Jarome Iginla Heats Up, Atlanta Thrashers Keep Getting Beat Up

Super Saturday. All 30 teams in the NHL hit the ice in one day for the first time since opening night in the 2005-06 season after the lockout. It certainly made plenty of tough decisions for all fantasy owners.

I'm pleased to report that I won my head-to-head this week by a whopping 10-1 score. The season is still young, so if your team is struggling don't worry yourself too much. Only the New York Rangers have played 10 games or more.

HOT

It was only a matter of time until Jarome Iginla found his scoring touch. The Flames captain scored five goals to go along with two assists in three games. Unsurprisingly, each was a victory for Calgary.

Shame on anyone that dropped Mike Ribeiro, who had a career year in 2007-2008. Patience is a virtue, especially in fantasy hockey. He exploded for a five-point night in Long Island and added another helper against Washington Saturday.

Cory Stillman won't be the forgotten man in Florida much longer. While Nathan Horton may be considered the bright star in Sunrise, the veteran Stillman is producing nicely. After burning his former club—the Ottawa Senators—with a goal and an assist, he added three points (2G, 1A) against San Jose.

Fresh off a contract extension, Patrick O'Sullivan is showing his dedication to Los Angeles. The 23-year old has picked up at least one point in each of the last five games. Most recently, he put together consecutive one-goal nights, and continued with two assists in Nashville.

Ryan Getzlaf, Chris Kunitz, and Corey Perry have all come to life. Things are looking mighty for the Anaheim Ducks once again. Their three-game road trip through the Eastern Conference was perfect, with nothing but victories.

If he stays healthy, Mike Van Ryn could be a complete steal for the Toronto Maple Leafs. He picked up a point in each match for the Leafs this week. In Boston, Milan Lucic levelled him and broke the glass in doing so. Van Ryn shook the cobwebs and the glass off, before scoring a power-play goal to begin the comeback victory from 2-0 down.

I'm hoping we get to see that shot of his at the NHL skills competition. Alexander Semin continues to do the honours in Washington. His overtime winner in Dallas was just another pin-pointed dart. With 14 points in eight contests, this could be the year everyone realizes who No. 28 is.

It's not Andrei Markov or Nicklas Lidstrom. Currently, the leading point-getter among defensemen is Filip Kuba in Ottawa. All of the Czech's points are assists, and he has seven in the last five games. The Senators aren't looking good at all, so get him all the ice time you can.

If Martin Brodeur is having an off night, all eyes are on Zach Parise. He is the only real offensive threat in New Jersey, and he averaged two points per game this week. Just another small guy making a big name for himself.

The questions started to arise when Mike Richards was named captain of the Philadelphia Flyers. A one-year wonder? Think again. The 24th-overall pick in the 2003 Entry Draft racked up six points this week, including a career-best four-assist effort in New Jersey.

Mathieu Schneider won't be able to avoid seeing Marian Hossa going around him and scoring a beauty for a little while on the television. It wasn't a happy sight for the Atlanta Thrashers. Hossa is red hot, with nine points in his last five games with Detroit.

NOT

It was a winless week for the Atlanta Thrashers. If that's not bad enough, they became the first—and so far, only—team to lose to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Ilya Kovalchuk's goal scoring will continue, and Bryan Little could have a great year. Other then that, it's pretty dark for this squad.

The Edmonton Oilers have dropped three straight, and Erik Cole's lack of production is a big reason why. Cole has only two points in seven games, and the minus-three is just insult to injury.

Rick DiPietro as the solution for the New York Islander's poor play is looking like a joke of the day. He's allowed nine goals on 77 total shots in three games. Good luck to who ever has DiPietro as a goalie in their fantasy league.

Might as well make it three teams with three losses this week. The Ottawa Senators are having anything but a solid start to the season. Problems are occurring everywhere for this team, and the first battle of Ontario went to the Maple Leafs on Saturday.

It's been six games and no goals for Alexander Ovechkin. I realize it's too early to worry, but I just can't help it. Any sort of slump for the Great Eight is a shocker, and I hope he breaks out of it quickly.

The first win may be out of the way, but the Tampa Bay Lightning are still having issues finding consistency with the offense. Vinny Lecavalier and Marty St. Louis are looking average at best, and Steven Stamkos still hasn't registered a point.

Vancouver's Sedin twins have been uncharacteristically disappointing. Daniel has one assist in the last five games, while Henrik has just two points. Good thing Alex Burrows and Ryan Kesler are filling in the holes.

Still, only two stars on the Columbus Blue Jackets team. R.J. Umberger was expected to be the third, and it hasn't quite worked out. He's yet to score a goal, and his two assists aren't much to look at for the time being.

No goaltender has been beaten by Tomas Plekanec yet. His one goal was an empty netter, and he may get bumped down from Alex Kovalev's line if the struggles continue. Making him a healthy scratch for a game could motivate him for the future.

It may have been wise for Chris Drury to stay in Buffalo. Last year wasn't bad, but it wasn't as successful as his two previous seasons with the Sabres. The Rangers have already played 11 games, and Drury has three assists and a nice zero in the goal section.

Five games, and nothing to show for it—Zdeno Chara hasn't been himself in the early going. No goals and two assists through eight contests has me hoping he fights Bryan McCabe again soon.