Clayton Stoner will play tonight vs. the Kings and Dumba will sit. He was the seventh overall pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. Dumba is a good skater who likes to rush the puck. His offensive game outshines his defensive game, but he loves to throw big hits, which Wild fans will grow to love.
The 30-year-old was acquired by Minnesota on Trade Deadline Day from Buffalo last season. He tallied nine points (4-5=9) in 10 games after coming to Minnesota. Pominville will skate on a line with Mikko Koivu and Zach Parise as the Wild open their regular season tonight.
Neal has not been ruled out just yet, and even if Vitale plays on Malkin's line, he is not fantasy relevant.
After spending the last four years in the KHL, Ramo is back in the NHL, this time with the Calgary Flames. In his first NHL stint he was 11-21-10 with a 3.35 GAA and .895 SV% over three seasons with the Lightning. In the KHL he was much better going 99-49-22 with a 2.01 GAA and .923 SV%. The Flames are going to struggle because they are seriously lacking talent and usually a good goalie on a bad team does not lead to fantasy success.
The Blue Jackets do not open the season until tomorrow, consider Tyutin doubtful.
Joe Vitale replaced Neal in line rushes which suggests Neal could still play vs. the Devils. He has not been ruled out yet, we will await word from the Penguins.
In his first season as the Bruins number-1, Rask emerged as one of fantasy's best goalies. He went 19-10-5 with a 2.00 GAA, .929 SV% and tied for the league lead in shutouts with five. Behind a great Bruins team, Rask will be a workhorse once again and should find himself near the top of the league in wins.
Boll has been sidelined since September 23rd and remains questionable for the season opener.
Krejci should be good to go tonight after dealing with back spasms for almost a week. He will centre a line with Jarome Iginla and Milan Lucic.
Holtby allowed five goals on 34 shots in an opening day loss to the Blackhawks. Chicago is going to pose a tough challenge for any netminder but Holtby is a must start tonight against the Flames.
Rielly sat in each of the Maple Leafs first two games of the season but could play on Saturday. Mark Fraser was seen leaving the arena on crutches last night, which opens a spot on the blueline for the 19-year-old.
Fraser reportedly left the arena on crutches which would suggest he may miss an extended period of time. We will wait for an update from the Maple Leafs, but this injury likely opens the door for Morgan Rielly to make his NHL debut on Saturday.
Fleury had a good regular season going 23-8-0 with a 2.39 GAA and .916. However it was the playoffs in which he struggled yet again (3.51/.883). Fleury is a strong fantasy option because of the team he plays behind. The Penguins are Stanley Cup favourites once again so as long as Fleury does not collapse he will be a solid number-1.
Dvorak was with the Hurricanes on a professional tryout. Dvorak split the 2012-13 season between HC Davos of the Swiss league and the Anaheim Ducks in the NHL, totaling seven points in seven games for Davos, and four goals in nine games with the Ducks. He will skate on the Canes third line with Riley Nash and Jeff Skinner.
Perreault and Silfverberg combine to be 47 years old while Selanne himself is 43. Perreault is a fast, playmaker while Silfverberg has the quick wrister... And Selanne, well he is Teemu Selanne, 1430 career points, what more can you say. This line has the looks of one that can be very productive as a secondary scoring option for the Ducks.
Maroon had two goals and an assist in 13 games with the Ducks last season.
The 25-year-old Varlamov struggled in his second season in Colorado, going 11-21-3 with a 3.02 GAA and .903 SV%. He now has one of the greatest goalies of all-time, Patrick Roy as his new head coach so that should certainly help him in 2013-14.
Penner was given a great chance to succeed when he was reunited with his former line-mates Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry in the preseason. However, Ducks head coach Bruce Boudreau was less than impressed with how Penner performed. Boudreau is likely trying to send a message to the 31-year-old winger.
In 2013-14, Ryan Miller had the worst GAA of his career (2.81) but hi SV% stayed about the same as it had in past years (.915). The Sabres were not very good last year and did not add much this year. They are also in one of the toughest divisions in the NHL. The one positive for Miller owners is that he is in the last year of his contract. Usually that contract year brings out the best of players as they look for a big payday. Miller is still a strong number-2 fantasy option.
Howard had his second elite season in a row in 2012-13. He was 21-13-7 with a 2.13 GAA, .923 SV% and tied for the NHL lead in shutouts with five. His strong play was rewarded with a six-year contract extension. His career 2.39/.917 suggest that he is going to stay near the top of fantasy's best netminders. He is on one of the best teams he's played on in his career and he should reap all the benefits.
