We’re past the midpoint of the season and if you’re not near the top of your league, have no fear. You can still dig your way out with a bit of work. The following is a selection of questions that you tweeted @Sportsnet after we put the call out. Follow me on Twitter @DobberHockey for even more insight into the goings on in fantasy hockey.
In a one-year league, if you’re not in the top three at this point then something a little drastic needs to be considered. If 40 per cent of the categories in your league (or more) are goaltending, then you definitely need to make a move. Even if it means trading a stud like Kane or Seguin. Just get an underrated stud back, such as Vladimir Tarasenko or Johnny Gaudreau, and then upgrade your goalie.
Understanding that Connor McDavid is returning in a couple of weeks and possibly play with Taylor Hall, I still think Sidney Crosby will have the better second half. He’s the better player and the better fantasy own.
I’m very worried about Johnson for the short-term. I’m not worried about him for next season, but this year has been write-off. He’s still trying to recover his timing and I get the sense that he’s not 100 per cent back to full health.
Mason is doing exactly what most fantasy owners back in September thought he would do. He’s playing .500 hockey and his GAA and SV% (2.69 and 0.914) are about average or slightly below.
He’s had some pressure from Michal Neuvirth, but nothing too serious. The only thing surprising to me is the fact that he hasn’t sustained an injury yet.
So what to do with him when he’s doing what you expected when you drafted him? Nothing. Right now Mason is a nice No.3 or No.4 goalie to own, to sub in occasionally if one of your main guys gets injured. If you were hoping to trade him for something you won’t get much.
Perhaps his current three-game winning streak will continue and drive up his value enough that you could indeed move him.
Faulk is a given. No question about it.
I lean towards keeping defencemen and he’s one of the better ones. As for the other two, I don’t like your options. Neal has shown that without Evgeni Malkin, he’s not going to be much more than a 55-point player. Now that Ryan Johansen is in Nashville with him, there’s some hope that he can get back up there.
Meanwhile, Stepan has struggled with injuries and is having trouble finding that next step. Before the Johansen trade, I would choose Stepan here and not look back. But that trade muddles things. And whenever I can’t make a decision like this I try to take the decision out of my hands by shopping both and trying to upgrade them into one better player.
I’ve been asked about Evgeny Kuznetsov a lot this week thanks to my colleague Rick Roos listing him as a “sell high” recently. I agree with the article, his goals are inflated. He’s on pace for 29 and he’ll probably end up with around 24 or 25. But his assist total is not inflated, his 5on5 SH% of 9.63 is in the proper range, meaning that his teammates are scoring on an average portion of the shots taken.
So instead of his current pace of 82-29-50-79, he’ll instead end up with 82-24-49-73. Not a huge decline, but it’s an edge that you can use. Use him to upgrade a weakness. If your No.2 goalie is Pekka Rinne, for example, then make an offer of Rinne and Kuznetsov for Dubnyk and Giroux.
This question depends on if you’re in a keeper league or a one-year league. But I wouldn’t have a problem with shopping all three of them.
I’m of the opinion that any player can be traded unless they are in the top seven or eight in fantasy hockey. Agree to the deal if it helps your squad in other areas. I doubt you’ll get much interest in Johnson today though, you may want to wait on him or use him in a bigger deal involving lots of players so that he’s treated as a bonus rather than a centrepiece.
Tavares is killing me too. But he was doing this last year and then he surged in the second half and nearly won the scoring title.
I sent a tweet out to Tavares’ panicking fantasy owners recently:
Hope that helps. I would much prefer to own him than Voracek or Perry.
This answer is highly dependent on injuries. If a star goes down for a lengthy period, particularly a goaltender, then the best prospect replacement immediately has a chance at making a huge splash.
In choosing players who are in the AHL right now, I would pick the following: Brett Ritchie (Dallas), Derrick Pouliot (Pittsburgh) and William Nylander (Toronto).
If you figure this one out, let me know. My wife still doesn’t get it.
Pencil me in for Ben Bishop.
Last weekend I released my ninth annual Midseason Fantasy Hockey Guide that has second-half projections, analysis, prospect info, KHLers who may come over next season, NCAA free agents of interest and more. You can pick it up here.
