Choosing Players

A few simple rules:

1) Every team has a leader

Note that while some teams have a leader that's easy to predict (Sundin, Lecavalier), if you scroll through the ESPN roster, you'll find a few surprises. If you're reading this, Nick, check out Prospal, who's currently tied with Lecavalier.

2) Some players do well even when the team does not.

Commentators have pointed out that Sundin's having a great year even though Toronto is not, on the other hand Pittsburgh appears to require Crosby to do well. In San Jose, Thornton should be scoring more and San Jose is suffering as a result. On the other hand, Dumont and Arnott had a good game during their team's 7-4 loss to Calgary.

Look for players who will produce points even when their team loses.

The one exception is the +/- stat. Your players, especially your Defence, will do well in this stat if the team wins and do poorly if the team loses.



3) The Goalies are particularly dependent on team performance.

Chris Mason is an astonishingly good goalie but his numbers don't always reflect that. Budaj has had a tough time but did well in the Olympics. Lundqvist is a gold medal goalie but the Rangers D is not as good as Team Sweden.


4) Check ice time. A player who is respected by his coach will get good ice time. A player who is not respected by his coach will lose ice time. Ice time -- and especially time on the power play -- are key to a good performance in a fantasy league.