This is my second year as a part of the Industry Experts League, and once again I find myself in the thick of things as the season progresses. I had been meaning to get this update out sooner, but other articles took priority! The best of the best in the fantasy hockey world are here, from NHL.com to Yahoo! to TSN (among others).

The league requires each team to keep four players each off-season. My four keepers this past summer were Roberto Luongo (G), Bobby Ryan (LW/RW), Scott Hartnell (LW), and Marian Hossa (RW). Hartnell has been a bit of a disappointment so far, but the other three have been as advertised. Hossa’s initial IR status also allowed me the freedom of an extra roster position.

Here are the league standings as of January 19th, 2010:

I had been in second place for most of December and early January, but have hit a recent icy patch. Decent in most categories, but not great in any (aside from PPP). I have made only one trade so far this season (with a name many will recognize – Eric Maltais):

	Dec 15 7:54pm	Sean Avery Kris Letang Jaroslav Halak	Trade			Eric M
	Dec 15 7:54pm	Andrew Brunette Andrei Kostitsyn	Trade			jeff

Blessed with fantastic depth at both LW and RW, I decided to shore up my average goaltending. I caught Halak at just the right time – he essentially carried my team to second place, and it appears that Sean Avery is rounding in to form as well. Kris Letang has been a bit of a fantasy bust this season, but I am way behind in defenseman GP and can use him as filler.

There isn’t much activity in terms of trades in this league, but with unlimited transactions, keeping an eye on the waiver wire is beneficial. I have made over 30 adds/drops already this year, and that number will only rise down the stretch. I am not really a fan of daily lineups or no maximum transaction number, but I am going to try to take advantage of the rules specific to this league. I am hoping to deal a winger or two for a defenseman (and am also hoping for a Halak trade, as I own both him and Carey Price). My defense, featuring the likes of Tyutin, Yandle, Foster, and Kubina, is a definite weakness. I have kept Brent Burns stashed on the IR, so the news of him returning comes at the perfect time for my team.

Aside from Luongo, Halak, and Price, I also have Dwayne Roloson and Jose Theodore. Roloson will see less action with Rick DiPietro back, and Theodore has been far from a sure thing – I cross my fingers every time I put him in my starting lineup. If Halak does end up getting traded, I will dump both Roloson and Theodore and stick with my three goalies.