Welcome once again to “An Expert’s Audit”. This audit will be posted here as well as on my fantasy hockey blog . During the season I do weekly reviews of teams for people who email in to me for a look-see, they’re less indepth but just as much fun. Dobber audits will continue to appear here monthly and if you’re interested in having your keeper team “worked over” then you can begin by emailing Dobber about it.
It’s not easy to make it in the NHL, it’s a big step up from junior hockey and the American Hockey League. So it’s not unusual for players to struggle as rookies and then take a big step up during their second season once they know what to expect and have made the necessary adjustments to their play and approach to the game. Here are nine sophomore players who seem to have adjusted very well to the NHL since they are off to very nice starts this season.
The first week of the 2008-09 NHL season has come and gone. Let’s take a look at what has occurred during the opening week in the Western Conference and perhaps a little foresight into what could happen down the road.
When the Rangers made a huge splash last off-season with the signings of Scott Gomez and Chris Drury, it was assumed that those two would stabilize the center position in New York for the next half-decade. Although the center position is very stable, it is due in large part to the emergence of Brandon Dubinsky. His strong play has forced the Rangers to slide Drury to play right wing with Gomez. Dubinsky was fantastic in is rookie season skating with Jaromir Jagr, and he has continued his development this season skating on a line with Aaron Voros and Nikolai Zherdev.
How important is the first five games for starting goaltender these days? Maybe not so important when it comes to their technical game, but thanks to the tight races in all six divisions in the NHL, it’s almost vital to their overall success and their mental game. Think about the momentum gained by winning their first five games. Think about how it can set the tone for a career-setting season. Mentally, coming out of the gates on a tear will raise their confidence level and their abilities to make the big-time saves at big-time moments. So yes, with a great start to the season comes truly great reward for fantasy owners.
Les combinaisons de trios sont intéressantes. Pour moi, si je vois un joueur doté d’un potentiel offensif promu sur le premier trio, il justifie ma réflexion et je vois une lueur d’espoir.
Ceci affecte rarement mon intuition par rapport à la performance d’un joueur au cours d’une saison.
Dans l’univers volatile des poolers, plusieurs participants changent leur opinion aussi souvent qu’un entraîneur change ses trios. Avec certains entraîneurs, ceci pourrait dire essayer d’obtenir désespérément un joueur et l’échanger aussi vite avec le même désespoir – avant la fin de la première période!
( cliquez ici pour la version française )
Line combinations are interesting. To me, if I see a player who I think has some offensive potential moved up to play on the top line, it justifies my thinking and I see a glimmer of hope.
Rarely does it shape how I feel a player will perform over the course of this season.
In the fickle universe of fantasy hockey, many poolies change their opinions on players as often as coaches change their line combinations. With some coaches, that could mean desperately trying to acquire a player and then desperately trying to unload him – before the end of the first period!
Notch is back again with his winners. Maybe his tips will help you with some tough decisions on your Saturday ticket.
As a hockey fan you have to love those days when most NHL teams are in action. However, there is a downside too. For some fantasy owners these days can mean painful decisions. Which two centers to play and which one to bench? The next day you have your answer but it is too late. There is no predicting the future but here is a spreadsheet tool that minimizes the amount of times you have to make these tough decisions.
