The time has come. Much too soon for hockey fans, every team in the NHL has played 50 games. The guru is here to offer his take on the season from a fantasy perspective and gauge the value of players as we lead up to the Olympics.
Speaking of the Games, they have a profound effect on the world of fantasy. As we all know, the NHL's schedule is ridiculously hectic due to the interruption in Vancouver. While the rest of the league has an opportunity to rest and heal, Olympians will be playing intense, emotional hockey against the best the world has to offer. On the other side of the bubble, prime time players who feel as though they were snubbed (Mike Green and Martin St. Louis, for example), have an extra incentive to prove their haters (pronounced hāt-uhz ) wrong in the upcoming weeks, while those representing their country will be overlooking regular season NHL games. If possible, try selling players headed to Vancouver this February while their value is still high. When they return they will be drained of all energy and/or competitive spirit, unless they'll be playing on subpar Olympic teams, such as Germany or Latvia. Those squads won't be busy in Vancouver. Owners of Marcel Goc and Karlis Skrastins can breathe a sigh of relief.
For those of you who predicted the Henrik Sedin explosion, congratulations. The twin known for his play making abilities, the West's "King Henrik" of assists, as I like to call him, has suddenly turned into a goal scorer, potting 24 in just 52 games this season. His previous career high was 22, which took him 82 games to accrue. This change came about as twin brother and lifetime linemate Daniel went down with for a month and a half with a broken foot. With a comfortable lead for the Art Ross Trophy, Henrik is easily exceeding his Yahoo! ADP of 82.7. Vancouver fans will be able to watch a few extra games involving the Sedin twins, except they'll be wearing Team Sweden jerseys.
Ryan Miller's reemergence came as a surprise to the general fantasy community. Everyone remembers the 40-16-6 President's Trophy season back in 2006-07, but only for the wins. His 2.73 GAA that season was the worst of his career, while his SV% was only .911. The next season, he won four less games in 14 more starts, and his SV% dipped to .906. Starting nearly 20 less games in 2008-09, Miller saw a spike in every statistical category, despite Buffalo's failure to make the playoffs. This season he has come on strong, as discussed in the NHL Midseason Report post. He'll be sporting the red, white, and blue this February.
Marian Gaborik is rewarding owners who invested an early pick in him (Yahoo! ADP 19.7). Many owners were scared off by his injury-proneness, but he has appeared in 52 games thus far after missing 104 over the past three seasons. His 61 points put him 5th in the NHL in scoring, #1 at right wing. However, it should be noted that he has gone four games without a point since scrapping (and losing) with cheapshot-artist Daniel Carcillo (who, of course, plays for the Flyers). Gaborik went on a six game scoring drought immediately following his only other career fight, a 2008 bout with Ian Laperriere (Also a current member of Philly's squad. I'm starting to notice a pattern).
Give And Go:
Maxime Afinogenov's hot start was nice ride for owners who scooped him off waivers, but he has just 4 points in his last 12 games...Daniel Alfredsson has 5 goals and 6 assists since his return from injury seven games ago. Ottawa is unbeaten in that stretch...A December hat trick was followed by an 11 game goal drought from Pittsburgh center Evgeni Malkin. He broke the curse in Vanvouver and now has six goals in as many games...Jaroslav Halak has started seven of the last ten games for Montreal. He has surrendered only 11 goals in that stretch, which includes shutouts of Florida and the Rangers...Now is the time to acquire Ilya Kovalchuk. The Thrashers are talking about dealing him, odds are to a contender. This will likely lead to a line featuring a playmaking center, fueling the fire for a scoring explosion. The same goes for division rival Ray Whitney...Blackhawk fans are smiling because they have Marian Hossa locked up until 2021. If Chicago falls short of winning the Cup, he won't be able to ditch town and head to a rival like he did to Pittsburgh and Detroit, despite the promises, supposed willingness to take less money, and the requests of fans.
That's all for now. The guru wishes you good luck in managing your fantasy squads. Heed his advice, and thou will be rewarded.
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