Ice Report

Not So Ordinary Predictions

We all know who will be the fantasy MVP this season (Ovechkin?).  How about the top goalie (Luongo)?  No doubt Mike Green will be the top ranked defenseman.  So instead of sounding like a broken record and telling you what you already know, here are your “not so ordinary” predictions for the 2009-2010 NHL fantasy season.

Top sleeper of the year will be: ANZE KOPITAR (LA – C)

            It’s not often you’ll find a player who scores 27 goals with 66 points as your sleeper pick of the season, but this is exactly where Kopitar finds himself this season.  The fact of the matter is that he plays for the Los Angeles Kings (a team that gets little exposure playing on the West Coast), and he gets buried in a deep crop of centers that are ranked higher than him.  Defining a sleeper, it’s a player who is seriously undervalued at the position he’s drafted, and ends up overachieving for where he was selected.  That sums up Anze Kopitar for you.  He’ll improve even more this season, especially playing on a top line with newcomers Ryan Smyth and Justin Williams.  He’s bound to become a household NHL name this year.

Other notables: MIKKO KOIVU (Min – C), BLAKE WHEELER (Bos - RW)

Comeback player of the year will be: PAUL STASTNY (Col – C)

            Injuries have crippled this kid early in his career.  The past 3 years Stastny goes like this: 82 games played in 2006-07, then 66 the following year, and only 45 last year.  Whether it’s simply a string of bad luck, unfortunately he can’t stay healthy.  Reports out of Avalanche camp say he’s ready to go, and if past stats are a precursor for any trends, you’re looking at point-per-game player if he can play a full season.  Stastny has some experienced wingers at his disposal in Milan Hejduk and Marek Svatos, and with rookie Matt Duschene potentially on the scene, things should open up on the ice for him.  I expect a 70+ point season, perhaps even more as he continues to grow as a player on a young rebuilding team.

Other notables: BRENDEN MORROW (Dal – LW), TOMAS KABERLE (Tor – D)

Breakout superstar of the year will be: STEVEN STAMKOS (TB – C)

            Keeping on trend with the deep pool of centers in the league, Stamkos has already raised some eyebrows, and is ready this year to fully elevate to “top tier” status with a breakout campaign.  All the writing is on the wall here.  The former no.1 pick of the Lightning will play behind Vincent Lecavalier; no better center to act as a shadow behind – thus facing less attention from opposing teams.  He has an abundance of wingers to potentially line up with, whether it being Marty St. Louis or Alex Tanguay or Ryan Malone.  Stamkos is a natural goal scorer, and playing on an improved Lightning squad will provide him ample opportunity to put together an excellent season that will far exceed the spot he’ll be taken in your leagues.

Other notables: BOBBY RYAN (Ana – RW), ERIK JOHNSON (Stl – D)

Goalie to watch out for this year will be: RAY EMERY (Phi – G)

            After a one year banishment to Russia, Emery has finally found employment in North America – and what a great landing place.  The 5 year NHL vet signed a deal to play with the Philadelphia Flyers who are expected to contend for the Stanley Cup.  The team shored up its defense by acquiring all-pro defenseman Chris Pronger, while already boasting one of the NHL’s top offenses and best defensive forwards in captain Mike Richards.  To sum it all up, Emery is in a great position in Philly to win a lot of games, and rack up the solid goaltending stats you expect in an elite goalie.  Remember it was not too long ago that Emery led the Ottawa Senators to the Stanley Cup Final.  Bad attitude or not, the guy can stop the puck, and remains great draft day value because he won’t be one of the first goaltenders taken in your draft (but might perform like one).

Other notables: CAREY PRICE (Mon – G), MIKE SMITH (TB – G)

Best off-season acquisition will be: DANY HEATLEY (SJ – LW)

            Conventional wisdom states that Dany Heatley will have a hard time adjusting to life without center Jason Spezza feeding him the puck.  Only one issue here, he moves on to big Joe Thornton!  Forget the fact that Spezza is a right hand shot and Thornton is a left and that’ll require some adjusting for Heater; that’s bogus.  The only adjusting Heatley will require is developing some chemistry with his new all-star and Olympic playmaking center.  Add Devin Setoguchi to that combo and you arguably have the most deadly line combination on one of the deepest teams in the NHL.  Dany Heatley is a natural 50-goal scorer.  Remove him from the limelight of Ottawa into the obscurity of San Jose, he’ll have more time to focus on the game with less distractions.  Hate him or love him, but Dany Heatley is primed to return to 1^st round fantasy status.

Other notables: MARIAN GABORIK (NYR - RW), SCOTT GOMEZ (Mon – C)

Fantasy rookie/young star of the year will be: JOHN TAVARES (NYI – C)

No surprise here.  Not since Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby entered the league has there been such hype around a top draft choice.  Tavares lit up the OHL on route to become one of the most prolific junior players ever, and his success should continue into the NHL.  He’ll clearly endure some rookie growing pains, especially playing for the lowly Islanders.  However, the team appears to be on the right track, and with Tavares as the centerfold they gain instant credibility.  It’s rare a rookie can come into the league at 18 years old and produce immediately, but Tavares has that potential to rack up some points and create a buzz on Long Island.  Bad plus/minus, but he should score plenty of goals.  Other notables: CLAUDE GIROUX (Phi – RW), MATT DUCHENE (Col – C)