A month ago I started a segment in which I look at who the top bargain players in the NHL are on a month-to-month basis.
October saw Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron grab the top spot as the best bargain player in the league but he has since been surpassed by a red hot goalie from the St. Louis Blues.
Here is who made the cut in November’s edition of Bang For The Buck:
*Note: The list does not include players who are still working off their rookie contracts
*Previous ranking in brackets
Cap hit– 1.500
22 GP, 6 G, 10 A
Most laughable comparison: Colby Armstrong- Cap Hit of 3.000 (5 GP, 0 G, 0 A)
*The injury to Mikhail Grabovski allowed Bozak to slide onto the Leafs top line where he has thrived playing alongside Phil Kessel and Joffrey Lupul
9. (NR) Jason Chimera, Washington Capitals
Cap hit- 1.875
22 GP, 9 G, 5 A, +8
Most laughable comparison: Alex Semin- Cap hit of 6.700 (21 GP, 5 G, 5 A, -3)
*On a team with Ovechkin, Semin and Backstrom it is Chimera who leads the Caps in goals. Enough said.
8. (7) Sheldon Souray, Dallas Stars
Cap hit– 1.650
23 GP, 4 G, 9 A, +9
Most laughable comparison: None
*Has been a tower of power in both zones for one of the league’s most underrated defense cores
7. (5) Pascal Dupuis, Pittsburgh Penguins
Cap hit- 1.500
24 GP, 6 G, 13 A, + 12
Most laughable comparison: None
*Veteran forward should continue to produce now that #87 is back as his center
(Icon SMI)
6. (NR) Jose Theodore, Florida Panthers
Cap hit- 1.500
17 GP, 9-4-3, 2.37 GAA, 0.92 save%
Most laughable comparison: Scottie Upshall- cap hit of 3.500 (15 Gp, 1 G, 2 A)
*Has backstopped the surprising Panthers to the top of of the Southeast division
5. (3) Jason Garrison, Florida Panthers
Cap hit– 0.675
23 GP, 8 G, 4 A, +8
Most laughable comparison: Upshall
*”Boom-Boom” is living up to his nickname by leading all blueliners with eight goals
4. (NR) Max Pacioretty, Montreal Canadiens
Cap hit- 1.625
24 GP, 10 G, 9 A
Most laughable comparison: Scott Gomez- cap hit of 7.357 (13 GP, 0 G, 5 A)
*With a power-forward’s size and a gifted scoring ability Pacioretty is becoming just that; a goal scoring power-forward
Cap hit– 0.700
23 GP, 7 G, 10 A
Most laughable comparison: Brian Little- cap hit of 2.383 (23 GP, 6 G, 5 A)
*Leading Jets in scoring and has arguably been the club’s most consistent forward.
(Icon SMI)