#fantasy-hockey

#fantasy-hockey

I get it now, the appeal of four-team leagues. Fast draft, every pick a star, no digging through the scraps. I ended up with five of my personally ranked top seven blueliners, including drafting Thomas Harley to a bench spot. Obviously I'll need these defenders to help prop up a slightly weaker forward group, but to make up for that, I prioritized players who have a high ceiling, rather than safe floor: Macklin Celebrini, Connor Bedard, Dylan Guenther, Wyatt Johnston and Dylan Holloway.

Breakouts on the blue line don't always announce themselves the way forwards do. Instead of sudden scoring spikes, defenders can rack up value quietly through ice time, power-play deployment and underlying physical stats that translate to fantasy points. Not every blueliner breaking into the fray is going to be anything close to a Cale Makar, but spotting when a young defender is ready to step into an expanded role can give you a real edge in drafts.

While not statistically impossible, it's exceptionally difficult to win at fantasy hockey without a strong goaltending force. Not only are several categories the responsibility of few figures, toss in the negative integers "earned" by allowing too many goals, and substandard netminding showings can significantly dent your chances of success in all varieties of leagues. For instance, in ESPN's standard game, a goalie who stops 28 of 30 shots in a 4-2 win produces 5.6 prized points.