Looking Back – August 2009

Looking back at August 2009 and the emergence of an unexpected superstar… Henrik Sedin

I can recall a draft in the fall of 2009 where I openly stated that the Sedin’s were “too old to build a team around.” They were 28 at the time, and if history was any indication, were approaching their decline. Of course with the benefit of hindsight this looks a tad foolish, as 2009 to 2013 represented the four best years of their careers.

Of the two, Daniel has always been the far easier asset to value. His propensity to shoot has given him a more well-rounded fantasy portfolio. Whereas Henrik, with his Joe Thornton-esque shot totals, can see his value move up and down wildly depending on the format.

This week I want to look back at August 2009. At the time, we were only a few months from Henrik Sedin becoming one of the five best multi-category players in the game, and arguably the most coveted points only option in fantasy.
His run as elite performer caught everyone (and me especially) off-guard.

 

In 2008-09 he finished with 22 goals, 60 assists for 82 points in 82 games. Great totals in virtually every format, but they in no way foretold the dramatic rise in production that was just around the corner. He and his brother had become consistent, very-good options in most formats. The kind of players you drafted in the early rounds but never seriously considered in the first.

 

That was about change.

 

Heading into the fall of 2009 Henrik had established himself as one of the league’s premier centermen. Considered a consensus top 30 pick in your pool. Dobber had him ranked 22nd overall:

 

Rank	Player	Team
1	Evgeni Malkin	PIT
2	Alexander Ovechkin	WAS
3	Sidney Crosby	PIT
4	Ilya Kovalchuk	ATL
5	Vincent Lecavalier	TB
6	Joe Thornton	SJ
7	Jason Spezza	OTT
8	Nicklas Backstrom	WAS
9	Dany Heatley	OTT
10	Pavel Datsyuk	DET
11	Ryan Getzlaf	ANA
12	Eric Staal	CAR
13	Jarome Iginla	CGY
14	Zach Parise	NJ
15	Marc Savard	BOS
16	Henrik Zetterberg	DET