This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
Yawn. What a slow day in the NHL.
Just the All-Star Team announcements, some rumors...
Oh, Vincent Lecavalier and Luke Schenn dealt from Philadelphia to Los Angeles for Jordan Weal and a third round pick. Ok.
Oh, Mike Richards signs a one-year deal with the Washington Capitals. Ok.
Oh, Columbus trades Ryan Johansen to Nashville for Seth Jones. Ok.
Someone unkinked the stalemate and now moves are happening faster than the NHL pretends that the All-Star fan vote didn't happen.
From a number of reports, this isn't going to be the end of moves in the near future. (But more on that later.) Let's talk about what did happen.
Trade #1: Let's step away from the enormous amount of money Philadelphia pays to players who aren't on their roster, Lecavalier's promise to retire in the summer and everything else that isn't strictly fantasy related.
Ok. We're done here.
Realistically, unless you're in a very deep keeper league, this isn't making a huge impact. If you have a hunch about one of these guys suddenly turning it on, by all means, keep an eye on them. Weal isn't likely to have an impact. There's not even really evidence that Philly is all that high on him. The big thing they gained here is cap space.
Lecavalier is going to play. Los Angeles doesn't make this move unless they want to give him a shot. But he could barely crack the Philadelphia lineup. There isn't much reason to pick him up right now.
With a career-high of 22 points way in the rearview mirror, Schenn doesn't look like a guy you need to jump out and grab either. Matt Greene was ruled out for the rest of the season on Wednesday, so Schenn is going to play. But wait to see how he adapts and if there's value before jumping in on him. He'll still be there in a week or two. Promise.
Richards Signing: Richards is not the guy he was even a few years ago and taking half a season off isn't generally a recipe for getting your game back. However, stranger things have happened. Just don't run out and pick him up. The rewards just don't stand to be that great. Remember, Richards spent a big chunk of last year in the AHL.
Trade #2: Finally, a trade with fantasy relevance.
On the Columbus end, Seth Jones probably takes a step back even though he is almost instantly catapulted into being a number one defenseman. He was already playing big minutes and shouldering a lot of responsibility. Columbus is a weaker team and their system doesn't rely as heavily on activating the defense. That could mean a reduction in offensive production.
If you own him and are worried about a drop in value, watch their power play units over the next couple of weeks. He got limited time on the second unit in Nashville, behind Shea Weber and Roman Josi. His competition for time in Columbus is Ryan Murray on the first unit. On the second unit is Jack Johnson and then, recently, Kevin Connauton. It's easy to see how he grabs some good power play time.
For Johansen, this is a big upgrade. He's going to a team that can control play and has a ton of support on the blue line. He'll have active defensemen who shoot the puck hard and often. Weber and Josi currently lead the team in points. That means that they're active, but also that the Predators want Johansen to step into every situation that he can score in. There is no one else with his skill in the forward group.
He's likely to be their first line center and to be on the top power play unit. We know that he's capable of scoring 30+ goals. He's been slumping under John Tortorella, but this could rekindle the Johansen we saw last year. I'm asking the price on Johansen from other owners in my leagues.
Projected Goalie Starters (all times Eastern)
For updates on the projected goalies later in the day, check our Projected Goalies Grid
Capitals (Braden Holtby) at Islanders (Jaroslav Halak), 7:00 PM
Panthers (Roberto Luongo) at Ottawa Senators (Craig Anderson), 7:30 PM
Flyers (Steve Mason) at Wild (Devan Dubnyk), 8:00 PM
Jets (Connor Hellebuyck) at Stars (Antti Niemi), 8:30 PM
Coyotes (Louis Domingue) at Flames (Karri Ramo), 9:00 PM
Maple Leafs (Jonathan Bernier) at Kings (Jonathan Quick), 10:30 PM
Red Wings (Petr Mrazek) at Sharks (Martin Jones), 10:30 PM
Injury News For Teams Playing Thursday
Washington Capitals
Brooks Orpik, D (lower body) - is joining the team for their three-game road trip, but isn't expected to play
John Carlson, D (undisclosed) - has been ruled out of Thursday's game
Jay Beagle, C (hand) - isn't expected back for another six weeks or so
Zach Sill, RW (suspension) - was suspended for two games on Wednesday
New York Islanders
Johnny Boychuk, D (shoulder) - will miss four-to-six weeks
Florida Panthers
Dave Bolland, C (lower body) - is out through the All-Star break
Steve Kampfer, D (lower body) - "could probably play now" according to reports
Ottawa Senators
Cody Ceci, D (upper body) - may be activated from IR, but is still questionable for Thursday's game
Clarke MacArthur, LW (concussion) - skated on Wednesday
Chris Phillips, D (back) - may have his career come to an end as he's not recovering as expected from offseason back surgery
Philadelphia Flyers
Healthy
Minnesota Wild
Mikko Koivu, C (undisclosed) - was sent to the hospital during Tuesday's game and remains questionable for Thursday
Ryan Carter, LW (hand) - didn't play on Tuesday against Columbus
Darcy Kuemper, G (concussion) - remains on injured reserve
Winnipeg Jets
Ondrej Pavelec, G (knee) - won't return until closer to the end of the month
Dallas Stars
Ales Hemsky, RW (lower body) - remains on IR
Arizona Coyotes
Mike Smith, G (core muscle) - won't return for a while following surgery in December
Joe Vitale, C (fractured orbital bone) - is well past his initial recovery timeline
Zbynek Michalek, D (upper body) - is questionable
Calgary Flames
Jiri Hudler, RW (lower body) - has been ruled out for at least a week
Michael Frolik, LW (upper body) - will return to practice "shortly"
Toronto Maple Leafs
James Reimer, G (groin) - says that he's ready to go and could start Thursday
Byron Froese, C (lower body) - remains out
Garret Sparks, G (lower body) - remains out and it isn't clear that he stays in the NHL once healthy
Stephane Robidas, D (knee) - is still without a timetable for his return
Nick Spaling, C (upper body) - has been out since the holiday break
Los Angeles Kings
Kyle Clifford, LW (upper body) - isn't closing in on a return soon
Jeff Carter, C (upper body) - was a part of line rushes on Wednesday
Matt Greene, D (shoulder) - will miss the remainder of the season
Detroit Red Wings
Kyle Quincey, D (ankle) - hopes to return on Thursday
Johan Franzen, RW (concussion) - remains out
Teemu Pulkkinen, RW (shoulder) - hasn't had his timeline updated, but would miss another week at the least according to the initial timeline
San Jose Sharks
Raffi Torres, LW (suspension) - is eligible to return from suspension next week, but it isn't clear that he'll be healthy enough to return at that time
Hot
Patrick Sharp, LW, DAL — Despite Tyler Seguin going on a nearly unfathomable three-game point drought, Sharp is holding strong with a 10-game point streak. He's quietly been an incredible offensive threat this year. At age 34, many thought the Stars were acquiring a player who was over the hill. Instead, he's on pace to post 68 points and has already matched his goal total from last season.
Artemi Panarin, LW, CHI — What's the rookie done for you lately? Just three multi-point nights in his last four games. Over his last five games he has five goals and two assists to go along with an average of 3.4 shots a game. Oh, and two of those five goals were game-winners.
Cold
Trevor Daley, D, PIT — It looked like a match made in heaven a pretty decent purgatory when Daley was traded to the Penguins. He started to get some real minutes and contributed a goal and two assists in his first four games. That was a significant improvement over his zero goals and six assists in 29 games with Chicago. But, the honeymoon is over. Since those four games he has zero points in seven games.
Jiri Tlusty, RW, NJD — This isn't breaking news, but we've held out hope long enough. After four straight seasons crossing 30 points, Tlusty may be out of mind as a depth fantasy option. He's played just 29 games due to injury, but has only managed two goals and two assists. He's without a point in his last 10 games.
Recommended Pickup
Jonathan Drouin, LW, TBL — This is really only a thought and, at that, a thought for keeper leagues. Ryan Johansen could be had for a lot less yesterday than he can today. And that speculative pickup might have been a great move. A speculative pickup here could have a great upside, though the downside is much worse than with Johansen. Interest in acquiring him since he made his trade request public is reportedly picking up. The Habs broadcast on Wednesday couldn't stop talking about him.
Here's the thing: anyone who spends to acquire Drouin is going to give him a good situation. They'll want him to succeed. They believe in his game. They'll be willing to give him what he wants: ice time.
You can point to his counting numbers and question what the upside is, but this is a player who crossed 100 points in fewer than 50 games in two straight seasons during major junior. He also has a good scoring rate in the NHL. If you take all 21 and under forwards who have played at least 100 minutes since the start of the 2014-15 season, none have had less playing time than Drouin. We're talking about guys like Tom Wilson and Curtis Lazar being in this group. And his scoring rate, is in the upper part of the middle of the group. If he was getting more ice time we might be talking very differently about him. It's all speculative, but there's a chance that, in a deep league, grabbing him before he's dealt could be a risk that pays dividends.
