Tampa Bay Lightning Find Life, Dave Tippett Under the Knife

A week without Alexander Ovechkin for the first time since the Russian joined the NHL. I'm sure that I'm not the only one who missed his presence on the ice for Washington.

Hopefully, all is well with his grandfather.

The results for my head-to-head won't be in until tomorrow, but I may have just squeezed out the victory by one category. Steven Stamkos turned heads with some points this week, including a three-point effort in Buffalo.

It was no doubt the first of many for the 18-year-old.

HOT

One week you've got one victory, the next you quadruple it. The Tampa Bay Lightning have turned it around after an ugly start. Barry Melrose's squad picked up wins in Toronto and Buffalo before defeating Ottawa in a shootout Saturday. Along with wins, the Lightning are getting production from plenty of sources. Vincent Lecavalier, Jussi Jokinen, and Vaclav Prospal each had a fine week. And it was big Evgeny Artyukhin who potted the shootout winner against the Senators.

Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, Teemu Selanne. Ok, take a deep breath. This trio combined for 28 points this week. Both Perry and Getzlaf had a five-point night on one occasion while Selanne had a hat-trick against Detroit followed by a four-point outing against Vancouver. Release.

I picked him up on my fantasy roster last night and will see him in action tomorrow. Derick Brassard has been a pleasant surprise on an unsurprisingly bad Columbus Blue Jackets team. With five points in four games this week, and a point per game on the season so far, the sixth overall pick in the 2006 draft may be ready to break out.

I like it, I love it, I want some more of it. It's the little tune you hear when the Nashville Predators score in their arena. J.P. Dumont has been in on 14 of them this year. His five assists in three games this week went along with a plus-3 rating.

Healthy isn't where you want him if he's your opponent. Simon Gagne totaled eight points this week for the Flyers. We may be looking at the comeback player of the year.

From the doghouse to the White House. That's how it must feel for Matt Stajan. After being a healthy scratch for Coach Ron Wilson, the 24-year-old responded with a five-point week. He's certainly worth a shot in fantasy leagues.

Does Ales Hemsky have a new DVD hitting stores in the near future? The Czech scored two highlight reel goals today in Philadelphia, which were his first two on the year. Definitely worth the wait, and I recommend you watch them when you have a chance.

Respect is a word that deserves mentioning when talking about the older guys who can still play great hockey. Shane Doan continues to produce with any linemates. Only two games for the Coyotes this week, but it didn't stop Doan from getting five points.

Changes of scenery always bring a gamble with them. A safe bet is what Mike Cammalleri has been for the Calgary Flames. It seems like five was the magic number this week, as the Richmond Hill native scored two goals and added three helpers.

Get Carter. A pretty decent Sylvester Stallone flick from a while back. It's also an appropriate phrase for anyone that has Jeff Carter available in fantasy hockey. In his fourth NHL season, Carter has six goals in his last six matches.

On his knees, belly, back, feet, and anywhere else you can think of. Tim Thomas made saves from every sort of position this week and won three of his four starts. He picked up two shutouts on back-to-back nights in Western Canada, and allowed just three goals on 38 shots in his lone loss to Calgary.

NOT

The Dallas Stars continue to struggle to put together a string of wins. Coach Dave Tippett may want to look at the calendar and count his days. Each time the Stars get scored on, you see that dumb look on his face. Well, dumb doesn't even begin to describe Fabian Brunnstrom seeing only a little over 20 minutes in the last three games.

Heart breaking, devastating, embarrassing, unbelievable. These words, along with many others, can easily describe the New York Islanders' match against Montreal. Up 4-1, they allowed four goals and didn't even treat themselves to a point. It's been two weeks since they have won a game. They are easily the worst team in the National Hockey League.

Florida went 4-for-4 in the loss column this week. Cory Stillman went off the radar after a superb week on the last hot or not. Remember, this is a guy who's put up 60 points on four occasions. The Panthers need his production.

Ryan Smyth has cooled off after a terrific start to the year. Uh oh, two Canadians with no points this week. Perhaps Terrence and Phillip will cheer me up.

Aside from Paul Kariya, the St. Louis Blues just weren't themselves. Brad Boyes, Andy McDonald, and Keith Tkachuk were all off the mark. It was a two-game week for the Blues, so I wouldn't worry myself about it.

Well, they picked up a win tonight. That's something if you're an Atlanta Thrashers fan. They were outscored 16-3 in the three previous losses, so a shootout loss would have done the job. Ilya Kovalchuk struck twice Sunday after going goal-less in the last three games. Expect some brilliant performances from him this week.

One thing that hasn't changed in Dallas is Marty Turco getting his fair share of starts. The numbers tell a different tale, with 11 goals against in the last two contests. Sometimes, change is good.