The first round of the 2008-09 playoffs is in the books. The teams that escaped to live another day were the Boston Bruins, Carolina Hurricanes, Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals in the Eastern Conference, and the Anaheim Ducks, Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings and Vancouver Canucks in the Western Conference.
The usual suspects played their part in the first round and took center stage. Eric Staal and Alexander Semin were the leading goal scorers with five apiece. Nicklas Backstrom put seven assists on the board. Evgeni Malkin was his normal explosive self, leading all skaters with nine points. Chris Osgood posted a 1.75 GAA as Detroit swept playoff newcomer Columbus right out of the quarterfinals.
But you know all about these superstars. They are the guys that played a big part in their teams getting to this stage and why we line our Fantasy rosters with them on Draft Day.
Still, the few elite players can't do it all. It's sometimes the unknown players that can make a difference in a series and earn their 15 minutes of fame.
With just a few weeks left in the season, more and more eyes will be glued to the hockey world as the NHL creeps closer to crowning their next champion. As a guide for Fantasy owners, he are some of the lesser known players to keep tabs on in preparation for Draft Day 2009:
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| Simeon Varlamov might be stealing the 2009-10 job from Jose Theodore as we speak. (Getty Images) |
Kris Letang, D, Pittsburgh: Letang proved to be better with Sergei Gonchar than without him in 2008-09. A lot of expectations were placed on Letang's shoulders when Ryan Whitney and Gonchar had to open the season on injured reserve. After a solid rookie season in 2007-08, the Penguins and Fantasy owners felt Letang would pick up the slack along the blue line. He struggled tremendously, as most of the Penguins, until interim coach Dan Bylsma came aboard in mid-February. Bylsma sat Letang for a few games until Whitney was dealt to Anaheim. Letang then jumped back in the lineup and finished the season on a high note alongside Gonchar. Letang posted five goals and nine assists in his last 19 regular-season games. He opened the first round with three assists in five games against Philadelphia. Letang has one-year left on his entry-level deal, so he will certainly have extra motivation in 2009-10. It doesn't hurt that Gonchar will also be around and in the final year of his contract as well.
Alexandre Burrows, F, Vancouver: After experimenting with countless forwards on the top line with Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin, coach Alain Vigneault finally struck gold when he moved Burrows alongside the Sedin twins in mid-February. Burrows finished the season with 26 points (17 goals) and a plus-23 rating in 27 games. He was solid in the first round with a team-high three goals in a four-game sweep of St. Louis. Burrows landed a four-year extension late in the season after basically cutting his teeth as a checking-line forward. However, Burrows has shown great ability and toughness at both ends of the ice. Unfortunately, Burrows' Fantasy value will be dictated more in the offseason than the rest of the playoffs. The Sedin twins are both unrestricted free agents, and if Vancouver can't lure them back, then Burrows stands to lose a lot.
Cam Barker, D, Chicago: Barker has taken the long, slow road to NHL success, but the 6-3, 222-pound blue liner has finally arrived. Barker was the third overall pick in 2004 and made his debut for one game in 2005-06. He then spent the next two seasons bouncing between the NHL and AHL. He even began the '08-09 season with Rockford before Joel Quenneville took over as coach for the fired Denis Savard and summoned for the promising defenseman. Barker took to Quenneville's coaching and produced six goals and 34 assists in 68 games. His best run came late in the season as he produced three goals and 17 assists in his final 33 outings. Barker was a bit cold to end the season with no points in his final 10 games, but he has reappeared in the playoffs. He's tied with Martin Havlat and Patrick Sharp for the team lead with three goals in a first-round triumph against Calgary. He also tied for second on the team with six points. Barker will be a restricted free agent in the offseason. If he stays with Chicago, he will likely be a No. 4 Fantasy defenseman on Draft Day. The wild card, however, remains if he ends up leaving the Windy City.
Valtteri Filppula, C, Detroit: Detroit is committed to the development of Filppula, as he is locked up through 2012-13. It's a bit surprising since the 25-year-old forward has frustrated the team to no end with his selectiveness when it comes to shooting the puck. Filppula kind of got the message late in the season when he scored six goals in his final 17 games. He had all of six goals in the first five months. Filppula has yet to score in the playoffs, but he continues to be a solid third-line center with Mikael Samuelsson and Jiri Hudler. It doesn't help Filppula that Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg are locked up long term as well. But if Marian Hossa doesn't return in 2009-10, then coach Mike Babcock might have to alter his lines and put Zetterberg back up on the top line with Datsyuk. Filppula could then become a regular second-line center. Detroit continues to urge Filppula to be more aggressive shooting the puck and it might only be a matter of time before it sticks permanently.
Jonathan Ericsson, D, Detroit: Had Ericsson not been plagued by injury all season, he would have been up a lot earlier than March 3. Babcock was dying to get the 6-4, 206-pound defenseman into the lineup. He kept referring to Ericsson's imposing physique as a reason why he feels the Swede has a bright future in the NHL. Ericsson wasn't an elite prospect when Detroit selected him in the ninth round in 2002. But Detroit has the reputation of turning water into wine. Ericsson has since moved up the prospect board in Detroit and has become a solid two-way player. The Red Wings could have a bit of a numbers crunch in 2009-10 along the blue line, but with a solid postseason, Detroit might have to make room for Ericsson.
Andrew Ebbett, C, Anaheim: Unlike Ericsson, Ebbett isn't going to intimidate many hockey players standing at just 5-10, 178 pounds. Because he didn't look the part of a prospect, Ebbett went undrafted despite having a successful four-year career at Michigan. Then, in his first two years of pro hockey, he silenced all the naysayers as he totaled 137 points in the AHL. He got a late-season call-up by Anaheim in 2007-08, but it wasn't permanent. Ebbett was headed for another year of minor league hockey, but when he got out to a fast start at Iowa, Anaheim had to see if he could hack it on the NHL level. Ebbett proved he could stand on his own two feet (32 points in 48 games). Their confidence in the 26-year-old forward was one of the main reasons Anaheim parted ways with Chris Kunitz. Ebbett has quickly become Anaheim's second-line center behind Ryan Getzlaf and has spent a great deal of time playing with veteran Teemu Selanne. Ebbett draws comparisons to Ryan Shannon, another smallish forward. Ebbett is under contract for one more year, so he will have extra motivation in 2009-10.
Drew Miller, LW, Anaheim: Sticking with the Ducks, Miller was instrumental in Anaheim's first-round upset of San Jose. He had two goals and three points in six games. And he did all that without logging one second of power-play time. The former Michigan State product and 2003 sixth-round pick hasn't really had an overly successful pro career. However, he did score a career-high 23 goals with Iowa (AHL) this season and that prompted a promotion for the 6-2 forward late in the season. Miller had four goals in eight March games. Miller is under contract for one more season and could find his way onto the opening day roster in '09-10 with a strong finish to the playoffs and solid training camp. Still, he is going to start with low-end Fantasy value next season until he proves to be a regular contributor.
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