Faceoff Factor

Write Back At Ya

Michael Farkas | Fantasy Corner

Sep 27, 12:04 AM | Hype this story!

Fantasy hockey season is upon us and we at Faceoff Factor are going to help you make all your tough fantasy hockey decisions throughout the year and, as always, bring you the latest updates from around the league. This will be the introductory segment that depends solely on you, the readers, interaction.

We will field any questions you have (not limited to just fantasy hockey either, questions about the CBA, salary cap, etc. are in play as well). Contact information will be provided at the bottom of this page.

Question: On the left side, who would you rather have, Kings winger Kyle Calder or Taylor Pyatt from Vancouver?
Also, what is the status of Minnesota Wild defenseman Petteri Nummelin? Is he going home?
And finally, with the recent acquisitions of Souray, Pitkanen and Grebeshkov, what is the status of Dick Tarnstrom with the Oilers…will he still get power play time?
Matt from Vancouver, British Columbia

Michael Farkas: Taylor Pyatt has a good shot of playing with the Sedin’s, which makes him very palatable but he doesn’t have the higher end ceiling. Kyle Calder was a colossal disappointment in the first half of last season, but managed to pick it up late. He’s looked great in the preseason so far and has the highest potential, but he’s also the bigger risk. I personally start the season with Calder, but keep your mouse pointer close to Pyatt just in case the Sedin’s cause him to get hot.

Nummelin was signed to a two-year deal, despite rumors, he will start the season with the Wild. However, I think he can look forward to a diminished role with the team, especially with the expected breakout of Brent Burns. Unless your league counts shootout stats, I would leave Nummelin to the waiver wire.

The only reason why Tarnstrom isn’t a healthy scratch is because he’s making nearly $2 million this year. He brings nothing but offense, Souray brings nothing but offense, Pitkanen brings pretty much nothing but offense. Grebeshkov has a solid all around game and Jarret Stoll can play the point on the power play. Tarnstrom is going to have to be amazing offensively to keep a regular spot in the lineup.

Adam Jennings: I would go with Calder, but it’s very close. I wouldn’t be surprised if Pyatt takes a step-up, but I think that he is still a season or two away from that. Calder, who is two years older, has four seasons of 15+ goals. Pyatt has only one, which came last year. For this season, I see Calder putting up 55+ pts. Pyatt should have somewhere around 45.

As far as I can tell he will be with the Wild this year. He played in the Wild’s last game against Chicago, playing 22 minutes and tallying an assist.

As long as he continues to be healthy, I would picture him getting a chance on the top unit. At least, he should have a lot of time on the second unit. It seems to me, Pitkanen and Tarnstrom are interchangeable on the first unit. So I would expect Edmonton

Q: Do you think Minnesota Wild defenseman Brent Burns is a guy that can end the season with 35 points or so, with some of that chipped in on the PP? I am certain that he is going to have a solid +/- and SOG...
Also, for a keeper league, would you suggest going for the win right now, by picking a Sakic, Lidstrom, etc. or develop of a team around Michael Cammalleri, Brad Richards or Eric Staal? What do you guys think?
Joe from Montana

MF: Brent Burns is my number one “must-get that nobody knows about” this season. He oozes offensive potential, he plays defense and on the wing and he’s still very young on a surprisingly talented Minnesota team. Make sure you get him, I think he can get 45 or 50 points this season.

I always pick younger players in a keeper league, I figure you can win with Eric Staal or Joe Sakic. The only difference is, Staal will be there 10 years down the road, Sakic will not. I always go for the younger players.

AJ: As current Kansas City Chiefs coach Herm Edwards once said, “you play to win the game.” Just like the Thrashers did last year, push your chips all-in and get a top player. It’s tough to tell everything about your team just from those three players, but I would keep Cammalleri, as he keeps getting better and make a run at Lidstrom, as he should have a couple more years being a top 5 defenseman. Lidstrom should be able to anchor anyone’s D statistics. But, it really depends on the rest of your roster.

Q: What do you guys think of my goalies: Emery, Kolzig, and Legace...Peter Budaj and Jason LaBarbera are available, would you recommend getting one of them and dropping one of these guys? What if I can trade for Henrik Lundqvist?
Also, should I consider drafting Rangers forward Petr Prucha, or Blackhawks center Tuomo Ruutu?
Quinn from Aylmer, Ontario

MF: I’m not a big Emery fan, and it’s quite possible Gerber takes his job back this season. All that aside, fantasy-wise, he’s fine because of that defense in front of him. I would trade him while his value is high though. Kolzig has played well on a bad team and now that team is better, I’m hesitant to lose him, but he’s probably the one that should go. Peter Budaj stood on his head the last 20 games of last season and flew under the radar throughout his minor league career, he’s a legit goalie and it’s unfathomable that he went undrafted. Lundqvist is a top five or seven NHL goalie, definitely grab him if the price is even remotely reasonable.
In deeper leagues, grab Ruutu and Prucha, especially Ruutu (despite his injury proneness). Smaller leagues need not apply for these two generally.

AJ: If I were you I’d dump Kolzig and pick up Budaj. We have Budaj ranked at 16 on the top 50 goaltenders, while Kolzig comes in at 24. As for the other two, Legace could easily post better numbers as St. Louis has improved. Emery should give you wins, but some other categories he might hurt you. If you have a chance to pick up Lundqvist, I would make the deal. Lundqvist’s first two seasons are virtually identical and we have him ranked at number 4. He’s no Brodeur or Luongo, but he is in the next best thing and will stabilize your team’s goalie numbers. A trio of Lundqvist, Legace and Budaj should put you in the top 4 in your leagues’ goalie numbers. Meanwhile, Emery, Kolzig and Legace will put you in the bottom 4.

I would only draft one of these two in a deeper league. Prucha is in a tough spot. He is a skilled player, but a critical blow to his fantasy value is he isn’t a top option for the Rangers anymore. Prucha scored 16 points on the power play last year, I don’t think he’ll be given the opportunity to do that again this year. Ruutu, is a lot better option. The Blackhawks should be much improved, which in turn will raise Ruutu’s points to somewhere around 50. He also won’t kill your +/- rating. In comparison to Prucha, Ruutu will give you a huge advantage in PIMs.

Have a tough fantasy decision to make? Need help understanding the CBA or salary cap? Wondering what happened to a player that played on your favorite team? E-mail us, we’ll get you an answer! E-mail: mikey287@comcast.net