159. Vanek, Thomas

168. Boyle, Dan

I can't be too hard on Dobber for ranking Semin so far down the list. He was a red shirt rookie (do rookies wear a red shirt in the NHL?) and had posted only 22 points in 52 games the prior season. If you nabbed him at 154 in a keeper pool you would go on to enjoy four seasons of elite production (at least on a per game basis).

There are a number of parallels to be drawn between Vanek and Semin. Both have shown flashes of absolute brilliance – then followed that up with pronounced declines. In 2004 Vanek was still a prospect, yet to even play a single pro game. In his first four seasons he would surpass 40 goals twice, moving him into the conversation of a top 10 player in some formats. Since then he has broken 30 once. I expect this move to New York to pay dividends, the big question is does he re-sign long term?

Back to Alfredsson…

I had doubted him heading into this year. Yes, there was a lot of media hype around him meshing with Swedish countrymen Henrik Zetterberg and feeling "rejuvenated" (the usual clichés). I wasn't buying it though. Having watched a number of Ottawa games at the end of last year I saw a player that looked a step slower then he once was. His 26 points in 47 games equated to a full season pace of 55.

Astoundingly, I couldn't have been more wrong about him. Through 23 contests with a winged wheel on his chest Alfredsson already has 21 points. His shot totals are low, but they have always been that way. His plus minus and power play totals are a positive and he has shown no real signs of slowing. All this from a man that turns 41 in December.

So what is the difference between this year and last? Is it the new line-mates in Detroit? Did he re-commit himself over the offseason? Is a sample size of 23 games far too small to draw any conclusions? Did he stumble upon the Lazarus Pit? Ultimately, it is probably a bit of everything cobbled together (other than that Lazarus Pit, of course).

If this is in fact Daniel Alfredsson's final season it seems fitting that it started with both the hockey and fantasy world questioning his abilities once again. It's something he's probably gotten used to by now. He may never have been the great-est choice in your pool, but he certainly was great.

Darren is a fantasy hockey writer for DobberHockey. You can follow him @FantasyHockeyDK

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