Stupid Hockey

Top Five Fantasy Hockey Goalies

 
I will continue my fantasy rankings for the week, by looking at the leagues top 5-fantasy hockey goalies.  I have found in my experiences that a strong goaltending tandem in a fantasy league can be the difference between winning the pot and losing your money.  Strong goaltending can lock up numerous goaltending categories but finding goalies that are in position to win a lot of games can make all the difference.

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The first goaltender I would pick heading into the season would be Tim Thomas.  Thomas had a remarkable season last year, winning the Vezina Trophy and the Stanley Cup; the question is will he be able to do it again?  Unfortunately, I don’t know that answer, but what I do know is that the pieces are in place for Thomas to have another sensational season.  The Bruins are going to be one of the top teams in the East and Thomas will win plenty of games.

My second pick for fantasy goalie is Nashville’s Pekka Rinne.  Rinne won 33 games last year and posted a very good 2.12 GAA.  Rinne is just 28 years old and will be backstopping a Nashville team that has very good defense and should be able to compete with any team in the West.  Look for Rinne to have a very successful season.

I am going to choose Ryan Miller as my third pick for the top 5 fantasy goalies.  Buffalo’s All-Star goalie is a top NHL goalie year-after-year.  Nothing will change this year, except Buffalo will be able to produce in front of Miller.  Buffalo is on verge of becoming a top team in the East, and Miller will be one of the reasons.

My fourth selection is Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury.  Fleury’s job may be very simple if the Penguins have a healthy lineup, as the Penguins will feature one of the NHL’s most dynamic offenses.  Fleury was able to guide the depleted Penguins to a 4th place finish in the East last season, look for him to lead the Pens to a top 2 finish this season.

Closing out the top 5 fantasy goalies is going to be Jon Quick of the Kings.  Quick was nominated as a Vezina candidate last season; the difference this season will be the team in front of him.  The Kings in my opinion will be one of the top teams in the West, for that reason I see Quick having another tremendous season and being one of the top fantasy goalies in the NHL.

That is it for my top 5 fantasy players at each position…let me know what you think

Top Five Fantasy Hockey Defenseman

As a continuation of my last article, today I am going to discuss my top 5-fantasy defenseman.  Defenseman that are going to truly help a fantasy team are rare to find, taking into account that most forwards are going to produce more points than the average defenseman.  However, there certainly are some defenseman that will chip in a fair amount of points and here I will outline my top five.

My first overall defenseman would be Zdeno Chara for a couple of reasons.  He may not put up the most points of the defenseman, but his overall production will prove to be monstrous in helping anyone’s fantasy team.  Out of the huge defenseman, you can expect anywhere from mid 50’s to mid 40’s in points.  But he will also provide a huge plus/minus rating and close to 100 pim’s.  If those three categories are in your league, Chara is a safe number 1 defenseman.

Second, I am going to go with Shea Weber.  Weber may possess one of the hardest, most lethal shots from the blue line and is only getting better.  Weber will chip in around 50 points, should have a solid plus/minus rating and can provide decent penalty minutes.

Nick Lidstrom is still one of the best in the game and his numbers still prove it.  Lidstrom had another tremendous year in 2011 and you can expect similar numbers in 2012.  Last year he saw an increase in points, a decrease in plus/minus and his penalty minutes were normally low.  Lidstrom did finish with 62 points and he will again be on the first unit of the dangerous Red Wings power play.

For my fourth pick I am going to choose Kris Letang.  This pick is a little off the chart but I only see production increases for the Penguins defenseman.  Last year Letang finished with 50 points, a plus 15 rating and 101 pim’s.  Because he is so young and will be surrounded by players that will produce, I can see Letang having a huge year.  He will be leading the back-end of the Penguins power play, which will feature Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.  I expect nothing but solid increases in Letang.

Rounding out my top 5, I will choose Drew Doughty as my 5^th defenseman.  The young All-Star defenseman from the L.A Kings should continue to develop and get better, which is a scary thought for opponents.  Doughty finished last season with 40 points, a plus 13 and 68 pim’s.  With the addition of Mike Richards and a healthy Anze Kopitar, the Kings power play and top line should be able to produce plenty of goals, which will increase Doughty’s numbers. 

Those are my top 5 defenseman…Who are yours?

 

Our Top Five Fantasy Hockey Forwards

This week I am going to try and focus on something fun and exciting, rather than all the negative things that have occurred in the hockey world over the past couple of weeks.  I am going to do some fantasy rankings and discuss which players in my opinion will guide your fantasy team to success.  To get this rolling, I will discuss my top 5 fantasy forwards.

  (Ovechkin is our top Fantasy Pick. Photo: NHLSnipers.com)

My number one pick heading into this season is Alex Ovechkin.  Ovi will certainly be right toward the top of every offensive statistic in most fantasy leagues.  A consistent 50-goal scorer and 100+ point performer, Ovechkin is my number one fantasy player for the 2011-2012 season.

My second pick would be Anaheim’s Corey Perry. Perry is coming off a 50 goal and 98-point season.  Not only a guy that will put up goals and points, Perry uses his big frame and grit to usually rack up 100+ penalty minutes a season.

 Right behind Perry is Lightning forward Steven Stamkos.  Stamkos is a sniper and should be close to a 50-goal campaign and 100 point season.  Skating alongside St. Louis, Stamkos will be given every opportunity to put up points.

I am going to pair the Sedin twins together for my 4^th and 5^th pick because not only can I not tell them apart, I cant decide which one I would rather have on my fantasy team.  Last season, Daniel had the upper hand over his brother Henrik, but both are a constant threat to score and produce.  Daniel was the only player last season to put up over 100 points, while his brother Henrik led the NHL two seasons ago with 112 points.

Just a side-note: If I knew Sidney Crosby was going to be 100% healthy and not miss an extended amount of action, I would put Crosby at the very top of my list.  I think Crosby is all in all the best player in the league and would expect nothing less than 100+ points out of the Penguin superstar.  I hope he is back on the ice this season, because he makes the NHL that much better.

 What are your thoughts? Who is the top pick in your fantasy draft?