The trade deadline (it’s Wednesday, so mark your calendar) can be great for fantasy teams, since sometimes a player just needs a change of scenery or a different situation to blossom. Sadly, trades often turn solid players into total duds. It seems that for every Joe Thornton to San Jose there’s a Sergei Samsonov to Edmonton. That’s just the way it is.

The first big deadline deal was Penguin defenseman Ryan Whitney to Anaheim for forwards Chris Kunitz and Eric Tangradi (a minor leaguer). Whitney missed the start of the season and never really found a rhythm. After putting up almost 100 points in the last two seasons, he has just two goals and 11 assists so far this year. A less prominent role in Anaheim might actually open up his game, although I’m not sure I would necessarily dump a successful player for Whitney. At least not yet. Kunitz has basically been a 20-goal scorer his entire career, but he already had accumulated 16 goals and 19 assists for the Ducks this season. If he winds up on a line with Sidney Crosby, which is expected, he could presumably end the season with 30 goals. He’s definitely worth a look if he’s available.

Of course, trades aren’t the only agent of change in the NHL. There are a lot of factors. For instance, the return of goalie Martin Brodeur to the Devils sent shockwaves through the fantasy world, as Scott Clemmensen, who filled in ably for Brodeur and as a fantasy goalie (2.39 goals against, .917 save percentage) was unceremoniously sent down to the AHL, ruining not just Clemmensen’s day, but also many rosters. Brodeur put up a shutout his first game back, so if he’s still available, you might want to mirror real life and use him to replace Clemmensen.

A new coach can also be a huge change. For instance, earlier this week the New York Rangers fired coach Tom Renney and hired coach John Tortorella. If you have any Rangers on your roster, you know they’re not scoring, which was a symptom of Renney’s hyperdefensive style. Now, with Tortorella, you can expect a much more aggressive, uptempo style with important players getting major minutes. Fantasy duds like Scott Gomez, Chris Drury, and Nikolai Zherdev might actually start performing. It won’t be instantaneous, but it’s worth keeping an eye on these guys to see how they do under Tortorella. And while you’re doing that, keep an eye on goalie Henrik Lundqvist, who should see a lot more action now that the guys in front of him won’t be playing five men back the entire game. His numbers might suffer because of it.

According to ESPN, Boston’s David Krejci, the NHL’s +/- leader, isn’t universally owned across leagues, so if he’s available, you need to grab him and his 20 goals and 39 assists.

Another guy that might not be owned is Jason Arnott, who, after potting two goals and an assist in the last two games, is on pace for his first 30-goal season as a Predator. He ripped home the game-winner Thursday as Nashville improved its playoff chances with a third straight win. The Preds are in 11th place in the West, but are just one point behind the Minnesota/Dallas/Edmonton/Anaheim logjam who are all tied with 65 points.

The Week Ahead

• Saturday, Anaheim plays Dallas, as the two teams fight to remain in the playoff picture. Anaheim is hoping Whitney will help, but it might need to make a few other moves to firm up a playoff position.
• Monday, the Avs play the Islanders. It just doesn’t seem fair that those teams have to play each other. It’s like making two sick chickens fight each other.
• Thursday, Pittsburgh plays Florida. The Eastern Conference playoff picture is so crowded, games like this — between teams that are so close together in the standings — are huge. So if you want to keep Crosby out of the playoffs, tune in and wish hard.

In the NHL, players will suddenly go very hot. In the fantasy world, the big question is always, how long will they stay hot?

Take Eric Fehr from the Washington Capitals. He’s got seven goals on the season, but four in his last five (plus two assists). Has the former first-round pick suddenly found his game? The Capitals have to be hoping so. He’s only got three goals in the previous three seasons, much of that spent in the minors. So is Fehr worth the risk? He’s certainly worth keeping an eye on.

Also, look for some great players to return to their lineups. A lot of times, players get injured and dumped out of fantasy lineups, and former owners forget to go pick them up. It’s like free money!

Pittsburgh defenseman Sergei Gonchar has been cleared to play, meaning he should appear in the Penguin lineup soon. While Gonchar will have to ease himself in (he hasn’t played all season), he’s a fixture on the Penguin power play — a unit that has really suffered without him. Look for Gonchar to see special teams time, if not regular even-strength minutes.

Also consider Andy McDonald from the Blues, who returned to the St. Louis roster Tuesday night. McDonald played on the wing instead of centre, but things still worked out, as he scored a goal and added an assist. Not bad, considering he hadn’t played since November 2008. The Blues just signed McDonald to a four-year extension, so if he’s good enough for them, he’s certainly good enough for your fantasy team.

The Blues also recently sent goalie Manny Legace down to the minors, so if he’s somehow on your roster, you might want to dump him. If New Jersey’s Martin Brodeur is available, grab him. He’s been cleared to practice and he could be back relatively soon.

If you’re looking for a slightly damaged goalie, Steve Mason from Columbus could be back Friday. He was out with mono. Don’t ask how he got it. Don’t even let your mind wander to the situations that could have caused it. Just think about his .923 save percentage and his 2.09 goals against. And in case you’re wondering, you can’t get mono through a waiver transaction.

And New York Islander Doug Weight is expected to be out six weeks with an MCL sprain. Weight’s numbers haven’t been great, but he seemed to be prime trade bait, and if he had been dealt, his numbers would presumably would have improved. I don’t see a team trading for him unless they really want to say “Wow. We really gained Weight this season.” And none of my uncles run NHL teams, so that’s not going to happen.

The Week Ahead

• Saturday, the Wild looks to get back on track against Ottawa. Minny is clinging to the final playoff spot in the West, but unfortunately the team has a date in Detroit next weekend — and that spells doom for the Wild. After Thursday’s 4-2 loss to Detroit, Minnesota is now 0-10-2 in its last dozen tries against the Wings. On the plus side, Brent Burns potted his first goal in almost a month. He’s been a real disappointment this season after enjoying a breakout campaign last year. He’s no longer a must-own fantasy defenceman.
• Sunday, the Sharks play the Devils in what could be a Stanley Cup Finals preview.
• Sunday, Colorado plays Detroit. For Detroit, it’s like when you see an old girlfriend on the street and she’s kind of let herself go, and you tell her she looks great, but she can tell you’re lying, and you just kind of stand there and then she bursts into tears.
• Monday the Rangers play the Blues. You have to hope the Rangers will tell John Davidson to stop running the team and go back to simply calling the games.

Last weekend was the All-Star Game and while it was great to read that RotoRob actually stepped away from the computer, from a fantasy perspective it was kind of buzzkill. Gaudy offensive numbers that didn’t count for anything. I could barely watch.

Coming back to the real world of fantasy hockey, though, I think we all know the big story this week: Mike Cammalleri.

How hot is this Calgary Flame? He’s put up eight goals in the past four games and nine goals in the past three weeks. Just to give you some context, New York Ranger Scott Gomez has 10 goals this season.

So yeah, Cammalleri is doing some crazy fantasy stuff this week. And amazingly, with no assists. He’s just looking to shoot the whole game.

As we head toward the trade deadline, a lot of players who aren’t as exciting or prolific as Cammalleri can be expected to change teams. And sometimes that change of scenery is enough to jump start a player.

Take St. Louis’ Keith Tkachuk. His 15 goals and 16 assists are nice, but if the Blues move him, and they do tend to love to move older players for younger ones and/or draft picks, Tkachuk could find himself on a playoff-bound team and start really putting up numbers. Pittsburgh is still looking for a big body to replace Ryan Malone. The Florida Panthers might want some veteran leadership if they find themselves more firmly entrenched in their playoff spot. And the Rangers desperately need someone who can maintain position in the slot for their awful power play. So Tkachuk is someone to watch.

Also, Bill Guerin seems a lock to leave the Islanders via a trade. His 14 goals and 18 assists aren’t much, but they could dramatically amplify on a solid team where he’s not the primary scoring option. Because, for all the talk about how the Islanders are in a youth movement, he’s still playing over 15 minutes a night and has the ears of everyone in the room. Guerin plays under a lot of pressure.

Of course, the older-player-to-new-team gambit doesn’t always work. For every Brendan Shanahan, who put up two goals in his first four games with New Jersey, there’s a Mats Sundin who has the same number of goals, plus one more assist, in his first eight games back.

Oh. And goalie Ollie Kolzig is out for the season in Tampa. He wasn’t playing very well, but he was a warm body for your fantasy roster. I’d say that goalie Mike Smith will get more work because of the injury, but he was already doing the lion’s share of the goaltending in Tampa.

The Week Ahead

• Saturday, the Rangers take on Bruins. Which Rangers team will show up? The tight defensive team or the pressing run-and-gun team that can’t score and gives up soft goals?
• Saturday also sees Florida take on the Islanders. Florida is desperate to stay in the playoff picture so you can bet it’s grateful to be playing the Isles. Speaking of the Panthers, All-Star Jay Bouwmeester scored his 11th goal of the season Thursday, continuing his development as a real goal-scoring threat from the blueline. The six-year vet has an excellent chance to put up his first 20-goal season.
• Tuesday, Phoenix plays Nashville. It’ll be nice. Both teams can discuss how they feel about leaving the American south for Canadian cities. Because it’s going to happen. Of course, in Phoenix’s case, it will be a homecoming.