Two-Pad Stack – November 27, 2011

A Weekly Crease Full of Information

This is the first in what will be a regular feature here at Causeway Crowd.  Each week we’ll give you a boat load of information on hockey.  Mostly Bruins, but also a look around the league or the division.  We’ll also give you some tips to improve your Fantasy team.  If there’s something you want to see, leave me a comment.

Without further ado…

WEEK IN REVIEW

This week saw the end of the Bruins 10 game winning streak.  But that wasn’t until the end of the week!  Here’s a recap.

     Monday Nov 21, Bruins 1  Montreal 0

A first period goal from Andrew Ference was enough for Tim Thomas as he stood up and shutout the Canadiens, 1-0.

Three stars 1st: Tim Thomas, 2nd: Carey Price, 3rd:  Andrew Ference

     Wednesday Nov 23, Bruins 4 Sabres 3

A game everyone (including Sheriff Shanahan) was looking forward to.  Paul Gaustad actually had the stones to step up and Challenge Lucic to the obligatory revenge fight.  Unfortunately for him Lucic was more than ready and he embarrassed  Gaustad in front of the Buffalo Faithful.  The Bruins went on to erase two, two-goal deficits before Benoit Pouliot won it in the 5th round of the Shootout.

Three stars 1st: Tyler Seguin, 2nd: Benoit Pouliot, 3rd: TJ Brennan

     Friday Nov 25, Detroit 3 Boston 2 (SO)

The Black and Gold Friday tradition has gone national as NBC picked up this game and looks like they’ll try to make it a tradition.  This game was all about two evenly matched teams playing close to their best games.  Two different styles but it turned out to be a highly entertaining game that went to the shootout 2-2.  Pavel Datsyuk was the best player on the ice as he scored one during regulation and the first Shootout goal before Todd Bertuzzi sealed it for Detroit.  Nathan Horton kept the Bruins alive before Bertuzzi ended it with a slick right to left move on Rask.

Three Stars 1st: Valtteri Filppula, 2nd: Patrice Bergeron, 3rd: Pavel Datsyuk

     Saturday Nov 26, Boston 4  Winnipeg 2

On Saturday night the B’s welcomed the Winnipeg Jets to town for the first time since 1995.  A less than stellar first period left the Bruins trailing the Jets 2-1. They turned it on in the second and dominating Winnipeg, even though being outshot 14-11.  Two goals by Chris Kelly gave them the lead headed to the third, where they held off the Jets, adding an empty netter by Marchand to seal it 4-2.

Three Stars 1st:  Chris Kelly, 2nd:  Tim Thomas, 3rd: Rich Peverley

TRAVELING THE NORTHEAST

The Bruins have climbed back to the top of the division, but there’s lots going on with the other teams in the Northeast.  For the latest on the B’s division rivals, here are the links:

Canadiens                   Sabres                  Maple Leafs                   Senators

FANTASY UPDATE

Each week Causeway Crowd will give you some tips on sleeper pick ups.  We’ll show you the top three players at each position who are available in most leagues (under 50% owned).  So here’s our picks this week.

     Left Wing

1. Pascal Dupuis (Pit)– At only 32% ownership he’s a steal!  His line reads; 6G 13A +12.  That’s good for 60th overall in the league.
2. Ray Whitney (Pho)- Only owned by 35%, Whitney’s line of 7G 11A +6 and 4pp points is a bit of a surprise on a dissapointing Coyote’s club.
3. Jussi Jokinen (Car)- Surprisingly  he’s only owned by 32% of managers.  His totals read 4G 11A +0.  His value comes in categories such as pp points (7) and pim (16) if your league counts those stats.

     Right Wing

1. Radem Vrbata (Pho)- 46% owned.  11G 8A +7.  Another Surprising Coyote that could help your club.
2. Michael Ryder (Dal)- 21% owned. 7G 7A +9.  We all know Ryder well around here.  Looks like he’s got something to prove and it’s a good bet he’ll remain productive for most of the year.
3. Jakub Voracek (Phi)- 34% owned. 4G 12A +5.  Lesser known player; does get PP time so can be a solid pick-up if your in need of a RW.

    Center

1. Valtteri Flippula (Det)- 30% owned.  7G 12A +8  and 8 PP points.  Bruins fans saw score a goal against them Friday afternoon.  He followed that up with 2 more Saturday night against Nashville.  Another gem turned out by the Red Wings!
2. Chris Kelly (Bos)- 12% owned.  9G 7A +15.  Not gonna give you PP points but he’s been on fire the first part of the season and has developed nice chemistry with Peverley.
3. Craig Smith (Nash)-   23% owned.  7G 9A 5PP points.  Unheralded but productive.  Plays on the third line, but sees PP time.

Defensemen

1. Dan Hamhuis (Van)- 34% owned.  2G 12A +2 PP points 7.  Hate to promote a Canuck, but he’s having a solid season.
2. Ian White (Det) – 43% owned.  4G 7A +11.  Solid pick up.  Nothing fancy but playing on Detroit has it’s advantages!
3.  Dan Girardi (NYR)-  27% owned.  3G 8A +8.  Getting PP time and producing (1G 5A).

Goaltenders

Let’s face it, all the starting goalies have already been drafted in your league so everyone that’s left is a back up, which makes it a crapshoot at best.

(fantasy content courtesy of Yahoo fantasy sports)

WEEK AHEAD

Wednesday, Nov 30 Bruins travel to Toronto to take on Kessel and the Leafs

Saturday Dec 3 Leafs come to Boston for the back end of the Home and Home.  This matchup continues to be favorable for the B’s in the Kessel era.

For the full schedule visit our schedule page.