Penguins GM Ray Shero is very high on Kunitz, telling ESPN.com: "He's a top-six forward. Wherever the coach wants to play him, he'll play him. Kunitz is going to be a good player for us. I love the way he plays. He's got character, leadership; he'll play a little bigger role here than I think he did recently [in Anaheim]. I've watched him forever and [Penguins coach] Dan Bylsma coached him [in the AHL] and played with him. He's a guy who can play with good players. He's got the speed, the hockey sense, the hands. We really like him."
With the new blood likely to be suited up for the Pens' tilt against the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday, expect the Crosby line to also include Ruslan Fedotenko, who has underperformed a bit this season, with only 26 points in 45 games played. Partly because of that, Fedotenko is widely available as a free agent in fantasy, and if this line develops quick chemistry, Fedotenko is a great pickup candidate as well.
Meanwhile, Whitney became expendable to the Pens after Sergei Gonchar's return from injury since, as the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette noted, the franchise now has three other defensemen with a similar type of game, including Gonchar, Kris Letang and Alex Goligoski, who is currently playing for the Wilkes-Barre Scranton "Baby" Penguins.
The Ducks' trade for Whitney fans the flames of the Scott Niedermayer and Chris Pronger trade rumors. Both players are quite a bit older and more expensive than Whitney, and Niedermayer's future beyond 2008-09 is uncertain. In Anaheim, Whitney will get a crack at manning a point on the power play, a unit that is ranked No. 6 in the league by converting at a 21.6 percent rate this season. Whitney appears to be recharged by the new opportunity, telling the Post-Gazette, "Obviously, I haven't played the way I think I'm able to and know I can. This is about getting my confidence back and getting a new start. I know I can play better than I have this year, and I think I will."
Whitney happened to be in Boston on Thursday tending to his mother, who was recovering from surgery, and the Ducks happened to be playing the Bruins there that night. He suited up and skated more than 24 minutes in the game, including 3:13 on the power play, more than Niedermayer. The even more amazing aspect of his stat line was that he was an even zero in plus-minus despite that the Ducks were thrashed by the Bruins, 6-0.
Even if Niedermayer and Pronger are still in the picture after the trade deadline next week, Whitney could shape up to be a solid contributor for the rest of the season, and is definitely worthy of a pickup to round out a fantasy defensive corps.
Ice chips
While Tim Thomas' manhandling of the Ducks was pretty impressive, the most grandiose goaltending performance Thursday night happened in New Jersey. At long last, Martin Brodeur made his dramatic return to the ice for the New Jersey Devils, much to the emphatic delight of the crowd at the Prudential Center. In a sign of gratitude, Brodeur shut out the hapless Colorado Avalanche, making 24 saves and taking home "first star" recognition for the game. With Brodeur back and in solid form, we wouldn't be surprised if the team traded Kevin Weekes or Scott Clemmensen before the deadline next week. The Devils have been rumored to be in pursuit of a puck-moving defenseman, and either Weekes or Clemmensen could see a lift in their value if they end up in a better timeshare elsewhere. … While the "Beantown beatdown" provided a nice boost to Michael Ryder's stats, the Bruins also were dealt with two potentially significant injuries. The Boston Globe is reporting that both Marc Savard and Milan Lucic failed to take the ice for the third period after sustaining "upper body injuries." Both will be evaluated Friday. … Patrick Lalime took a hard-luck 2-1 shootout loss to the Carolina Hurricanes, as the Sabres were unable to muster more than one regulation goal against Cam Ward, who surrendered three goals in just one period against the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. Given Lalime's stats and the Sabres' struggling offense, it's best to look elsewhere for help in the goaltending department. … With two porous goaltenders between the pipes, the game between the New York Islanders and Toronto Maple Leafs was oozing with offensive firepower. Nik Antropov poured in goal No. 21 on the season as he continues his audition for the other 29 franchises. As mentioned before, he will see a nice uptick in value if he's traded from the plus-minus drain known as the Leafs. … So much for the New York Rangers being revitalized under the leadership of John Tortorella; they lost their second straight game and mustered just one goal against Florida. Craig Anderson -- whoa, remember him? -- had 40 saves for the Panthers, who stormed Madison Square Garden and came away with two points, which put them back into a tie with the Rangers for sixth place in the Eastern Conference. Vokoun was actually slated to start Thursday's game for the Panthers but was held out because of lingering aftereffects of a flu that also kept him out of Tuesday's game in Boston. The Panthers visit the charged-up Devils on Saturday, and Vokoun likely will be back between the pipes. And since he's the team's steady starter, there's no need to bother with Mr. Anderson. … Michal Neuvirth improved the record of Washington Capitals rookie netminders to 4-0 with a 21-save performance against the Atlanta Thrashers. Both Neuvirth and Simeon Varlamov are names to remember for the future, but coach Bruce Boudreau told The Associated Press that Jose Theodore will be back in goal Saturday. For the Thrashers, Todd White had a goal and an assist, and the center with 37.0 percent ownership in ESPN leagues now has nine points in his past six games. As our own Matthew Berry might say, "Just sayin'!" … It appears Alex Auld has grabbed the starting goaltender's gig in Ottawa back from Brian Elliott. Auld made his second straight start Thursday and held the dangerous San Jose Sharks to just two goals in a loss. Auld was dropped in most leagues, but he could be a nice value down the stretch if the Sens' offense continues to click under new coach Cory Clouston. … It was a night for some skilled "masonry" work, as both Steve Mason and Chris Mason notched wins. Steve Mason, of the Columbus Blue Jackets, needed to make 19 saves against the Edmonton Oilers as Raffi Torres took care of the scoring, with goal No. 4 on the season. Meanwhile, in Dallas, Chris had to face a much heavier workload, saving 40 of 41 shots fired by the Stars. The one-goal-against performance held up, as Patrik Berglund, T.J. Oshie and Jay McClement all scored for the St. Louis Blues. Chris Mason now has given up only four goals in his past four starts, making it downright criminal that he's owned in only 29.9 percent of ESPN leagues.
