All season, I've been referring to the Maple Leafs as the league's enigma, since it has been hard to know what to expect from them night to night. Lately, however, their top duo has been a remarkable source of scoring. You could even say they have been "on fire." Leafs on fire? Sounds dangerous, but instead of dousing them with a bucket of water, you should be putting them in the starting lineup(s) of your fantasy team(s).
Alexei Ponikarovsky leads the charge. (Yes, a Poni is leading the charge; the word play in this blog is getting ridiculous.) Ponikarovsky has a whopping 15 points in his past 10 games, including two goals and two assists against the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday, which followed a four-assist night against the Calgary Flames earlier in the month. All of this scoring has earned him a plus-2 rating over that 10-game stretch, in spite of porous goaltending behind him, and he already has shattered his previous career high in points. I think he'll finish out the season well, though, and since he's owned in only 16.8 percent of ESPN leagues, you should want him on your team as he does so.
The Leafs finish their season with five out of eight games being played against Northeast Division rivals, and if the recent outburst against Montreal is any indication, this should be a good time to start any Leafs on your roster. Don't have any Leafs on your roster? Well then, it might behoove you to "jump on your Poni" and ride off to fantasy grandeur.
Ice Chips
Two of the league's steadiest goaltenders of late squared off at the RBC Center in Raleigh last night, with Cam Ward and the Carolina Hurricanes emerging with a one-goal victory. His counterpart on the Ottawa Senators, Brian Elliott, out-saved him with 28 stops to Ward's 21, but Ward got the all-important win. Elliott has been pretty good in March, with 22 goals allowed and eight victories in 10 starts. He will continue to be a difference-maker down the stretch in fantasy, where the wins category might still be up for grabs in your league. … But before you go adding Elliott, be sure to check on Ward's teammate Anton Babchuk. A member of the Canes' top power-play unit, Babchuk has an even five points in the past five games, with four of those points coming on the power play. If you need some last-minute help in those categories, Babchuk could be your guy; he posts a solid plus-minus rating and good average ice time as well. … Although his plus-minus rating appears to be a crapshoot, Tim Connolly continues to score at a steady pace, adding a goal and an assist in the Buffalo Sabres' win over the Florida Panthers on Wednesday as both teams scramble to make the playoffs. Connolly is widely available and should be good for 10 to 12 more points in the team's nine remaining games. … Roto players can skip this part, but for you head-to-head-leaguers, Jonas Hiller continues to put up great numbers and could single-handedly turn the tide in your playoff matchups. A 34-save, two-goals-against performance against the Colorado Avalanche puts his March numbers at a 2.13 goals-against average and a stout .929 save percentage. Use him at will. … Hopefully you heeded Sean Allen's words in Sunday's blog entry and didn't start either Evgeni Nabokov or Nikolai Khabibulin in Chicago last night. Five regulation goals allowed does not help anyone's ratios at this point of the season, just your competition. … If a player scores for the Wild, but no one starts him in fantasy hockey, does he make a sound? Owen Nolan has had three multi-point games in his past 10 games, and although it is a small sample size, it's worth a late-season shot to see if he can come through with more of these outbursts.
