Monday Daily Puck: Sharks Making Marks

Monday Daily Puck: Sharks Making Marks

This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.

Around the Rink

I didn't mind that Detroit netminder Petr Mrazek allowed five goals on 22 shots Sunday. That should help quell Vezina Trophy talk for a while. That's crazy talk anyhow, pure rubbish! Granted, Mrazek has been the best goaltender since the beginning of January – we even recognized his stellar play for the Daily Puck early in his run, but the season is six months long, not six weeks. Holtby leads the NHL with 35 wins, 13 more than Mrazek. The Red Wings' goalie has played great – glad I have him on one of my fantasy squads – but to say he should win the Vezina because he leads the league in 5X5 save percentage (or at least until Sunday) doesn't account for the nearly 400 more minutes Holtby has played than Mrazek. Let's see how the final two months play out. The Caps haven't drug along Holtby the way some say Chicago carried Corey Crawford in past years. Holtby has doted his accolades the old-fashioned way – he's earned them.

Projected Goalie Starters (all times Eastern)
For updates on the projected goalies later in the day, check our Projected Goalies Grid

Detroit Red Wings (Jimmy Howard) at New York Islanders (Jaroslav Halak), 1:00 PM
Anaheim Ducks (John Gibson) at Calgary Flames (Jonas Hiller), 4:00 PM
Pittsburgh Penguins (Marc-Andre Fleury) at Florida Panthers (Roberto Luongo), 7:30 PM
Dallas Stars (Antti Niemi) at Nashville Predators (Pekka Rinne), 8:00 PM
Toronto Maple Leafs (James Reimer) at Chicago Blackhawks (Corey Crawford), 8:30 PM
Montreal Canadiens (Mike Condon) at Arizona Coyotes (Louis Domingue), 9:00 PM
Minnesota Wild (Devan Dubnyk) at Vancouver Canucks (Jacob Markstrom), 10:00 PM

Injury News For Teams Playing Monday

Detroit Red Wings
Niklas Kronwall, D - Kronwall (knee) won't play Monday.
Johan Franzen, RW - Franzen (concussion) out Monday.
Jonathan Ericsson, D - Ericsson (lower body) missed Sunday and likely out Monday.
Drew Miller, LW - Miller (lower body) out.

New York Islanders
Adam Pelech, D - Pelech (upper body) out.
Eric Boulton, LW - Boulton (undisclosed) on injured reserve.

Anaheim Ducks
Shawn Horcoff, C - Suspended by the NHL for 20 contests for violating the performing-enhancing substance policy.
Chris Stewart, RW - Out with fractured jaw.
John Gibson, G - Gibson hasn't been ruled out for Monday's game against the Flames.
Brian McGrattan, RW - Still out after January brawl.
Clayton Stoner, D - Stoner (hip) was on the ice for practice Sunday, getting close.

Calgary Flames
Dennis Wideman, D - Serving suspension.
Jon Gillies, G - Healing after hip surgery.
Karri Ramo, G - Ramo placed on injured reserve.

Pittsburgh Penguins
Pascal Dupuis, RW - Retired from hockey after dealing with blood clots.
Eric Fehr, RW - Fehr (lower body) out Monday.
Evgeni Malkin, C - Although Malkin (knee) will not play Monday, he's progressing toward a return.
Beau Bennett, RW - Out Monday.
David Warsofsky, D - Improving from concussion but would be serving as healthy scratch if healthy.
Nick Bonino, C - Bonino (hand) will not play against the Panthers on Monday.

Florida Panthers
Erik Gudbranson, D - Gudbranson (upper body) on injured reserve.
Quinton Howden, LW - Did not return to Saturday's game due to an upper body injury.
Aleksander Barkov, C - Barkov (upper body) on injured reserve.
Dave Bolland, C - Bolland (lower body) expected to miss Monday.
Brandon Pirri, C - Pirri will miss Monday.
Willie Mitchell, D - Mitchell (undisclosed) expected to miss Monday.

Dallas Stars
Jason Spezza, C - Spezza (upper body) skated Friday, status unknown for Monday.
Travis Moen, LW - Moen (lower body) on injured reserve.
Cody Eakin, C - Eakin left Saturday's game, status for Monday unknown.
Tyler Seguin, C - Seguin exited late in third period last game, check back for Monday update.
Devin Shore, C - Out rest of season.

Nashville Predators
Gabriel Bourque, LW - Bourque (upper body) status unclear for Monday.
Eric Nystrom, LW - Nystrom (foot) on injured reserve.

Toronto Maple Leafs
Joffrey Lupul, LW - On injured reserve.
Milan Michalek, LW - Michalek (finger) status unknown for Monday.
Stephane Robidas, D - Robidas (knee) out Monday.
Shawn Matthias, C - Matthias will miss Monday with whiplash.
James van Riemsdyk, LW - Van Riemsdyk (foot) on injured reserve.
Tyler Bozak, C - Bozak (head) on injured reserve.
Jared Cowen, D - Cowen (hip) on injured reserve.
Nazem Kadri, C - Kadri (lower body) missed Saturday, check back Monday.
Josh Leivo, LW - Leivo (upper body) on injured reserve.

Chicago Blackhawks
Marian Hossa, RW - Hossa (leg) on injured reserve.
Marcus Kruger, C - Kruger (wrist) on injured reserve.

Montreal Canadiens
Nathan Beaulieu, D - Beaulieu (lower body) missed Friday, questionable for Monday.
Lucas Lessio, LW - Could return during roadtrip.
Brian Flynn, C - Flynn will miss 6-to-8 weeks due to a lower-body injury.
Daniel Carr, LW - Carr will miss the next three months with a right knee injury.
Carey Price, G - Out Monday.
Jeff Petry, D - Petry (lower body) on injured reserve.

Arizona Coyotes
Joe Vitale, C - Vitale (concussion-related issues) will miss the remainder of the season
Boyd Gordon, C - Gordon is now on a week-to-week timetable with an upper-body injury.
Mike Smith, G - Smith (lower body) out Monday.

Minnesota Wild
Zac Dalpe, C - Out Monday.
Jared Spurgeon, D - Spurgeon (undisclosed) questionable Monday.
Jonas Brodin, D - Brodin will be out 3-to-6 weeks with a broken foot.

Vancouver Canucks
Bo Horvat, C - Coach Willie Desjardins indicated he hopes Horvat will be available for Monday's game against the Wild.
Alexander Edler, D - Edler has been dealt a six-week timetable for his return from a fractured fibula.
Brandon Sutter, C - Sutter (jaw) is expected to miss between 6-to-8 weeks following successful surgery on his jaw.

Hot

Logan Couture, C, SAN – The potential of Couture has been discussed many times before, here and in other places. We're not going to discuss the long-term merits of the centerman other than to state that he's playing well. Right now. In his last four games he's scored two goals and eight points. In fact, he's had his hand in eight of San Jose's last 13 goals. What's most impressive is his work on the man advantage. Couture has five power-play points in the last four games. Will he ever achieve the greatness many predicted 404 NHL games ago? Who cares, he's hot now and deserves consideration. Figuring out his future has been a fruitless and sometimes painful prognostication.

Marc-Edouard Vlasic, D, SAN – I would be remiss not to mention a second San Jose Shark on the hot list, if only because it might be the only time in Vlasic's career he merits the honor. Thirty-eight million-dollar man Dustin Byfuglien deserves to be on the list, John Klingberg, Kris Letang, etc., but how often does Vlasic string together a seven-game point streak? By comparision, the Montreal-born blueliner compiled seven points total (in 48 games) during the work-stoppage season of 2012-13. Congratulations, Mr. Vlasic.

Cold

Kevin Shattenkirk, D, STL – Shattenkirk has scored three points in his last 16 games, a statistic which includes seven home games. In 29 previous contests, the defender scored 24 points (14 on the power play). With Alex Pietrangelo sidelined for another three weeks or so, Shattenkirk would figure to benefit along with Colton Parayko. That hasn't happened – yet. Shats did tally a power-play assist Sunday, so perhaps that's a sign of things to come. I believe he's a good buy-low candidate right now, especially with Pietrangelo out. The trade deadline is February 29th and it wouldn't be surprising to see his numbers tick up in March, whether he stays in St. Louis, moves to Tampa Bay or ends up elsewhere. Trade talk has a way of wearing on younger players who've never been dealt before.

Recommended Pickup

Joonas Korpisalo, G, CLM – What, you ask, a Columbus Blue Jackets goalie? Why yes, Korpisalo has compiled a 4-0-1 mark in his last five starts, including a 1.71 GAA and .949 save percentage. Granted, his competition hasn't included elite teams, but he's playing well, nevertheless. At the least, he merits consideration on a matchup basis. Sergei Bobrovsky apparently still isn't close to returning and the Blue Jackets are playing better hockey as of late. Korpisalo is owned in just 24 percent of Yahoo! leagues.

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire.
RotoWire Community
Join Our Subscriber-Only NHL Chat
Chat with our writers and other RotoWire NHL fans for all the pre-game info and in-game banter.
Join The Discussion
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
John Toperzer
John is a former RotoWire contributor. He had written for Rotowire.com since 2003 and served as the beat writer for the Pittsburgh Penguins and Pittsburgh Pirates. He's worked for the Pirates for 17 years, written for the Penguins' Web site as the first game-day editor, and rooted for the Steelers dating back to the Immaculate Reception.
NHL DFS Picks: DraftKings Plays and Strategy for Monday, December 23
NHL DFS Picks: DraftKings Plays and Strategy for Monday, December 23
NHL DFS Picks Picks: FanDuel Plays and Strategy for Monday, December 23
NHL DFS Picks Picks: FanDuel Plays and Strategy for Monday, December 23
The Week Ahead: Christmas Break
The Week Ahead: Christmas Break
NHL Best Bets Today: Expert Picks for Sunday, December 22
NHL Best Bets Today: Expert Picks for Sunday, December 22
NHL DFS Picks: DraftKings Plays and Strategy for Sunday, December 22
NHL DFS Picks: DraftKings Plays and Strategy for Sunday, December 22
NHL DFS Picks: FanDuel Plays and Strategy for Sunday, December 22
NHL DFS Picks: FanDuel Plays and Strategy for Sunday, December 22