z-Archives (other articles)

I have decided to spice things up a bit this week while Dobber is off enjoying a few cervezas in sunny and warm Mexico. Each day this week, I will be auditing a different fantasy hockey team submitted to me by DobberHockey members and readers. Wondering what your plan of attack should be this summer? Preparing for a draft? Wondering about some trades you made in the past? I’ll weigh in on the interesting and important issues with my thoughts.

Today I’ll be taking a look at the team submitted to me by Ryan (known as Renegade on the DobberHockey message boards).

I have decided to spice things up a bit this week while Dobber is off enjoying a few cervezas in sunny and warm Mexico. Each day this week, I will be auditing a different fantasy hockey team submitted to me by DobberHockey members and readers. Wondering what your plan of attack should be this summer? Preparing for a draft? Wondering about some trades you made in the past? I’ll weigh in on the interesting and important issues with my thoughts.

Today, I’ll be looking at “Pierre’s Monsters,” submitted to me by Jonathan S.

Don’t look now, but the goalie factory known as Finland has just churned out another quality fantasy prospect. Meet Jussi Rynnas, the second European goalie to attract attention from a number of NHL teams and ultimately choose to start their pro hockey career with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Rynnas, who turns 23 on Saturday and is a monster in his own right, just completed a breakout rookie season in the SM-Liiga with Assat Pori. In 31 games for one of the league’s weakest teams, he posted a brilliant 2.50 goals-against average and a league-high .929 save percentage.

I have a few general rules when it comes to building a team in a fantasy hockey keeper league. One of the more important ones is to not plan beyond a two or three year window. You are not building a real NHL club, and too often fantasy hockey poolies place an emphasis on youth and prospects over proven veterans with gas still left in the tank. So using my general rule, take a look at your team(s). Can you realistically say you will have a shot at winning the league at some point within the next two or three seasons? If not, time to scrap the rebuild and start adding proven NHL talent.

Keeping my rule in mind, I have compiled a list of the top 10 keeper league centers to own (assuming standard keeper league rules and scoring categories). Using the two or three season scope, I had to balance proven production with young players on the verge of breaking out. I hope you enjoy!

Better late than never! The final part of the Prime Cuts 2009-10 article series is here! Check out the Prime Cuts rosters from 2007-08 and 2008-09. The thinking process that goes in to selecting the team is similar to Pierre McGuire’s “Monsters” for TSN (I promise that is the first and only time I will compare my thinking process to Pierre’s). Since this is a fantasy hockey site, the selection process favours players that have had strong seasons on the score sheet, obviously. However, not just goals and assists are weighted – perhaps a player has started to shoot the puck more, or play better defensively. Intangibles like heart, grit, and determination factor in to the selection process as well. It is far and away my favourite article to write each year, and I hope you will all enjoy reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it!

Part 5 of the article series names the starting goaltender.

I love the NHL playoffs not only for their nightly life-or-death drama, but also because they remind me of what's best about the sport of hockey.  And no, I'm not talking about the officiating.

The second round of the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs has been a great display of the dynamic surrounding games played and workload. Why does it seem like the workhorses are wearing down, while those that didn’t play as many games during the season are performing better? Although there’s no direct correlation or clear-cut answer to the question, what we are seeing right now is no random coincidence.

I have a few general rules when it comes to building a team in a fantasy hockey keeper league. One of the more important ones is to not plan beyond a two or three year window. You are not building a real NHL club, and too often fantasy hockey poolies place an emphasis on youth and prospects over proven veterans with gas still left in the tank. So using my general rule, take a look at your team(s). Can you realistically say you will have a shot at winning the league at some point within the next two or three seasons? If not, time to scrap the rebuild and start adding proven NHL talent.

Keeping my rule in mind, I have compiled a list of the top 10 keeper league right wingers to own (assuming standard keeper league rules and scoring categories). Using the two or three season scope, I had to balance proven production with young players on the verge of breaking out. I hope you enjoy!