Crashing the net

By Ray Flowers, Fanball.com, Special to SI.com

Nigel Dawes' modest start to his sophomore season should get a boost the more he plays with Chris Drury and Petr Prucha, Jim McIsaac/Getty Images

Crashing the Net takes you around the league you almost forgot about and all of the fantasy ins and outs, ups and downs.

Fire

Nigel Dawes, Rangers

Currently skating on a line with Petr Prucha and Chris Drury, Dawes has meager totals on the year (7goals, 7assists, this after a decent rookie season of 29 points (14g, 15a). However, his play has greatly improved of late as he has potted three goals in four games while recording four goals and four assists in his last eight games. Anyone who skates with Drury is almost guaranteed to have some success, and if Prucha can add a bit of a spark from the right wing there is no reason to think that Dawes cannot continue to provide offense from the left side.

Barret Jackman, Blues

The Blues are injured, and on many nights they flat out stink. As for Jackman, the team's most steady defensive defensemen, he has actually turned on the offensive flair a bit of late, partially due to the loss of Erik Brewer. While Jackman is a (-4) over his past 10 games, he has produced six assists, though none have come with the man-advantage. This is really more of a desperation play more than anything, but if you are searching for an injury fill-in on your blue line, and can take a bit of a hit in the plus/minus category, you may have just found your man.

Owen Nolan, Wild

The gritty winger simply cannot stay healthy this season, but that has not stopped him from being extremely productive when he has been on the ice with nine goals and 14 points in 20 games on the year. Since returning from his latest ailment (a leg issue), Nolan has poured in four goals in just three games with every one of those markers coming with the man-advantage. In fact, going back a bit further, Nolan has scored eight times in his last nine games. That simply cannot continue, but for now there are few scorers with as golden a touch as Nolan.

Richard Park, Islanders

Park is up to 10 goals, just four off his career-high set in 2002, and he has been one of the few bright spots on the Island. His production is even more impressive than it would seem at first glance given that he has scored three times while producing six points in his last three games. Going back a bit further, he has scored six times with seven assists in his last 13 games -- that's a point-per-game folks. Just like Nolan, it certainly will not continue to be happy go fun time for Park, but for now the Korean born winger is certainly flying high.

Ice

Jay Bouwmeester, Panthers

It has been a season of streaks for this rearguard. Bouwmeester started the year needing 21 games to score a goal, then he went on a tear, producing six goals in just 10 games. Since then another drought has ensued as he has failed to slip one past a keeper in nine games. Almost as bad is the fact that his entire offensive game has dried up as he has a mere two assists in that time. Overall he is on pace to almost match what he has done the past two years when he has averaged 14 goals and 26 assists (he has six goals and 14 assists in 39 games), but it has been one roller coaster of a ride.

Andrej Meszaros, Lightning

One of the Bolts' big offseason signings was this rearguard who previously skated with the Senators producing at least 35 points in each of his three seasons in the NHL. This season has been nothing like those three. Meszaros hasn't scored a goal in 30 games, after averaging eight a year, and has a measly 10 assists putting him on pace for just better than 50 percent of his previous three-year scoring average of 37 points a season. In addition, he has been a ghost on the power play with only two assists, this after posting 16 points with the man-advantage last season. He has one assist in his last eight games, and things don't appear to be looking up for this '04 first round draft pick.

Markus Naslund, Rangers

Naslund has enjoyed some success in New York this season but he has only two goals in his last eight games, during which time he hasn't handed out a single assist. He also has sported a (-4) rating over the same period that has dropped his overall number to (-11). Naslund does have 14 goals in 41 games, putting him on pace for a three-year best (he had 24 and 25 his last two seasons in Vancouver), but he is also on pace for his lowest assist total since 1997 and his worst plus/minus ever.

Miroslav Satan, Penguins

After spending almost the entire season on one of the team's top two scoring lines, Satan has recently found himself demoted to the fourth line due to a stretch of games with nary a sniff of offensive production. Though he is still on pace for roughly 25 goals, Satan has been a wasteland of offense of late with nothing more than three assists in his last nine games, and yes, that means he hasn't lit the lamp since Dec. 18. Satan is at the point in his career where it's hard for him to generate offense entirely on his own, so it is imperative that he regains his nose for the net so that he can once again ascend the team's depth chart to skate with either Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin.

Movin' on up

John Mitchell, Leafs

Mitchell has been moved to the Leafs top line to skate with Nik Antropov and Alexei Ponikarovsky, and while that may not get your blood boiling, it means first-line ice time, and that is always a good thing. Mitchell has just 10 points along with a (-10) in 34 games this season, so only the crazy will currently have him rostered. A gamble, yes, but first-liners off of waivers are certainly hard to come by.

Aaron Voros, Rangers

The Rangers agitator spent about a week as a healthy scratch while his team fretted over his lack of offense: a single assist in 13 games. He returned to the lineup to skate with Brandon Dubinsky and Nikolai Zherdev, two talented players, so the team is certainly giving him another shot to succeed. Even with his struggles, he is on pace for more than 15 goals and 150 PIM (he has eight goals and 81 PIM in 39 games), and he might be the best "Sean Avery" type going now that Avery isn't skating.

Wojtek Wolski, Avalanche

Last week we sang the virtues of Tyler Arnason as the man who was moving to the top line to skate with Ryan Smyth and Milan Hejduk. Well, it only took a week to see that call was flat-out wrong (though, to be fair, we warned the move might fizzle). Continuing his lack of productivity, Arnason has been demoted to the third line and replaced on the top line by Wolski, who has spent virtually his entire NHL career on the wing despite playing center in juniors. Wolski, who has averaged 20 goals and 49 points in his first two seasons, could still be on waivers thanks to an uninspiring 19 points in 38 games, and if he is now is the time to strike and add him to your squad.