Jim McIsaac, Getty Images VIEW FROM HEAVEN: If only the players could see the ice with suck a clear eye. Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist slides over to take away the opening from the Islanders' Jason Blake Tuesday.

1. Stand Up

LW Daniel Sedin,
Vancouver Canucks
4 goals, 2 assists ... +4
In a 6-5 win against Northwest Division rival Calgary, Sedin had a goal and two assists.

C Rod Brind'Amour, Carolina Hurricanes
2 goals, 4 assists ... +6
Brind'Amour had a goal and two assists, all on the power play, in a 5-1 defeat of the Islanders Dec. 22.

RW Daniel Alfredsson, Ottawa Senators
2 goals, 3 assists ... +5
Two goals and and an assist by the Senators' captain helped lead to a 6-3 win in Philadelphia Saturday.

D Dan Boyle, Tampa Bay Lightning
3 goals, 3 assists ... +1
Boyle sparked a 4-3 comeback win against the Rangers Saturday with a hat trick and an assist.

G Kari Lehtonen, Atlanta Thrashers
3-0-0 ... 1.67 GAA, .950 save pct.
Stopping 35 out of 37 shots, Lehtonen led the Thrashers to a 5-2 win against the Devils Saturday.

D Niclas Havelid, Atlanta Thrashers
1 goals, 2 assists ... +6
Havelid contributed a power-play goal against the Penguins in a 4-2 win in Pittsburgh Wednesday.

2. Calder comparison

How young Penguins standout Evgeni Malkin compares to last season's leading Calder Cup contenders Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin at similar stages of their rookie seasons (Through Thursday):

Evgeni Malkin: '06-07
32 games, 17 goals, 17 assists, -3
The skinny: Malkin had an assist in a 4-2 loss to Atlanta Wednesday.

Sidney Crosby: '05-06
32 games, 13 goals, 19 assists, -10
The skinny: Crosby contributed an assist in a 4-3 loss to Buffalo, Dec. 16, 2005.

Alexander Ovechkin: '05-06
32 games, 19 goals, 19 assists, -1
The skinny: Ovechkin had a goal and three assists leading the Capitals to a 6-5 win in Atlanta, Dec. 22, 2005.

3. Drafting low

When Chicago's Peter Bondra scored vs. Toronto Dec. 22, he became the second-lowest drafted player to score 500 goals. Since the first draft in 1963, only 10 players not picked in the first round have reached that mark:

*-Not drafted. Gretzky entered the NHL after playing in the WHA.

4. He said what?

"If somebody wants to kill me, kill me."

-- Alexander Ovechkin, Washington Capitals left wing on playing in Buffalo Tuesday for the first time since hitting Sabres center Daniel Briere from behind Dec. 2.

5. The fan's hat trick

Thrashers at Sabres, 7 p.m. today
The two best squads in the Eastern Conference meet when Ilya Kovalchuk and the Thrashers try to pull closer to Maxim Afinogenov and the Sabres.

Islanders at Sabres, 4 p.m. Monday
The Islanders' Ted Nolan returns to Buffalo as a NHL coach for the first time since 1997 when he was dumped in favor of current Sabres coach Lindy Ruff. (TV: Versus)

Red Wings at Sharks, 10:30 p.m. Thursday
As of Thursday, a point seperated Robert Lang and fourth-place Detroit from Evgeni Nabokov and fifth-place San Jose in the Western Conference standings.