Ice and Fire: Rolling in the Rockies

Abracadabra

Washington's Dmitry Orlov won't soon be mistaken for Alexander Ovechkin as the offensive dynamo on the Capitals' roster, but his tally in Saturday's 7-3 rout over Colorado showed some deft stickhandling and a rare finish. Honestly, with the way the Avalanche have been playing defense of late, it likely would have made little difference even if they'd realized Orlov still had the puck.

Denver Mountain Ride

Reto Berra had filled in nicely for the injured Semyon Varlamov in the Avs' net, but this past week was rather forgettable. Berra has allowed four goals in each of his last three starts, surrendering that many on just 11 shots on Saturday. Varlamov has been activated from injured reserve, but the Colorado crease doesn't seem like it's worth investing in.

Regardless of the goaltending issues behind him, Matt Duchene is reminding the league of just how skilled he is. After a maddeningly slow start, Duchene has enjoyed life with Nathan MacKinnon, potting nine goals in 10 November games, and he's got 12 points evenly split between goals and assists over the course of his current six-game point streak.

Tyson Barrie has looked good since his three-game suspension at the end of October, registering 10 of his season's 12 points during November. He has just one goal on the season. Those numbers, at least based on his track record, should increase. However, he's averaging less than two shots per game and hasn't gotten a puck to the goal in three of the last six games. That's not an encouraging sign for the top defensive option on a power play full of talented offensive players. The assists are coming, but owners might have to be prepared for a lower goal total despite Barrie posting 25 the past two seasons. He averaged a 10.5 shooting percentage over that span, so a slight regression there might not surprise. On a whole, his 12 points through 17 contests have him on pace for 48 points, but it could be an assist-heavy stat line reminiscent of Brian Campbell in his prime.

Finally, Colorado winger Cody McLeod will not challenge for the league's scoring title, but the grinding forward has four goals and 59 penalty minutes after adding a goal and 12 sin-bin points in Saturday's loss. Penalty minutes are the one fantasy category in which help is always available on the wire, so consider McLeod and his ilk as streaming options if you need to make up some ground in PIM when there are a just a handful of games on the slate.

Bottom line: Colorado is a great option for scorers and power-play production, not for goaltenders.

It's a Mad, Mad World

Goalies are maddening.

At the season's quarter pole, Martin Jones is tied with Henrik Lundqvist, Braden Holtby and Devan Dubnyk for the league lead in wins with 11. Cory Schneider and Kari Lehtonen have nine wins, or three more than Tuukka Rask and Roberto Luongo have managed.

Consider how disappointing Sergei Bobrovsky and Frederik Andersen have been relative to their draft position.

Goalie Bob has run off four straight wins and six in his last seven starts, but there were some dark days before John Tortorella arrived in Columbus.

Andersen and the Ducks have been the enigma of the season. A team that was one game away from the Stanley Cup Finals, Anaheim should have had a firm hold on a mediocre division, but the Ducks have floundered early. After starting strong, Andersen has been spotty of late, allowing 17 goals in his last five starts, going 1-2-2 in that span.

Consider that Jones, Dubnyk and Antii Niemi were likely drafted after both Bobrovsky and Andersen in most leagues. Good goaltending doesn't have be limited to winning teams – it's just more likely to be there than not. Predicting its success is rather difficult.

James Reimer has seemingly usurped the No. 1 position for the Maple Leafs, forcing former Team Canada World Junior goalie Jonathan Bernier to the bench. Reimer has been outstanding this past week, even in losses – he allowed just one goal on 36 shots in Saturday's loss to Boston. The 27-year-old has started 10 of Toronto's last 11 games, taking full advantage of Bernier's injury, and he's giving the Leafs the saves they need to keep them in games. Whether Toronto scores is another matter.

In fact, Reimer has been so dominant of late that he's allowed one goal in five of his last 10 starts, with three just once in that span. Prior to Saturday, he'd won five straight games. Reimer's a monster in leagues that reward saves as opposed to save percentage, considering how many shots the Leafs surrender, but his save percentage has been off the charts well. These numbers will regress, but Reimer can play with a scary amount of confidence when he's on his game, even considering the team in front of him. Enjoy the numbers while they last and don't be afraid to cash in on Reimer's success, as there simply isn't enough in front of him to ensure a steady supply of wins.

The Oilers thought they'd found their man in Cam Talbot, who filled in so wonderfully for the Rangers while Henrik Lundqvist was injured late last season. Talbot has underwhelmed in northern Alberta and has ceded the crease to Anders Nilsson six times in the Oil's last eight tilts. Nilsson has been merely serviceable, but he's been better than Talbot for the resurgent Oilers. Neither oozes confidence.

Heading south to Calgary, Karri Ramo has been playing with a bit more confidence since inheriting the starting job due to injury, winning three of his last four starts and starting 10 consecutive games. Both Jonas Hiller and Joni Ortio are working out with the team, so Ramo's hold on the starting job could be considered tenuous at best.

Ramo, Nilsson and Talbot can be considered stopgap solutions at best. Reimer has a bit more talent, but certainly a weaker team in front of him; still, he's the better long-term play, considering his prior successes in the league.

The goaltending uncertainties plaguing many teams in the league further underscore the ridiculous value of a steady presence like Henrik Lundqvist at the top of the draft. Drafting Lundqvist or Price early isn't sexy. Scoring is more exciting than goaltending, yet the foundation that a tremendous netminder can give your roster usually cannot be found on waivers or via trade – the incredible midseason runs by Devan Dubnyk and Andrew Hammond last year were anomalies.