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 Monday, October 11
Senators not missing Yashin
 
ESPN.com news services

 With some of the dust settling as the NHL enters its second full week, it's time to test the early-season performances of the top teams.

The Senators, sans Alexei Yashin, are for real. And if St. Louis ever wants to surpass the Red Wings in the Central Division, a win in Detroit would be a solid precedent to set. Two other much-ballyhooed teams, the Sharks and the Rangers, have key matchups as well.

New Jersey at Ottawa, 2 p.m. ET Monday
This game pits last year's two best Eastern Conference regular-season teams. Both squads are also gaining reputations as perennial playoff disappointments. But none of that matters right now because the playoffs remain many months away.

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Atlanta at N.Y. Islanders, 7:30 p.m. ET Thursday --
A matchup between an expansion team and an established NHL squad that plays like one. The Thrashers began with home games against New Jersey, Detroit and Buffalo -- a tough way to start a franchise. But Saturday's 5-5 tie against Dominik Hasek's Sabres may be a stepping stone, and Patrik Stefan's two goals gave the Thrashers reason for excitement. The Islanders don't seem to have a lot going for them, yet the Isles surprised Colorado 4-2 on Sunday. Watch rookie Tim Connolly because he's going to be an excellent NHL player, if he isn't already.

Ottawa's impressive start proves no indivudual player can completely disrupt a solid team. There's little doubt that Ottawa is better with Yashin, but 4-0 is difficult to improve upon.

"We're playing well as a team," Senators assistant coach Perry Pearn told the Ottawa Sun. "Nobody cares about who gets the job done. They're just saying, let's get it done as a team. That's why we're having the kind of success we're having."

New Jersey also plays an excellent team game, but without holdouts Brendan Morrison and Patrik Elias, the Devils are not nearly as deep as they could be.

Devils goalie Martin Brodeur must play well because the Senators can score; and once they have a lead, the Sens play a tight defensive game, which could give New Jersey difficulty.

St. Louis at Detroit, 7 p.m. ET Wednesday, ESPN
The Detroit Red Wings own the Central Division. This season, the St. Louis Blues want to make that past tense.

Jamie McLennan
Jamie McLennan has won twice and may start playing more in net for the Blues.

To do that, a few things need to happen. Roman Turek, the supposed No. 1 goalie, needs to play well in a game like this. If he doesn't, coach Joel Quenneville may go with Jamie McLennan a lot more. McLennan has been red-hot thus far, posting both St. Louis victories with a 1.50 GAA and .929 save percentage.

The Blues' chances, for this game at least, received a blow when it was announced Sunday night that Al MacInnis will be out 4-6 weeks with an ankle fracture. As if that wasn't bad enough, fellow defenseman Rico Persson will miss 3-4 weeks with a strained knee ligament. Both suffered the injuries in Saturday's 4-2 win over the Oilers.

Detroit remains tough at home, although the Red Wings lost, 3-2, to Dallas in Hockeytown. But take a look at two statistics from that game: Detroit outshot Dallas, 34-14, and the Wings only connected on one of six power play chances.

Watch out for defenseman Steve Duchesne. After playing so poorly in Los Angeles, he was bought out of his contract last season. But his pride kicked in this summer, and he prepared intensely for this season. And it's paid off, with Duchesne notching two goals and two assists so far.

San Jose at Dallas, 8:30 p.m. ET Wednesday
With the injuries to Mike Modano and Darryl Sydor, the Dallas Stars suffered through quite a bit last week. Throw in a 3-0 defeat against the now-hated Mighty Ducks, and things looked bleak.

But Saturday night, that changed. The Stars went to San Jose and defeated a team many think will challenge the Stars this season. Like the Sentaors, Dallas' team style wins them games more than individual performances.

"Their game hasn't changed much even though they're missing some key people," Sharks forward Stephane Matteau said. "They played us very tight in typical Dallas fashion, just waiting for our mistakes."

Despite Saturday's game, the Sharks have made several prognosticators -- who picked them to have a big year -- look prophetic. San Jose, with a nice blend of youth and experience, has plenty of talent, and it is just a matter of how well players like Owen Nolan and Jeff Friesen play up front, as well as Steve Shields and Mike Vernon between the pipes.

Pittsburgh at N.Y. Rangers, 7:30 p.m. ET Thursday, ESPN2
Any game involving the Rangers and Jaromir Jagr's Penguins is worth watching.

Theo Fleury and the Rangers aren't quite at full speed with Mike Richter and Valeri Kamensky injured. But the Blueshirts now have a little momentum after winning twice over the weekend.

One of the keys to the recent resurgence of the Rangers has been the play of backup-turned-starter Kirk McLean, who made 27 saves in Sunday's win over Phoenix.

"We're coming along nicely," McLean said. "Guys are coming back from injuries. Mike (Richter) could be back next week. If we have a full lineup, we can get on a roll and build some confidence."

For the Pens, Tom Barrasso is out for at least a week with a knee sprain. But that may actually be good news. Barrasso, 34, is 0-1 with a 6.46 GAA and an eye-popping .731 save percentage in two games this season.

Peter Skudra will start in Barrasso's place, with Jean-Sebastien Aubin called up from the minors to back him up.

If that's not odd enough for the Pittsburgh, seeing Jagr without his trademark long hair is a little like seeing Wayne Gretzky wearing a number other than 99.

Pittsburgh fans hope Jagr isn't like Samson, losing his power with the loss of his hair.		 


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