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 Francois)

Do you think Joel Eriksson Ek will stick long-term on the Kirill Kaprizov line? If so, what do you think his upside (in terms of points) can be?

It's pretty amazing that Eriksson-Ek has done what he's done, namely seen his average ice time rise each and every season he's been in the NHL, his scoring rate rise for five straight seasons, and his SOG rate for four straight seasons. Each is set to rise yet again, despite Erikkson Ek playing largely apart from Kaprizov at even strength. Instead, the team has tried the likes of Ryan Hartman, Sam Steel and Marco Rossi with Kaprizov. I can see the logic in doing so, since Eriksson-Ek was faring well so they wanted to spread around the offense, figuring Kaprizov could carry his own weight on the top line.

But during the second half Eriksson-Ek has finally gotten the chance to play alongside Kaprizov at even strength, and both have done well. Logic would suggest, therefore, that it would continue. Yet the Wild tinker so much with things that aside from Kaprizov being on the top line and top PP, I'm not sure I'd bank on anything being set in stone, and that includes Eriksson-Ek on the top line with Kaprizov.

Let's also not lose sight of the fact that after next season the Wild emerge from the cap hell they've been in for a number of years. At the top of their shopping list is likely an elite center to play alongside Kaprizov. Where would that leave Erikssoon-Ek? Most likely on the outside looking in, at least at even strength. Whereas I'd have figured his spot on PP1 would be set in stone, they've even been experimenting of late with using him on the second unit.

My take is Eriksson-Ek is a good sell-high candidate if not now, then most definitely next season. Yes, he's a talented player and his stats likely won't crater; however, I think he's reached about the pinnacle of his production, with the best case scenario being he holds steady, but as likely – if not more so – that he sees a decline within two years. Good question!

Question #2 (from Miguel)

I'm in a longtime keeper league, with ten teams and 50 roster spots and where every player can be kept indefinitely. Goals and assists are one point, while for goalies it's 0.005 points per minute played, 1.5 points for a win, and an extra 2.5 points for a shutout. It's a "best ball" league, such that counting toward each team's stats are their top 20 forwards, top 11 defensemen and top 4 goalies.

My team had a rough start, so I opted to make a bunch of tank trades to improve my draft position for next year, when I expect to be back in the top 3. As of when I write this, my goalies are Juuse Saros, Jacob Markstrom, Logan Thompson and Linus Ullmark. The other goalies I have are prospects (Justus Annunen and Mads Soggard). 

In this league you only get to make one waiver move per season. I’m one of two teams left who's yet to use their move. I’m leaning towards grabbing Alex Lyon. Goalies tend to come at a premium and I don’t expect Lyon to be available for me to pick at my turn in the draft if I pass on him now. There’s also Nico Daws available but New Jersey already brought in Kappo Kahkonen and likely will try to land someone even better this offseason. The other options are Mason Marchment or taking a swing at Noah Ostlund. Ostlund has the highest upside by far, but might be a few years out given the logjam in Buffalo, while Marchment has turned into a reliable producer, although I wonder if he'd ever be among my top 20 forwards. Of the three, I expect only Marchment to maybe still available when I pick in the fall.

What do you think? Do I get some insurance in net with Lyon or Daws? Or do I take the upside choice in Ostlund, or play it safer with Marchment?

First off, Daws should be disregarded. There is no way New Jersey enters 2024-25 without having upgraded their goalies, leaving Daws, who was never a well regarded prospect and hadn't even done that well in the AHL, likely to be a depth netminder.

As for Lyon, I look at him and see Pheonix Copley 2.0, in that he's already on the other side of 30 and had been a fringe NHLer for most of his career until circumstances – as much if not more so than his actual skill – led to him playing as much as he has. Lyon's numbers do not inspire confidence, what with a negative GSAA, a GAA north of 3.00, nearly half as many Really Bad Starts as Quality Starts, and numbers that have worsened with each passing quarter. I get that goalies are at a premium since you need four to count toward your stats; but I see Lyon as a wasted pick, with there being little to no chance he has an impactful NHL career, much like what happened to Copley this season.

As for who to grab with your move, although Buffalo did remove one impediment for Ostlund by trading Casey Mittelstadt, there is still a lot of talent among its forwards. On top of that, Ostlund has yet to even come to North America, plus isn't exactly going nuts in the SEL, although in fairness he did just turn 20. But the alternative in Marchment is not too alluring. He has more than amply shown that last season was an anomaly; but he doesn't shoot much nor does he command a lot of ice time. Yes, his contract will keep him in the mix for the Stars; however, without enough minutes, both overall and on the PP, he is likely capped at 50-60 points. As you said, that probably won't be enough to rise to the level of your top-20 forwards. There is something to be said though about depth; yet I think the fact he'd still be there come draft time removes any uncertainty in opting to grab Ostlund over him now. Good luck!

Question #3 (from Dwayne)

I'm in a 10 team, weekly H2H league with the following categories: G, A, Pts, +/-, SOG, PPPts, Hits, Blocks, Wins, SV, SSV%, and GAA. Each team has 15 active players (3C, 6W, 4D, 2G) that can be reset daily. In addition, each team has 5 reserves and 10 minors players (<165 games for skaters, <100 for goalies as of the beginning of the season). A minors player can be moved to the active roster at any time as long as there is another minors player going the other way. Each team can keep up to 12 active players and 10 minors players each season. The wrinkle is that if you want to participate in the seven round draft, you have to keep fewer players. So to pick in all seven rounds, you'd have to keep seven fewer players, and so on.

Currently, my roster comprises (M = minors eligible for next season):

C – Sean Monahan, Brock Nelson, Shane Pinto (M)

C/W – Matt Duchene, Dylan Strome, Wyatt Johnston (M), Mason McTavish (M), Ryan Leonard (M)

W – Jesper Bratt, Seth Jarvis, Mason Raymond, Clayton Keller (IR), Owen Tippett, Alex Tuch, Frank Vatrano, Alexander Holtz (M), Cole Perfetti (M), Jack Quinn (M, IR)

D – Rasmus Dahlin, Cale Makar, Brandon Montour, Mike Matheson, Jeremy Lauzon, Brandt Clarke (M), David Jiricek (M), Kevin Korchinski (M)

G – Joseph Woll (M, IR), Yaroslav Askarov (M), Joel Hofer (M), Alex Nedeljkovic, Anthony Stolarz, Marc-Andre Fleury, Anton Forsberg

I view my core keepers as Bratt, Jarvis, Johnston (M), Raymond, Tippett, Keller, McTavish (M), Perfetti (M), Dahlin, Makar, Matheson, Clarke (M), Jiricek (M), Askarov (M) and Woll (M). That accounts for 8 of my active keepers and 7 minors keepers. Out of the remainder, I view some of the veterans as dispensable (Monahan, Nelson, Tuch, Strome, Fleury, Forsberg) and others as maybe worth keeping for now (Duchene, Vatrano, Montour, Lauzon, Nedeljkovic, Stolarz). I'm hopeful about, but still have to wait and see on, the following minors players: Leonard, Quinn, Perfetti, Holtz, Korchinski, Hofer.

Do you agree with my assessments/plans? I would love to improve in goaltending; but obtaining top goalies via trade is nearly impossible, so I'm hoping the young guys eventually ascend. Do you have any other suggestions for improving my team now and in the future? If I do decide to participate in the draft next season, how many extra guys would you drop, and who would they be?

We'll start by landing on the 12 regular keeps and ten minors keeps. From there, we'll decide whether it makes sense to keep fewer to be able to draft, and, if so, how much less and who gets tossed back.

Let's get the obvious cuts out of the way, those being Forsberg, Nedejkovic, Lauzon, and Vatrano. At best, they're redrafts, if worth owning at all. Monahan also likely is not keeper material, if for the only reason being Nelson is simply a more reliable, higher floor option at center. I also think one of Strome and Duchene is not a keep, and I like what I've seen from Duchene, plus Strome is stuck in the offensive wasteland that has become Washington. Stolarz has been a dependable back-up and posted solid numbers, but Florida's net belongs to Sergei Bobrovsky, who seems to have been reborn. Still, I'd label Stolarz as a solid redraft in case Bob falters next season. That leaves one more cut to get to 12, and I think it has to be Fleury. My only hesitation is he's a UFA netminder with so few other UFAs; however, he's showing his age and even if he goes to New Jersey as a stopgap, who's to say how well he'd do? And he simply might retire. He's my last drop, making the 12 regular keepers Nelson, Duchene, Bratt, Jarvis, Raymond, Keller, Tippett, Tuch, Dahlin, Makar, Montour, and Matheson.

For minors, by my count there only needs to be three drops, and I see them as Hofer, Jiricek and Leonard. With Hofer, it's just a case of better options in Woll for now and Askarov for the future. Jiricek might get moved from Columbus given the tension between his camp and the team. He will likely become a very good player but it could take longer than the other minors-eligible defensemen on your team. All your minors forwards seem very solid, but Leonard is basically a notch below your "worst" other minors forward, so he's not a keeper.

As far as your team, your defense and minors guys are superb. But elsewhere you're lacking, and I can't see this team being in the thick of it for a while. See if you can trade Tuch, who I think was a one season wonder, and Matheson, who's very good but unlikely to get better but now is seen by others as the real deal, giving him name value he previously didn't have. Duchene also should be considered for trading, as even if he can continue doing well like this, it can't last much longer inasmuch as he's 33 years old. I'd also consider dealing Nelson, who, like Matheson, has done enough to finally get fantasy respect but is highly unlikely to take things up a notch. If you can't trade them, then I might consider dropping one or two of them so as to be able to draft. Or you can drop more, leaving your team weaker for now but stockpiling assets for the future, which is when you'll be poised to succeed. Good luck!

Question #4 (from Gene)

In a 15 team, keep 10 roto league, with 24 player rosters (+5 IR). Categories are Goals, Assists, +/-, PIM, PPP, GWG, SOG, Faceoff W, Hits, Blks; Games Started, Wins, GA, SV, SV%, SHO. I took over a team in January from an owner who it appears did nothing after the draft.

Here's what my roster looks like as I write this; who do you see as my keepers?
C – Marco Rossi, Bobby McMann, Philipp Kurashev, Alex Newhook, Josh Norris, Jiri Kulich, Pius Suter
LW – Dylan Guenther, William Eklund, Dmitri Voronkov, jesper Bratt, Kent Johnson, Clayton Keller, Patrik Laine
RW – Kirill Marchenko, Yegor Chinakhov, Morgan Geekie, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Alexander Holtz, Kaapo Kakko, Jack Quinn
D – Brandt Clarke, Thomas Harley, Jake Walman, Henry Thrun, Rasmus Sandin, Simon Nemec, Simon Edvinsson
g – Justus Annunen, Lukas Dostal

I won't mince words – this team is far, far away from contending. The concern is in a keep ten league you have a long way to go before you'd have ten guys who would put you in contention, especially since that's nearly half your roster, meaning you can't overcome subpar keepers solely via the draft. Maybe if this was a keep 5 or even a keep 8 it would look more optimistic; but as it stands, with having to keep 10 I see you as 2-3+ seasons, maybe even more, from being impactful. Sorry, but that's the way it looks.

With 150 players kept, you definitely don't need to keep either goalie, as both can be easily obtainable again via the draft, if you're so inclined. For defense, you have a lot of potential talent, but here too with only 150 players being kept you can afford to let some future gems slip out of your fingers. I'd say Clarke and Harley are the only maybes; the rest definitely can go back into the draft pool.

That leaves eight spots for forwards, or nine or ten depending on what you do with your defense. Keller and Bratt are must keeps, as either they will still be there once your team starts to compete, or you can trade them along the way. The rest should be those who are most likely to pay dividends or who can be tradeable assets. To me, that's Kurashev, Guenther, Eklund, Johnson, Quinn, and Holtz.

Where does that leave Rossi, Newhook, Norris and Laine? For starters, I think you need to trade Rossi. He's failed to impress and I fear that his name value is in serious danger of cratering. Get what you can for him now. Yes, I realize it seems counterintuitive to trade young players when rebuilding; but you don't want to keep youngsters who are unlikely to be impactful, or at least not if you not only have a strong sense they won't be but also, as is the case with Rossi, still likely could get a decent return if you trade them right now.

Laine is a tough call. I'd probably keep him over one of the defensemen, but only if you try to first trade him and get no decent offers in return. After all, he was "left for dead" a couple of seasons ago, only to rise from the ashes for 2021-22 and 2022-23, and he's still young enough to do so again. The risk justifies the reward. And if I have to decide between Clarke or Harley, I'd probably keep Harley, as he's done more and Clarke still has yet to make a significant mark as to be a must keep in a 150 team league.

Norris is a tough non-keep; but his recurring injury situation is officially worrisome. He has a huge deal that will lead to him having a spot in the top six when healthy, yet he may never be the same player. Do try and trade him; but if you get no takers, then toss him back into the pool.

Newhook is just hitting his 200 game breakout threshold; however, he has shown few signs of being an impactful player. Remember that Colorado basically gave up on him, even though they definitely didn't have a plethora of other centers. That says a lot, as does Newhook not doing much this season despite getting top six deployment and seeing more time on the PP than not. In his defense, Montreal is far from deep at forward; but Newhook's IPPs are both below 60%; and if he was going to be an impactful player then even now they should be higher due to him playing with lesser talented players. Feel free to put him on the block too, but I'd be shocked it you found a taker. Let him go, and don't think twice about it.

My list of keepers for your squad are Harley, Bratt, Keller, Guenther, Kurashev, Eklund, Holtz, Johnson Quinn and either Laine, or, if he's traded, Clarke. When making trades, I'd try to get draft picks, as opposed to players, although it might be that some of the top teams took fliers on prospects who are very good but they are in win now mode and thus can't afford to keep them and wait for them to make an impact. If you can make a deal with those teams, then do try to get high upside players back. If you get players in return and thus can't keep all ten listed above, the ones I'd remove from the list are Holtz, who I still think could make a mark, but is a safe redraft, and Kurashev, who's made some noise at times but not enough to be someone who has to be a top 150 keeper. Good luck!

Question #5 (from Adam)

I'm in a 12 team, keep 6 (keeper cost being based on draft position, with the cost being 2 rounds earlier each time a player is kept, until reaching the 5th round, when it increases 1 round each year). Categories are G, A, +/-, PIM, PPP, SOG, Hit, Blk; GS, W, GAA, SA, SV%. Rosters are 2LW, 2RW, 2C, 4D, 2UTIL, 2G, plus 5 Bench. The draft is 19 rounds, with teams picking in all rounds where they have not retained a player. If a player is kept in a round where you don't have a pick, you either need to get a pick in that round of he has to be retained a round earlier.

It looks like I’m going to win this year again (first time repeater), but I figure it's never too early to project my six keepers for next year. Right now, my locks are as follows, with next season’s keeper costs in parentheses: Thatcher Demko (3rd), Nikita Kucherov (4th), Noah Dobson (7th), and Jason Roberston (11th). I see these players as the most likely candidates for the last two spots, in order of how I ranked them as of now, as Joel Eriksson Ek (6th), Travis Konecny (10th), Sam Bennett (15th), Tom Wilson (15th), Kevin Fiala (5th, I don't currently have a pick in that round). Other contenders are Connor Hellebuyck (2nd), Tyler Toffoli (5th), Brandon Montour (6th), Bowen Byram (17th), Jake Allen (18th), Samuel Ersson (18th), Pavel Zacha (18th). The only other rounds where I currently do not have a pick are 9 and 13, and I have two picks in rounds 15, 17 and 18. So as you can see I didn't have to trade away many picks to win, which is a relief.

Goalies are very valuable in our league, with 5 out of 13 categories for 2 starting spots each day and 3 of those 5 being volume-based stats (GS, SA, W), so keeping Hellebuyck would go a long way toward succeeding in those categories, although its not a huge gap between the round he’d likely be drafted (1st) and where I’d get to keep him (2nd), plus so too would Demko. Ersson and Allen are intriguing but I'm not sure how they'll be positioned next year. Ersson seems like the safer bet, but he’s a rookie and will be playing on what likely will still be a rebuilding team?

I like Byram at 17 in terms of risk/reward, but wit only six keepers I can't afford to be wrong, and he’s got a lot of competition on the blueline in Buffalo plus, as we all know, has had trouble staying healthy. I suspect you will say Eriksson Ek is a definite keeper at that level for these categories, and indeed he's been a monster this year for me), but I worry that his value will plummet after 2024-25, when the Wild finally escape from cap hell. Who would your six keepers be? Would you make any two for one trades?

Looking at your four "locks" I think they do belong in the conversation as keepers in view of your other options. The only possible exception would be Dobson, who for whatever reason has fared worse since Patrick Roy stepped in, and has seen his ice time – overall and on the PP – drop. Meanwhile, as I write this Montour has 16 points in his last 15 games, and seems to be fully up to speed after missing time and on a mission to prove last season was not a fluke. It's tough, since many felt Dobson always had the capability to shine; but just as Mathew Barzal has been throttled due to playing on the Islanders, I fear the same could be happening to Dobson. But in the end, Dobson is considerably younger and has no one else who can impinge upon his top dog status when it comes to blueline offense for the Islanders. Let's keep him as a maybe

If Dobson is not your fifth keeper, then is it Montour? If not Montour (or Dobson), then it's Hellebuyck, or Eriksson Ek. If Zacha had taken any sort of step forward this season he could be a consideration as an 18th rounder, but I think he is what he is, which is a 55-60 point guy, and that's not enough to merit keeping him. Don't be tempted by Byram. The injury history is too concerning, and I can't see a universe where he can thrive outside of the long shadow cast by Rasmus Dahlin, who's among the best offensive d-men in hockey. I can understand the temptation in Ersson; but he's not been spectacular and, as you noted, the Flyers are unlikely to improve in the near term. Plus, a sub-.900 GAA and negative GSAA despite a decent GAA suggest his team is helping him more than the other way around, and that's not a good sign.

I see a lot of lure in Hellebuyck, especially since by shining this season he's done something he's never done previously, which is string together two straight superb seasons. He's also just about to turn 31, so he should still have a lot of legs left. And unlike with Andrei Vasilevskiy, all the workload he had in his 20s does not appear to have ushered in a decline. Rather, Hellebuyck seems to only be getting better as he ages.

Eriksson Ek has played well enough to put him in the conversation as a multicat beast. But 2024-25 is likely the last season when he'll have an uncontested spot in the top six and on PP1, as the Wild will get to open their checkbooks in 2025, and it's not difficult to envision them inking a top tier center to feed the puck to Kirill Kaprizov. When that happens, Eriksson Ek's role will be up in the air, although I think he will be able to outshine Marco Rossi, which, if he does, should allow Eriksson Ek to perform at or near the level he's at now.

If you are open to trading, I'd actually consider dealing Demko, Dobson, and/or Eriksson Ek for a player plus a draft pick. You might be selling a bit low on Dobson, but I think he's being very hyped, so he should fetch a nice return. Doing so will also allow you to keep Hellebuyck, who I think is better value at round two than Demko at round three. That will put your keepers as Hellebuyck, Kucherov, Montour, Robertson, and the player you get back in the three (or two) for one trade. Good luck!

Question #6 (from another Adam)

I’m in a 12 team, keep 5, H2H points league, with categories (and weighting) of: G(4), A(2), SHG(2), SHA(1), +/-(0.5), W(3), S(0.125), GA(-0.25), L(-2) and SO(3). Lineups consists of 3C, 3LW, 3RW, 4D, 2G, 5 bench and 2 IR+. No off season trading is allowed, with the 8 playoff teams going into a lottery to pick 5th to 12th.

Who would you keep out of the following players: Ryan O’Reilly, Jared McCann, Sam Reinhart, Pavel Buchnevich, Kevin Fiala, Brad Marchand, Travis Konecny, Yegor Sharangovich, Drake Batherson, JT Miller, Steven Stamkos, Trevor Zegras, Thomas Hertl, Zach Werenski, Roman Josi, Mike Matheson, Drew Doughty, Bowen Byram, Mattias Ekholm, Phillip Grubauer, Alex Lyon, Ilya Sorokin?

Let's start at the top, which is Miller. He's a beast in fantasy, and the fact he's performing at this level a second time after a bit of a step back last season, is very significant. There could come a time in the not too distant future where Miller's production will start to decline, as players who hit as much as he does tend not to be able to stay healthy or produce as well in their 30s. But for now he's a must keep. Just watch him though, since this second great season from him has made him very highly regarded, such that once he does start to slip, he still likely could be dealt for top value if you move quickly enough.

Obviously if what we're seeing from Reinhart was a new normal, he's be a surefire keep too. But I can't help but worry he could be emulating what Nazem Kadri did in 2021-22. Yes, Reinhart had been a better than Kadri had been prior to 2021-22; but Reinhart is playing so far above and beyond his previous best that there's nowhere to go from but down. Also, he likely is benefitting – as did Kadri – from the team for which he plays. If he leaves as a UFA, that could work against him too. Also, looking at players who had 25+ PPGs and a SH% of 20% or higher in a season, as Reinhart has done, just two met both criteria in the last 25 seasons: Leon Draisaitl (2022-23) and Chris Kreider (2021-22). What do both have in common? Big drops in production the following season, with Draisatil's scoring rate at 1.34 points per game, down from 1.60, and Kreider's dropping from 0.95 to 0.68. That's concerning. Still, Reinhart probably has to be kept due to the inability to do offseason trading. But I do have other plans for him – read on.

That might be it in terms of forwards. Marchand is helpful in SHG and SHA, but not enough so to justify keeping him when he clearly declining. And Stamkos' remaining strengths are not well aligned with your categories, so he too is a difficult non-keep. I like Konecny, Buchnevich and Fiala, but they just aren't as impactful as your defensemen options, plus it's easier to find forwards at the draft than d-men'

But yes, your defensemen are the cream of your crop. Josi is showing no signs of slowing down, and is still doing great even as Nashville's forwards have upped their scoring. He's a must keep. And ironically the other keep is the d-man I often liken to Josi, namely Werenski. What I think we're seeing from him this season is a preview of as good if not better things to come. It's a close call, but I do feel Werenski will be more of a difference maker than another of your forwards.

Plus, whenever I get a chance to discuss Werenski, I feel it necessary to point out that what he did in his first four NHL seasons put him in very, very elite company. Specifically, if we look at the entire history of the NHL, the list of rearguards who scored 11+ goals four times in their first four seasons by age 22, consists of Werenski, plus Phil Housley, Larry Murphy, Ray Bourque, and Bobby Orr. That's it……..in NHL history! And those other four had at minimum two point per game seasons, with Bourque and Orr of course being two of the all-time greats. Although past results do not dictate future outcomes, that is indeed very fine company in which to find oneself.

Lastly, I'm keeping Sorokin. Although he appears to have taken a step back this season, despite his stats not being as great he still has a positive GSAA. That is huge, and suggests his team is letting him down and he's likely as good as ever. And amazingly, despite his GAA and SV% both being far worse than in past seasons, he's actually had his lowest ever percentage of Really Bad Starts. He's also in the top ten is shorthanded shots faced, but hasn't surrendered a single shorthanded goals. Where he has faltered is on the PK, although in many cases he's been left out to dry. His even strength SV% also is still a very respectable .920. I realize there might be a temptation to let Sorokin go since he could be cheaper to redraft than normal, but he is not a goalie you want to let escape your grasp, as what we have seen from him, even factoring in this season, shows he's truly special.

In short, I have your five keepers as Miller, Reinhart, Josi, Werenski, and Sorokin. Rather than entering the season with them, I'd look to trade Reinhart immediately after the draft, as the data for Draisaitl and Kreider is concerning, and neither of them was a UFA to be like Reinhart is now, making him even more worrisome ala 2021-22 Kadri. But you have to keep Reinhart – just trade him the first moment you can. Good luck!

Question #7 (from Stephane)

I'm in a 10 team, keeper with starting line-ups of 9F, 6D, 2G per week, and scoring as 2 points for goal, 1 point for assist for forwards and 2 points for goals and assists for defensemen, and 2 points for a win, 1 point for OT or shootout loss and 5 bonus points for each shutout for goalies.  Each team gets to keep 6F, 4D, 2G and 1 additional keeper which can be any position.  Each team has 5 farm spots that do not count towards keepers. There's a 12 round draft.

For the past 2 seasons I've finished between 3rd and 5th, and my team as of now is:

F: Jason Robertson, Kevin Fiala, Mika Zibanejad, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Jakub Vrana, Sidney Crosby, Nazem Kadri, Anze Kopitar, Morgan Frost, Sean Couturier, Quinton Byfield, Alex DeBrincat, Owen Tippett, Vladimir Tarasenko, Tage Thompson, Eeli Tolvanen, Alexander Holtz

Notable Farm F:  Juraj Slafkovsky, Kent Johnson.

D: Noah Dobson, Devon Toews, Zach Werenski, Sean Durzi, Rasmus Sandin, Samuel Girard, Mike Matheson, Nils Lundkvist, Tyson Barrie, Jordan Spence

G: Igor Shesterkin, Ilya Sorokin Jeremy Swayman

Defensemen are at a premium since their points are worth more. But I don’t know who to keep and how to use my flex since my 3 goalies are standouts.

As of today, I would lean toward keeping: Robertson, Fiala, DeBrincat, Thompson, Crosby and Byfield as my forwards, Dobson, Werenski, Matheson, and Durzi as my defensemen, and Shesterkin, Sorokin and Swayman, as my two goalies and my "flex" spot.  Do you think my keepers are correct?  

Starting with forwards, I agree on Robertson and Thompson. Despite both disappointing versus lofty expectations, they remain key players on their teams and, given what we did see from them in 2022-23, offer too much home run potential to toss back into the draft pool.

I'm not keeping Fiala or Byfield.  The Kings are a balanced team which does not put its forwards in a position to excel.  I do think Byfield has a bright future; however, with only 60 forwards being kept, and given you have Slaf on the farm, I think he is a non-keep.

I would for sure keep RNH.  Last year was an outlier; but he still has a spot on one of the top PPs in the NHL, and has more home run potential than any of the King forwards.  I also like Zibanejad as a keeper.  He's locked in as a top line center at ES and on the PP, and the Rangers are still a very potent team.

For the last two spots, it comes down to Crosby and DeBrincat, but I'd also consider Kadri, who has been a point per game player since Q2, which is a half-season stretch.  He is getting more ice time and back to shooting a ton.  Yes, he'd be an easier redraft than either Crosby or DeBrincat, so that does matter.  Still, I like Kadri as a keeper, as feel he has found his footing in Calgary.

As to which of Crosby or DeBrincat to not keep, I'm encouraged that even as Pittsburgh is imploding and despite losing his sidekick Jake Guentzel, that Crosby keeps chugging along.  I think he's still a point per game player, whereas DeBrincat has taken a step back since coming to Detroit despite getting great deployment.  So the six forward keeps are JRob, Tage, Sid, Zibs, RNH and Kadri.

For defense, Dobson, Werenski and Matheson are very easy picks, as the uncontested top options for blueline offense on their teams.  After that it's less clear.  Toews had a nice run producing due to his spot alongside Cale Makar, but that well seems to have run dry.  Girard hasn't benefitted from the exodus of Bowen Byram, so indeed it might be Durzi by default.

The question becomes whether you keep all three of your goalies or try to move one to get help, likely at defense.  If Linus Ullmark gets traded, as many believe he will, you could have three of what might well be the top five, or certainly top ten, netminders for your format.  As great as that sounds, it also might be a headache in terms of figuring out which two to start on a given week.  Plus, if you're this strong in net, it means there must be teams who aren't.  The question becomes whether to try and trade one of them now, or perhaps during the season when teams might be more desperate.  It can't hurt to put them on the block now, as see what offers you can get.  If you're not wowed, then you can wait, and hopefully ransom one off as the season unfolds.  In terms of which to trade, I'd tell the other GMs that any one of them can be had for the right price, and see what happens.  If it was me, I'd likely let Swayman go, as we can't be sure how he'll do if he's an everyday goalie, whereas the other two are already tested and true.  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.