If you listened to the show last night….you got quite a treat as some great hockey minds had some fun with the picks made and also some very interesting insight on what could happen in the 2009-10 fantasy hockey season. As always, you can download the show on Windows Media Player or ITunes for a more leisurely listen.
Now what we are going to do today is take this to the next level a bit. What is the next level you may ask? Well it is a way of gauging value of picks and maybe what was not picked or should have been. It does not necessarily indicate fantasy performance of a team BUT could provide some insight on what a team may still need or not need. This really can get a bit subjective and furthermore you never really know sometimes who will be a dud and who will explode. Four teams this week….time to get them started.
1. Ruff Edges (Brian Sanborn)
An owner that came out of the gate with a surprise taking Marty Brodeur first. With Phaneuf, Souray, and Jovanovski…..this team has a very solid blue line. People did forget a bit about Brendan Morrow but Brian did draft very wisely taking four goalies when most took only three. The team has some injury concerns with the likes of Daniel Briere and even Daniel Alfredsson. But with Brodeur anchoring the netminders…Brian was smart to take guys that could see significant time if things break right.
Strengths: Defense and goaltending depth.
Weaknesses: Left and Right Wing potentially
Bottom Line: This is a good team with much upside but the offensive concerns to some extent remind me of the 2008 New York Rangers. If Brodeur stays healthy and some timely offense can be found. Ruff Edges has the potential of seeing the Top 8 come March.
2. Team Felix (Derek Felix)
Much has been made about how the enigmatic Derek Felix would draft. And actually for the most part…Mr. Felix got good value at his picks. Cam Ward and Miikka Kiprusoff are his netminding tandem. Pretty envious were most last night over that one. 84 wins between the two of them last year is very solid. Add in the improved defenses that both teams boast and it was no wonder that Team Felix may have the best 1-2 goalie punch in the entire league.
By the way, he also has Chara, Niedermayer, and Shea Weber on D with Brent Burns and Matt Niskanen (a potential breakout player). Derek Felix really did his homework on this draft. The rest of the offense is not overwhelming but steady. Obviously Team Felix will ride its goalies and PIMS potential to glory week by week.
Strengths: Goaltending and defensive depth.
Weaknesses: That knockout offensive force or two.
Bottom Line: Defense and goaltending win fantasy championships too. Derek Felix and his team could be a major player in the Scott Stevens Division and beyond come March. The potential is there. Watch for breakouts from this team.
3. NY Titans (Paul Gheduzzi)
Well some people will go with the scorers when possible and Paul definitely did drafting Sidney Crosby. With the draft position it was a given. Must be nice to draft in the top 5 I tell you. When Paul added Havlat, Doan, and even Vanek I had an idea of where this team may be headed. They will rely on scoring more…going for more power play points and even +/-. Every fantasy owner has a different strategy. Sixteen different GM’s usually means sixteen ways to do it.
Paul went with an interesting goalie approach. Will Mason and Osgood play consistent this year? That is a big question mark. Is Brian Boucher going to get significant time? He may. Ten guys on this team scored 20 or more times last year. That is some pretty good balance. That balance will be needed IF Paul expects to succeed.
Strengths: Offensive balance and point strength.
Weaknesses: Goalie consistency and +/- guys.
Bottom Line: All the scorers in China will not help you if your goaltending is weak or inconsistent. Any injury to Paul’s goaltending would seriously jeopardize his chances of making the playoffs. In a tough division, Paul may be the odd team looking out if he does not make a trade to acquire another goalie or defensive help.
Note: I did not review my team for a reason….we did it enough last night.
4. Tank Tank (Dan MacNeal)
Well Dan had a very interesting draft. He did show up a bit late and that may have costed him some. One of the big hurts is Dennis Byfuglien who lost his defensive eligibility after last year. However, Tank Tank features a very steady offensive lineup with Mark Recchi, Daniel Sedin, and Henrik Zetterberg just to name a few. Will Scott Hartnell get 60 points again and will Nick Lidstrom as well? Those may be bigger questions for this team as they try to overcome one big shortcoming.
Goaltending consists of Ondrej Pavelec and Brian Elliott. These are more than line 1b or backups and Dan will have to address that via the trade route as most goalies if not all are gobbled up. That is a major concern. Sure injuries could help Dan out but to get anywhere you have to be able to put something up from your goalies. Right now that is a MAJOR concern.
Strengths: Scoring depth and +/-.
Weaknesses: Goaltending, goaltending, and goaltending
Bottom Line: A nice team but without intangibles and goaltending is just plain dead in the water. With other owners knowing the situation, they are going to try and rob Dan blind. Mr. Mac (Tank Tank) will have to definitely consider several offers before even trying to make the best one. Because even the best one is going to hurt his team in other ways. This is a team that definitely got hurt by not enough good drafting strategy.
Tomorrow we will take a look at four more teams in the league and then Friday we will dig into the values and breakouts plus much more.
