Fantasy Hockey Mailbag: Keeper Dilemmas, Selling High, Kopitar & Hronek

Rick Roos

2021-03-03

Even with games having been postponed left and right, the season is progressing and a lot of players who started fast or slow have normalized. What hasn't changed is the need for a second opinion on one's fantasy team/players, which is where this mailbag comes in. For new readers, this is a column where I answer your fantasy hockey questions while also giving advice that should be useful to all poolies even if they don't own the specific players being discussed. As a reminder, if you want your fantasy hockey question answered in the next mailbag, check out the end of the column, where I explain the ways to get it to me and as well as the details you should provide. The earlier you send a question the more likely it is to be included, and the deeper dive I can provide with my reply.

Question #1 (from Michael)

How do you see Anze Kopitar's performing over the next 2-3 seasons? Will he be able to continue to play at a high level, or is a drop off inevitable given his age and/or the young prospects who'll become NHL ready during that time frame?

Kopitar is one of fewer than 15 NHLers who signed to a deal earning him $10M or more per season, and his contract runs through 2023-24. The Kings also spent a top five pick in each of the past two drafts on a center. As such, he might not have the kind of long leash other expensive players have, meaning that if in a season or two he shows signs of faltering, he could cede his #1 center spot.

Can we predict how well Kopitar will play over that time frame though? The best tool for that would be to look at past player comparables, which, while not predictive of the future, can provide a frame of reference to assess how Kopitar might perform through 2024.

Kopitar has been very consistent in his career, as nine times by age 32 he averaged at least 0.85 points per game. However, by the same token only once thus far in his 13 prior NHL seasons did he best the point per game mark. In other words, he was consistent but unspectacular. Have there been other players since 1990-91 who had similar metrics?

Yes, as Mats Sundin had a points-per-game pace between 0.85 and 1.0 seven times by age 32, with no one else doing so more than five times. How did Sundin perform as he aged? Quite well it turns out, as he posted 76-78 points in each of his age 34, 35, and 36 seasons, after not playing at all in his age 33 campaign due to the 2004-05 lockout. In other words, Sundin was able to perform at or near the same level as he'd performed throughout his career even as he reached his mid-30s.

Given this comparison, Kopitar's contract size, his game being the type that seemingly would age well (i.e., not based on speed or lots of SOG), and the likelihood that the Kings will only improve over the next few seasons, I think it's safe to predict Kopitar will continue to produce at a pace in the 70-80 point range through the end of his current contract. Although Alex Turcotte and Quinton Byfield will be chomping at the bit to make their mark within the next 2-3 seasons, Kopitar should allow the Kings to be patient with the youngsters, who'll be ready to step in once Kopitar either retires after his current deal is done, signs elsewhere, or takes on a lesser role.

Question #2 (from Fraser)

I'm in a 12 team keeper league (multi-cat, including +/- ). We have a salary cap of $335, with elite players usually costing about $30 to $35. Most trades are made in the offseason.

Of course it's still early, but my projected keepers are Aleksander BarkovNathan MacKinnonJack EichelMitch Marner,Mikko RantanenQuinn HughesMiro HeiskanenCale MakarIvan ProvorovSeth JonesConnor HellebuyckIgor Shesterkin, and Ilya Sorokin. We're also allowed five players in our minors and I have the following six who'll still be minor eligible: Alex Turcotte, Kaapo Kakko, Cole Caufield, Lucas Raymond, Jake Sanderson and Yaroslav Askarov.

As you can see I have one too many of both keepers and minors players. Normally I wouldn't consider making a major trade in season, but with the fact that 2020-21 is a roller coaster crapshoot, I actually don't mind making a major move now. I have identified three elite players (Connor McDavidLeon DraisaitlDavid Pastrnak) on teams that are weak enough they may consider a package in exchange for what is, in each case, their top player. The McDavid owner has turned down multiple offers from me in the past but as his team is in free-fall maybe this year he will reconsider. I simply can't afford Hellebuyck at near $30 next year when I have Sorokin and Shesterkin at $3 each, so I would like to make him the centerpiece of any package. The problem is it will likely cost me more than just him, with one potential deal being Hellebuyck, Barkov, Jones and Caufield.

That would get me to my 5 minor roster limit and bring my projected keepers down to 11. I could fill the final keeper spot with one of the following players on my roster at seasons end. William NylanderTomas TatarDavid PerronJakub VranaJordan KyrouDrake BathersonDillon DubeK'Andre MillerNoah DobsonAlexander RomanovPierre-Oliver Joseph.

I guess I'm asking if it's worth it to pay that kind of price for one of those three. I did have an offer of Kyle Connor for Jones before season start. The owner has aggressively pursued Jones from me for a couple years, and even with Jones' slow start the offer still might stand. Should I consider revisiting that? I really like Connor but good d-men are so hard to find in my league. Do you have any other ideas on players you would target?

Far too often teams – even those in limited keepers – get caught up in the current season rather than reminding themselves that they should also be making decisions and moves with the future in mind as well. In your case, you're astutely realizing that while you still want to try to do well in the moment, it's also not ideal to end up with too many top quality keepers.

I also agree this is a good season to make bold moves since, as you noted, luck will play more of a role in determining outcomes for 2020-21 fantasy leagues than ever before and perhaps ever again. While you'd be losing players who could help give you a better chance at the winning your league's title this year, it likely would be a small price to pay to get one of these three superstars and, in doing so, set up your team – which has two highly regarded and, just as important, inexpensive, young netminders in Shesterkin and Sorokin – to do well in the immediate and long term future while ridding yourself of Hellebuyck's cap hit.

All this having been said, if I was one of the weak teams that owned the likes of McDavid, Draisaitl, or Pastrnak, why would I trade them? If anything, they're players to keep since they should still be great by the time a rebuild is finished. Plus, they'd be taking on Hellebuyck's large cap hit, which is something rebuilding teams usually like to avoid. And I'm guessing Barkov and Jones also wouldn't come cheap too. So why would a rebuilding team want to do this deal? And wouldn't any of the three of these guys you'd be getting also carry a cap hit at least as large as Hellebuyck's?

I'll assume the numbers work out in your favor enough to make a trade and, more importantly, that all of the three are available for the right price. If you can indeed get McDavid, Draisaitl or Pasta for that package, I'd do it. As good as Hellebuyck is, he's getting to an age where he might be peaking. Also, while Barkov is a very talented player, he started strong last season too but yet again ended up below a point per game pace. More and more his 2018-19 campaign seems to be looking like an outlier. Jones is great in multi-cats, but not so great as to tilt the scales towards not doing the deal. If it was me, I'd try to deal Sanderson instead of Caufield; but in the end prospects are far from sure things, and rebuilding teams will want something of perceived future value. Therefore, if you can make this deal for any of the three, I say do it. Failing that, I'd move Jones for Connor. Yes, Jones is coveted in multi-cats, but Connor looks like a 40 G, 40A downside player at his peak, which has a lot of value.

Who would I keep in your extra slot if you do the deal? Kyrou, Batherson and Dobson are intriguing, but I don't think either of the three are "worth" a keeper spot just yet. Perron and Tatar on the other hand are too far along in their careers. They're all redrafts. Nylander is talented; however, he's not at his best in multicat leagues and I also think he's being propped up by virtue of his talented linemate(s), so if he is finally traded, as has long been rumored, he might not be good enough to stay as productive. 

The guy I'd want to keep is Vrana. Washington is still taking baby steps with him, but he nevertheless keeps performing and eventually he'll supplant T.J. Oshie, at which point he could explode. The stat I keep coming back to is Vrana scoring at a .75 points per game pace last season despite not taking the ice for even 15:00 per game and how the last forward to do that was Nikita Kucherov. It takes a special player to do that well despite such little ice time, so when Vrana finally gets a chance to make his mark, he should pay nice dividends.

If you could swap in either Nylander or Vrana instead of Barkov or Jones, I'd try to do so. If not though, I like Vrana's upside more than Nylander, who I fear is doing situationally well. Good luck!

Question #3 (from Nicolas)

I'm in a points-only, 13 team dynasty league, where the number of keepers are determined by where a team finishes. Specifically, the first and second place teams keep eight players, third and fourth keep nine, fourth and fifth keep ten, sixth and seventh keep 11, eighth through tenth keep 12, and the three bottom teams each keep 13. In addition to normal keepers, players who haven't played 50 NHL games are automatically kept. Each team is allowed only three waiver moves during the season, with each one costing $$ that is added to the prize pool. Based on how things look as of now, my team likely will finish in the 7th-10th place range, giving me 11 or 12 keeper slots.

My team consists of the following players: Blake Wheeler, J.T. Miller, Elias LindholmMikko KoskinenChristian DvorakOliver BjorkstrandDominik KubalikShea TheodorePavel BuchnevichJake Guentzel, Filip Hronek, Torey Krug, Kevin Labanc, Erik GustafssonAdrian Kempe, Erik KarlssonWilliam KarlssonAndreas JohnssonIlya Mikheyev, Aleksi HeponiemiNikita Gusev, Jason Robertson, Connor McMichael, Nick RobertsonMike Matheson.

My questions are what do you think I need to do to try and improve, and do you think any of the following players are upgrades over what I have now: Jordan GreenwayPius SuterPhilipp KurashevPierre-Oliver JosephK'Andre MillerMiles WoodLiam FoudyCarl GrundstromYegor SharangovichTy Dellandrea, Joel Kiviranta?

Looking first at players you could add, the issue is guys who I'd consider, notably Kurashev, Miller, and Joseph, are already playing full time this season and thus probably will hit the 50-game mark. Of them though, Joseph's maximum games played could be only 52, so I might take a chance on him and hope he misses three games between now and the end of the season, as that way he'd be a free keeper. Or you could grab all three and reassess at the end the season. Those are the only three I'd target, as the rest either don't have the upside versus guys you already have or, in the case of Greenway, are playing unsustainably well given lack of SOG and PP time. The players I'd drop if you did grab any of these guys would be one, two, or three of Mikheyev, Johnsson, and Matheson or Gustafsson.

In order to improve you have to get a goalie other than Koskinen. More and more it looks like he just does not have what it takes to be an NHL starter, as he's now 32 and on pace to have a third season of fewer than 50% quality starts. I predict next season he'll be the back-up and after 2022 be gone from Edmonton and unlikely to latch on elsewhere. If all teams have only one netminder, the good news is an upgrade is likely out there right now, meaning you won't have to trade for one. That's what I'd do, as to get someone who is elite you'd have to trade too much of the current and/or future value on your team.

Guys I'd look to perhaps trade away are Krug and Karlsson, as both I feel have name value which now exceeds their actual value. Krug just doesn't seem to be paying the same dividends in St. Louis as he did for the Bruins; and although perhaps part of it is just acclimation, it might just be he has a new normal that is well below what he was producing in Boston. As for Karlsson, the ship may have already sailed on getting good value for him, so best to wait until he runs hot and then jettison him in a trade. Trading Wheeler also makes sense I think, as he can only get worse but you likely can find someone who will give you true value for him in the form of a younger player. Good luck!

Question #4 (from "Drowning in Saros")

My league is a 14 team redraft H2H with categories of G, A, PIM, +/-, PPG, PPA, GWG, SOG; W, GAA, SV%, SHO. Only three goalie starts per week are needed. In addition to Saros I have Anton Khudobin and Darcy Kuemper. Although all three of my goalies have started poorly versus expectations, Saros has me the most concerned/disappointed. Do you think he can salvage this season, or will Nashville let Rinne take the ball and run with it? I am close to flat-out dropping him at this point since this is a one-year league.

While Juuse Saros has always been highly regarded, let's keep in mind his GAA had increased in each of the prior three seasons and his SV% decreased in the previous two. That having been said, his GAA and SV% decreased with each quarter last season, punctuated by 11 of his last 14 Starts being Quality Starts and giving up more than three goals just once in his final 16 appearances. Still though, taken as a whole his 2019-20 was worse than his 2018-19, which was worse than his 2017-18. If you compare his first eight games of 2020-21 to his first eight of 2019-20, his stats are almost identical, so there's still a chance he rights his ship. Plus, Nashville will want him to succeed, as Pekka Rinne is 38 years old and not signed beyond this season and Yaroslav Askarov, although picked 12th overall in the 2020 draft, likely is at least a few seasons away.

Long story short, for all your goalies, including Saros, I'd stick with them and hope they each have a good run of games, at which point I'd consider trading any or all of them for draft picks because, to be frank, I find it difficult to envision your team competing in a 14-team league given your goalie situation and the categories. Plus, this way you can bolster your team for next season. Good luck!

For those who own Saros in a keeper, his stats thus far in his career are quite similar to those of Braden Holtby and James Reimer. By age 25 Holtby had 60 wins in 105 games played (versus 59 and 132 for Saros), a career GAA of 2.60 (versus 2.61 for Saros) a career SV% of 0.918 (versus 0.916 for Saros), 11 career shutouts (versus 11 for Saros), a 58.2% Quality Start percentage (versus 48.3% for Saros) and 15 Really Bad Starts (versus 20 for Saros). By that same age, Reimer had 53 wins in 104 games played, 2.71GAA, 0.915 SV%, ten shutouts, 51% QS%, 15 Really Bad Starts. Of the two, Saros' numbers are more similar to Holtby; however, they're not so far away from Reimer's as to defy comparison. If you see Saros' fantasy glass as half full, you can say he'll follow a path similar to that of Holtby, while if your glass is half empty you liken him to Reimer. What the exact future holds is unclear, although for what it's worth Holtby broke out when he was 25, so for Saros to follow his trajectory he should start doing better this season or at the latest by 2021-22.

Question #5 (from A Forum Reader)

I'm a Filip Hronek owner, and am a believer that he is more than capable of running Detroit's top PP. Yet Christian Djoos has been getting those minutes of late. Am I wrong in thinking Hronek is far superior to him in terms of what they can do offensively? Is this maybe a strategy to keep Hronek's numbers down so they have some kind of leverage to not give him a big raise when that time comes? Or am I overvaluing Hronek? What do you see for him in the near and long term?

Looking at Hronek's numbers, although his ice times at ES and on the PP are they're remarkably similar to last season, his scoring is down. The reason for that is he's without a goal this year after shooting a decent 7.2% last season. Right there he should have three goals and, with that, be scoring just above a point per every other game, which is pretty good for a team ranked in the bottom five in goals per game and dead last in PP conversion rate.

Speaking of the PP, although, as you noted, Djoos has made some inroads, particularly in recent games, when looking at the season as a whole Hronek is still taking the ice for more than 50% of his teams PP minutes. The reality is Detroit, in addition to having a woeful PP, doesn't have a single player seeing more than 60% of the team's PP minutes; so Hronek, at 52.9%, is actually doing pretty well in that area. Moreover, other than Moritz Seider, Detroit has no one ranked in the Top 50 Defensemen Prospects list, and Seider doesn't necessarily project to be an offensive dynamo, thus giving Hronek no real threats to his "spot," including the 26-year-old Djoos, who prior to this season had never been a full time NHLer.

If I had to pick someone who Hronek reminds me of based on what I've seen so far plus his age and role, it's probably Cam Fowler; or if not him, then perhaps Alex Edler or Nick Leddy. Even in his early 20s Fowler was "the guy" on the Anaheim blueline, with lots of minutes at ES and on the PP. Though as we now know, Fowler didn't make the leap, instead being consistently good but not great. It was a similar story with Leddy and Edler, although Edler's lack of success was also tied to his frequent injuries.

Do I think Hronek's career trajectory will be similar to Fowler's or that of Leddy or Edler, never playing much better than point per every other game hockey except for the occasional outlying season with a scoring pace of 45-50 points? Maybe, but maybe not. A lot depends on how well Detroit is as a team, since even if a rising tide does not necessarily lift all boats, it likely would do so for the top defenseman on the team. Also, if Hronek can get his SOG up, that should help boost his numbers. I'd say his downside would be that he doesn't get much better than he is now, but his upside would be if both he and Detroit improve enough to see him post a scoring rate in the 50-55 point range. Good luck!

Question #6 (from Boyd)

I'm looking for advice on whether I should to upgrade one or two of my keepers and, if so, what cost I should be willing to pay. The league is a keep 3 with skater categories of G (4), A (3), PIM (0.2), PPPt (1), SOG (0.3), Hit (0.3) and BLK (0.3), and my keepers for 2020-21 were Jack Eichel, Alex Ovechkin and Mika Zibanejad.

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I would be looking for an upgrade Zibs and/or Ovechkin. I currently have three 1st round picks, two 2nd round picks, two 3rd round picks, two 4th round picks, plus lower picks. Ideally, I would like to compete to win next year so it might be a stretch to upgrade multiple keepers.

I'm interested in:

Nathan MacKinnon, whose owner isn't very active. I offered a 1st + 2nd + Zibs, with no response.

Auston Matthews, whose owner says he's not inclined to deal him. I offered two 1sts and Zibs and have received no response.

Nikita Kucherov, whose owner is seemingly willing to deal. My opening offer of a 1st + 2nd + Zibs seem to spark his interest

I've also looked into Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl but was told neither is realistically available. Would you consider anyone else as a good target to obtain given my categories? Maybe someone like Andrei Svechnikov or Andrei Vasilevsky?

I'm missing some key pieces of information, namely how many teams are in the league plus what goalie categories are counted and how they're weighted. I'll assume the league has 8-16 teams in total, and that goalie categories aren't weighted too heavily. I also assume no one else on your team is a plausible keeper – that is, your best options for both keeping and trading are solely Eichel, Ovechkin and Zibs.

First off, I wouldn't trade Zibs. For one, his value is way too low, plus he should be doing much better, as his SH% is a quarter of his career rate, meaning he should have five more goals. I think it's a combination of back luck (he also has zerosecondary assists, which is unheard of for a center) as well as lingering effects of COVID. He's also great for this league because of the categories in which he excels. Either hold him or wait to make a deal until he heats back up, which I see as inevitable.

I worry about Ovy because he's playing for a new contract this season, giving him motivation to succeed. What's to happen in 2021-22 when he's earned that new deal? He likely has designs on passing Wayne Gretzky for most goals of all time; but Ovy will be 36 before the start of 2021-22, and in the history of the NHL only two players (Johnny Buyck and Brett Hull) had 35+ goals in a season twice at age 36+, and the high for either was 40. Even the great Teemu Selanne went from 40 and 48 goals at age 35 and 36, to no more than 31 in any of his remaining seasons, although in fairness he did post 128 points in 127 games in his age 39 and 40 seasons, except 70 of those points came in the form of assists, including 49 in a single season, and Ovi hasn't had more than 38 assists in any season dating back to 201-11.

In short, Ovi might go down as the best pure goal scorer of all time; but many said that about Hull in his day and he slowed remarkably with age, so Ovi could as well. Of course, Ovi also gives you a lot of Hits and SOG, which can't be ignored. But if I'm in your shoes I dangle Ovi too. In fact, I also dangle Eichel. As noted in my January Goldipucks column, although Eichel's deployment is perhaps the best among all NHL centers, he still might be nearly maxed out in terms of points plus he doesn't give you as much across the board category help.

Long story short, I'd offer any of the three in trade and see what materializes. Perhaps you could even get the Matthews owner intrigued if Ovi or Eichel was the player coming to him/her instead of Zibs. So rather than you coming to them with specific deals, instead tell them that Ovi, Eichel or Zibs (plus picks) could be had for the right price and see what they suggest. After all, you can always say no or counter.

In terms of whether I'd make an offer for Kucherov, I think I would if Matthews proves unobtainable. Yes, he's coming back from injury but he's also one of the top players in the league when healthy. After all, the last time any NHLer scored 125+ points by age 25 was nearly 25 years ago. It should be noted, however, that of the four players (Jaromir Jagr, Teemu Selanne, Pierre Turgeon, and Alexander Mogilny) who tallied 125+ by age 25 since the 1990-91 season, only Jagr ever scored 110 again. Mogilny, who admittedly was derailed somewhat by injuries, scored above 100 points just one more time, Selanne did so twice, and Turgeon never hit the century mark after age 25. So Kucherov isn't without risks; but he's also a 95-110 point player if/when healthy, so I'd make a play to grab him.

Is there anyone else I'd consider? You mention Svech, who definitely is tempting. He might represent the best combination of SOG, Hits and points since… Ovi; but I'm guessing his owner knows that, and his cost would be significant. Same goes for Brady Tkachuk. Since this is a keep three only, no other names come to me as guys to target, other than perhaps David Pastrnak or Mitch Marner. I wouldn't make a play for a goalie if I were in your shoes, even Vas, unless goalie categories are worth at least 35% of the total scoring points. Would I keep Vas if I were lucky enough to have him? Yes, probably; but I don't think I'd give up something to get him, whereas I would for Kucherov or Matthews.

In sum, do whatever you can to try and get Matthews. Failing that, try for Kucherov, in both cases letting their owners pick the player they want and trying to craft a deal from there by adding draft picks. If you end up having to stand pat I wouldn't worry too much, as Zibs should rebound this season and be back to his usual self for 2021-22 and Ovi hopefully will continue to produce. I wouldn't try to land Mac, as I think his perceived value is higher than his actual value thanks to his playoffs. Matthews will have as much value and Kucherov could too, both for likely lower prices. Good luck!

Question #7 (from Also a Forum Reader)

I'm in a 10-team H2H points-only keep 15 league with weekly lineups, and rostering 9F, 3D, 2G, 10 bench. Categories are Skaters: G=3, A2, PPG=1, PPA=0.5, SHG=2, SHA=0.5;Goalies: W=4, SO=6. My roster is as follows:

F: Nikita KucherovJack Eichel, Jonathan HuberdeauElias PetterssonBrock Boeser, Nicklas BackstromJohn Tavares,Claude GirouxCam Atkinson, William KarlssonTyler BertuzziPavel BuchnevichNikita Gusev, Christian DvorakNick SchmaltzNick Ritchie
D: Torey KrugTyson Barrie, John KlingbergNeal PionkRasmus Andersson
G: Frederik AndersenConnor HellebuyckDarcy KuemperTristan Jarry

Boeser and Huberdeau have had amazing starts, but it's pretty apparent neither one can continue on their current pace. Or is it? Huberdeau's last two seasons were superb and he's right in the midst of his prime, and Boeser hitting his breakout threshold. Do I contemplate seemingly selling high, or cross my fingers and continue to ride the wave? Is it possible that players of this caliber can defy the odds by escaping analytics, and produce no matter what? Could this be a new normal for either or both? Or will they regress, in which case how much and will it be so much as to justify trying to sell high now? 

Looking first at Huberdeau, in his past two seasons – marking his age 25 and age 26 campaigns – he posted 82 game scoring rates of 92 and 93. Going back to 1990-91, a total of 17 other forwards had scoring rates at least that high during those ages, with just two (Nikita Kucherov and Sidney Crosby) still being active, which shows it's a pretty significant accomplishment. In Huberdeau's case though, those also marked his first two point per game seasons. Of the 17, only two wingers didn't have a point per game season by the time they were 25 – Gary Roberts and John LeClair. How did those two fare at age 27 and beyond? For LeClair, from age 27 onward he had four seasons of 77-97 points, whereas Roberts had 84 points in 77 games at age 27 but then his career fell off a cliff due to injuries.

Although past results are not always telling of the present or future, it shows Huberdeau can continue to be elite. By the same token it also suggests a winger who never had a point per game season by age 24 is perhaps not a good bet to have his first 100+ point pace season at age 27. Yes, Huberdeau's SH% is sky high, but his OZ%, IPP and Secondary Assists percentages are all reasonable. As such, he should be valued as a 90-point downside player with a chance to post 95+ if things go well for him. Still though, he's 27, and he probably won't be this great for many more seasons, as unlike LeClair he has more games under his legs due to entering the NHL full time at age 19. Long story short, if you can get 95-point value for Huberdeau you can either opt to trade him or keep him, depending on how much of a key contributor he stands to be for your team. Looking at your roster, I'd probably keep him, as your team should be in the hunt for most of the seasons he stands to continue performing at this level, and you can always reassess in a season or two.

Boeser's numbers prior to this season don't jump out; however, they were pretty impressive. Through his age 22 season (i.e., 2019-20) he averaged above a cumulative 0.8 points per game, 0.35 goals per game and 2.9 SOG per game. Going back to 2000-01, the list of pure wingers who met each of the same criteria were Ilya KovalchukAlex OvechkinTaylor HallDavid Pastrnak, and Patrik Laine. Placing aside Laine, as his trajectory is still TBD, the other four were/are bona fide stars or dare I say superstars. In terms of comparables, it's very favorable for Boeser. Are his metrics high enough to suggest regression? More so than not; however, his SH% is higher and his SOG rate is lower, so what we might be seeing is him turning into a more selective – and, at the same time, more accurate – shooter. Moreover, he still has room for more ice time, although in fairness if that comes it likely would lower his OZ%, which is over 60% as it's been every season of his career. Still, more ice time, even if not optimal deployment can never hurt. Vancouver also is one of few teams who plays it's PP1 into the ground, resulting in Boeser's share of Vancouver's PP minutes on pace to rise just as it has every season of his career thus far. I'll say this – after writing what I wrote, this does not sound like a player I want to move.

In sum, I'm keeping Boeser based on his comparables and his superb deployment still leaving room for even more minutes. Huberdeau could be dealt now without fear of 100+ points being a new normal; or you could wait a season or two, as signs point to him being a 90+ point pace downside player for at least the next several years. In fact, your team looks pretty great, so I might just hold pat and watch both of them pay handsome dividends. If you make a move, limit it to Huberdeau. Good luck!

Lastly, one general comment – kudos for looking into selling high! Too often GMs become enamored with players and don't stop to wonder if the magic can continue. Remember, one can only sell high if the value assigned to a player is indeed high – that is, if you try to trade a player where it's readily apparent he's overachieving or he's too unproven, you likely won't get the value you're seeking. In this case Huberdeau would likely get you a "fair" return if traded, whereas I fear your fellow GMs would undervalue Boeser due to his lack of track record, underscoring why you want to hold onto him.

Question #8 (from Dennis)

I'm in a Yahoo 12 team keep 6 H2H most cats wins league, 2C, 2LW, 2RW, 1UT, 4D, 3G (4 min. weekly starts), 6 bench, 3 I/R. Categories are G, A, PPP, SOG, FOW, HIT, BLK, Wins, GAA, SV%, SHO.

When I inherited this team, my best players were Nathan MacKinnonPatrick Kane, Mark Scheifele, Gabriel LandeskogBen Bishop, and Frederik Andersen. I made a few trades, losing Landeskog, Kane, and Bishop but getting, in return, Nikita Kucherov, Morgan Rielly, and Andrei Vasilevskiy. Following that, I made another trade, losing Kucherov and MacKinnon but getting, in return, Connor McDavid and Brad Marchand. A couple trades for picks, players etc. around this years draft left me with six keepers of McDavid, Vasilevskiy, Artemi Panarin, Marchand, Evgeni Malkin, and Taylor Hall

My current lineup is:
F – McDavid, Malkin, Marchand, Panarin, Hall, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Nikolaj Ehlers, Carter Verhaeghe, Blake Coleman, Jonathan MarchessaultWilliam Karlsson

D – Kris Letang, Tyson Barrie, Rasmus RistolainenMatt DumbaRadko GudasMichael Del Zotto

G – Vasilevskiy, Anton Khudobin, Darcy Kuemper, Pekka Rinne

I just submitted waiver claims for Nick Ritchie, David Savard, and Erik Cernak due to injuries.

The big questions are where do I need help in my roster, and what type of players should I be looking to acquire? 

I know your question was about what you can do now, but it's too bad you don't have a time machine to go back and stick with McDavid, Marchand, Kane, Scheifele, Vas, and Rielly, as I think – even without the benefit of hindsight – that would've been a better keeper core. No need to dwell on the past, other than to reinforce there is such a thing as too much fine tuning of one's team – that is, you have to know when to stop trading, as while to a certain extent it can help you there always is a point at which you can, as I believe you did here, do too much and be in worse shape by virtue of doing so.

I'd consider moving all of your goalies other than Vas. You're definitely not keeping them and chances are in a 12 team league several squads could use help in net. I'd also do what you can to unload your Vegas forwards, as their 2017-18 seasons are still recent enough for them to net you an okay return, even though it's now apparent to most they're both more like 55-65 point players.

I'm also in favor of moving Marchand. He's a great player to trade because his value is cemented, meaning you can get a fair return for him yet also not worry about him doing lots better after you move him. Plus, there will come a time in the not too distant future when he will start to slow, and that's when you don't want to be left holding him, as you're finding out now with Malkin. 

I also like the idea of moving Barrie. Edmonton is not going to re-sign him given that they have Darnell Nurse, a returning Oscar Klefbom, plus Evan Bouchard. But Barrie's play this season has jacked up his value. If you can move Letang I'd also do so. The knock on him had been his inevitable injuries, but his production level has been in the 50s in two out of the past three seasons. We're at a point where, between his age and past injuries having taken their toll, he's a shell of his former self, plus on a team which is no longer the offensive juggernaut it once was. His name value still remains, as do hopes of GMs that he'll return to greatness, which I just don't see happening.

I'm also in favor of trading Hall, although I worry he won't get you proper value in return. Still, I think that if you make these other deals you'll have six better keepers than Hall, so best to package him in one of the deals or trade him for a pick or two. I just don't believe he's like what we saw from him in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons, but you can hopefully get a GM to take him who doesn't see it that way.

That's a lot of names, but you need to give to get. Between them individually and/or as part of packages your goal should be to net yourself two better keepers than Hall and Malkin, plus someone to replace Marchand. Ideally you'd aim for the likes of Cale MakarQuinn Hughes, or Rasmus Dahlin if you look for a d-man, David PastrnakNikita KucherovAuston Matthews, Andrei Svechnikov, or Brady Tkachuk if you want to land a forward. Although it's not likely you'd want two retained goalies, if you did I'd target or Carter Hart or Jordan Binnington. It might be that those players are out of reach, in which case perhaps you "settle" for the likes of Thomas Chabot, Miro Heiskanen or Dougie Hamilton for a rearguard, Mitch Marner, Brayden Point or Jonathan Huberdeau for a forward. As for goalies, if Hart and Binnington are unobtainable, I'd for sure pass on getting a second netminder and just be happy with Vas as a keeper. Either way, the rest of the return(s) coming to you in the deal(s) can be in the form of draft picks for next season.Good luck!

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For those reading this now, it's never too early to start providing me with mailbag questions, which you can do in one of two ways: (1) by emailing them to [email protected] with the words "Roos Mailbag" as the subject line, or (2) by sending them to me via a private message on the DobberHockey Forums, where my username is "rizzeedizzee".

When sending me your questions, remember to provide as much detail about your league/situation as possible. Examples of things I need to know include what type of league you're in (i.e., limited keeper, dynasty, or one-year; roto vs H2H; auction – if so, what the budget is – or non-auction), how many teams are in the league, does the salary cap matter, how many players are rostered (and of those, how many start at each position as well as how many bench and/or IR spots there are), what categories are scored and how are they weighted, plus other details if pertinent. If your question involves whether to pick up or drop a player, give me a list of top free agents available and let me know if the number of pick-ups is limited or if there is a priority system for pick-ups. If you're thinking of making a trade, it would be good to know not only the roster of the other team you might trade with but also where you stand in your categories. If your question involves keepers, in addition to giving me the options for who to keep, let me know if offseason trading is allowed and to what extent it is a viable option given your league. In sum, the key is to tell me enough for me to give you a truly proper answer, and for readers of this column to benefit from the answer/advice I provide. When in doubt, it's best to err on the side of inclusion since I can always omit or disregard things that don't matter.

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