I was really looking to expand on the PIM Kings section, but given how so many top-shelf players are falling to injuries, it seemed more prudent to expand DL Debuts so that owners can either adjust their lineups accordingly or scour the waiver wire for sneaky subs or at best, an electronic patch job for their respective teams.
PIM KINGS
Colton Orr (RW, TOR) – Toronto GM Brian Burke has always been a proponent of physical hockey, a style that’s as reliant on using your fists as it is getting gritty in the corners. So is it any shock that Burke swept in and signed Colton Orr away from the New York Rangers to a four-year/$4 million dollar contract during the off-season? (Of course it may have also had to do with the 193 PIMs he had as well). Even though the Maple Leafs are currently one of the league’s worst teams, Orr is more than making up for his enforcer role by accruing 43 penalty minutes through ten games.
Michael Rupp (C, PIT) – Credit the fact that Pittsburgh’s fourth line is the equivalent of most other teams’ fourth lines for Mike Rupp already potting 3 goals and an assist through 12 games. Of course, the real attraction for taking a flyer on the hulking former New Jersey Devil is the twenty minutes in penalties he’s currently toting around, which is twice as many as linemate and fellow tough guy Eric Godard.
Jarkko Ruutu (LW, ONT) – Probably one of the most versatile game-playing pests this side of Sean Avery, Jarkko Ruutu may be toiling away on the fourth line, but he’s made the most of not seeing that much ice time. Through 11 games, he’s racked up 27 PIMS, let 25 shots fly on goal while accounting for 4 goals, 3 assists and 1 short-handed point and a game-winning goal as well. In a pinch, younger brother and fellow fourth liner Tuomo will do once he’s reinserted into the Canes lineup after coming off his three-game suspension for that questionable hit on fellow agitator Darcy Tucker.
DL DEBUTS
Evgeni Malkin (C, PIT) – Last year’s Art Ross Trophy winner joins fellow Russian Sergei Gonchar on the disabled list with a shoulder injury that will keep Malkin out two weeks. Expect Jordan Staal to be bumped up to center the second line and reap higher offensive benefits for his owners during that time span.
Valtteri Filppula (C, DET) – With Detroit’s locker room starting to resemble a MASH unit, Filppula joins fellow Red Winger Johan Franzen on the IR with a broken wrist he got during the second period of an October 29th game against the Edmonton Oilers. With Filppula slated to be on the mend for the next six-to-eight weeks, Coach Babcock may either bump speedster Darren Helm up the depth chart or bump Henrik Zetterberg from playing wing on the first line and have him center the second line.
Ilya Kovalchuk (LW-C, ATL) – Tied for second in the league with nine goals, Kovalchuk went down in the middle of the first period during an October 24th game against the San Jose Sharks after taking a shot off his skate. The subsequent diagnosis was a broken foot and recovery time that was expected to last at least a month. Rookie Evander Kane is now skating on the first line alongside Nik Antropov and Maxim Afinogenov and should be a waiver wire snatch if it hasn’t happened already.
Simon Gagne (RW-L, PHI) – Just when you thought it was safe to draft Simon Gagne following last year’s comeback season that found him bouncing back with 74 points after only playing 25 games in 2007-08, Gagne will be out indefinitely. A recent ultrasound discovered two hernias in his right groin with the original diagnosis being surgery. Currently seeking out second opinions, just to “cover all his bases,” Gagne is an obvious no-go and his owners are advised to scoop up rookie James Van Riemsdyk off waivers if he’s still available.
Jason Arnott (C, NAS) – As if the scoring drought going on in Nashville wasn’t bad enough, team captain Jason Arnott went down with a left arm injury during the third period of an October 17th tilt against the Washington Capitols. Arnott isn’t expected back until the end of the first week of November.
Jonathan Toews (C, CHI) – If Jonathan Toews was the bug, then consider Vancouver’s Willie Mitchell the windshield after Mitchell creamed Toews after the Canuck defenseman came out of the penalty box during an October 21st game. The third-year player is currently listed as day-to-day. But with the Blackhawks slated to play back-to-backs against the Montreal Canadians followed by a West Coast trip that kicks off in Phoenix five days later, poolies are advised to reserve Toews and look for points elsewhere for the time being.
David Booth (LW, FLA) – The recipient of a clean, yet devastating, open ice hit from Philadelphia’s Mike Richards, David Booth ended up in the hospital with a concussion. Although it’s the first one the Panthers winger has ever suffered, these kinds of head injuries often end up being chronic injuries that pop up throughout the season and beyond (see Simon Gagne and Patrice Bergeron). As such, Booth has gone from being day-to-day to what’s anticipated to be a multi-week stay on IR.
Roberto Luongo (G, VAN) – A recent 5-4 loss to the Detroit Red Wings was not only the first time Robert Luongo didn’t notch a W in four games, but it was also revealed that he’d been playing with a hairline fracture in his ribs that was incurred playing against Edmonton three days prior. With Luongo expected to miss at least a week, the Vancouver Canucks have recalled top flight prospect Cory Schneider from Manitoba of the AHL.
ROOKIE RUMBLINGS
Ryan O’Reilly (C, COL) – First-round pick Matt Duchesne may have been heralded as Colorado’s rookie savior, but 2009 second-rounder Ryan O’Reilly is making an early bid for Calder Cup consideration. A fixture on the Avalanche’s top PK unit, O’Reilly is doing it on the score sheet as well with two goals, 10 points and a plus-10 plus/minus rating in 11 games.
Michael Del Zotto (D, NYR) – An integral part of the Rangers’ youth movement, (something that would have been unfathomable five years ago), the nineteen–year-old Del Zotto became the youngest defensemen in Rangers history to play on opening night Despite his youth, the extremely mobile blueliner not only vaulted to the top of the defensive depth chart and is quarterbacking the power play, but is practically a point-a-game player with 12 points in 13 contests.
Matt Moulson (LW, NYI) – Not quite a rookie, the twenty-five-year old Moulson made his NHL debut in the 2006-2007 season and came up for a cup of coffee with the Los Angeles Kings last year to the tune of seven games. The Islanders quietly signed him to a one-year deal back in July and the dividends are already paying off. Moulson is playing on the top line alongside John Tavares and Kyle Okposo and has responded by tallying 10 points in 11 games.
Ryan Vesce (RW, SJ) – Despite being temporarily sidelined by a leg injury, Ryan Vesce is worth picking up and stashing. The favorite of Coach Todd McLellan found himself bumping Devin Setoguchi to the second line and playing alongside assist machine Joe Thornton and sniper Dany Heatley. Expect more of the same from Vesce when he suits up again.
Tyler Myers (D, BUF) – Victor Hedman may have been the hulking defenseman who got the most ink after being picked third overall in last year’s draft, but nineteen-year old, six foot eight inch Tyler Myers is no shrinking violet. With Myers’ tenth game up next, Sabres GM Darcy Regier will be forced to decide whether to send him down to juniors or risk having his entry-level deal kick in. That said, with all the injury woes on the Buffalo blueline and Myers establishing himself on the top power-play and potting two goals and five points in nine games, expect Regier to bite the financial bullet.