Welcome back to another edition of the Roos Lets Loose monthly mailbag, where I answer your fantasy hockey questions by 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(s) answered in the next mailbag, check out the end of the column, where I explain the ways to get it/them to me as well as the details you should provide when sending. The earlier you send a question the more likely it is to be included in the mailbag, and the deeper dive I can provide with my reply.

Question #1 (from Julius)

I know it's early, but of the forwards who will be at, near, or just above their 200 game breakout thresholds next season, who do you think are good enough bargains to go and grab now for keepers?

It's tough to say, as things could change a lot between now and the end of the season. If you asked me this just a couple of months ago I'd have probably said Nils Hoglander and Yegor Sharangovich we going to be making progress and setting themselves up for a major breakout come 2023-24; but both are not being deployed favorably by their teams, which, in turn, will cut against them breaking out next season at or near the 200-game mark. Who, then, are players to target? If I had to predict right now, the three names that jump out to me in a good way are Alex Newhook, Arthur Kaliyev, and Alexander Barabanov.

Starting first with Newhook, if this was a season ago, or even as recently as before this season, my guess is the asking price to land him would've been very high, what with poolies having visions of him thriving for the Avs ala how Nazem Kadri did in recent seasons. Yet Newhook's TOI is barely up both overall and on the PP, and his SOG and scoring rates are slightly down. What I keep coming back to for Newhook is his 71.7% IPP last season. As I've said many times in my columns, when I see a young player put up a 70%+ IPP, even if not optimally deployed, that shows me a lot. While it looks like Newhook has not progressed, I think it's a case of a player who needs more time than was envisioned in order to succeed. The good thing is he's disappointed to such an extent that his value has dropped considerably, as can often occur with the highest touted prospects who fail to deliver right away. If you can find a worried Newhook owner in your keeper, now would be the time to try and acquire him.

As for Kaliyev, he got some high-profile games on the top line in LA this season, but failed to pay enough dividends to keep him there. Still, signs seem to exist for him to pop off next season. Kaliyev is doing what he's doing despite 11:19 TOI per game. In part, it's due to getting a regular PP shift; but Kaliyev also shoots the puck a lot for a guy taking the ice as little as he does, with his SOG/60 minutes ranking in the top 20 among all forwards who've played 25+ games. It's not just at ES, as no forward who has taken the ice for less PP time than him has more PPSOG. Yes, Kaliyev is ostensibly behind both Adrian Kempe and Victor Arvidsson on the LA depth chart; however, all it'll take is an opportunity and Kaliyev likely would thrive and entrench himself in the top six.

At 28, the undrafted Barabanov is quite old to have yet to hit his breakout; but age does not matter, only NHL games. All Barabanov has done is seen his scoring and SOG rates increase each season. He's also a featured PP forward for the Sharks. That's the biggest key – he plays for the Sharks. On another team he likely would've been lost in the shuffle; however, with San Jose he got a chance and now he's a PP fixture. Although I think Barabanov has less of a chance of a big jump in production next season than either Newhook or Kaliyev, he still should continue to improve, making him a player I'd be looking to acquire. Good question!

Question #2 (from Leo)

What do you make of the Kraken? They're a top five team offense, which I'm guessing no one expected; and players like Andre Burakovsky Jordan Eberle, Yanni Gourde, Daniel Sprong and Vince Dunn are producing above what was expected from them, plus there's the up and coming Matty Beniers. And they might've even had a gem fall into their lap with Eeli Tolvanen. Can some or all of these guys keep this up for the remainder of the 2022-23 season; and what is your outlook on them for 2023-24 and beyond?

We saw what happened with Vegas, albeit in their inaugural season; so it's not unprecedented for an expansion team to round into form, defying expectations in the process. After all, if you take players who have talent and, in some cases, a chip on their shoulders or desire to prove those who doubted them wrong, it can lead to a cohesive team. That all having been said, the Kraken have scored the fourth most goals of any NHL team despite averaging only the 23rd most SOG per contest. That is certainly concerning. The team is also in the bottom half of the league in PP conversion rate, which adds more fuel to the fire that they're overachieving for the season thus far.

Still, the "story checks out," or at least that seems to be the case, when you consider the performance of the players you mentioned. We saw Burakovsky thrive in a second line, second PP role in Colorado, so it's not shocking to see him fare well when put into a position to carry a team. Gourde had flashes of talent for Tampa, and now is parlaying that to success for the Kraken. Although Eberle is far removed from his glory days, he's a veteran who showed signs of a resurgence in his last season in Long Island and fared pretty well in his first campaign with the Kraken. He might be experiencing in Seattle what David Perron did in Vegas. Dunn was always trapped behind other d-men, but had still put up a 35-point season at age 22; so he too seemed like a player who just needed a chance. As for Sprong and Tolvanen, both are former top prospects who flamed out but are young enough to be emerging as contributors. And Beniers is merely delivering on the promise that made him a second overall draft pick.

What would I do if I owned these players? Other fantasy GMs likely won't think any of them, with the exception of Beniers, are capable of performing at this level on a sustained basis. Although the team's high SH% and below average PP conversation rate do raise red flags, I think they've gelled together to an extent that I can see them all doing well for at least the remainder of 2022-23. If that happens, then those who doubted them now might have changed their tune, allowing you to sell one or more of them. I wouldn't look unkindly upon those who choose not to sell. Yes, people who held William Karlsson after his first season with the Knights are regretting doing so; however, the folks who kept Jonathan Marchessault and, even when they left the team, Marc-Andre Fleuty and Perron, have not gone on to rue having done so. Good question!

Question #3 (from Benjamin)

I'm in a 10 team Keeper, keep 24, H2H league. Rosters are 4C, 4LW, 4RW, 6D, 2G, 4 Bench, 3IR, 1IR+, 2NA, and categories are G, A, +/-, PIM, PPP, SHP, GWG, SOG, FOW, HIT, BLK, GS, W, GA, GAA, SV, SV%, SHO. Counting, as I write this, my IR and NA spots, I have a total of 30 players, so I'm looking to see who will be the odd men out. I'm competing for the title this year and my team also seems – at least to me – to be built to succeed for years to come. My roster looks like this is I write to you:

F1: Jonathan Huberdeau, Mika Zibanejad, Kirill Kaprizov
F2: Brady Tkachuk, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Matthew Tkachuk
F3: Tim Stutzle, Elias Pettersson, Alexis Lafreniere
F4: Jack Hughes, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Tanner Jeannot
F-Bench: Nico Hischier, Sam Bennett, J. T. Compher
G: Andrei Vasilevskiy, Jake Oettinger
G-Bench: Phoenix Copley
D: Adam Fox, Miro Heiskanen, Darnell Nurse, Dougie Hamilton, Jakub Chychrun, Alexander Romanov
D Bench: Nikita Zadorov
IR/IR+: Bowen Byram, Zach Werenski, Cole Perfetti, Thatcher Demko
NA: Marco Rossi, David Jiricek

I can't drop 2 RW, because I need a minimum of 4 RW eligible guys. Note that free agents include Mason McTavish, Shayne Wright, and Anton Lundell, plus other youngsters. Players I'd consider dropping are Pageau, Jeannot, Compher, Lafreniere, Romanov, Bennett, Perfetti, Copley, Rossi, Jiricek, Byram and Werenski. The guys in my League are not trading much. So should I drop first Compher when Perfetti is back? Compher is great for FW, so maybe it's Jeannot? Or would a better play be to stream for the rest of the season?

This is a strong team in a league where ~300 players are owned. I can see the desire not to do anything to weaken the squad for now. I do think though, with McTavish and Lundell on the wire though, chances are there will always be a couple who can be streamed. Streaming is a great tactic for teams who have the luxury of being otherwise well put together. It's too bad trading isn't viable, because you have an excess of centers, what with Hischier and Bennett on your bench. Even though you say trading is not very viable, I'd give it a shot in hopes of swinging a two for one deal, trading a center and Copley, who I do not trust to maintain his pace given his prior results, or, more appropriately, lack thereof, and what we've seen this season out of the last come from nowhere former top prospect goalie Jack Campbell. If you could turn those two into an extra RW, that would be helpful to your team's depth.

Who to stream, or, if not, to drop when you have to get to 24 guys? Jiricek, Romanov, and Compher are the easy picks. After that it gets thornier. Honestly, I'd let Rossi go. As an undersized forward, in general, it likely will take him until game 400 to break out, and that's if he does, as the only two centers in the last 15 years who were as short as Rossi and even did even okay were Daniel Briere and Derek Roy. I think he has bust potential. You could also use him as a throw in as part of the trade of one of your other centers and Copley. Jeannot looks like he might just be a pure banger, and those are not in short supply. I might be open to parting with him if he doesn't show signs of life by the end of the season. Last would be Pageau, who is a pretty decent option but with limited ceiling. I wouldn't throw in the towel yet on Lafreniere, who still might have hope and is worth gambling on more so than these others. So those would be my six; or swap one out for Copley if, as expected, he falters. Good luck!

Question #4 (from Rick)

As a super frustrated Jonathan Huberdeau owner, I’m ready to consider dropping him in my one-year league. There are only 8 teams, so as you'll see the list of free agents has some talent on it. My categories are G, A, Pts, PPP, SHP, SOG, HIT, BLK, with me locked into spots in SOG and BLK (it's a roto league), so those vategories matter less. Would you drop Huberdeau for any of Brayden Schenn, Eeli Tolvanen, Adrian Kempe, Evan Rodrigues, Kevin Hayes, or Gabriel Vilardi?

Am I here to tell you there's hope of Huberdeau morphing back into the player he was last season, or even the prior few campaigns when he had 90+ point production? Anything is possible; but it's likely not in the cards, at least for 2022-23. That having been said, players on new teams can take a while to find their footing and click. Still, I do think it's reasonable for you to at least consider dropping him in favor of another player, especially with a wide pool of free agents like those you named.

Right off the bat though, it's a no for Tolvanen, Kempe, Rodrigues and Vilardi. Tolvanen looks like a fire has been lit under him; however, Seattle has yet to reward his better play with top tier deployment, so at least for the rest of 2022-23 I think he's not going to do well enough to consider. Kempe is who he is at this point, which is a 30-35 goal, 20- to 25-assist guy. Nothing more, nothing less. That's pretty good, but not nearly enough in a league with zero benefit for goal scoring. Rodrigues has a lot of talent but is wildly inconsistent. Need proof? He recently had 12 points in nine games; but he had just four in his previous ten. He's not being paid enough to secure a top-six spot, and that's even with the injuries to Gabriel Landeskog and, for most of the season, Valeri Nichushkin. As for Vilardi, he was shot out of a cannon this season, but since then has come back to earth in a big way. I like his long-term prospects, but we're talking only about 2022-23 here, so he's not going to cut it.

That leaves Hayes and Schenn. Hayes had spent his entire career being a middle-six center, never really getting a chance to shine. But with Sean Couturier out and Claude Giroux gone, Hayes became the top line pivot at ES and on the PP, and he's thrived, showing great chemistry with Travis Konecny. He was made a healthy scratch not too long ago, so his hold on his spot might be tenuous even though the Flyers don't have many other viable options. As for Schenn, he is notorious for having a strong second having, with last season (40 points in his last 36 games) being a case in point. He also hits a lot, and his lack of SOG won't hurt you. There is concern though about St. Louis playing its top three lines fairly evenly and not having a true PP1. Still, if Schenn can do again in 2023 what he did after the calendar flipped to 2022, it's difficult to see how he's not the top choice.

But what of Huberdeau? If you subtract his nine points in 17 games start, he's stats are better than they otherwise seem. Still, that's a far cry from what poolies expected. Although his major drop in SOG won't hurt your team in that category, it's indicative of someone who isn't poised to turn things around. Plus, his ice time is way down, as exactly one time all season has he played 18:00 in consecutive games. His IPP on the PP is markedly down though, so there's that. How much would that boost him versus what he's done this season to date? It might just be that 2022-23 goes down as a lost campaign for him.

Who should be the choice between Hayes, Huberdeau and Schenn? Schenn I think is the safest bet, with the risk of holding Hayes being that he cools and holding Huberdeau that he doesn't ignite. Given that it's just for the ROS, I'd probably play it safe with Schenn, especially since he's so strong in hits and him being just okay SOG won't matter. Good luck!

Question #5 (from Gene)

Crystal ball time – where do you see Patrick Kane playing next season? Part of me thinks he might just stay with the Hawks and cement his legacy. Of course, players who had very long tenures with their franchises, like Daniel Alfredsson and Mike Modano, did opt to go elsewhere to finish their career, and in the case of Modano he did so despite – like Kane – having won a Stanley Cup. Beyond where you see him landing, will he still be the same player after his subpar 2022-23?

I'll say this up front – I think there is a non-zero chance Kane stays in Chicago. If he inks a deal for, let's say, five more years, he has a chance to retire the all-time leader in points and games played for the franchise, which is a big deal when you're talking about an original six club. Of course, for that to occur they'd need to want to bring him back, which might be possible if they tank hard enough to land Connor Bedard, who'd love nothing more than to play alongside Kane as a rookie. Another scenario is Kane lets the team trade him, to net them assets, but re-signs with them in the offseason. The wrinkle there is he wouldn't have played every game of his career with the Hawks; however, he'd still be eligible to break the various franchise records.

Where could he sign for 2023-24? If the Bruins lose David Pastrnak as a UFA but manage to keep both Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci around, Kane could land there. I also think he could be a fit, under the cap and otherwise, for the Penguins, who likely see their cup window closing, which would be perfect for them to bring in an older player like Kane. Then there's the Rangers, who've always seemed to be positioned as the frontrunners in the sweepstakes to trade for and re-sign Kane. It makes sense, as he could be put with Mika Zibanejad or perhaps be paired with some of their youngsters in hopes of sparking them. Those three have to be the frontrunners, at least from where I sit. Carolina also seems like it could make a push for him though, as they have a strong core and lots of cap space.

Long shots for a landing spot for Kane in 2023-24 and beyond are the upstart Sabres and Devils. Both have more than enough cap room and would love nothing more than to make a big splash along these lines. And this wouldn't be like last summer where Johnny Gaudreau shocked the world by inking with Columbus, as these teams have a suite of talent, while the Blue Jackets – with all due respect – were a little thin. Still though, I have a tougher time envisioning Kane on one of these teams, as coming from Chicago it would be a big change to go to a market where although the teams are popular they lack national renown, at least for now.

What odds do I give each scenario? I'd say 35% he stays in Chicago or gets traded then returns there on a new, team-friendly deal. I'll go 50% that he lands in the laps of one of the "big four," namely Boston, Pittsburgh, Carolina, and the Rangers. That leaves a 15% chance he goes to a lower profile team, headed by New Jersey and Buffalo.

As for how he'll fare in each scenario. Kane is in a class by himself in that in his age 30-34 seasons he averaged, in each, 1.15+ points per game and 3.4+ SOG per game, with no other winger in the modern era doing so more than twice in that age range. He's clearly a very special player. That having been said, 2022-23 has been a poor season for Kane in Chicago, although I wouldn't rule out the weight of his uncertain future situation negatively affecting him. I'd say he'd revert back to at least point per game output over the next few seasons if he sticks with, or comes back to, Chicago. On one of the big four teams, I'd say 90+ points is realistic, with a better shot at 95+ than under 85, with the expectation only a tad lower on Buffalo or New Jersey. Good question!

Question #6 (from Dennis)

I'm in a 12 team, keep 6 H2H (W2pt- L0pt- T1pt, category) league with categories of G, A, +/-, PIM, PPPts, SHP, SOG, HIT, BLK, W, GAA, SV, SV%, SHO and rosters of 3C, 3RW, 3LW, 6D, 2G, 5Bench, 1IR, 2IR+. I joined the league two seasons ago and acquired Auston Matthews, then had to leave the league because or real life issues, and returned to see the team with only Matthews remaining as a viable keeper. As of now the team looks like this:

C – Matthews, Sam Bennett, Dylan Cozens, Brock Nelson

LW – Filip Forsberg, Jason Robertson, Anders Lee, Gabriel Landeskog (LW/C)

RW – Mason Marchment (RW/LW), Joe Pavelski (RW/C), Sam Reinhart (RW/C), Cole Perfetti (RW/LW/C)

D – Tony DeAngelo, Damon Severson, Alexander Romanov, Rasmus Andersson, Ben Chiarot, Ryan Pulock

G – Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Filip Gustavsson, Karel Vejmelka, Semyon Varlamov, Pyotr Kochetkov.

I've been in 6-9th place range most of the season, with the top 8 making the playoffs. If I'm being honest, I'd prefer to finish outside playoffs for a better draft position since I don't think I'd be able to make any noise in the playoffs. To help that happen, I want to start selling off players, with the only two I see as untouchable being Matthews and Robertson. Who would you try to trade, and who would you keep if no trades can be made?

First off, if you've held Landeskog for this long, I think he's one of your keepers. Yes, Valeri Nichushkin and Artturi Lehkonen have found success in the spot(s) usually occupied by Landy; but I see no reason to think he won't be in his normal top line top PP role come next season. Moreover, his trade value might never be lower. As for concerns about lingering effects of Landy's injury, I wouldn't be surprised if the Avs are taking a page from the playbook of the 2020-21 Lightning and how they kept Nikita Kucherov out until the playoffs. Yes, if the Avs were doing this deliberately then why not put him on long term IR? Most likely that was not the plan at the outset; but now that we're this far into the season, I don't see them wanting to rush him back. But come next season at this time, you'll want him on your squad.

I also think you need to keep one – or both – of Perfetti and Cozens. Both are finding success in the NHL that not only is resulting in production for the here and now, but also legitimate expectations of even greater success forthcoming. Of the two, Perfetti has the seemingly easier path to top line minutes, what with only the aging Blake Wheeler ahead of him on the depth chart, if you could even call Wheeler ahead at this point. In contrast, Cozens is behind Tage Thompson. Still Cozens is on PP1 and has shown he can produce as a second line center, which is not surprising given Buffalo's improved depth and other teams having to focus on shutting down Thompson's line. If it was me, I'd keep them both; but you could also put them out there to see what you get in terms of trade offers. After all, you can always just turn down lowball offers. But perhaps you get wowed enough to sell one of them. Not both though.

Who, then, to definitely trade? Rasmus Andersson would top my list. Why? Because I don't think he's especially skilled, but instead is benefitting from a great gig. Also, if you traded him now, he's done enough to be able to command a good return, whereas last season poolies might have seen him as not having proven value. If you do trade him, he's all but assured not to rise to another level, as given his deployment and metrics I feel we're seeing the best we'll get from him, with a risk of worse if he falters.

Pavelski and Reinhart also strike me as players to deal. Pavelski is defying father time; but I wonder how long this can continue before his skills wane and/or his body breaks down. Still, he has big time name recognition and his "spot" on Dallas would lead to many likely wanting to make a deal with you to obtain his services. I'd trade him in a heartbeat. You know you won't lose out, as after all it's not like he's going to improve. As for Reinhart, I like him due to his locked in spot on PP1 and positional versatility, making it all the more likely he'll stick in the top six for Florida. He won't get you the return he would've last season; however, I still think he is well regarded enough to be able to move pretty easily for proper value, as he too doesn't strike me as a player who will somehow start to do better than he has of late.

Forsberg and DeAngelo also should be considered for trading. I think they will net you less though, since poolies are concerned – rightfully if you ask me – about DeAngelo's head being screwed on straight. As for Forsberg, he's predictably come back to earth since last season's gaudy numbers, which I can't help but point out were in a season where he was set to be a UFA. He's a solid player, but a Band-Aid boy and for that reason, plus his one year wonder problem, he won't get you great return.

Lastly there are Nelson and Lee, who my guess is you won't be able to trade for much of anything beyond perhaps a draft pick. But you might as well try.

Your keepers will end up as Landeskog, one or both of Perfetti and Cozens, plus likely the players you get in the deals that you do make. If you can't pull of any trades, I'd keep Reinhart and Forsberg, and maybe, depending on what Carolina does this offseason, Kochetkov. If not him though, then DeAngelo just because of the home run potential. Good luck!

Question #7 (from Steve)

A day before the season started, I took over the reigning basement team in a 16-Team, Keep 12 with 20 minors multi-cat H2H league. Skater categories are G, A, SOG, STP, PIMs, H+B and GWG. Goalie categories are W, SV%, Saves and Shutouts. Rosters are 3C, 3LW, 3RW, 6D and 2G, plus 4 bench and 20 minors (<164 games played for skaters, <82 for goalies). With nine forwards and six defensemen starting, rearguards are very highly valued. Others in the league seem to place a premium on goalies too, although I'm not sure I agree, as I haven't been around long enough to form an opinion one way or the other.

Without getting into the 40 trades (next closest team has made only 11) I've made to actually have a future plan of success, I'm in a bit of a bind with how to trim my roster due to all my dealings. It's a problem, but a good problem to have. We have a prospect draft and then a couple months later, our keeper re-draft. For the prospect draft, I have 7 1st rounders, but they're 7 of the top 9 picks. Hello Bedard and company! Assuming I get 7 of the top 9 draft eligible players, they should be good enough to become part of my 20 minors leaguers going into our keeper re-draft.

Here is my current roster of 34 players:

F – Drake Batherson, Jakub Vrana, Ryan O'Reilly, Dylan Holloway, Eeli Tolvanen, Vitaly Kravtsov, Linus Karlsson, Noah Ostlund, Gleb Trikozov, Girgory Denisenko, Nolan Foote, Ridly Greig, Carter Mazur, Jakob Pelletier, Egor Sokolov, Connor Zary, Tyson Foerster, Kole Lind

D – Rasmus Dahlin, Calen Addison, Kaiden Guhle, Cam York, Nils Lundkvist Alexander Romanov, Scott Perunovich, Simon Edvinsson, Thomas Harley, Ronnie Attard, Alexander Nikishin

G – Cal Petersen, Justus Annunen, Joel Hofer, Felix Sandstrom, Ivan Fedotov

Basically, we keep 32 in total going into our redraft, so I really need to get my current roster down to 25 due to the 7 I know I will want to keep after the prospect draft. Also, knowing in can even package some players in deals, perhaps with picks, I can maybe even improve my keepers more. Who are my for sure keeps? Can you pick out my top 20? I will deal everyone else for the final 5 I will need.

As I've said in the past, prospects are not my strong point. I have no qualms admitting that. When I get a question where they are a focal point I'll do my best to weigh in. Still, this is as great a time as any to plug the DobberHockey Forums, where some of the finest hockey minds – including when it comes to prospects – congregate to answer questions and talk hockey. Ask about your prospect there and you'll get some great insight.

Let's start first with goalies. As I'm sure I don't need to tell you, this is not your team's strong point. In a league where 20 minors players are owned though, having four goalie prospects is reasonable, but don't latch onto more because their hit rate is low and often the wait is very long. Would I keep all of them? If you're looking to focus on your top 20, I'd only hold Petersen, Annunen and Hofer. Fedotov's situation is too thorny to bank on him and Sandstrom seems like a depth goalie in the making.

For defense, I like the group you have a lot. Honestly a case could be made to keep nearly all of them, except for Attard, who looks like he isn't going to be a fantasy asset. I'd settle on seven or eight who you like best, and the rest should be easy to trade. One who's I'd almost assuredly trade is Romonov, as I feel like poolies are convinced he'll become a Jacob Trouba or K'Andre Miller type, but I think his offensive upside is lower. He is a high-profile player, so you'd likely have plenty of suitors.

Your forward situation is below average for sure. For sure some of your minors-eligible players will need to be kept as non-minors, whether here and/or among your d-men. Lind is a drop in my book. He might figure things out, but it's not worth carrying him when you have younger guys with better potential. I'm also not wild about Sokolov, who, despite AHL success, hasn't been able to stick in the NHL. He could be just a career tweener, or AHL guy. I'd cut the cord on him. Pelletier might end up in the same camp and I'd be okay with letting him go too. Denisenko I see as a threat to go back to Russia, as he doesn't seem to have acclimated to the North American game well. Foote is a guy I go back and forth on, and as such I could see him being omitted from the keeper list.

Lastly, I think you should contemplate trading at least a couple of the early picks you have for 2023, as what happens when drafts have a supposedly generational talent in them like this will with Bedard is the hype for the other players rises too. As such, I think you can get a very nice return for at least a couple of those picks and would be wise to part with them as part of some of your other deals.

I realize that doesn't narrow things to 20, but it's a good start. Between my thoughts and what you get from folks in the Forums, you should be steered in the right direction. 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.