Bleacher Report - Articles by Chuck Johnston

Five NHL Fantasy Players and Why They Matter

Chuck Johnston — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 19:10:35 -0500

In the run up to this season’s trade deadline, here’s one pooly's view on five players of note:

Daniel Briere

Although Briere has only played in nine games this season, he’s posted a solid nine points. It’s likely he’ll be inserted directly into the first or second line upon his imminent return in Philly and should get regular power play duties.

If he can maintain a point-per-game average down the stretch, which is entirely possible, he’ll be a huge boost to any fantasy team. It’s possible some owners might not realize his potential, or may be embittered by his disappointing season to date, and they may let him go for a second-string forward or offensive defenseman.

Look for Briere to change the outcome of a few fantasy hockey pools this season.

Alex Kovalev

The uncertainty surrounding Kovalev’s future, combined with his lackluster play through most of the season, has many a pooly questioning his value. Many managers may look to unload him in favor of a player with more consistent output.

Don’t be deterred by his play prior to Gainey sitting him out last week; he’s an emotional player whose role on the Canadians had become uncertain with the return of Saku Koivu. Kovalev has as much offensive talent as anyone in the league and, armed with a renewed sense of purpose, he may very well be the driving force in getting Montreal safely back in the Playoff picture.

Joe Thornton

Nobody doubts Joe’s heart in the regular season, but he has a nasty habit of disappearing completely in the postseason. In a league where postseason points count, attempt to move him for two young guns on consistent Playoff teams, such as Zack Parise in New Jersey or Ryan Getzlaf in Anaheim.

Everybody loves to love "Big" Joe Thornton, and most fantasy owners would give up just about anything to acquire the rights to him (possibly without considering his history in the Playoffs).

That said, if your pool ends with the regular season, ride Thornton all the way to the end.

Mats Sundin

Although he’s shown fleeting moments of brilliance, many fans have been disappointed that Sundin’s return to the NHL in a Canucks uniform wasn’t as spectacular as they had imagined. Ignore these people, or at the very least take advantage of them.

Sundin is playing on a good team that just happens to be in a situation where Mats plays his best hockey—that is, in the hunt for a postseason berth. If you feel your team may be a little thin at the center position, take a run at acquiring him.

He’s probably going to carry the Canucks into the Playoffs and likely to the second round (though no further).

Why? Because that’s what Sundin does.

Alexander Ovechkin

Chances are this guy went first or second in your fantasy draft. If not, you should find new friends, because the ones in your pool are idiots.

In many draft formats, one downside of having a high draft position is once you’ve landed that star player, you don’t get another pick until everyone else has had two. That can result in all of the true superstars having been grabbed up.

What does this mean to you? It means there’s a lot of fantasy owners out there with Alexander Ovechkin on their roster but with little chance of placing in their pool. Exploit this insecurity in other owners and trick them into letting Ovechkin go for less than he’s worth. There’s a very real chance he’ll eclipse his scoring totals from last season and take that momentum deep into the Playoffs.

Nik Antropov: With Growing Up Comes Grown-Up Responsibilities

Chuck Johnston — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 13:10:48 -0500

Owen Nolan joined the Toronto Maple Leafs on March 5, 2003.

In accordance with hockey protocol and out of respect for his senior, Nik Antropov consigned jersey number 11 to Nolan.

Antropov was just 23 at the time, as was I. It was only when Antropov adopted jersey number 80, his birth year—our birth year—that I learned we are so close in age.

Antropov was putting together a career year at the time.

He went on to post 45 points (16 goals, 29 assists) during the regular season. He also played in three playoff games wherein the Philadelphia Flyers wholly dominated the Leafs, including shutting down Antropov, who went pointless in the short series.

The following season, his point production dropped significantly, and he came under heavy criticism for taking unnecessary penalties and an apparent proneness to injuries.

As the trade deadline approached in 2004, rumors abounded about deals involving Antropov and several other young Maple Leafs, in exchange for hard-shooting Washington Capitals defenseman Sergei Gonchar.

In a rare moment of clarity, Leafs General Manager John Ferguson Jr. elected to hold on to Antropov. Instead, in typical Leafs fashion, he traded a first- and second-round draft pick and other lesser-known prospects for veteran defenseman and multiple Norris trophy recipient Brian Leetch.

Antropov finished the season with a disappointing 31 points (13 goals, 18 assists).

The lockout should have provided an opportunity to start over. However, injuries again kept the sinewy forward from finding his rhythm over the two NHL seasons immediately following the labour disruption.

When he was healthy, he showed moments of offensive brilliance, but they were fleeting.

It was only when he was teamed with Mats Sundin and Alexei Ponikarovsky, a line averaging six feet and five inches tall, that Antropov began scoring with any consistency. It was also around this time that he began using his size to be an effective force in front of the net, particularly on the power play.

Last season, in 72 games played Antropov recorded a career-best 56 points (26 goals, 30 assists)—11 points more than he scored in 2002-03, the season that Owen Nolan took jersey number 11.

More importantly, he demonstrated a ruggedness and veteran hockey sensibility that consecutive coaches have insisted was possible. Though he continued to take penalties, he also played effectively defensively, and accumulated a healthy plus-10 rating on the season.

With the loss of Mats Sundin this past offseason and the dissolution of the Leafs' core group of players, it was understood that Antropov would shoulder much of the offensive responsibilities on a younger, less-experienced Maple Leafs team.

During the preseason, interim General Manager Cliff Fletcher was quoted saying that Nik Antropov was the only top-six forward remaining on the Leafs roster.

Though all we share in common is our age, I can identify with the position Nik Antropov presently finds himself in—he has established benchmarks by which his performance will be evaluated going forward, and the expectations on him are higher than ever.

As the season progresses, Antropov will have to be a source of inspiration for his teammates. He will be called upon to set an example of hard work for the young forwards, and he will have to come up big in a few clutch situations.

He will also have to stay positive and continue to produce when the team is struggling, as they almost certainly will.

Barring injury, he will likely put up his best numbers this season. Subsequently, as the trade deadline approaches, Cliff Fletcher will again entertain offers for him.

The temptation to flip the lanky Russian will be great.

But perhaps now more than ever before, no other team needs Nik Antropov more than the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Canadiens-Maple Leafs: Leafs Beat Habs at Their Own Game

Chuck Johnston — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 12:40:04 -0500

In a time of political uncertainty, unjust wars and collapsing economies, the Montreal Canadiens and the Toronto Maple Leafs showed last night that the game of hockey is as healthy as ever.

In sixty minutes bursting with end-to-end chances, the Maples Leafs beat the heavily favoured Canadiens at their own fast-paced, highly-disciplined game by a final score of 6-3.

There was plenty of speed and clever passing on display from the very first face-off, with the Leafs unexpectedly outrunning and outshooting the Canadians early.

Things turned ugly before the game was five minutes old when Montreal’s Tom Kostopoulos chased Toronto defenseman Mike Van Ryn to a loose puck, and delivered a questionable hit from behind that sent Van Ryn face-first into the glass.

Van Ryn collapsed to the ice and was later pronounced to have suffered a concussion, a broken nose and a broken finger.

Kostopoulos was immediately handed a game misconduct and it is likely that further disciplinary action from the league will follow.

On the ensuing Leafs power play, Niklas Hagman scored the first goal of the game, his first of a pair on the night.

Hagman (6 goals, 6 assists) continues to shine for the Leafs, but he wasn’t the only Leafs off-season acquisition to contribute in the game.

Former Canadiens top-prospect, Mikhail Grabovski, who wasn’t good enough to crack the Habs roster with any regularity last season, put on a performance that has to cast some doubt on the decision to trade him to Toronto.

Grabovski (7 goals, 3 assists) created chances every time he was on the ice and he had the entire Canadiens bench thirsting for his blood by the end of the night.

Saku Koivu had words for the youngster early in the game and even highly-disciplined Habs forward Andrei Kostistyn took a run at Grabovski in the third.

Perhaps it was the tenderizing that Grabovski applied to Carey Price’s midsection with the butt-end of his stick in the first period, or perhaps it was simply his repeated undressing of the Canadiens defense, that had them gunning for him all night.

He finished with a goal and an assist in the contest.

Nik Antropov had a goal and two assists and showed no lingering effects from the bruised foot he suffered in Thursday’s game against the Boston Bruins.

Antropov’s goal resulted from a wild scrum in front of the Canadiens net where his size and strength afforded him the opportunity to deliver a loose puck past a sprawling Carey Price.

Antropov (5 goals, 8 assists) later assisted on a perfectly executed transitional goal by linemate Alexei Ponikarovsky (4 goals, 7 assists).

Pavel Kubina (3 goals, 6 assists) also had a goal on the night

Tomas Plekanec (4 goals, 6 assists), Saku Koivu (5 goals, 7 assists) and Robert Lang (4 goals, 4 assists) scored for the Canadiens, who looked overwhelmed throughout most of the game.

Carlo Colaiacovo got the start for the Leafs and he played a good, physical game.

Ian White also got the start on the wing, but dropped back to defense for several shifts after Van Ryn left the game. There have been rumors that the Leafs are shopping White for a scoring forward, but with the loss of John Mitchell and Van Ryn to injuries, his ability to play forward and defense are proving to be a big asset.

The match was preceded by a lengthy Hall of Fame induction that saw Igor Larionov, Glenn Anderson, Ray Scapinello and the late Ed Chynoweth honoured; as well as a short Remembrance Day tribute involving several decorated Canadian war veterans.

For the first occasion in a very long time, the Leafs were represented at centre ice by someone other than Mats Sundin. This should have been the first indication that the game would be nothing like any recent meetings between the two original-six clubs.

As the Habs struggle to find the chemistry that had them finishing first in the Eastern Conference last season, Toronto continues to be a surprisingly tenacious team to play against early in this season.

Though a first-place finish might be a stretch, the Leafs are beginning to bear a remarkable resemblance to last year's overachieving Habs.

Leafs-Rangers: Toronto Scores Five Late to Get The Win

Chuck Johnston — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 05:58:14 -0500

On display again last night was a level of determination not seen on a Leafs roster in years, perhaps even decades.

Trailing by two goals late in the third period, the Maple Leafs staged an inspired comeback, defeating the league-leading New York Rangers by a final score of 5-2.

A Rangers goal scored by Ryan Callahan with less than a minute left in the first period seemed as though it could be setting the tone for the next two periods.

Alas, the Leafs came out with great gusto in the second, and although they allowed the Rangers to get another one courtesy of Blair Betts, the Leafs looked to be the dominant team on the ice.

Persistence finally paid off and it was John Mitchell’s third period goal, his first in the NHL, that really lit a fire under the Leafs offense tonight. He took his time with a loose puck, waited out Valiquette and delivered a shot to the far corner that beat the Rangers goalie.

Mitchell showed a level of patience in his delivery not often seen in a forward who’s spent the past five seasons in the minors, and like we’ve seen so many times this season, the rest of the team fed off the goal and went on to score four more in just over five minutes.

You could make the argument that the outcome of last night’s game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the New York Rangers was a result of a breakdown by the Rangers as much as it was the third-period onslaught by the Maple Leafs.

It certainly didn’t hurt that the Rangers defense had a complete meltdown and the entire team were coughing up pucks all over the place. Add to that the complete deflation of Steve Valiquette’s confidence and you’ve got a classic third period collapse I’m sure the Rangers would like to have back.

Vesa Toskala deserves his share of the credit for keeping the Leafs in this one.

I don’t foresee Toskala ever being a goalie who accumulates many shutouts in his career, as he seems to take time to get settled every night, and like a boxer who needs a good punch in the face before he really gets engaged in a fight, Toskala seems to need to let in a goal or two before he really starts to show the poise necessary to win games.

That said, once he gets comfortable in net he’s tough to beat.

Speaking of poise, Luke Schenn has more of it than most veteran defensemen in the NHL. Again tonight, he was responsible with the puck in his own end and did a worthy job of patrolling the offensive blue-line. He appears comfortable playing in the big leagues and I expect by the end of the season he’ll be getting top minutes on the team.

Schenn's performance certainly casts a shadow over Tomas Kaberle, who refused to take a shot at the net again tonight. On several occasions Kaberle had a clear shooting lane and chose to pass the puck rather than shoot it. You would think a player who won the NHL accuracy competition last season might be more of an offensive threat from the point, but Kaberle just won’t shoot.

Other Maple Leafs who deserve mention for solid performances include Jason Blake, whose renewed work ethic is making him a candidate for the Leafs captaincy while earning him a goal and an assist tonight; Dominic Moore, who managed to keep opposing defensemen on their toes at all times also earned a goal and an assist; and Niklas Hagman, whose soft hands and lightening quickness earned him an assist tonight and reinforced the belief that with the right guidance, this kid could be a leading scorer in the National Hockey League.

Perhaps the biggest asset of this new-look Leafs squad is their youthful ability to tire out their opponents and capitalize on their mistakes late in the game. Although it’s still very early in the season, if the Leafs continue exploit this asset down the stretch they may be knocking on the door to the playoffs in the spring.