The two most recent Eastern Conference Stanley Cup finalists are headed in different directions of late, and are taking fantasy owners of their star players along for the ride.
On the positive side, the Ottawa Senators have rallied behind goaltender Brian Elliott and new head coach Cory Clouston to achieve their first four-game win streak of the season. Not only is Elliott turning out to be a terrific asset (you heard it here first, remember), but the Sens have found their offense again. Daniel Alfredsson, Dany Heatley and Jason Spezza had three, two and one point(s) respectively in a 5-3 Ottawa win over Minnesota. All three players are compiling strong February numbers and are likely just being noticed again by their owners as positive fantasy players. Treat Alfie, Heatley and Spezza as elite players in trade as they should finish the season on a very strong note now that coach Craig Hartsburg and his defensive focus are out. Elliott, unfortunately, was chased early by three first-period goals. There is still no doubt that he is Clouston's catalyst for this team and will be between the pipes again for the Sens' next contest. Is he a No. 2 goalie for fantasy? Bah, I'd say he's borderline No. 1.
On the negative side, the Pittsburgh Penguins had a stunning collapse against Toronto to put an exclamation point on their recent road woes. The 6-2 loss means the Pens have just one road victory since Boxing Day and currently sit five points out of the East playoff picture. Even with the teams' struggles you would be hard-pressed to find a fantasy owner disillusioned with Evgeni Malkin or Sidney Crosby. The trouble is that there has been little-to-no trickle-down effect in Pittsburgh lately. Petr Sykora has just eight points in his past 15 games. Miroslav Satan has two goals since December 18. Jordan Staal has seven points in his past 13 games. Ryan Whitney hasn't been the catalyst on the power play, with just three man-advantage assists in his 16 most recent contests. Worst of all, Marc-Andre Fleury has not been the game-changing goaltender he was down the stretch this past season. In 24 starts since coming back from injury in December, Fleury has allowed three or more goals 14 times.
While I can whole-heartedly recommend going after Ottawa's fantasy assets (partly due to the low-low prices frustrated owners might accept), it's not as easy to be sunny about Pittsburgh's fortunes. As the Associated Press write up of Saturday's contest notes, the Pens need to go 16-9 to finish with 91 points this season, and that total hasn't been good enough for a playoff berth in the East since the lockout. Malkin and Crosby will obviously continue to be fine assets, but it's time to stop speculating on which other Penguins might have value. Sergei Gonchar's return may indeed spark the power play, but will it benefit any other Penguins besides Crosby and Malkin? Or will the rich simply get richer? If you are still hanging on to Staal, Satan, Whitney, Ruslan Fedotenko (who returned from injury Saturday) or even Sykora (though I could argue in favor of him), it's time to cut bait and redress. As for Fleury, your hands are likely tied but trying to make a lateral move for a different struggling netminder might be something to consider. Jean-Sebastien Giguere comes to mind as an option.
Owen Nolan scored two goals for the Wild in their loss to Ottawa. He also assisted on the third Minnesota tally. His scoring may come in spurts, but he is still a nice bench asset in shallow leagues as his point totals are goal heavy. … Scott Hartnell scored in Philadelphia's 5-1 win over Long Island and he continues to score at a strong pace. His total of 21 goals and 20 assists put him on a pace to easily log his best career season. He could also eclipse his best penalty minute total, as he has 90 PIMS already. If you want a sneaky acquisition for your trade deadline look to Hartnell. … Downgrade both Lubomir Visnovsky and Denis Grebeshkov, it was defenseman Tom Gilbert on the point opposite Sheldon Souray for the Oilers' top power-play unit in a 3-2 shootout win over L.A. Keep him in mind if you are a lost Visnovsky owner and missed out on grabbing Gonchar to replace him. … Maybe a bout of mono was just what the doctor ordered. Steve Mason looked as fresh as he did upon his debut this season as he turned aside 26 Carolina shots in a 5-1 Columbus win. That's back-to-back victories since his return from the IR. Get him back in your net and ride him from here on out. His ability to return so strong from mononucleosis should help shrug aside any concerns over rookie goalie stamina. … So, Mike Green is a freak of nature. He scored his 10th goal in eight games as Washington topped Tampa Bay 5-1. His eight-game scoring streak is a record for an NHL defenseman. … Pekka Rinne and David Legwand played hero as the Predators upset the Bruins 3-2 in a shootout. Legwand's game has been shallow-league relevant since Steve Sullivan gave the Predators the ability to put together two scoring lines. … Marty Turco owners can breathe a sigh of relief as he was pulled for the final three Blackhawk goals in a 6-2 Dallas loss. Turco actually stopped 24 of 27 to mitigate the hit to your save percentage. … An injury to Patrick Sharp just 39 seconds into the game reunited Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews on a line. Lo and behold Toews scores three points. Let's hope coach Joel Quenneville takes note on how his struggling captain responded to Kane's constant presence. … Todd Bertuzzi was the fantasy standout in the Flames' 7-5 win over Phoenix, dishing out four assists.
Sean Allen is a fantasy baseball and hockey analyst for ESPN.com. You can e-mail him here.
