Puck Amok

Hurricanes-Panthers trade won't matter much in fantasy circuit

Bret Hedican has four goals and seven assists in 33 games this season. Rick Stewart/Getty Images/NHLI

By Dave Wallace, Special to CNNSI.com

A bit of this, a bit of that. The past week had a bit of everything - a trade, a return, an angry dad and a failed drug test. Clearly, hockey wants more television exposure, but this sounds like daytime television. So why not start with hockey's version of the jilted lover, the trade.

The Carolina Hurricanes essentially dealt defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh to Florida for another defenseman, Bret Hedican. None of the other players in the trade present any fantasy value, and really, Hedican doesn't either. With 33 games played this year, Hedican has 11 points. I don't know about you, but knowing my defenseman won't score two out of every three games makes me uncomfortable.

Hedican also doesn't pitch in with penalty minutes. It surprised me to learn that Ozolinsh went to the box more than twice as much as Carolina's new acquisition.

The Hurricanes aren't the most talented team, but they've got some scorers up front with Sami Kapanen, Jeff O'Neill, Ron Francis and Rod Brind'Amour, who's having a decent season. However, I don't think any of them can elevate Hedican.

I don't see things working out well for Ozolinsh, either. He went from four quality guys to, well, Pavel Bure. Welcome to Florida, Sandis, you're the number-two scoring threat. Even worse, here are the plus/minus ratings for Florida's defensemen: minus-13, plus-one, minus-six, minus-seven, minus-21, even, plus-three and minus-18. How do you even stay on the ice with a minus-21 or minus-18 on defense, Robert Svehla and Lance Ward? Guys, look behind you. That's the other team carrying the puck into your zone.

Sandis is already minus-two in three games, so if you've got him, you're probably going to take a hit. More so, you're likely stuck with that hit because there aren't many defensemen who score with Ozolinsh. Goals are still worth more than plus/minus.

I don't see either power play going anywhere in Carolina or Florida, but a team to the far north looks to get a lift from another development last week.

Derek Morris returned to Calgary's lineup Jan. 15 after missing the entire month of December. He is still among the top 40 defensemen in points, so get him active immediately. The one problem, though, is that when he went down, Calgary was hot. Now it's a different story, reflected in Morris' minus-three last week. Calgary flamed out at 4-10-4 without Morris. In the next few weeks we'll find out if he was the power behind that hot start.

It's probably worth your trouble to search out Morris in your league, just in case somebody got impatient and dumped him during the past six weeks. Of course, those with Morris on their rosters might want to check waivers in case he gets hurt again.

Speaking of hurting, that's apparently the state of Sergei Fedorov's father's pride, according to Reuters. In an article this past week, Viktor Fedorov said Detroit Red Wings coach Scotty Bowman's decision to play Fedorov on the blue line amounted to disrespect. Or perhaps Viktor is just a frustrated fantasy owner seeing one of his best forwards reduced to three points in seven games. That I understand.

For now, the point appears moot as Fedorov returned to center Jan. 18 and assisted on Luc Robitaille's milestone 611th goal before adding another one. In his next game Jan. 20, Fedorov notched another assist. Things are back to normal.

Were Fedorov eligible to play defense, he would become an especially valuable guy because it would allow potentially seven forwards in your lineup - Sergei Gonchar owners know what I'm talking about. But that's not the case with Fedorov. As a forward playing defense, he's a fantasy liability because you're lining up five defensemen and five forwards.

Fedorov's situation is something his owners should follow closely for the rest of the season. If he moves to defense for another lengthy stay, bench him and activate another forward. While no doubt less talented, a fantasy-caliber forward should always outscore all defensemen. This is one occasion where Fedorov's awesome athletic gift doesn't translate to the fantasy world.

Before we go, news last week said that Vancouver defenseman Mattias Ohlund failed a drug test due to the appearance of a medication known to mask athletes' chemical dalliances. It doesn't appear Ohlund's test indicated anything sinister, and you've got to question possible performance enhancement when the guy's got just 22 points. He's probably on waivers in your league, anyway.

Dave Wallace did notice Valeri Kamensky received a call-up last week, but this isn't 1996.

 

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