Avalanche captain Joe Sakic will miss at least 6 weeks after getting reinjured in his first shift back after missing several games with a previous back strain. Now he’s slated to miss at least six more weeks with a herniated disc.
Source: avalanche.nhl.com
Fantasy Impact: It looks as if age may be catching up to Burnaby Joe. He has only played 15 games for Colorado thus far this season and some out there are speculating that this could be Sakic’s final year of playing in the NHL. This is quite possible, but it does seem like Sakic will be trying his best to return as quick as possible and still help out his team. In the 15 games he’s played, he did still get 12 points so he hasn’t lost his effectiveness when in the lineup.
The Avalanche definitely need Sakic in the lineup if they want to solidify a playoff spot down the stretch. Look for Paul Stastny to really have to step up his game now. In the games that Sakic missed already, Stastny and the rest of the Avs were having some trouble scoring and were just recently getting back on track, with a 3 point showing from Stastny vs. the Wild, which included scoring the eventual game winning goal. Stastny’s overall point production rate has slowed way down from the beginning of the season where he busted out of the gate with a 7 game point streak and was among the league leaders in points. Before his good game vs. Minnesota on Dec. 1st, Stastny had gone 4 consecutive games without notching a single point. Now with Sakic out for several weeks, Stastny will be counted on heavily. If you can go out and buy Stastny low in a trade, it would be wise to do so. Make sure you really are buying low, and not overpaying, as it remains to be seen how Stastny will perform with all the pressure on him over the long term.
The rest of the Avs will need to step it up, as well. Including guys like Hejduk and especially Ryan Smyth. A guy to keep your eye on is Marek Svatos. He’s likely a free agent in all but the very deepest leagues out there and he may finally be coming out of his funk, which has lasted a long time now, going back to an injury from the 06-07 season. Use extreme caution with Svatos though, he is such an unpredictable player in terms of fantasy hockey production. Also, another guy who may be more heavily relied upon now that it is known Sakic will be out an extended period of time is youngster T.J. Hensick. Hensick notched his first goal of the season just the other night vs. Minnesota. Hopefully he can go on a little streak from here on out for Colorado.
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