Fantasy Hockey 2011: Weekly Roundup Week 4

Going into week 4 in fantasy hockey, we start to see not only some players breaking out and providing good value but also some worry about players who aren't performing as well as we draft/bid them. Depending on your league format, it's high time to consider guys you drafted in the mid to low rounds as collateral damage if all they're doing is dragging you under. This is especially true of leagues with daily transactions and no limit on games played like head-to-head leagues. Here's some guys to consider in FA that are turning heads:

Free Agent/Waiver Report:

Kimmo Timonen, Flyers - He seems to be jiving well with a deep yet young Flyers team. He's taking full advantage of his powerplay and even strength time and so long as that chemistry lasts, I can't imagine why he'd want to sit in your pool that much longer. At worst, he makes for a good bench D-man and there's nothing wrong with taking that kind of risk, right?

Ray Whitney, Coyotes - I remember when he was with the Hurricanes how he would seemingly put up very near a point per game rate yet seem to go towards the mid-rounds in drafts. I always liked this guy and so far he seems to like the desert very well. Not sure how I feel about Radim Vrbata or Martin Hanzal but they are working with one another very well and it's hard to argue against the production. Of the three, I trust Whitney the most and he's well worth a bench or Util spot on your team.

More after the jump...

Erik Cole, Canadians - Another former Hurricanes player, he seems to be working well from both ends of the ice and we all know that makes any head coach very happy. He's putting up some good stats but he's shooting like a madman with 22 shots on goal this past week in 4 games. He's getting a decent helping of powerplay time and with dual wing eligibility in Yahoo, he's definitely worth a gamble.

Brad Boyes, Sabres - He's become quite hot lately and has garnered some top powerplay time with the Sabres. Now might be a good time to go a nab him up because if this sticks, he'll run away with points for your team. Not sure how I feel about only 3 shots on goal this past week and he still managed 2 goals. Still, he's worth your consideration.

Johan Hedberg, Devils - See the injury report below about Brodeur. Just know you should go get Hedberg if he's available.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Oilers and Gabriel Landeskog, Avalanche - A quick word about these two guys: they were both kept on their roster past the 9 game threshold to start their 3 year entry level contract. They're both doing quite well in their first year in the NHL and with the contract in mind, it's going to be a bit harder for their respective teams to send them down. Doesn't mean it's impossible for them to get sent down but alittle harder. Those who drafted or picked up these player can breathe easy now but don't be surprised if they have growing pains along the way and give some streaks of goose eggs in your team.

Injury Report:

Martin Brodeur, Devils - Sounds like his shoulder is doing ok so far but he admitted today that he doesn't think he shoulder will fully heal. Granted, it's not like it's something that may require surgery but keep in mind that he's no spring chicken and he's got ALOT of mileage under his belt throughout his career with the Devils. This is sounding more and more like this is going to be a timeshare situation since I can image that the Devils will make sure he lasts as long as he can this year, which means more starts for Johan Hedberg. Those who own Brodeur MUST go get Hedberg. Those who don't own Brodeur can go and get Hedberg if he's available since he'd be a good chip to use for a trade or a spot start on your team in daily transactions. Brodeur doesn't sound like he's ready to play until around this weekend.

Simon Gagne, Kings - So far, all we know is that he has a middle-body injury. He missed Saturday and Sunday's games but it's hard to say how long the injury prone winger will be out. It's day-to-day for now.

Mike Green, Capitals - While the Caps organization doesn't consider Green's ankle to be a "long term" issue, one can't help but be concerned when he keeps missing games and practices like he has been lately. Just keep on looking at as day-to-day for him.

Ryan Whitney, Oilers - Well, at least we're happy it's his knee and not his surgery repaired ankle, right? Yeah. He's going to be out for about three weeks so hopefully they IR/IL Whitney soon because he's certainly burning a hole in my bench in one of my leagues.

James Reimer, Maple Leafs - He doesn't have a concussion according to doctors but he has "concussion like symptoms" or something like whiplash. You can bet your sweet bippy that the Leafs will be as careful as they can with Reimer so he can fully recover. He's considered day-to-day so far but who knows how long he'll be out.

Danny Briere, Flyers - He has an upper body injury and that's about all we know about Briere. He's day-to-day.

Chris Pronger, Flyers - Pronger better thank the good Lord about not being out for any longer than a couple of weeks with an eye injury. I saw what happened and that could have been much, much worse. Like career ending worse. It sounds like he's progressing well but he's still seeing specialists about the eye injury so even reports of him being gone a couple of weeks maybe a bit optimistic.

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