Welcome back to another exciting edition of The Puck Stops Here. The cream is starting to rise to the top, players are carving out roles and we finally have a bigger sample size to examine. Let me stress, it is still early and don’t panic. However, we play fantasy sports because its fun and part of that fun is making a trade. I will give you a few players to target/hold onto and a few players to avoid/trade away.
Keep Them if You Got Them, Go Get Them if You Don’t
Anze Kopitar, C, L.A. Kings: Kopitar is off to a bit of a slow start. Combine that with the preseason pessimism and people may be ready to move Kopitar. The preseason skepticism had nothing to do with his talent and ability to produce; it was purely about how bad the Kings are. It is true the Kings are pretty bad, not Detroit Lions bad, but slightly above embarrassing. However, they have a lot of young talent that will age nicely like a fine wine. Give them time to work together and the offense and power play will start clicking. In his first two seasons, Kopitar has increased both his goal production and total points. He is trending up, get on board while you can. Kopitar will help you across the board with your offensive statistics, but his +/- and PIM will be lacking.
Mikka Kiprusoff, G, Calgary Flames: I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so. I had serious concerns with Kipper’s peripheral statistics and he has started the season with major struggles. However, he is a perfect buy low candidate, he has played so bad an owner can’t be happy right now. He won’t give you top 5 goalie numbers and will struggle to crack the top 10, but he plays on a playoff caliber team which will be a huge boost to your win total. Do not give up too much to get him, but he could be a very serviceable number two goalie.
Dion Phaneuf, D, Calgary Flames: Like his teammate, Kiprusoff, Phaneuf is off to a slightly slow start. Most owners won’t be willing to get rid of him just yet, but that doesn’t mean you can’t offer a trade that gives your D a slight boost. I love Andrea Markov, but I would have no problem selling high on Markov to get Phaneuf in return. It isn’t that Phaneuf isn’t helping owners, he actually is playing OK, but if you are ever going to have a chance to get the best fantasy defenseman, the time is now. No other defenseman will combine his offensive talent with PIM like Phaneuf.
Marty Turco, G, Dallas Stars: Turco is by far the biggest disappointment during this young season. This is a mirage. Go out and get Turco and by no means should you trade him away. He is at his lowest value in years. Goalies don’t all of a sudden become this bad. He is fighting the puck right now, but it won’t continue. This may not turn around immediately but it will turn around. Go ask former C.C. Sabathia owners how they felt watching him be the best pitcher in baseball after May. Turco is the Sabathia of the 08-09 NHL season. If you can combine Turco with another upper-echelon goalie, then you should be set all season.
Minnesota and Edmonton Players: This is more of a notice to hold onto your various Oilers and Wild players than to go out and get them. Take a look at the standings when making your decisions. Oilers and Wild have only played 4 games, the least in the league. While 4 games played does not sound like a big difference than 5 games, it is a huge difference. It is very difficult to get into rhythm with just 4 games in two weeks. There is a reason you are seeing a lot more Rangers (9 games played) picked up and players from the Oilers and Wild being dropped. There just isn’t enough of a sample size or a consistent game schedule to get a good read on these teams. I have seen Ales Hemsky inexplicably dropped and I quickly capitalized. The owner saw 4 assists and wasn’t impressed even though that is an average of a point per game. Wait on most of the Minnesota and Edmonton players until we see more.
Sell, Sell, Sell
Aaron Voros, LW, New York Rangers: Voros is filling the vacancy left by Sean Avery’s departure to the Dallas Stars, however he is no Sean Avery. He doesn’t have the menace abilities or the hockey skills to do what Avery does. Many are drawing comparisons between the two, but Voros will not provide as many PIM nor will he put up close to 50 points. I expect about 120 PIM and around 35 or 40 points. This stat line is only borderline useful. Sell an owner on his hot start and that he will be sure to rack up PIM. However, if all you need is PIM and you have an excellent offensive foundation, Voros is worth holding onto. Just don’t trade for him; he will never be more expensive. (Also, see above, he has played 9 games, 2 more than any other team.)
Anti Miettinen, RW, Minnesota Wild: I know, I know, I just told you to hold onto your Wild and Oilers. Miettinen is the exception. Are you telling me that a player without much of a pedigree and in three full season has never reached 35 points can all of a sudden become a point-per-game player? Miettinen is off to scorching start and this may be a result of increased ice time because of Gaborik’s injuries. The Wild also aren’t known for the offense. I have no doubt Miettinen will improve on his career high of 34 points, but I really can’t see him putting up more than 60. Sell while you can and pick up a legitimate goal scorer.
Andy McDonald, C, St. Louis Blues: I have always been a big Andy Mac fan but I jus can’t see him keeping up his current pace. Right now he is on pace to put up 114 points. St. Louis is off to a hot start at 4-1. Neither of these will continue. St. Louis is an improving team but will be fortunate to make the playoffs. Andy McDonald will be dependable, but he isn’t a point-per-game kind of guy. Expect something a lot closer to 65-70 points, mostly assists. Also, St. Louis is going to give up a lot of goals, I expect a +/- around -10, which can hurt pretty bad. Don’t go dropping Andy, but I wouldn’t be targeting him in any trades and would try to sell high on the fast start.
Ales Kotalik, RW, Buffalo Sabres: Kotalik is another player off to a hot start without much a track record to back it up. He has topped 60 points only once in five full NHL seasons and he did it 3 years ago. He will probably get you about 20-25 goals and the same amount of assists. He has always been known to be streaky and this is one of those streaks. Try to sell him on the basis that he is getting huge power play minutes and will get plenty of ice time with Vanek. If you can’t sell him, ride out this hot streak but don’t be afraid to drop him when he cools off.
As with any SportsJudge.com article, feel free to post a comment or question. Until next week, The Puck Stops Here.
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