Another sharp week in the survivor pool that saw none of our remaining competitors eliminated. The Washington Capitals are the obvious safe pick this weekend matching up against the woeful Edmonton Oilers. Unfortunately, our three finalists have already used the Caps, and will really need to do their research this week. Here are my top three survivor picks for this Saturday:
New Jersey Devils at Atlanta Thrashers (Saturday at 7:00 PM) – The Devils are red hot – pun fully intended. Martin Brodeur is showing that age is not a factor, winning six of his last seven starts, while Swedish rookie Niclas Bergfors now finds himself ranked second among first year players in both goals and points (only wunderkind John Tavares has more). They’re 11-2-1 on the road this season, and should only better that record Saturday night against a Thrashers team averaging 3.7 goals against over their last 7 games. Look for Zach Parise to break an 8 game goalless drought.
Prediction: New Jersey wins 4-2
Detroit Red Wings at Dallas Stars (Saturday at 3:00 PM) – The injury-plagued Red Wings are finally stringing some wins together, and owe a large portion of their recent success to the play of goaltender Jimmy Howard, who’s allowed two or fewer goals in five of his last six starts. The Red Wings’ Todd Bertuzzi has 5 goals over their current four game win streak. Conversely, the Stars have lost five of six, struggling to keep the puck out of their net during that stretch (23 goals allowed).
Prediction: Detroit wins 3-1
Minnesota Wild at Ottawa Senators (Saturday at 7:00 PM) – Not that he’s been a significant factor for the Senators so far this season, but the loss of Jason Spezza for a couple months with an MCL tear is a definite blow. Mike Fisher will take over the first line centre role, and though he’s performed admirably so far this year, things are about to get more difficult for him matchup-wise. The Wilds’ stud netminder Niklas Backstrom shouldn’t have too much trouble fending off the Senators’ few remaining healthy scoring threats.
Prediction: Minnesota wins 2-0