Leclaire, Pascal

Leclaire is back. Like the line of a great comedy, Leclaire is for real, and he's SPECTACULAR. He had one of his best games tonight in an unfortunate loss to the stingy Stars. It took a breakaway goal by Chris Conner and a nifty backwards shootout goal by Niklas Hagman to beat him. Still, Leclaire's rebound control was top notch, and he returned to the form we've seen all year. It is safe to put this year's fantasy MVP back in your lineup.

Leclaire will miss Thursday's game against the Canucks due to a hamstring injury. Both the goalie and the team are downplaying the severity of the injury and he's officially classified as day-to-day. Fredrik Norrena is a good start in Leclaire's absence and should probably be picked up by Leclaire owners as insurance.

This year's fantasy MVP is back on the shelf... as you should have expected. Leclaire left Monday's game as a precationary measure with a tweaked hamstring. He will miss the game Thursday and hopes to be back for the weekend. Let's hope he doesn't rush back, considering his history. I hope you handcuffed his backup Norrena. It is just too risky not to. The much improved Jackets should make Norrena a valuable commodity as well... for as long as he's in there.

Coach Ken Hitchcock announced yesterday that Leclaire will be his main goalie for the forseeable future, reports the Columbus Dispatch. The Blue Jackets' schedule is relatively light from now until the end of the year with only two sets of back-to-back games schedule. Barring injury or a total collapse in form, Leclaire will start the majority of those including probably the next five or six.

He has 3 shutouts. No, you're not hallucinating. That name above this paragraph isn't Brodeur or Kipper. It is Pascal Leclaire. That team he plays for IS Columbus... not New Jersey, not Dallas. The Blue Jackets continue to show improvement, and I hope you were smart enough to take a flyer on this kid while you had the chance. If you have a believer in your league, I'd trade him now! He is very talented, but it is unlikely he is THIS good. Plus, he is still an injury concern. On a good offer, cash in, and play it safe.

Leclaire will get the nod for Friday's season opener against the Ducks with Fredrik Norrena drawing the starting assignment the next night against the Wild. Coach Ken Hitchcock is beginning the season with both goalies on equal footing and the intent seems to be to rotate the two until one steps up and takes hold of the #1 job. Hitchcock also stated that if a particular goalie is playing well, he will reward that goalie with extra starts. What this probably means for fantasy leaguers is that Leclaire and Norrena will shuttle back and forth in the Blue Jackets net but if one of them records a shutout or a particularly strong game, he will be rewarded with consecutive starts. Goalie rotations are the devil in fantasy hockey so avoid this situation if at all possible.