As we hit the final month of play in the NHL, teams that have locked up a playoff spot or been eliminated from contention may consider playing backup tenders. Teams locked into a high playoff position may want to sit their number one guy to make sure he’s well rested for the playoffs. On the flip side, teams that have been eliminated or are on the verge of elimination may want to give a backup some playing time, well, just because.

Either way, we all know how difficult goalies are to come by this late in the fantasy season, so if you’ve been bitten (or could be bitten) by the bench bug, keep a close eye on the following situations:

Brian Boucher | San Jose Sharks
With San Jose a lock for the playoffs and number one goaltender Evgeni Nabokov ailing from the painfully vague lower body injury, expect to see Brian Boucher down the stretch here. The Sharks certainly want their number one tender at 100% heading into post-season play, so Boucher may get the nod more often that some expect in March/April.

Josh Tordjman | Phoenix Coyotes
After Mikael Tellqvist was traded to Buffalo on deadline day, the ‘Yotes called up Tordjman to serve as their backup goaltender. With Phoenix’s playoff chances slowly fading, we could see Tordjman to finish out the year here. Bryzgalov has been a workhorse this season but Tordjman could be a starter candidate in a few years, so getting a glimpse of his NHL ability is certainly an option for Gretzky and crew.

Karri Ramo/Mike McKenna | Tampa Bay Lightning
Don’t expect Tampa Bay to try and rush Mike Smith back to the lineup with the season pretty much toast at this point. Ramo and McKenna will see starts for the rest of March and into April and while these may not be the safest options to start, it could certainly help qualify goaltending stats for managers truly in a bind.

Curtis Joseph | Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto proved the other night that they aren’t afraid to start Joseph even with Martin Gerber now on the roster. With Toronto playing the role of spoiler and Martin Gerber potentially only a rental goaltender with Toskla shelved for the remainder of the season, Cujo could see a few starts in what could be his last NHL season.

Curtis McElhinney | Calgary Flames
Miikka Kiprusoff has been an absolute workhorse this season for the Flames and with Calgary pretty much a lock for a playoff spot, Curtis McElhinney could see a couple games in net to finish out the season if Calgary is happy with their position. His record isn’t very fantasy forgiving at this point, however, managers who might need to rely on Kippers for a couple starts in finals matchup could get burned, so keep McElhinney in mind if you’re an owner barreling through the playoffs right now.

Mikael Tellqvist | Buffalo Sabres
With Buffalo fading fast from playoff contention, there certainly isn’t any reason to rush Miller back to the lineup if the Sabres continue to be left in the dust. They didn’t bring in Tellqvist to sit on the bench, so if Buffalo continues to drop games, look for Tellqvist to snag some starts here and there.

It’s also worth noting that Martin Brodeur, who will certainly lead the Devils in the post season shouldn’t see any breaks down the stretch. He has missed a good portion of the season and really isn’t in need of a rest just yet. Count on him playing the majority of the games from here on out.