Looking Back – August 2009
Darren Kennedy
2014-07-24
Looking back at August 2009 and the emergence of an unexpected superstar… Henrik Sedin
I can recall a draft in the fall of 2009 where I openly stated that the Sedin’s were “too old to build a team around.” They were 28 at the time, and if history was any indication, were approaching their decline. Of course with the benefit of hindsight this looks a tad foolish, as 2009 to 2013 represented the four best years of their careers.
Of the two, Daniel has always been the far easier asset to value. His propensity to shoot has given him a more well-rounded fantasy portfolio. Whereas Henrik, with his Joe Thornton-esque shot totals, can see his value move up and down wildly depending on the format.
This week I want to look back at August 2009. At the time, we were only a few months from Henrik Sedin becoming one of the five best multi-category players in the game, and arguably the most coveted points only option in fantasy.
His run as elite performer caught everyone (and me especially) off-guard.
In 2008-09 he finished with 22 goals, 60 assists for 82 points in 82 games. Great totals in virtually every format, but they in no way foretold the dramatic rise in production that was just around the corner. He and his brother had become consistent, very-good options in most formats. The kind of players you drafted in the early rounds but never seriously considered in the first.
That was about change.
Heading into the fall of 2009 Henrik had established himself as one of the league’s premier centermen. Considered a consensus top 30 pick in your pool. Dobber had him ranked 22nd overall:
| Rank | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Evgeni Malkin | PIT |
| 2 | Alexander Ovechkin | WAS |
| 3 | Sidney Crosby | PIT |
| 4 | Ilya Kovalchuk | ATL |
| 5 | Vincent Lecavalier | TB |
| 6 | Joe Thornton | SJ |
| 7 | Jason Spezza | OTT |
| 8 | Nicklas Backstrom | WAS |
| 9 | Dany Heatley | OTT |
| 10 | Pavel Datsyuk | DET |
| 11 | Ryan Getzlaf | ANA |
| 12 | Eric Staal | CAR |
| 13 | Jarome Iginla | CGY |
| 14 | Zach Parise | NJ |
| 15 | Marc Savard | BOS |
| 16 | Henrik Zetterberg | DET |
| 17 | Patrick Kane | CHI |
| 18 | Anze Kopitar | LA |
| 19 | Rick Nash | CBJ |
| 20 | Jeff Carter | PHI |
| 21 | Mike Richards | PHI |
| 22 | Henrik Sedin | VAN |
| 23 | Daniel Sedin | VAN |
| 24 | Martin St. Louis | TB |
| 25 | Alexander Semin | WAS |
| 26 | John Tavares | NYI |
| 27 | Marian Hossa | CHI |
| 28 | Jonathan Toews | CHI |
| 29 | Mike Ribeiro | DAL |
| 30 | Thomas Vanek | BUF |
| 31 | Mike Green | WAS |
| 32 | Paul Kariya | STL |
| 33 | Marian Gaborik | NYR |
| 34 | Ales Hemsky | EDM |
| 35 | Mike Cammalleri | MTL |
| 36 | Derek Roy | BUF |
| 37 | Corey Perry | ANA |
| 38 | Paul Stastny | COL |
| 39 | Daniel Briere | PHI |
| 40 | Patrick O’Sullivan | EDM |
| 41 | Patrick Marleau | SJ |
| 42 | Brad Boyes | STL |
| 43 | Olli Jokinen | CGY |
| 44 | Bobby Ryan | ANA |
| 45 | Devin Setoguchi | SJ |
| 46 | Steven Stamkos | TB |
| 47 | Shane Doan | PHO |
| 48 | Derick Brassard | CBJ |
| 49 | Jiri Hudler | DET |
| 50 | Daniel Alfredsson | OTT |
Looking back at the names above him you can imagine the number of poolies left kicking themselves as the year wore on. I for one, was forced to look at our draft results knowing that I passed over him five or six times before he was eventually scooped in the mid-rounds.
Heatley still had one more productive season to go in San Jose, but was on the edge of his precipitous decline. Mike Richards was coming off of a 30 goal, 50 assist season in which he looked like the next truly great multi-category star – he’s only broken 60 points twice since that time. There was talk of Lecavalier rebounding after a down 2008-09, but, sadly, his numbers have declined ever since. His point totals the last five seasons sit at; 70, 54, 49, 32 (lockout), and 37.
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