News: Adam Burish (hand) is progressing, but will miss Tuesday's Game 4 against the Kings, ESPN's Pierre LeBrun reports.
Analysis: The fact that Adam Burish's hand will probably keep him out a little while longer and his lack of offensive production leave him with very little fantasy value.
News: Patrick Kane has picked up his first-ever nomination for the Lady Byng Trophy, which is given each year to the player who has best exhibited the combination of sportsmanship, gentlemanly conduct and skill. He's up against the Islanders' Matt Moulson and the Lightning's Marty St. Louis.
Analysis: He finished fifth in the NHL in both goals (23) and points (55) while picking up just eight penalty minutes, the fewest among the league's top-20 scorers.
News: Matt Moulson has earned a nomination for the Lady Byng Trophy, which is given to the NHLer who has best exhibited the combination of sportsmanship, gentlemanly conduct and skill. Marty St. Louis of Tampa Bay and Patrick Kane of Chicago are the other nominees. It is Moulson's second consecutive nomination for the award.
Analysis: Matt Moulson totaled just four penalty minutes while finishing in the top three on the Isles in goals (15), assists (29) and points (44). His efforts also helped lead the team to the postseason for its first appearance in six seasons.
News: Martin St. Louis has been named a finalist for the Lady Byng Trophy, given each year to the player who has best exhibited the combination of sportsmanship, gentlemanly conduct and skill. He is up against Patrick Kane of the Blackhawks and Matt Moulson of the Islanders.
Analysis: He is already a two-time Lady Byng winner (2009-10, 2010-11) and a finalist for the award four other times. This year, he led the NHL with 43 helpers and 60 points in 48 games to win his second-career Art Ross Trophy, all while spending just 14 minutes in the penalty box.
News: Kyle Clifford (undisclosed) is expected to suit up for Tuesday's Game 4 matchup with the Sharks, Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register reports.
Analysis: This is better news for the Kings than it is for fantasy owners, as Kyle Clifford has yet to record a point in five games in the playoffs.
News: Mikhail Grabovski has reportedly admitted that he bit Montreal forward Max Pacioretty in a game on Feb. 9, reports TSN.ca, which cited Dmitry Chesnokov, a Russian-American writer with Yahoo! Sports. "(Pacioretty) was choking me and I bit him," said Grabovski. "Don't stick your hands where you shouldn't."
Analysis: After the incident, the NHL didn't hand down any supplemental discipline because it couldn't determine if there was a bite or not. Honestly comes later, we guess. "To be honest with you he was choking me pretty hard, to the point where I really couldn't breathe," continued Grabo. "And I couldn't pull his hand away at all. I tried to hit him with my other hand, but I couldn't because he was choking me. There was nothing left to do but bite him." We wonder if the league will reconsider its stance and levy something that will be effective to start next season
News: Mikael Samuelsson (shoulder) will not be in the lineup for Game 3 on Monday, MLive.com reports.
Analysis: He's listed as a healthy scratch Monday, so it may simply be a case where head coach Mike Babcock is happy with the lineup he used in the Wings' Game 2 victory on Saturday and does not feel the need to push Mikael Samuelsson back into the fold at the current time.
News: Jimmy Howard is expected to start in net Monday against the Blackhawks, MLive.com reports.
Analysis: Jimmy Howard has been good in the first two games of the series against the Hawks, giving up just four goals on 61 shots (.934), and it would take a big collapse for backup Jonas Gustavsson to be inserted as the starter at any point during the playoffs.
News: Michal Handzus will be in the lineup for Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals despite not practicing in the Monday morning skate, ESPN Chicago reports.
Analysis: Michal Handzus has missed most of the practices recently, but has still skated in the first two games of the Western Conference semifinals. The Blackhawks have not reported any injury for Handzus, but his play has not been up to par in the series against Detroit.
News: Viktor Stalberg will return to the lineup on Monday in Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Red Wings, ESPN Chicago reports.
Analysis: Viktor Stalberg had been in Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville's doghouse after the first-round series with the Wild and was a healthy scratch for the first two games against the Red Wings. With the Hawks in need of some speed after the 4-1 loss in Game 2 to Detroit, Quenneville has turned back to Stalberg. He is expected to be skating on the third line.
