Hockey Planner: Week 20

There are a couple of players we love heading into the upcoming scoring period, including some players you might be shying away from. Our Daniel E. Dobish takes a look at news and notes from around the league in the latest Hockey Planner.

The Fantasy Hockey Weekly Planner is the essential guide to setting your lineup for the upcoming week. Every Friday, we provide you with top matchups, the latest news and give you the scoop on injured players.

Projections are for Feb. 12-18 games.

Teams with four games (5): Anaheim, Colorado, Montreal, St. Louis and San Jose

Teams with three games (20): Boston, Calgary, Carolina, Chicago, Columbus, Detroit, Edmonton, Florida, Los Angeles, Minnesota, Nashville, New Jersey, N.Y. Islanders, N.Y. Rangers, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Tampa Bay, Toronto, Vancouver

Teams with two games (5): Atlanta, Buffalo, Dallas, Ottawa, Washington

On tap: Week 20 brings us 11 nationally televised games in either the United States or Canada: Detroit at Philadelphia on Monday; Anaheim at Colorado on Tuesday; San Jose at Dallas, Chicago at N.Y. Rangers and Washington at Pittsburgh on Sunday in the United States; N.Y. Islanders at Toronto on Tuesday; Vancouver at Minnesota on Wednesday; Pittsburgh at New Jersey on Friday in Canada; Atlanta at Ottawa, Edmonton at Toronto and Colorado at Calgary on Saturday on Hockey Night in Canada. Other prime matchups to watch: The Thrashers will put their high-flying offense on display in the Saddledome against Miikka Kiprusoff and the Flames on Tuesday; the Sharks and Predators will get together in a possible playoff preview on Wednesday; the Rangers and Hurricanes will jockey for playoff positioning on Thursday; the Avalanche will roll into Vancouver looking to upend Roberto Luongo and the Canucks on Saturday.

F A N T A S Y   S P I N S

It's Valentine's Day week and we have a bunch of players we love heading into the new scoring period. Two players who are particularly attractive are Anaheim's Corey Perry and Montreal's Mark Streit. Perry has gone seven straight games without a goal heading into the Feb. 10 game at Dallas. After that statement, you are perhaps wondering if I am under the influence. However, the upcoming schedule for the Ducks is so favorable, including a home-and-home with the Kings, that we would not be surprised to see at least five points out of him this week. As far as Streit is concerned, he has picked up the offense lately and will have a four-game week. In addition, Andrei Markov and Craig Rivet have been banged up lately. … Calgary's Kristian Huselius has a 15-game point streak heading into the Feb. 10 game at Buffalo. He has been unconscious since coming to the Flames last season from the Panthers in a trade, emerging as a must-start in all Fantasy leagues. Steve Montador and minor-leaguer Dustin Johner are not exactly having the same kind of success in Florida. … Chicago coach Marc Savard has said that Peter Bondra will sit occasionally as the season winds down for the Blackhawks. It appears that he might sit in back-to-back situations with his shoulder not quite 100 percent. … Rumors have surfaced that the Detroit Red Wings might be interested in acquiring Todd Bertuzzi from the Florida Panthers as a rental player, although general manager Ken Holland would not confirm or deny. … Erik Cole left Thursday’s game at Boston after a hit, but his injury is believed to only be a hip pointer and nothing serious to keep him out for a significant period. X-rays did not reveal any fractures, so that is a good thing. It might be prudent to reserve him heading into Fantasy Week 20, but it doesn't appear he will miss much more than a game or two.

F I V E   T E A M S   W I T H   F A V O R A B L E   M A T C H U P S
The following five teams have the best matchups for the upcoming week. That doesn't necessarily mean they will post the best Fantasy stats, but if you're looking for a one-week start or are trying to make a difficult decision between two players to use, lean toward players from these teams:
Team	2/12	2/13	2/14	2/15	2/16	2/17	2/18
Anaheim Ducks (ANA)	--	@COL	--	@PHO	--	@LA	LA
The Ducks will likely roll up huge numbers with the Coyotes and Kings comprising three-fourths of the upcoming schedule.
Detroit Red Wings (DET)	@PHI	--	@DAL	--	--	@PHO	--
The Red Wings have been untouchable on home ice and now they’ll take their show on the road for three. Henrik Zetterberg has been ridiculous lately and is a future captain of this team.
New Jersey Devils (NJ)	--	--	MON	--	PIT	@NYI	--
The Devils should have a field day with this upcoming schedule and it would not be surprising to see a shutout or two from Martin Brodeur.
New York Rangers (NYR)	--	--	--	@CAR	--	PHI	CHI
The Rangers should beat up on the Flyers and Blackhawks over the weekend, as their offensive totals will resemble a team with four games instead of just three.
Tampa Bay Lightning (TB)	--	PHO	--	WAS	--	@FLA	--
The Lightning offense has been ridiculous since Jan. 1 and there is no reason to believe it will slow down against this bunch.

F I V E   T E A M S   W I T H   P O O R   M A T C H U P S
The following five teams have the worst matchups for the upcoming week. That doesn't necessarily mean you should reserve every player from these teams, but try to avoid less-heralded performers from these squads if you have an alternative on your roster:
Team	2/12	2/13	2/14	2/15	2/16	2/17	2/18
Atlanta Thrashers (ATL)	--	@CGY	--	--	--	@OTT	--
The Thrashers have just two games and they will have two difficult goaltenders facing them. Their offense is good, but not that good. Reserve most of their stars in cumulative leagues and perhaps even average formats.
Colorado Avalanche (COL)	--	ANA	--	@CGY	--	@CGY	@VAN
The Avalanche win the award for brutal schedule of the week. The prospect of facing Jean-Sebastien Giguere, Kiprusoff and Luongo is scary, regardless of the four games.
Dallas Stars (DAL)	--	--	DET	--	--	--	SJ
We never like to recommend players in cumulative leagues with just two games in a scoring period, especially against a pair of Stanley Cup contenders.
Los Angeles Kings (LA)	--	@CAR	--	--	--	ANA	@ANA
The Kings will be tired by the time they get to Raleigh and then they finish up the week with a home-and-home against the Ducks. Ouch.
Phoenix Coyotes (PHO)	--	@TB	--	ANA	--	DET	--
The Coyotes square off against three of the top teams in the league, which might mean Curtis Joseph is in for a long week.

Mailbag

Steve: Hey Dan, I just wanted your opinion on a trade I made. I traded my third round pick for Evgeni Malkin and a sixth round pick. It seems like a great move and I already got another second rounder from an earlier deal.

D.E.D.: Steve, you don't need me to tell you this is a sweetheart deal. The other guy in your league should be beaten with a tack hammer for making such a poor deal in a keeper pool. What exactly was he thinking? Did this take place late night over some Rickards?

James Spence, Grimsby, ON, Canada: I’m thinking about trading for Peter Budaj. I've got Tim Thomas and Sean Avery to offer. Would this trade be worth it? My intention would be to keep Budaj as a starter for next year.

D.E.D.: James, Budaj's success has been tremendous since taking over the No. 1 job in Denver, although we still think his future is a bit cloudy. The move of Avery to the Rangers this past week gives him a little more value. I wouldn't really overvalue Budaj, unless you are looking to make a move to help you this season. Thomas has been brutal for the Bruins lately and Jose Theodore is doing nothing to challenge Budaj and steal playing time back. Budaj is not someone to hang your hat on long-term. I would target someone like Johan Holmqvist if your intention is grabbing a cheap, young goaltender, as the Lightning are looking to lock him up to a long-term deal.

You can e-mail your Fantasy Hockey questions to DMFantasyPucks@cbs.com. Be sure to put Attn: Fantasy Hockey in the subject field. Please include your full name, hometown and state. Be aware, due to the large volume of submissions received, we cannot guarantee personal responses to all questions.