Fantasy Hockey 2011: Trade Targets

by stephenkaczmar on Nov 23, 2011 10:04 AM EST in Hockey

Buy Low

With all the hype surrounding Tuukka Rask it seems these days, it may be a good idea to swoop in on the Vezina winner of a year ago - Timmy T. He's starting to catch fire, grab him asap if you still can because we all know what he can do. He may not be playing a ton of games, but when he does he has shut-out potential.

Ales Hemsky - Edmonton Oilers

With the kids running the show in Edmonton, Ales Hemsky seems slightly of an after-thought in Oil Country. Never fear however, he's still putting up points and shooting the puck well. He's playing with less pressure and its translating into a more comfortable game. I'd trade for him.

Mikko Koivu - Minnesota Wild

13 points in 20 games isn't what many fans in Minnesota were hoping for, especially with all the help coming in from San Jose. Despite the Wild playing good hockey, it hasn't translated into great numbers for Mikko. I still think he could still come close to that point per game pace.

Sell High

Niklas Backstrom - Minnesota Wild

After struggling the last two seasons in Minnesota, Niklas Backstrom has quietly once again emerged with better numbers. His numbers speak for themselves, .935 save percentage & a cool 1.97 goals against. Sounds pretty sweet right? But how long can the Minnesota Wild keep this up? Shop him around and see if you can get a safer goalie.

Steve Montador - Chicago Blackhawks

A few days ago Steve was on my pick-up list, now if you have him great. See if you can can flip the stay-at-home defenceman for a top pairing defender that plays power-play minutes. His points per game have been impressive as of late and there may be GM's out there who think he will continue this pace. He won't.

Shawn Horcoff - Edmonton Oilers

For the first time in a long time, Shawn Horcoff has fantasy value. Here is your chance to flip him for value. He's played good, border-line great hockey for the Oilers this season. Despite his critics, this season is the closest he's come to justifying his contract. Sell him now.

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Comments

How does one “buy low” on the 6th ranked (yahoo) player and #1 ranked goalie? He’s got a 1.77/.938 line. He’s been playing well all year, and is only starting to get wins now because the forwards and d are scoring.

Also, what hype is there around Rask? That was last year. Now he’s being counted on to be a really good back up and a strong starter after Tim Thomas leaves the Bruins.

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by CoolJ90 on Nov 23, 2011 6:09 PM EST reply actions

Thomas’ value hinges on how well Rask plays. Boston came out at the start of the season and stated that they would split starts between the two. There was a recent window of 8 games where Rask started 4 of them. Rask is arguably the best back-up in the league, his hype is his talent.

Most teams drafted Thomas to be there #2 keeper, so teams could be looking to sell him for something safer because it seems like Rask is starting to earn more starts. Even though that may be true that’s where I believe Thomas will still end up as top-5 goalie because of his games played to wins ratio and shut-out ability.

by stephenkaczmar on Nov 23, 2011 10:40 PM EST reply actions

Thomas’ value doesn’t hinge too much on Rask’s play as he is clearly the #1. He will not have the most starts in the league because he’s 37 and had a hip problem 2 years ago. His past 3 seasons have seem him as a top 5 goalie in 2, and an average starter in the other. He plays for a team that should beat Buffalo and Toronto for the division title, and still looks like he’s one of the top 5 goalies in the world. The only way you could buy low on him right now is if you have a manager who thinks he’ll either post a 2.40+ GAA the rest of the season, or is due for another hip injury. Otherwise, it’s impossible to buy low on the top performing goalie in the league.

Now if you put Luongo, Ward or Miller there, then that would be a different story all together.

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by CoolJ90 on Nov 24, 2011 12:04 AM EST up reply actions

Luongo yes, the other two no

Neither Ward nor Miller have put up multiple seasons if greatness like Luongo has. Both are reliant on one particular season that people keep dreaming will happen again. I’ll bet against it.

Second, you are totally right on Thomas. I have no clue who would be selling the best goalie we have seen in a while.

by dudedudedude on Nov 24, 2011 12:16 AM EST up reply actions

Every GM is different, and there will be a GM out there who owns Thomas that will be looking to sell for the reasons you mentioned.

A clear #1 goalie in this league plays about 60+ games in the regular season, I don’t think Thomas will get to that. Sure, Thomas is the clear cut starter after great performances but because of his age, health issues – that can all change quickly.

I like Thomas in leagues that reward shut-outs.

by stephenkaczmar on Nov 24, 2011 12:17 AM EST reply actions

Exactly. But a person looking to move him with that line of thinking is trying to sell high.

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by CoolJ90 on Nov 24, 2011 1:13 AM EST up reply actions

Health, age, back-up pressure, a great situation to sell high. If I have him on my roster, I keep him. If I need a goalie, I’d mention to a GM that owns him the above reasons and see if they’d budge on dealing him. But don’t overpay. That’s what I meant by buy low.

by stephenkaczmar on Nov 24, 2011 8:40 AM EST reply actions

Why sell Thomas if he could be a top 5 fantasy keeper all season long. There will be always be GM’s looking to deal him regardless of his play, you can use the age/health factor in trade negotiation process.

by stephenkaczmar on Nov 24, 2011 8:44 AM EST reply actions