This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
Around the Rink
Due to a lack of real option at forward this year, Carey Price is probably going to win the Hart Trophy this year as the NHL MVP. That's not to say that Price isn't deserving. He's had a great year, even though I had him in the "COLD" section of my very first Daily Puck of the year. He heated up a bit, obviously. The thing is, in truth, a goalie should probably win the Hart Trophy every year.
The goalie position is sort of like the quarterback position in football. It's so outsized in terms of its value, and its impact on the game, that it is hard for any other position to really equal the value of a goalie or a quarterback. Yet, goalies suffer from the inverse of what happens with the quarterbacks and the NFL. A quarterback wins the MVP almost every season. A goalie rarely wins the Hart. Price is only going to win because they can't justify giving the award to anybody else.
Instead, in this regard, the goalie is more like the pitcher in baseball. Goalies "have their own award," the Vezina, so voters look to the Hart to reward a forward. However, if the goal is to reward the most valuable player in the league, goalies must be considered, and, generally speaking, a goalie should win. Yes, that would perhaps get tiresome. Forwards would never win any big awards outside of the scoring ones. Still, if you want to do this right, Price should be the start of a trend.
Projected Goalie Starters (all times Eastern)
Maple Leafs (Jonathan Bernier) at Sabres (Anders Lindback) 7:30
Flyers (Steve Mason) at Penguins (Marc-Andre Fleury) 8:00
Oilers (Ben Scrivens) at Ducks (Frederik Andersen) 10:00
Avalanche (Reto Berra*) at Sharks (Alex Stalock) 10:30
*Confirmed Starters
For updates on the projected goalies later in the day, check out our Projected Goalies Grid.
Injury News For Teams Playing Wednesday
Maple Leafs
Peter Holland, C (lower-body) – Could return this weekend.
Nathan Horton, RW (back) – Out for season.
Roman Polak, D (hernia) – Out for season.
Stephane Robidas, D (shoulder) – Out for season.
Sabres
Jerry D'Amigo, RW (face) – Out for season.
Tyler Ennis, C (upper-body) – May play Wednesday.
Zemgus Girgensons, C (ankle) – Likely out for season.
Josh Gorges, D (lower-body) – On injured reserve.
Matt Hackett, G (knee) – Day-to-day.
Chad Johnson, G (lower-body) – May be out for season.
Evander Kane, LW (shoulder) – Out for season.
Cody McCormick, C (leg) – May be out for season.
Flyers
Carlo Colaiacovo, D (illness) – Day-to-day.
Radko Gudas, D (knee) – Not skating.
Andrew MacDonald, D (hand) – Out six weeks.
Luke Schenn, D (lower-body) – Likely out for season.
Wayne Simmonds, RW (leg) – Out four weeks.
Mark Streit, D (illness) – Day-to-day.
R.J. Umberger, LW (hip) – Out for season.
Penguins
Pascal Dupuis, RW (blood clots) – Out for season.
Christian Ehrhoff, D (upper-body) – Won't skate until next week.
Kris Letang, D (head) – Day-to-day.
Olli Maatta, D (shoulder) – Out for season.
Evgeni Malkin, C (undisclosed) – Did not practice Tuesday.
Oilers
Viktor Fasth, G (knee) – Out indefinitely.
Mark Fayne, D (shoulder) – Likely will return before end of season.
Andrew Ference, D (concussion) – Out indefinitely.
Boyd Gordon, C (back) – Traveling, may play.
Matt Hendricks, LW (back) – Traveling, may play.
Iiro Pakarinen, RW (knee) – May miss rest of season.
Tyler Pitlick, RW (spleen) – Out indefinitely.
Ducks
Matt Beleskey, LW (lower-body) – Day-to-day.
Tim Jackman, RW (lower-body) – Has not begun skating again.
Ryan Kesler, C (elbow) – Day-to-day.
Clayton Stoner, D (lower-body) – Did not play Sunday, day-to-day.
Avalanche
Patrick Bordeleau, LW (knee) – Out indefinitely.
Daniel Briere, RW (foot) – Out next three games.
Erik Johnson, D (knee) – Out next three games.
Nathan MacKinnon, C (foot) – Out 6-8 weeks.
Jamie McGinn, LW (back) – Out for season.
Borna Rendulic, RW (leg) – On injured reserve.
Ryan Wilson, D (shoulder) – Out for season.
Jesse Winchester, LW (concussion) – Out indefinitely.
Sharks
Mike Brown, RW (leg) – Far from returning.
Mirco Mueller, D (hand) – Out indefinitely.
Antti Niemi, G (illness) – Not expected to start.
Raffi Torres, LW (knee) – Out for season.
Marc-Edouard Vlasic, D (lower-body) – Out Wednesday.
Hot
Nick Bonino, C, VAN – Bonino picked up two helpers in a big win over the Nashville Predators on Tuesday, giving him a three game point scoring streak. He has six points in his last five games, but only 37 overall. Bonino played well early in the year, before cooling down, but perhaps he is perking back up as the season comes to a close.
Brandon Pirri, C, FLA – Pirri scored a goal Tuesday against the Boston Bruins in a loss, but it gives him 21 goals on the season. He also has four goals in his last five games, and he is a plus-2 in those games. He also picked up two penalty minutes Tuesday, but that only gives him 12 on the season. Granted, he only has two assists, but he has 21 goals in 43 games, and he's only 23 years old, so he is a player to keep in mind for next season, and perhaps down the stretch in a pinch.
Cold
David Perron, LW, PIT – Perron was brought over to the Penguins to try and give them some depth scoring, but he has not been doing that recently. He played five games in a row without registering a point, and he was a minus-1 in all of those games. Then, he missed one game, and then returned to, once again, register no points while being a minus-1. Other than penalty minutes, he hasn't been doing anything.
Valtteri Filppula, C, TAM – Filppula has one point, an assist in his last seven games. There is a reason for that, and it's because he's taken one shot in all of those games. Filppula has been long considered a reticent shooter, and when he goes in a funk like this, there is very little he can do for your fantasy team. He's also a minus-6 in those games, to add insult to injury.
Recommended Pickup
Jiri Hudler, LW, CGY – Most leagues have enough smart owners to have Hudler on somebody's roster, but he's actually owned in less than 70% of ESPN leagues, which is surprising. He has almost 30 goals and he has 43 assists to boot. Hudler also is quite hot at the moment, befitting a Flame, as he has 14 points in his last 10 games as Calgary makes a playoff drive. They are going to have something to play for all season, which means Hudler will have plenty to play for.
