That was the impression we got after watching the Penguins’ Deryk Engelland and the Rangers’ Brandon Prust go at it last night.  It was a great way to get the season rolling again, and was definitely worthy of our “Frozen Fisticuffs Fight of the Night” for Tuesday, February 1, 2011.

This week’s honorable mention goes to Cristobal Huet (G) – Chicago Blackhawks (2 W / 0.50 GAA / .982 SAV% / 1 Shutout)  His 2 wins came against the Ottawa Senators and the Columbus Blue Jackets all at home.  He shutout the Senators and beat the Blue Jackets 3-1.  If Huet is available in your fantasy hockey league be sure to pick him up as he splits the games with Nikolai Khabibulin 50/50.  Both can be starters anywhere in the NHL, well just have to see if they keep splitting the time in Chicago.

Lets take a look at this weeks NHL Fantasy 3 Stars for Week 10.

3rd Star: Nicklas Backstrom (C) – Washington Capitals (2 G & 6 A = 8 Pts / plus-4)

The second time this year Niklas Backstrom from the Capitals not the Minnesota Wild has been in our weekly Fantasy Hockey 3 Stars.  He last made our list 4 weeks again in week 6.  This past week Backstrom was on fire, scoring 2 goals and adding 6 helpers for a total of 8 points.  This not only padded his stats but helped his team the Capitals go 3-0 on the week.  Niklas Backstrom is projected to score 25 goals and add 60 assists, he is definitely on his way of reaching that mark this year.

2nd Star: Petr Sykora (RW) – Pittsburgh Penguins (3 G & 5 A = 8 Pts)

At the age of 32 Petr Sykora continues to produce for the Pittsburgh Penguins.  This week was his biggest week as a Penguin, he scored 3 goals and 5 assists for 8 total points.  On December 11th was his biggest game of the week, he recorded scored 3 goals and added 1 assists as the Penguins went on to route the Islanders 9-2.  This is Petr Sykoras first time in our NHL Fantasy 3 Stars, but look for him to continue his productive ways throughout the season.

1st Star: Phil Kessel (RW) – Boston Bruins (3 G & 5 A = 8 Pts)

What else can we say about the Boston Bruins and Phil Kessel?  I am short for words on both.  Nobody expected the Boston Bruins to be this good, at 25-5-4 they are 2nd in our NHL Power Rankings for week 10.  Phil Kessel this short NHL season has 21 goals and 14 assists for 35 points, this week he scored 3 goals and added 5 helpers for 8 points.  He is well on pace for over 90 plus points this season.  If his Boston Bruins can continue on their winning ways this will be easily accomplished for Kessel.  He is hands down our #1 NHL star for week 10.

Remember to check back in next week to see who the NHL Fantasy 3 Stars will be for Week 11.

This week’s honorable mention goes to Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Malkin posted 8 points (3 goals & 5 assists) to go along with a plus-7, 4 PIM and 9 shots on goal. Malkin shows no signs of slowing down after a great season last year when he was a finalist for the Hart Trophy.

Lets take a look at the NHL Fantasy 3 Stars for Week 8.

3rd Star – Chris Mason (G), St. Louis Blues

After losing his starting job in the playoffs to Dan Ellis and not receiving a lot of interest from teams looking for goaltending it seemed like Chris Mason’s days as a #1 were over. Well after a couple of solid starts it looks like that might not be true. Mason had a solid week winning 2 games while posting a 0.96 GAA, .974 SAV% and one shutout. If his play continues expect Mason to become the team’s new #1 or at least getting the bulk of the starts as a 1A in a rotation with Legace.

2nd Star – Jonas Hiller (G), Anaheim Ducks

Jonas Hiller never played horrible in his first season in the NHL last year, but he has looked a lot more comfortable this year and is arguably the best backup in the league. Hiller won two games last week while posting a 0.87 GAA, .972 SAV% and one shutout. Now I don’t expect him to take over Giguere as the Ducks #1, but he should start to get some more starts and would be a good goalie to have if you’re in a deep fantasy league.

1st Star – Sidney Crosby (C), Pittsburgh Penguins

If it wasn’t obvious before it is now, Sidney Crosby is back and in full force. Crosby had a slow start to the season but has picked it up lately. Sid put up 9 points (6 goals & 3 assists) with a plus-8, 1 power play point and 16 shots on goal. I wonder if Alexander Semin has an answer to the question he posed a few weeks ago.

Remember to check back in next week to see who the NHL Fantasy 3 Stars will be for Week 9.

This week’s honorable mention goes to Marc Savard. Savard put up 6 points (2 goals & 4 assists), 3 of which came on the power play. Savard continues to lead the Bruins offence and puts up 80+ points per season since being traded to Atlanta but still flies under most people’s radar.

Lets take a look at the NHL Fantasy 3 Stars for Week 7.

3rd Star – Daniel Sedin (LW), Vancouver Canucks

It’s taken a while but both of the Sedin twins have found their step. Daniel put up 7 points (4 goals & 3 assists) last week. Two of those goals were game winners and he also had 16 shots on goal. The Sedin’s have averaged about 70+ points since the 2005-06 season and are in a contract year, so if you can scoop one of them up in your league, I’d suggest you do it.







2nd Star – Martin Biron (G), Philadelphia Flyers

An unlikely name popping up in the #2 spot. Biron has had an average season so far with some rough patches, but he had a great week last week. Martin won all three of his games while posting a 1.98 GAA, .935 SAV% and one shutout blanking his former team in Buffalo. The Flyers have been playing a lot better this month and Biron seems to have the #1 spot locked up so if you’re thin in net and need a goaltender you’d probably be able to get Biron for fairly cheap.

1st Star – Alexander Ovechkin (LW), Washington Capitals

Well he certainly has hit his stride. The man known as Ovie put up 7 points (2 goals & 5 assists), 5 of those points came on the power play which made up for his minus-5 rating. He also had 20 shots on goal which is big if that’s a stat in your league. With Ovechkin rolling that also means good things for Backstrom owners.

Remember to check back in next week to see who the NHL Fantasy 3 Stars will be for Week 8.

This week’s honorable mention goes to Devin Setoguchi of the San Jose Sharks who put up 8 points (4 goals & 4 assists). Five of those points came on the powerplay and one of his goals was a game winner. He also had 21 shots on goal which is big if it’s a category in your league.

Lets take a look at the NHL Fantasy 3 Stars for Week 6.

3rd Star – Niklas Backstrom (G), Minnesota Wild

While the Wild only played two games last week Backstrom played in both collecting 2 wins while posting a 0.96 GAA, .960 SAV% and a shutout. Niklas has been an underrated goaltender, especially fantasy wise, since he came into the league back in 2006 which I find very surprising. He’s a top notch goaltender who plays behind a defensive minded team. If you’re weak in goal and need an upgrade I’d suggest trying to trade for Backstrom. He’ll come at a cheaper price than someone like Cam Ward and at the end of the season will probably get you more fantasy points.

2nd Star – Alexander Ovechkin, Washington Capitals

After coming back from visiting his ailing grandfather Ovechkin has been on fire. He collected 8 points (4 goals & 4 assists) while getting 22 shots on net last week. Alex now has 18 points on the season and seems to have regained his form after a sluggish start.

1st Star – Nicklas Backstrom, Washington Capitals

Backstrom finally showed his play making abilities that we all knew he had collecting 10 points (2 goals & 8 assists) last week. Like his line mate, Nicklas got off to a slow start but appears to have turned things around as he now has 16 points on the season. If he gets stuck in another slump and you’re weak at the center position I’d suggest trading for him as he has too much talent to go through a sophomore slump.

Remember to check back in next week to see who the NHL Fantasy 3 Stars will be for Week 7.

Total Pro Sports – Week 4 saw two players regain their form and one who doesn’t even have one but can still keep the pucks out of the net. Even though he didn’t make the list, honourable mention has to go out to Corey Perry who put up 9 points last week (2 goals & 7 assists). He sure helped out my fantasy team last week.

Lets take a look at the NHL Fantasy 3 Stars for Week 4.

3rd Star – Teemu Selanne, Anaheim Ducks

The Finnish Flash was anything put invisible last week, especially on the power play. Selanne put up 9 points (6 goals & 3 assists), 7 of which came on the power play. Despite his age Teemu is still putting up the points and is looking to have another 80+ point season. If you’re in a keeper league and have one too many young keepers, Teemu would be worth while giving up some youth for.

2nd Star – Ryan Getzlaf, Anaheim Ducks

To steal a phrase from The Rock, “Finally! Ryan Getzlaf has come back to Anaheim!” Frustrated Getzlaf fantasy owners were waiting patiently and wondering when Ryan would finally break out. Well that break out happened last week putting up 10 points (2 goals & 8 assists). As young players are prone to doing, Getzlaf might get on another cold streak. If he does that’s when you will want to jump in and try to make a trade for him while his value is down.

1st Star – Tim Thomas, Boston Bruins

While I personally dislike Thomas and his style, you can’t argue with the numbers and results. Thomas won 3 games while posting a 0.99 GAA and a .970 SV% while recording back-to-back shutouts over the Oilers and Canucks. You might want to consider trading Thomas while his value is high since Manny Fernandez is right behind Tim and Boston wont hesitate to bring him in if Thomas has a bad game or two.

Remember to check back in next week to see who the NHL Fantasy 3 Stars will be for Week 5.

If you haven’t guessed yet, The Glass man is Marian Gaborik of the Minnesota Wild.

Why is his nickname “The Glass Man”, you ask? Compare glass to Marian Gaborik, very delicate and easily breakable. Do you see the similarities?

Since the 2003-2004 season Marian Gaborik has played 65 games twice, 77 games once, 48 games once and now this season, with only a month of hockey, Marian Gaborik has only played 2 games. He always seems to be injured, but manages to put up some big statistics while playing in only a few games.

The real question the Wild have to ask themselves,” Is Marian Gaborik really worth $10 million a year for 10 years.” The Minnesota Wild have already offered $80 million over 10 years. At $8 million a season Marian Gaborik will one of the highest paid players in the NHL. This offer is still on the table the Wild are just waiting for Marian to decide.

So far the rumors swirling around have the Montreal Canadiens as the front runners to trade and sign for Marian Gaborik. The Habs are offering winger Higgins, backup goalie Jaroslav Halak and either a first-round draft pick or top prospect Ryan McDonagh.

Other rumors have Marian Gaborik going to the Penguins for Evgeni Malkin.  We say, “No chance!!”! Last but not least the Edmonton Oilers seem to be showing some interest.

We will just have to wait and see if Marian Gaborik is really worth that magnitude of money. Whatever franchise decides to dig deep into their pockets and pay him, we recommend they take out a hefty insurance plan to cover their investment.

Semin was interviewed by yahoo.com, this is what he had to say about “Sid The Kid”

“What’s so special about Sidney Crosby? I don’t see anything special there,” Semin, who leads the NHL with 16 points. Yes, he does skate well, has a good head, good pass. But there’s nothing else. Even if you compare him to Patrick Kane from the Chicago Blackhawks … (Kane) is a much more interesting player. The way he moves, his deaking abilities, his thinking on the ice and his anticipation of the play is so superb.”

Sidney Crosby, left Thursdays game against the Phoenix Coyotes after feeling some sort of discomfort. Crosby is off to a decent start early in the season, with 13 points in 11 games.

“Honestly, I don’t even know what happened; I’d have to look at the tape,” Crosby told Pittsburgh reporters following the game. “I just had some discomfort. I just decided in the third period I couldn’t do much, so…”

For all you fantasy hockey owners out there don’t worry Sidney will be back and will get your team 100 point this year guaranteed. That’s “What’s So Special About Sidney Crosby?“

Total Pro Sports – In what will become a weekly event just like the Power Rankings, we’ll be taking a look at the top 3 performers from the week. Not only were these players big fantasy hockey performers, they helped their own team win on the ice.

Lets take a look at the NHL 3 Stars for Week 3.

3rd Star – Marian Hossa, Detroit Red Wings

If you own Marian Hossa in your fantasy hockey league you breathed a sy of relief last week. After getting off to a slow start Hossa managed 6 points in Detroit’s 3 games. Three of those points came against his former…former team the Thrashers scoring 2 goals and adding 1 assist. Seems like he’s starting to get used to playing with his new teammates and things should only go up from here.

2nd Star – Miikka Kiprusoff, Calgary Flames

If you’re a fantasy hockey owner that managed to buy low and get Kiprusoff via trade then you were laughing last week. Kipper won all 3 of his games while posting a 1.67 GAA and making 88 saves for a .946 SAV%. Hopefully this is a sign that the Veznia winning version of Kiprusoff is back. Only time will tell.

1st Star – Jarome Iginla, Calgary Flames

What better way to top off the week for the Flames than by having Jarome Iginla as the league’s best player for Week 3 of the 2008-09 NHL season with 7 points in 3 games. As I’m sure you’ve seen in the Week 3 Power Rankings the Flames had a big week and Iggy was a big reason why. Iginla scored a hat-trick against the Predators and followed that up with another 3 point night (1 goal & 2 assists) against the Coyotes.

Remember to check back in next week to see who the NHL 3 Stars will be for Week 4.

Bryan Murray often receives phone calls for there top players, Dany Heatley, Jason Spezza, Antoine Vermette, Chris Phillips and Anton Volchenkov.  Unless the deal is right and in favor of the Sens there is no chance the Senators will trade any of these players.

“It appeared, at the moment, that nobody is any hurry to make many moves. When you get to the 10-game mark, you’ll probably get a little more interest in talking,” said Murray. “