This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
Around the Rink
With the regular season entering its final phase, it's always a rewarding and/or humbling exercise to take a look at my projections from the beginning of the year and see what I nailed, where I missed and where I missed really badly. So let's look at a few names and see how I did.
Alex Ovechkin (projection: 47 goals, 35 assists, minus-10): Although I predicted a course correction from last year's minus-35 rating, giving Ovi a minus-10, he's in fact been much better than that, with a plus-12. And he's going to blow right by the 47 goals I projected; in fact, he could challenge 60 if he stays as hot as he's been.
Vladimir Tarasenko (projection: 31 goals, 31 assists, plus-16): I correctly predicted a Tarasenko breakout – not that I can take so much credit for that, since everyone knew the guy was going to be a stud – but he's already a goal and an assist ahead of the season total I projected, and his plus-minus is nearly double, so although I was less conservative than most with him, I was still too conservative.
Thomas Vanek (projection: 27 goals, 43 assists, plus-10): As it turns out, I probably should have just given Tarasenko a bunch of Vanek's points. His goal on Sunday brought him to 40 points, so he'd need to go Gretzky on us to meet my projection. Not happening.
Gustav Nyquist (projection: 25 goals, 34 assists, plus-20): Well, the plus-minus isn't there, but the point-scoring pace is nearly perfect. You're welcome.
Rick Nash (projection: 27 goals, 28 assists, plus-8): As an alleged Rangers homer, you'd figure I would have seen Nash's resurgence coming. Guess not. Still on a pretty good pace for that assists total!
Dougie Hamilton (projection: 10 goals, 34 assists, plus-27): One of my more aggressive projections, but everyone was high on Hamilton, and for good reason – he's already reached that goal total, and he's on pace to finish right around the 44 points I projected. Sure, the plus-minus hasn't been there, but that's mostly because Tuukka Rask has not been the same guy at all, and who saw that coming? No one, that's who. No one.
Okay, Tuesday.
Projected Goalie Starters (all times Eastern)
Rangers (Cam Talbot) at Islanders (Jaroslav Halak), 7:00 PM
Stars (Kari Lehtonen) at Flyers (Steve Mason), 7:00 PM
Blue Jackets (Sergei Bobrovsky) at Hurricanes (Cam Ward), 7:00 PM
Lightning (Ben Bishop) at Canadiens (Carey Price), 7:30 PM
Bruins (Tuukka Rask) at Senators (Craig Anderson), 7:30 PM
Jets (Michael Hutchinson) at Blues (Brian Elliott), 8:00 PM
Devils (Cory Schneider) at Wild (Devan Dubnyk), 8:00 PM
Kings (Jonathan Quick) at Avalanche (Semyon Varlamov), 9:00 PM
For updates on the projected goalies later in the day, check out our Projected Goalies Grid.
Injury News For Teams Playing Tuesday
New York Rangers
Henrik Lundqvist, G (neck) – Skating, but won't play in next three games
New York Islanders
Kyle Okposo, RW (eye) – Skated with team over weekend; no timetable, though
Mikhail Grabovski, C (concussion) – Lingering on IR with no updates
Dallas Stars
Trevor Daley, D (lower body) – Out anywhere from a week-plus to three weeks more
Travis Moen, LW (upper body) – Making slow progress
Rich Peverley, C (chest) – Still no timetable
John Klingberg, D (lower body) – Hopeful to play Tuesday
Valeri Nichushkin, LW (hip) – Practicing and traveling with team, but a week-plus away still
Philadelphia Flyers
Shayne Gostisbehere, D (knee) – Probably done for the season
Michael Del Zotto, D (upper body) – Out about a week
Radko Gudas, D (knee) – Set to start skating in a few weeks
Nicklas Grossmann, D (upper body) – Could be back Tuesday
Columbus Blue Jackets
Fedor Tyutin, D (illness) – Sent home prior to practice Monday
Jack Skille, RW (shoulder) – Had season-ending surgery
David Clarkson, RW (oblique) – Out 3-5 more weeks
Jeremy Morin, LW (upper body) – No updates since return to light skating
Kevin Connauton, D (lower body) – Could be back in Tuesday
Matt Calvert, LW (concussion) – "Making good progress"
Boone Jenner, LW (back) – Skated after practice Monday
Ryan Murray, D (ankle) – Traveling with team, but expected out again Tuesday
Alexander Wennberg, C (undisclosed) – Questionable for Tuesday
Carolina Hurricanes
Jack Hillen, D (concussion) – Needs to go through protocol; no timeline
Tampa Bay Lightning
Matt Carle, D (hip) – Expects to be back Saturday
J.T. Brown, RW (upper body) – Didn't go over weekend; expected back Tuesday or Thursday0
Montreal Canadiens
Alexei Emelin, D (shoulder) – Won't play Tuesday
Boston Bruins
David Krejci, C (knee) – Remains out 'til end of month
Brett Connolly, RW (finger) – Had successful surgery last week
Kevan Miller, D (shoulder) – Done for season following surgery
Ottawa Senators
Clarke MacArthur, LW (concussion) – Still symptomatic
Zack Smith, C (wrist) – Cleared for full contact
Jared Cowen, D (illness) – Didn't go Friday or Sunday; Tuesday seems possible
Robin Lehner, G (concussion) – Still having symptoms
Chris Neil, RW (thumb) – Still wearing a cast
Chris Phillips, D (undisclosed) – Not considered close to returning
Winnipeg Jets
Bryan Little, C (undisclosed) – Won't go Tuesday
Dustin Byfuglien, D (upper body) – Out 2-4 weeks from end of last week
Mathieu Perreault, C (lower body) – Could be done for the season
Matt Halischuk, RW (lower body) – Started skating before practice last week
Grant Clitsome, D (upper body) – Lingering on IR with no timetable still
Ben Chiarot, D (hand) – Out about another four weeks
St. Louis Blues
Kevin Shattenkirk, D (abdomen) – Skating on his own
Olli Jokinen, C (undisclosed) – Expected to be available Tuesday
Jay Bouwmeester, D (illness) – Expected to go Tuesday too
Zbynek Michalek, D (concussion) – Skating, but not practicing
New Jersey Devils
Ryane Clowe, LW (concussion) – Out for the year
Bryce Salvador, D (back) – Likely done for the year
Minnesota Wild
Keith Ballard, D (concussion) – Unlikely to play again this year
Ryan Carter, C (shoulder) – Skating, but not practicing yet
Marco Scandella, D (undisclosed) – Ruled out for Tuesday and unlikely for Friday
Jason Zucker, LW (collarbone) – Out another two months
Matt Cooke, LW (sports hernia) – Skating, but not back at practice yet
Los Angeles Kings
Alec Martinez, D (concussion) – Still not close to returning to practice
Slava Voynov, D (suspension) – Trial pushed to April
Tanner Pearson, LW (leg) – Back to skating, but not practice
Colorado Avalanche
Nathan MacKinnon, C (foot) – Out 6-8 weeks, so his season is over
Patrick Bordeleau, LW (knee) – Remains out indefinitely, maybe for the year
Erik Johnson, D (knee) – Skated Friday
Semyon Varlamov, G (lower body) – Expected to practice Tuesday; status for game uncertain
Jamie McGinn, LW (back) – Out for the year
Jesse Winchester, LW (concussion) – Out for the year
Ryan Wilson, D (shoulder) – Out for the year
Hot
David Booth, RW, TOR – Okay, I'm lowering the bar a little to put Booth here, but the guy is legitimately on the hottest streak I've seen from him in years… for whatever that's worth. After scoring a goal for the third consecutive game Monday night against the Isles – and it was a beauty, too, with him outskating two Isles, then flipping a rocket of a backhander past Michal Neuvirth – he's got points in four straight games. An oft-injured, production-doesn't-match-the-talent kind of guy, Booth will certainly not be your fantasy savior, but hey, he's on a roll and seeing 15-16 minutes of ice time consistently.
Corey Crawford, G, CHI – Crawford's been a terrific goalie all year long, but Patrick Kane's broken collarbone seems to have made him decide that it'd really be best to give up fewer goals, since the 'Hawks are probably not going to score as many anymore. So far, so good – Crawford has started four of Chicago's five games since Kane went down, and he's 3-0-1 in that span while giving up just four total goals and posting a composite save mark of .970. Yeah, no big deal.
Cold
Antoine Vermette, C, CHI – Vermette, who was traded to the Blackhawks at the deadline while in the midst of a six-game scoreless skid, has extended that slump to nine games in his new uniform, though at least he scored a shootout goal against Edmonton last week. Small blessings, right? Worse still for the ol' fantasy value, Vermette has only played 12-odd minutes in two of his three games as a 'Hawk. And he hasn't exceeded two shots on goal in a game since Feb. 7. Not a great situation no matter how you slice it.
Andrej Sekera, D, LA – Another deadline acquisition, Sekera has failed to parlay his move to Los Angeles into any sort of statistical payoff, as he's now scoreless in five games as a King, with just five shots on goal and a minus-2 rating. As he left Carolina on a four-game scoreless streak, Sekera's matched Vermette's skid at nine straight without finding the scoresheet. If last season seemed like an outlier, that's only because it was.
Recommended Pickup
Dan Hamhuis, D, VAN – At this stage in the season, with players seemingly dropping like flies, sometimes you have to make do with boring veterans. So it is with Hamhuis, who still hasn't scored a goal this season, but has nonetheless rattled off five assists and a plus-3 rating in his last six games while seeing some solid (if inconsistent) power-play time. His overall ice time's as high as it's ever been this year, and he's had periods of fantasy relevance in the past. You could do worse to fill the back end of your blue line than going with Hamhuis down the stretch.
