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One night after stopping all 28 shots the Los Angeles Kings threw at him, Roberto Luongo has given up 5 goals in the first 2 periods Friday night against the Anaheim Ducks. Luongo’s season has been anything but consistent and in 7 of his 10 starts has given up 3 or more goals. Hardly impressive for a late first round early second round fantasy hockey goalie. He’s still a top tier goalie and will catch fire, but barring his two shutouts, he’s been cold—very cold. This game has been an up and down battle and Ducks forward Corey Perry has accumulated 4 assists in the first two periods. Kevin Bieksa has 1 goal & 1 assist and Teemu Selanne has continued his torrid pace with 2 more goals and an assist.

Today 35 year old Daniel Alfredsson of the Ottawa Senators signed a four-year contract extention for an undisclosed denomination. The signing marks the last of the big three in Ottawa, Heatley and Spezza being the others. Fantasy owners in keeper leagues can rest easy knowing Alfredsson will be in the same lineup as Heatley and Spezza for the next 4 years. He might be one of the few modern professional athletes that stays with his drafting team from start to finish. Never overlook loyalty and both the Senators and Alfredsson know what that means. Apologies to Wade Redden, but you are not Alfredsson and are not on the same fiscal level as him either. Knee injury aside, Alfredsson is a top right wing option in all formats and is a must start. Look for Alfy to have 35 G, 50 A and a plus/minus of +25. To read the story click here…

Yes, the title is not a typo. Keith Tkachuk is leading the NHL in goals. 8 in nine games. Impressive for the post lockout nickname of the year “Tkachunk”. Don’t read too much into the play of Keith at this point, and if, big “if”, you can sell high on Tkachuk, do it now, because you will not get a better value. Depending on how deep your league is, you might be able to snatch him off on the waiver wire. It’s been four years since Tkachuk has tapped 30 goals and might get there, but he will taper off VERY soon and he will never have a higher fantasy hockey value than now. SELL HIGH!!!

Teemu Selanne is heating up for the Ducks and has netted his first hat trick of the season tonight. Selanne flew somewhat under the radar this year in fantasy hockey drafts and those paying close attention watched his draft position slip to the 10-12th rounds. You all remember when he was drafted, because in unison we all said “ahh, I forgot about him”. Those who picked him up prior (6-7th rounds) or in the 10-12th got a steal in Selanne. He now has 5 goals in his last 3 games and is poised to keep up a point per game pace this season barring injury. Look for Selanne to be a solid first option at the RW position this season as the Ducks begin to pick up the pace. He’s still one of the, if not, the fastest skaters in the league, and at age 38 has been one of the great stories post NHL strike to benefit from the rule changes. Start Selanne in all formats with the utmost confidence.

On the heals of tonight’s seven games, comes the question that is on many NHL hockey fans and fantasy hockey owners minds. Will Evgeni Malkin contend or possibly win the NHL’s Most Valuable Player? Coming off a season where he scored 47 goals and 106 points, Evgeni Malkin has become the go to guy in Pittsburgh. With Sidney Crosby injured for a portion of the season last year, Malkin thrust himself into the spotlight and carried Pittsburgh to the playoffs. For fantasy hockey owners, Malkin is a multiple threat, contributing in all categories including penalty minutes, where he has average 79 PIM’s over his first two seasons.

Currently, Evgeni Malkin leads the NHL with 14 points, holds a plus minus of +6 and 8 of his total point total are on the powerplay. In Malkin you find a unique and worldly talent, who will NEVER be in the shadow of uber-talented Sidney Crosby. The one-two punch of Crosby and Malkin bring back fond memories of 90’s Pittsburgh with Lemeiux and Jagr, which might have been the best one-two combination in NHL history. Crosby and Malkin are part of the “NEW” NHL and will never play second fiddle to Lemeiux and Jagr. The game has changed drastically since Jagr and Lemeiux graced the ice in Pittsburgh and in Malkin and Crosby we find two entirely different styles than Lemeiux and Jagr. The main difference being the sheer size of Mario Lemeiux and Jaromir Jagr. Both listed well over 6′3 and 230 pounds, while Crosby is 5′11 200 and Malkin is 6′3 195. Malkin does not play light, and although he is listed at 195 pounds, we plays like he’s 230. He’s nearly impossible to knock off the puck and throws his weight around. His game is built for the new NHL.

Will Malkin contend for the MVP? He will be either one or two in the voting this year and will finish ahead of his counter part Sidney Crosby. With Alexander Ovechkin missing time due to being at the side of his ailing grandfather, Malkin is the undeniable front-runner for the NHL MVP award. It will be hard for Malkin to obtain the proper notoriety because he does play with Crosby, but he is well-deserving and might just pull off the unthinkable—–winning the NHL MVP over Crosby and carving a legend niche for himself.