Frozen Fantasy: Good, Bad and Ugly

It's the quarter pole of the 2017-18 season and it's time for a look back at the good, the bad and the ugly.

There's been plenty of each.

The Bolts are an offensive juggernaut. The Golden Knights are far shinier than any of us imagined. And the Oilers? Well, they just plain suck.

There are nine guys on track for more than 100 points, including Steven Stamkos who is on track for 140. Five guys are pacing toward at least 50 goals, including Nikita Kucherov, who is on pace for 65 (or so).

And oddly enough, slashing penalties are through the roof, with a 257 percent increase over last season (first 333 games).

It's about time. But we'll see how long it lasts.

Anyway. Here are my picks for the good, bad and ugly so far. What are yours?

MVP: Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay. You can argue for Steven Stamkos, but Kucherov has been this good since October 2016.

Best defender: Alex Pietrangelo, St. Louis. He can do it all. And he does. Really, really well.

Best goalie: Sergei Bobrovsky, Columbus. First in GAA, save percentage and shutouts. Second in wins. Second to no one.

Rebound: Steven Stamkos, Tampa Bay. Wow. Just wow.

Surprise (team): Vegas Golden Knights. They might not be there come playoff time, but then again, they just might.

Surprise (individual): Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg. The inconsistency is gone and his game is carrying the Jets.

Top Rookie: Mathew Barzal, NY Islanders. A five-point game and a current five-game, eight-point streak. The Isles finally got one right. Clayton Keller is very close.

Dud (individual): Brent Burns, D, San Jose. Twenty-nine goals last season. And it took him until almost Nov. 29 to score his first freaking goal this year? Spit.

Dud (team): Edmonton Oilers. So bad that Friday night, they couldn't beat the 0-5-2 Sabres. Ugh.

Not let's take a look at who caught my eye this week.

Justin Abdelkader, LW/RW, Detroit (14 percent Yahoo! owned) – Abdelkader has never been more productive than he is right now. Not even when he and former coach Mike Babcock had their famous bromance. Heading into Friday night, Abdelkader had 10 points, including eight helpers, in his previous seven games. That gives him 16 points in 21 games. At 31, Abdelkader isn't about to keep improving, but you can't overlook his current production.

Jake DeBrusk, LW, Boston (4 percent Yahoo! owned) – Like Brendan Smith below, DeBrusk recently spent some time in the press box. And like Smith, DeBrusk came back fired up and ready to prove the team wrong. Since Nov. 15, the talented young winger had six points, including four assists, in five games. DeBrusk is skating with David Krejci on the Bruins' second line and that's a recipe for success. He's already sitting in a tie for 12th in rookie scoring with 12 points in 20 games – that's a near-50 point pace.

Alexander Edler, D, Vancouver (4 percent Yahoo! owned) – It took a while, but Edler finally looks like he's getting his post-injury game legs under him. He's back QBing the power play and is riding a small, three-game point streak. The Orcas are far from perfect and Edler had only managed 20-22 points in four of his last five seasons. Still, he's the best of a bad lot out West, so he'll get ice time. He may be worth rostering if your blue line is porous.

Brian Gibbons, LW/RW/C, New Jersey (14 percent Yahoo! owned) – I could have flagged Gibbons to you several times already. But I didn't – honestly, I thought the squirt's production was a joke. But his goal Wednesday drove him to double-digits and he now leads the Devils in snipes. I'm still not convinced this will last – Gibbons has never been a scorer in the AHL, so it's hard to think he'll continue it in the NHL. But stranger things have happened when little guys escape the AHL and find a better fit in the NHL. At minimum, Gibbons will be fun to watch. But he could actually be helpful if he can keep a bit of this up.

Darcy Kuemper, G, Los Angeles (7 percent Yahoo! owned) – Kuemper had a great week. He threw down a 24-save shutout of the Panthers on Saturday night, was perfect in over 47 minutes of relief Monday and pushed the 'Yotes to overtime Friday before losing. The crease is still Jonathan Quick's, but Kuemper's excellent numbers mean he's a strong spot-start option going forward.

Henrik Sedin, C, Vancouver (8 percent Yahoo! owned) – Hank has 1,032 NHL points and the end is near. He's seeing reduced ice time under rookie coach Travis Green, but he doesn't seem to mind. Sedin has eight points (two goals, six assists) in his last 10 games and may actually have some fantasy value this season.

Brendan Smith, D, NY Rangers (0 percent Yahoo! owned) – Need PIM? Smith came back Nov. 17 all fired up after spending two weeks in the press box. The result was 25 PIM in just four games. Smith doesn't contribute in any other category, so this is a desperation play for PIM. Just be ready to drop him fast if he stops playing with that edge.

Reilly Smith, LW/RW, Vegas (20 percent Yahoo! owned) – Smith remains underrated, but that's to your advantage. His helper Friday night stretched his point streak to four games and five points, and he now has 18 points in 21 games. Smith alternates 50-point seasons with 35-40 point ones, and this year is one of those high years. You might as well take advantage.

Back to the Oilers.

The fault lines of their failure lie right at Peter Chiarelli's feet.

He cut loose a bunch of veterans because they failed to deliver secondary scoring in last year's playoff series against the Ducks. Unfortunately, he never refilled those spots.

Veteran leadership isn't leading. Cam Talbot isn't stopping pucks. Ryan Strome was a mistake.

Since 2004-05, an average of just three teams currently in a playoff spot will slip out of the running at the end of regular season. And let a team that's currently on the outside climb back in.

Anything is possible. But not much is probable.

Until next week. (and Happy U.S. Thanksgiving!)