Fantasy Hockey: Player Rankings

Written by Guest Author on January 18, 2013
NHL, Uncategorized

I’m not too sure what to expect this year from the NHL. In a short season, one bad week could spell doom for some of the borderline playoff teams. This means players are going to have a lot of pressure on them to perform at a high level from game one. In a 48-game season all injuries, hot streaks and cold streaks are going to be amplified twofold.

I love Hockey but I rarely have the time to keep up with all the players the way I do with baseball and football. I normally only play in one Fantasy Hockey league each year and it’s usually in a random public league. This season I was asked to join a “Writer’s League” where I could compete with others in the industry. It’s an 18-team, 36 round draft that took about three months to complete. I’m happy I can finally put my knowledge (and luck) to the test. Here’s a quick recap of my draft.

For those of you out there that are going to play Fantasy Hockey this year, here’s a look at my Top 20′s for the 2013 season.

Top 20 Forwards

1. Evgeni Malkin PIT
2. Steven Stamkos TB
3. Daniel Sedin VAN
4. Sidney Crosby PIT
5. John Tavares NYI
6. Claude Giroux PHI
7. Alex Ovechkin WSH
8. Corey Perry ANA
9. James Neal PIT
10. Nicklas Backstrom WSH

11. Brad Richards NYR
12. Patrick Sharp CHI
13. Henrik Sedin VAN
14. Zach Parise MIN
15. Jonathan Toews CHI
16. Phil Kessel TOR
17. Anze Kopitar LA
18. Jason Spezza Ott
19. Eric Staal CAR
20. Rick Nash NYR

post-gazette.com

I have Malkin number one for two reasons; he’s great and aggressive. He’s found a way to put up 527 points in 427 career games. As for Stamkos, he’s finished 1st or 2nd in the NHL in goals scored every year since the 2008-2009 season. You can’t go wrong with either Stamkos or Malkin at #1. Then there’s Crosby, if it wasn’t for his injury concerns he’d be #1 by a wide margin. I have no issue taking any of my Top 4, first overall in Fantasy Drafts this year.

Top 20 Defensemen

1. Kris Letang PIT
2. Zdeno Chara BOS
3. Erik Karlsson OTT
4. Dustin Byfuglien WIN
5. Dan Boyle SJ
6. Brian Campbell FLA
7. Shea Weber NSH
8. Ryan Suter MIN
9. Alex Pietrangelo STL
10. P.K. Subban MON

11. Mark Streit NYI
12. Dion Phaneuf TOR
13. Jack Johnson CLS
14. Keith Yandle PHO
15. Michael Del Zotto NYR
16. Duncan Keith CHI
17. Tobias Enstrom WIN
18. Kevin Shattenkirk STL
19. Alexander Edler VAN
20. Niklas Kronwall DET

officepools.com

I have high hopes for the kid in St. Louis. No, it’s not because we share the same first name. It’s because Pietrangelo was able to put up back-to-back seasons with at least 11 goals and 32 assists. In his first full Rookie season he ended up scoring the 20th most points (43) in the NHL as a Defensemen. Last season, his Sophomore year, he was 10th in the league in points (51) among Defensemen. He turns 23 years old on January 18th.

Top 20 Goaltenders

1. Henrik Lundqvist NYR
2. Jonathan Quick LA
3. Pekka Rinne NSH
4. Jimmy Howard DET
5. Cam Ward CAR
6. Tuuka Rask BOS
7. Mike Smith PHO
8. Ryan Miller BUF
9. Roberto Luongo VAN
10.Marc-Andre Fleury PIT

11. Jaroslav Halak STL
12. Cory Schneider VAN
13. Kari Lehtonen DAL
14. Braden Holtby WSH
15. Niklas Backstrom MIN
16. Carey Price MON
17. Semyon Varlamov COL
18. Miikka Kiprusoff CGY
19. Craig Anderson OTT
20. Devan Dubnyk EDM

nationalpost.com

What are the Canucks going to do with Roberto Luongo? I’ve heard rumblings of him going to the Leafs, Panthers and, most recently, the Flyers. If he stays, he’ll get the benefit of playing behind the 5th best offense in the game. Cory Schneider will be on his heels this season as he looks ready to take over full time in the crease entering his 5th year in the league.

Top 20 Sleepers

1. Carey Price MON G
2. Devan Dubnyk EDM G
3. Matt Moulson NYI LW
4. Taylor Hall EDM LW
5. Jamie Benn DAL C
6. Milan Michalek OTT RW
7. Dustin Brown LAK RW
8. Nathan Horton BOS RW
9. Martin Erat NSH RW
10. Cam Fowler ANA D

11. Blake Wheeler WPG RW
12. Jeff Skinner CAR C
13. John-Michael Liles TOR D
14. Michael Ryder DAL RW
15. Matt Carle TB D
16. Mike Ribeiro WSH
17. T.J. Oshie STL RW
18. Antti Niemi SJ G
19. Kris Versteeg FLA RW
20. Adam Henrique NJD C

ingoalmag.com

Carey Price and the Canadiens had 12 shootout losses and 16 overtime losses last year. If the team could get a little lucky and exchange some of those losses for a few more wins, Price could be a steal in Fantasy Drafts. This is a big season for Price as he is trying to prove himself reliable between the pipes. He’s only had one season (out of five years in the league) with a GAA under 2.43.

The biggest sleeper?

Vladimir Tarasenko STL RW
This guy is a Superstar in the making.

If you have any Fantasy Hockey questions post them on this article and I will do my best to answer them.

Alex Wiesner
January 17th, 2013
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