This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
For curiosity's sake, I decided to go look at the AHL's docket of teams for this year. It seems like every season there are teams moving around or renaming themselves, which is always at least somewhat interesting. You know, seeing what new team nicknames organizations can come up with and such. The Springfield Falcons are now the Tucson Roadrunners. The Portland Pirates are now the Springfield Thunderbirds. Yes, Springfield lost and then gained a team. Portland is left out.
However, this isn't what grabbed me. I just noticed for the first time that the San Jose Shark's AHL affiliate is called the San Jose Barracuda. Not the Barracudas, mind you. They are the Barracuda. It makes sense to go with the barracuda as a representative animal. They are a mean underwater animal, just like the shark. However, the lack of pluralizing gets my goat. Then I found out it's because they are sponsored by a company called Barracuda Networks. So this is all a marketing and P.R. thing. It's like when District 5 became the Ducks because Mr. Ducksworth sponsored them, but worse.
Featured Matchups
Maple Leafs (PP:N/A, PK:N/A) at Jets (PP:N/A, PK:N/A), 8:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Frederik Andersen (1-0-1, 2.98, .891), Michael Hutchinson (0-1-0, 4.14, .871)
Key Injuries:Joffrey Lupul (abdomen), Stephane Robidas (knee), Bryan Little (lower body)
This game feels like it could be very high scoring. Both teams were pretty poor at goal prevention last season. While their respective goaltending situations have changed, neither team has exactly shut down opponents so far this year, although Toronto did hold the Bruins to one goal in their last start.
Obviously, this will primarily be viewed as a matchup between the top two picks in the 2016 NHL Draft, Auston Matthews and Patrick Laine. However, don't forget about Mitch Marner and William Nylander for the Maple Leafs. Marner already has 10 shots on goal. Blake Wheeler and Mark Scheifele are both off to good starts, while Laine has one goal and one assist in three games. If you are looking for some offensive punch for your fantasy team, this game seems primed to provide it.
Red Wings (PP:N/A, PK:N/A) at Rangers (PP:N/A, PK:N/A), 8:00 p.m.
Expected Goalies:Petr Mrazek (1-2-0, 3.03, .913), Henrik Lundqvist (1-1-0, 3.03, .87)
Key Injuries:Tomas Jurco (back), Niklas Kronwall (knee), Joe Vitale (concussion), Dan Girardi (groin), Kevin Klein (back), Oscar Lindberg (hip)
After a slow start to the season for the Wings, Detroit looked a lot better in their home opener against the Ottawa Senators. Petr Mrazek played well, but that's after two mediocre games prior. Mrazek is still hard to pin down. As you may recall, he was very good to start the season last year, before struggling down the stretch. This is opposed to Henrik Lundqvist who has been reliable for many years.
Chris Kreider is off to a red hot start to the season, he has six points and 18 shots on goal in three games, and Mika Zibanejad is off to a good start too. Mike Green picked up a hat trick in his last game. While he's not the same player he was when he scored 31 goals in a season, he still has some offensive skill. He certainly is the top offensive blueliner for Detroit.
Recommended Pickup
Erik Johnson, D, COL – Johnson isn't an exciting pick up. Though Johnson comes with the pedigree of being a first overall pick, he's just never emerged as one of the league's elite defenders. That doesn't mean he can't help your fantasy team, though. Johnson has played more than 23 minutes a night the last three seasons, and last year he took 175 shots on net. This season, he's off to a fast start, particularly when it comes to getting pucks on net, as he has 10 shots on goal so far. If you are already feeling dissatisfied with your defense, consider Johnson.
