I'd like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a happy and fortuitous New Year. Thankyou for reading these articles, and don't hesitate to make suggestions or corrections should I make a mistake. I do hope you will continue to read on into 2010!

What you've missed

The Senators had what could only be described as a very rough week. The Tim Thomas curse continued over Ottawa, as he shut out the Sens in their meeting with Boston Monday. The return of Pascal Leclaire did little to stem the scoring tide as Pittsburgh lit up the Sens defense and made out comfortable winners. However, Ottawa did manage to pick up 2 very important points Saturday against division leaders Buffalo.

Of course, the big talk of the week is the loss of the team's heart-and-soul captain, Daniel Alfredsson. He was taken out early in Wednesday's game and the team's play immediately suffered. Whether they were directed to keep cool from the bench or not, the lack of passion or emotion in response to the hit was almost as sickening to watch as the hit itself. It certainly did not help their play in that game. What can be done to give this team some heart, outside of Alfie?

In other games around the league:

- Chicago defeated Detroit in both of their meetings this week by the same scoreline (3-0). Christobal Huet and Antti Niemi split the shutouts. The Hawks have now won 8 of the last 10 and sit atop the West conference.

- Montreal continue to dominate OT this season. Last night, they capitalised on Toronto's weak OT record (the Leafs have lost 9 from 10 games requiring OT, the worst record in the NHL). The Habs have won 4 in a row (2 of them in OT), and their season mark in OT games improved to 10 and 3.

- Phoenix have really surprised most in the hockey world this season on the back of a tight, conservative game, great goaltending and unbeatable form at home. A perfect 3 from 3 home stand this week brings the Coyotes to 9 straight home wins (a franchise record).

What's coming up:

Ottawa return to Scotiabank Place for all 4 games this week. The week begins when Montreal take Autoroute 20 into town for the divisional matchup Monday (7:30pm, Sportsnet and RDS). Then, back to back games midweek against Colorado (Wed 7pm, TSN) and the Islanders (Thurs 7pm, Sportsnet). And to round out the week, the Sens host a resurgent Philadelphia Sunday (1pm, Sportsnet).

The big news on the injury front is of course Daniel Alfredsson. He suffered a separated shoulder mid-week and will be out around 4-6 weeks. And it couldn't have come at a worse time. Jason Spezza is still at least a month away from returning, and Nick Foligno is also expected to be out at least this week with his knee. That's 3 top-6 forwards out of the line-up. Is there a trade in the works? Time will tell.

The 2 points on offer against the Habs Monday are extremely valuable if Ottawa plan to stay in touch with playoff-bound teams. There's a logjam in the North-East right now - the Bruins, Sens and Habs are all within 4 points of each other, and occupy 5th, 6th and 7th respectively in the East. Ottawa will need a big step up in offense from Alex Kovalev, who has always been a slow starter. Right about now would be the ideal time for his game to heat up. Jonathan Cheechoo has also started to look like he is willing to step his game up and with these injuries, this is his best chance to prove he deserves a top 6 spot on this team.

In other games this week:

- Edmonton are fast losing touch with the rest of the West, having lost their last 6. And their schedule is not giving them any breaks. This week, they take on Calgary twice, and also have games against Toronto and San Jose. Good results this week could see the Oilers challenging for the top 8 again, but if the slide continues they may not have enough time to catch up to the pack.

- Carolina have been very disappointing so far, and with 10 points separating them from 14th placed Toronto, their playoff hopes are all but dashed. They take on division (and NHL) leaders Washington and also faceoff twice against the Rangers this week. In almost half a season, the Canes have managed just 1 road win.

- The hole that Philadelphia had dug themselves in suddenly does not look so bad. 3 straight wins have the Flyers buzzing, but they have tough games ahead, including the Winter Classic in Boston on New Year's Day. Goaltending help in Ray Emery is still a few weeks away, but if Philly can stay in touch with the rest of the conference, look out. They are just 2 points out of 8th place.

Who's hot?

- Andrei Kostitstyn (Montreal) has 8 goals and 10 points in 8 games.

- Nicklas Backstrom (Washington), usually known for his assists, has 7 goals in the last 6 games and 22 points in the last 13 games.

- Joe Thornton (San Jose) has 11 points in just 5 games. Combined with his linemates Dany Heatley (5 goals, 8 points) and Patrick Marleau (5 goals, 7 points), they all look to be locks for Team Canada.

- Christobal Huet (Chicago) has let in just 4 goals in the last 4 games (3 of them in one game to San Jose). That 4 game stretch includes 2 shutouts and a 0.954 save percentage.

Who's not?

- Steve Mason (Columbus) is winless in his last 5 starts and has given up 16 goals in that stretch. His backup, Mathieu Garon, has not done any better, giving up 15 goals in the last 6 games.

- Andrej Meszaros (Tampa Bay) has 1 assist in his last 7 games, and is a -7 for those games.

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Keep it up Matt. I really enjoy reading these articles.

Am I glad he's someone else's headache...he really only showed alot of potential in his 1st season in Ottawa, right?

All 3 season's he was solid but the last one was showing how really slow he was becoming and that his success was mostly because of the team's offence.

I just can't stop thinking about if we got Tampa Bay's first rounder instead of Picard and San Jose's 1st. Hedman would have been ours

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Great article Matt. I agree that Heatley - Thornton - Marleau all look to be Team Canada locks, and I also wouldn't be surprised to see them all on the same line.

Good job Matt. I love reading these. I like seeing who's hot and who's not because I usually didn't know they were doing that good.

He played good hockey when he was paired with Chara. Chara would be able to cover up his constant brain farts. Then he played with Redden and he didn't do as good.

did you dedicate this preview to yours truly?

You could say that

Kessel would have been a good one to put in "who's not". 0g, 0a, -6 in his last six games. I don't think he even has a hit, either.

He is indeed stone cold.

Would this information have changed your trade over at ESPN?

MTA, you are the greatest

He has 1 hit in the last 8 games. We'll have to start calling him "China Doll"

niiiiiiice

Hmmm I'm not sure. I knew Kessel was in a slump before the trade but I think he'll break out of it. I don't think he's as good as he looked earlier. Got off to a hot start with a new team. But next year I think Burke will find someone to play with him.

Yeah, he's got the talent, but not the supporting cast...yet.

Finally had the time to read this in one sitting and as always, another great article Matt!

Great as usual.

Funny how _13_ is banned in week #13....

Thanks again guys, your feedback is really appreciated.

Yeah I agree these are awesome!! Especially for someone who works odd hours and can have a week here or there in which they miss alot of hockey!! So thanks!!!