Frozen Fantasy: November Is a Cold Month

November is a cold month. And not just because of the early snow and prematurely cold temperatures to the north.

It's NHL shake-up season. And coach firing time.

American Thanksgiving is coming soon, but the first real benchmark to assess a team's mettle is the 20-game mark.

And there are some teams in real trouble 20 games in.

Winnipeg continues to underperform, even with a 6-3-1 record in their last 10. And while they're third in the Central, their minus-6 goal differential speaks to some underlying concerns. Especially with Nashville's plus-9 differential and Dallas' 8-1-1 in their last 10 coming up hard behind.

Vegas is confusing – they're better than their record and their recent 3-4-3 stretch. They'll improve. But San Jose? Yes, they're on a five-game winning streak, but they are just 5-5-0 over 10 with a minus-11 goal differential. Has Pete DeBoer's best-before date passed?

After two great seasons, Bruce Boudreau's Wild finished seventh in the Central last season. And this year, they're tied for last in the NHL.

Uh oh.

Tampa Bay and Toronto have been below average (to say the least). But their coaches are entrenched, despite what fans think. Both teams to be suffering from the Blues' effect – there's always a bit of last season's Cup winner added to teams, even if they don't fit that mould.

They'll shake that. And the hockey won't be so dang boring.

Has John Tortorella worn out his welcome in Columbus? Or is that team just bad? John Hynes in New Jersey looks destined to miss the postseason for the second-straight season, even with an improved lineup. He's arguably the most invisible coach in the NHL.

And Chicago has regressed badly under Jeremy Colliton. There was no team busier in the offseason than the Hawks. Gulp.

The next little while should be interesting to watch. Now let's take a look at who caught my eye this week.

Jonathan Bernier, G, Detroit (5 percent Yahoo! owned) – Bernier is owned in five percent of leagues. He's won three of the Wings' last four games. Jimmy Howard is owned in 15 percent, but hasn't played since Nov. 6. Sure, the Wings suck. But after beating the Bruins, Golden Knights and Ducks, Bernier is clearly emerging as the better man. There's value here in matchup situations.

Calvin de Haan, D, Chicago (7 percent Yahoo! owned) – I'm not sure what's gotten into this aggressive, shot-blocking defender, but it sure makes him worth owning, at least right now. De Haan is riding a three-game point streak with 11 blocked shots, 10 hits and five shots. It won't continue for long, but short term, de Haan might help. After all, the rest of the Hawks' blue line is essentially asleep. Someone there is going to get points simply by passing the puck up the ice.

Pavel Francouz, G, Colorado (7 percent Yahoo! owned) – Yes, Francouz is in concussion protocol, but it looks like he'll be back soon. Thank goodness. Neither Adam Werner nor Antoine Bibeau is a suitable NHL goaltender. And Francouz had two straight wins before Mark Scheifele ran him down Tuesday night. Stash him now. The Avs are an offensive powerhouse, so he should get lots of support.

Yanni Gourde, LW/RW, Tampa Bay (20 percent Yahoo! owned) – I was skeptical of Gourde's 64-point rookie season, but the little guy has talent. He's riding a four-game goal streak heading into the weekend. And he has seven points in that span. Gourde might be on the Bolts' fourth line, but he's seeing second-unit power-play time. And his chemistry with Patrick Maroon and Cedric Paquette is odd, but incredible. I might just get over myself and roster him.

Alex Killorn, LW/RW , Tampa Bay (7 percent Yahoo! owned) – Killorn's game is hit and miss. He can actually play on any line, but is often used as the defensive conscience of whatever trio he's in. Right now, the Bolts are starting to surge and Killorn is showing off his offensive game. He's on a three-game, five-point streak heading into weekend play. And four of those five points have come with the man advantage. That's value.

David Krejci, C, Boston (26 percent Yahoo! owned) – Boston is known as a one-line team and that line doesn't include Krejci. But the guy still has offensive skills. And since his return from injury on Oct. 29, Krejci has put up nine points - including seven assists - over his last eight games. He's also plus-9 with 16 shots and six each of hits and blocked shots. The B's have been worrying about scoring depth. It looks like they might already have it. He'll help you, too.

Tanner Pearson, LW, Vancouver (4 percent Yahoo! owned) – Ugh. It just figures that Pearson would explode immediately after I dropped him. Two games, two goals, two assists and hits, SOG and blocks. Sometimes, you catch lightning in a bottle. Pearson does have offensive talent and he's on Bo Horvat's left side right now. Maybe I'll go get him back, at least temporarily.

Linus Ullmark, G, Buffalo (9 percent Yahoo! owned) – Call it a hunch or a gut feel. Or something else completely. Starter Carter Hutton has allowed 10 goals in his last two games. Ullmark allowed just three goals against the Bolts a week ago – that's a whole lot better than Mr. Hutton. Like I said – it's a hunch. But what does rostering him hurt? Unless you think your roster is perfect, that is. You can always drop him later.

Back to November.

There's still a lot of time for teams to flip things around. Just take a look at how far the Blues climbed after Christmas last year.

But the NHL is a fickle league. Fans generally won't tolerate long soft patches, unless their expectations have been managed properly.

So even rebuilding teams have short leashes. That's why Todd McLellan is ripping his team – and Ilya Kovalchuk – in the media. There are lots of things competing for discretionary dollars in La-La Land.

Like the Clippers. And the Lakers. And even the Ducks.

McLellan is safe, but his Kings are not.

Which teams do you think will recover from their queasy starts? And which coach might be the first to go?

Until next week.