At the start of the 2008-09 season, the number 25 overall selection of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, Patrik Berglund, made the jump from the Swedish leagues straight to the NHL. He had just won a silver medal at the WJC before and did not fail to impress in his rookie year, scoring 21 goals and 47 points in 76 NHL games.
The first edition of this list was put together last year, and it is something I am going to update at least once each season. 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 I see poolies place too much of an emphasis on youth and prospects instead of trying to add players who could help them win now.
The Expert Panel is back for round three! Dobber leads the way with a dazzling 10-2 record. The consensus is 10-2 as well - collectively we are better than we are alone.
Having recently graduated from university I’ve found myself feeling a bit nostalgic so I hope you can indulge me a bit while I hop in my Delorian and crank‘er up to 88 MPH!
It’s the 2006-07 NHL season and I am a bright eyed and bushy tailed freshman. The world is my oyster, even as a sports fan. After all, the Oilers did just make it to the Stanley Cup Final losing in game seven (Gosh Darnit!) so what could go wrong? Yes I certainly felt like I was on top of the world and fantasy hockey players did too.
Continuing with the final set of recap columns from the pre-season, this week we’ll review my work in the DobberHockey Fantasy Guide from August.
Love it or hate it, penalty minutes are one of the most common fantasy hockey statistics these days. If your offense is strong enough, you have the option of streaming whichever hothead is racking up misconducts and providing little to no offensive assistance throughout the year. The much more attractive option however, is to find a player who can contribute offensively, while still posting 150 or more penalty minutes. With each passing year, more and more fantasy GM’s are coming to the realization that they need a player like Hartnell, Lucic, Downie, etc. One player who fits this category is Los Angeles forward Kyle Clifford.
A sleeper for 2010-11, fixing a mistake, the future of Cory Schneider, and more…
After doing some reading in the forums about “magical” fourth year breakouts and potential breakout candidates for next season, I felt inspired to write this week’s Cage Match article on that subject. This week we will take a look at two potential breakout stars that are just destined to battle one another. We’re taking two Atlantic Division rivals, LW vs. LW, Power Forward vs. Power Forward, James vs. James, winner take all. I am excited, are you excited?
Let’s get ready to rumble!
Continuing with the next set of recap columns from the pre-season, this week I’ll carry my 15-3-2 record from the last couple of weeks and review my Not With a 10-Foot Pole column from back in August.
With the NHL constantly adapting, general managers are finding themselves in frequent need of cheap talent. Historically, the best way to keep this type of talent available has been to build through the draft. Teams are slowly beginning to realize however, that they can trade away top draft picks and pluck very capable, seasoned talent from the NCAA for free. After skating up to four years in the collegiate world, a growing flock of undrafted gems finds multiple NHL suitors and a quick entrance to the highest level of hockey in North America. One such example is former University of New Hampshire co-captain, Bobby Butler, signed to a two-year contract by the Ottawa Senators 13 months ago.
