, but Dan McGillis & Steve Duchesne can both be decent later round picks. A real Flyer fan may even want to add Daymond Langkow or Valeri Zelepukin in the very late rounds of a deep pool.

Bet the house:

The Detroit Red Wings will be many fans choice to 3-peat this season. But the odds and Colorado or Dallas should stop that from happening.

Detroit does have many reliable players that have proven there desire to do what it takes in the playoffs. Steve Yzerman has become arguably the best captain in sports and will continue to produce this playoffs. Sergei Fedorov will start playing with more intensity and should reach 10 points again. Defensemen Niklas Lidstrom & Larry Murphy and forwards Darren McCarty, Slava Kozlov, Wendel Clark, Martin Lapointe & Igor Larionov will chip in with their usual performances. But Chelios, Tomas Holmstrom & Brendan Shanahan will probably all be overrated for what they will produce.

If the Buffalo Sabres play the Carolina Hurricanes they will be reasonably assured of making it to at least the second round. The biggest reason is they still have Hasek. The Sabres players know that their playoff success is limited to how well Hasek plays.

Good early to middle round picks off Buffalo are emerging star Miroslav Satan, the intense Michael Peca, Michal Grosek, Joe Juneau last years hero for Washington, Curtis Brown and Dixon Ward. Dependable Stu Barnes, defensemen Jason Woolley and Alexei Zhitnik should be good later picks. Players that have potential, but have been mediocre this season, but would still be worth a late round pick are Vaclav Varada, Brian Holzinger and Geoff Sanderson.

There are usually a few upsets in the first round for different reasons. The combination of an extra game and the added pressure leads to upsets in the first round. But more importantly for Fantasy owners, increased scoring.

For many of teams like Edmonton & Carolina just making the playoffs is a successful means they had a successful season. This often leads to many of these teams playing loose at least in the first round. While teams like Dallas and Detroit will not be satisfied with just making the playoffs. Last season the pressure engulfed Philadelphia and Colorado and they were upset in the first round by much weaker teams.

Updated 1st Round

April 19, 1999

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