The Fantasy Hockey Weekly Planner is the essential guide to setting your lineup for the upcoming week. Every week, we provide you with top matchups, the latest news and give you the scoop on injured players.
Projections are for March 24-30 games and all stats are through Saturday.
Teams with four games: Boston, Buffalo, Calgary, Colorado, Columbus, Edmonton, Minnesota, Ottawa, Pittsburgh, San Jose, Vancouver
Teams with three games: Anaheim, Carolina, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Florida, Los Angeles, Montreal, Nashville, N.Y. Islanders, N.Y. Rangers, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Phoenix, St. Louis, Tampa Bay, Toronto, Washington
Teams with two games: Atlanta
Teams with three home games: Anaheim, Buffalo, Colorado, Minnesota, Tampa Bay
Teams with three away games: Dallas, Edmonton, Ottawa, Philadelphia, Vancouver, Washington
Teams with four away games: None
Teams with back-to-back games in the upcoming scoring period, which means that a backup goalie might start one of the two contests: Boston, Buffalo, Calgary, Carolina, Chicago, Columbus, Dallas, Edmonton, Los Angeles, Montreal, New Jersey, Ottawa, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, San Jose, St. Louis, Vancouver
On tap: Week 26 brings us seven nationally televised games in either the United States or Canada: Pittsburgh at N.Y. Islanders (CAN) on Monday; Philadelphia at N.Y. Rangers (U.S.) on Tuesday; San Jose at Phoenix (U.S.) on Tuesday; Vancouver at Colorado (CAN) on Wednesday; Montreal at Toronto (CAN) on Saturday; Edmonton at Calgary (CAN) on Saturday; N.Y. Rangers at Pittsburgh (CAN) on Sunday.
Injuries and more injuries to deal with. ... It was all but known that Peter Forsberg returning to the ice would likely be a risk and an injury-worry not only for the NHL team (Colorado) that took a chance on him, but Fantasy owners as well. Forsberg has already missed four games with a groin problem and still has to cope with the injury in the coming week. Fantasy owners of Forsberg cannot be very happy with his performances and now injury issues. Weigh your options carefully for Week 26 even though Colorado has four games. ... The Avalanche got more bad news when Marek Svatos was lost for the season after tearing his ACL on March 15 in a game against the Los Angeles Kings. Svatos finished the season with 26 goals and 37 points. ... Islanders goalie Rick DiPietro is done for the season after undergoing hip surgery on March 19. It was the second hip surgery in two years for DiPietro which makes some wonder about that fragile part of his body. DiPietro hurt his hip during the All-Star weekend and never really recovered. The Islanders remain confident about DiPietro being able to be a high quality goalie in the future. But do Fantasy owners feel the same? ... Sabres center Tim Connolly will miss the rest of the regular season after the team decided Friday he will have surgery to remove bone chips in his hip. Sabres general manager Darcy Regier said Connolly is scheduled to have surgery on Monday in Colorado. It's unclear whether Connolly will be able to return should the Sabres make the playoffs, which start in three weeks. The hip injury has bothered Connolly for much of the past three months, but he had hoped to complete the season before having surgery. He missed 13 straight games from Jan. 10 to Feb. 8, before returning to the lineup. The play-making center played in 14 of the next 16 games, before aggravating the injury when he crashed heavily into the boards during a 3-2 shootout loss to the New York Rangers on March 10. Connolly has not played since, missing the past four games. The injury was the latest setback for Connolly, who missed all but two regular season games last year because of a neck injury and post-concussion symptoms. He also missed the entire 2003-04 season because of a concussion. ... Defenseman Kurtis Foster of the Minnesota Wild also is shelved for the season after breaking his leg on March 19 in an incident that initially looked a lot more serious. Foster went down into the back boards after a collision with San Jose rookie Torrey Mitchell. Foster was taken off the ice imobilized on a stretcher which made the injury appear like it was much more severe than a broken leg. That's not to say that a broken leg which will require surgery to have a stabilizing rod inserted is any better. ... The Flyers also took a blow when they learned defenseman Derian Hatcher, who no longer has the Fantasy value he might've had a few years back, was out for the season after breaking his right tibia just above the ankle in the game against the Bruins on March 15. Hatcher has already missed time this season with knee problems. ... Toronto was not spared a season-ending injury either when it was announced on March 20 that defenseman Carlo Colaiacovo torned his groin muscle on March 18 against the Islanders and was done for the campaign. Colaiacovo was limited to just 28 games this season. ... Dan Fritsche is leaving the Blue Jackets shorthanded at the center position to end the season after he was ruled out following surgery on March 20 to have a broken bone in his left hand set. Fritsche broke the hand a night earlier against Detroit. The 22-year-old has not been very fortunate in his young NHL career as he also had the 2006-07 season shortened by a wrist injury.
Three Stars of the Week
Jason Pominville, RW, Buffalo: He is one of the hottest players in the NHL right now, and to think the Sabres were considering using him on the blue line because of their depleted defensive core. Pominville scored three goals, had five assists and a plus-6 rating in three games. The 25 Fantasy points production for the week came on 10 shots on goal. Basically Pominville has been on a tear in March (6 goals, 9 assists in 10 games), but really since the last week of January.
Sami Salo, D, Vancouver: It's good to have a positive week like Salo had after he went without a point in five previous games. Getting an average of a point per game from a defenseman is what should please any Fantasy owner. Salo had one power-play goal and three assists in four games, with the Canucks winning three of them. Throw in four penalty minutes and that makes it 17 valuable Fantasy points from Salo.
Niklas Backstrom, G, Minnesota: Solid week for the Wild netminder who is getting it done just when his team needs it. The 30-year-old has allowed just five goals in collecting three wins, including a shutout against the Los Angeles Kings. That makes it a 1.23 goals-against average and an impressive .958 save percentage. Backstrom also needs one more win to reach 30 for the season.
| F I V E T E A M S W I T H F A V O R A B L E M A T C H U P S |
| The following five teams have the best matchups for the upcoming week. That doesn't necessarily mean they will post the best Fantasy stats, but if you're looking for a one-week start or are trying to make a difficult decision between two players to use, lean toward players from these teams: |
| Team | 3/24 | 3/25 | 3/26 | 3/27 | 3/28 | 3/29 | 3/30 |
| Florida Panthers | -- | @TB | -- | ATL | -- | WAS | --- |
| They are right on the verge of making the playoffs and are rolling at the right time. The Panthers have won seven of the last eight games to close within three points of the eighth (Philadelphia) playoff spot and four points from seventh place (Boston). With some help and strong play in the last six games, the Panthers might just be able to make it. Florida takes on Southeast opponents Tampa Bay and Atlanta, who have little to play for. The contest against the Capitals should be a real good one as both teams are fighting for a playoff spot. |
| San Jose Sharks | -- | @PHO | -- | DAL | @ANA | -- | PHO |
| There is no team hotter than the Sharks and goalie Evgeni Nabokov has a lot to do with this success. San Jose has won 14 of the last 15 games, with Nabokov earning 12 of those wins. Nabokov leads the league with 43 wins and is tremendous in net right now. The Sharks have two games against the Coyotes, a Pacific Division opponent they've beaten four of six times, including three shutouts. |
| Anaheim Ducks | -- | -- | LA | -- | SJ | -- | DAL |
| With three home games, the Ducks should have the upper hand against the division-rival Kings, Sharks and Stars for Week 26. Anaheim has the best record at home (25-8-4) and are also pretty good against Pacific Division teams (12-9-5). The Ducks have put together a good run down the stretch, having won seven of the last 10 games. |
| Buffalo Sabres | -- | OTT | -- | @OTT | MON | -- | BOS |
| The Sabres start the week with a home-and-home matchup against Ottawa and plays three of four games at the HSBC Arena. Look for the key game to possibly be against the Boston Bruins next Sunday, one of the teams they are chasing for a playoff position. Buffalo is on the outside looking in right now, with Boston sitting in the seventh position. It would be a good idea to use Sabres players who have a lot to play for down the stretch. |
| New York Rangers | -- | PHI | -- | NJ | -- | -- | @PIT |
| The Rangers have winning records this season against all three Atlantic Division rivals they play this week. The most impressive and perhaps a little surprising, too, is the six straight wins in as many games against Devils goalie Martin Brodeur, scoring 14 times while allowing just five goals. New York is almost as good against the Flyers and Penguins, winning four of six meetings against each team. The Rangers have outscored the Penguins 18-12 and the Flyers 22-17. |
| F I V E T E A M S W I T H P O O R M A T C H U P S |
| The following five teams have the worst matchups for the upcoming week. That doesn't necessarily mean you should reserve every player from these teams, but try to avoid less-heralded performers from these squads if you have a better alternative: |
| Team | 3/24 | 3/25 | 3/26 | 3/27 | 3/28 | 3/29 | 3/30 |
| Atlanta Thrashers | -- | -- | -- | @FLA | @CAR | -- | -- |
| It hasn't been good news for the Thrashers playing against Southeast divisional rivals Florida and Carolina this season, both of whom have owned Atlanta. The Thrashers are 2-4 against the Panthers and 2-5 against the Hurricanes, having lost the last four meetings against each team. Carolina took down Atlanta 5-3, 6-3 and 5-3 again in the last three games. It should be mentioned that they play back-to-back against these playoff contenders and on the road. Florida in particular has a lot to play for, chasing that eighth playoff spot. |
| New York Islanders | PIT | -- | -- | @PIT | -- | PHI | -- |
| What the Islanders, who have faded from the playoff picture, have left to play for in the last two weeks of the regular season is pride and perhaps be a spoiler for teams like the Philadelphia Flyers. The problem is that Philly has outplayed the Isles this season, winning five of six meetings and scoring 22 goals in the process while allowing just 12. The story is pretty much the same against the Penguins for the home-and-home series. Pittsburgh won four of six games, scoring an average of three goals per game. |
| St. Louis Blues | -- | DET | -- | -- | @DET | CHI | -- |
| Not much going right for the Blues, who are 2-7-1 in the last 10 games. St. Louis has split six games with Detroit, but not when it comes to goal differential where the Red Wings hold a significantly better 17 goals scored against 10 allowed. Chris Osgood will likely get at least one start of the home-and-home contests considering he shut down the Blues twice already (5-0 and 3-0). |
| Phoenix Coyotes | -- | SJ | -- | @LA | -- | -- | @SJ |
| The nine-point gap to make up for that eighth playoff position in the Western Conference is probably to big to overcome for the Coyotes, who have struggled lately. To make matters even tougher, they play San Jose twice. The Sharks have been one of the hottest teams in the last 10 games (9-0-1). Evgeni Nabokov, who leads the league with 43 wins, has been very sharp against the Coyotes with three shutouts already and four wins in six meetings. |
| Dallas Stars | -- | -- | -- | @SJ | -- | @LA | @ANA |
| The Stars play three road games in four nights against teams from California. Three games in four nights is never an easy proposition to deal with at home or away, especially as they have not played good hockey recently. Dallas has lost three straight and six of seven. |
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