Frozen Fantasy: Welcome Back

I'm more excited about this season than I've been in a while. There's comfort in the sound of skates cutting the ice. And pucks hitting sticks.

And unrealistic dreams. 

You know the type. Every team on the ice thinks they can win this year. Except San Jose, of course. Thankfully ever the realists.

Managers in my many drafts have been chirping about future success. I get bravado, but like you, I have no idea what they were thinking when they picked their teams. 

Like a dynasty redraft I was in. Based on player availability, Rasmus Dahlin (100 percent Yahoo!) was the head-and-shoulders second-best pick on the table. Yet Zach Hyman (100 percent Yahoo!) got selected. I like Hyman and all, but...

It reminded me of a junior draft last year where I traded up to grab Connor Bedard (98 percent Yahoo!). I also had pick six. Matvei Michkov (74 percent Yahoo!) should never have been on the table when I got there... 

Back to the ice. We've already seen the things we've all expected. Patrik Laine (41 percent Yahoo!) is hurt (again). Teams are hiding injuries - Luke Hughes (71 percent Yahoo!) and Thatcher Demko (95 percent Yahoo!), among many. 

How does that even happen with social media trolls? But I digress…

And then there's the big question: has 23 become the new 31? And not when it comes to contracts. In the past, we'd load up on the hope of the young and drop 31-year-olds down our lists unless they were true stars. 

But now, those at 23 who haven't fully reached their potential are dismissed. They're passed by a younger, shiner toy, and their roles are suddenly limited. Fantasy managers often look elsewhere. 

Like Connor McMichael (1 percent Yahoo!). And the now-24 Barrett Hayton (7 percent Yahoo!). Were they really that overrated as younger players? Or is their potential still high, but their development curve more gradual?

I don't have the answers. I think the days of a Brad Marchand (96 percent Yahoo!) blossom are over. Maybe Connor Ingram (67 percent Yahoo!) at 27 can be a semi-star. Or maybe not.

In any event, welcome back. Drop the puck. 

Let's take a look at who's been on my mind this week. 

(Yahoo! percentages pulled Oct. 6)

Viktor Arvidsson, LW, Edmonton (50 percent Yahoo!) - Arvidsson and Jeff Skinner (82 percent Yahoo!) joined the Cup finalists as their top-six wing upgrades. That alone should catapult both into elite rostership. They're slotted alongside Leon Draisaitl (100 percent Yahoo!) and both know how to shoot. Arvidsson rarely stays healthy, yet still finds a way to fire plenty of pucks and produce points. And he's arguably playing with his best center ever. I smell a career year ahead, even if he only gets second power-play time. 

Tyson Barrie, D, Calgary (1 percent Yahoo!) - Does Barrie have anything left in the tank? The Flames seem to think so. Barrie is a one-way defender covered in warts, though he can help them and you if he receives power-play time. That's a big if because MacKenzie Weegar (98 percent Yahoo!) is the top-unit guy. But watch what Barrie can do with the second group. There's a huge caveat emptor here - Barrie is unrosterable in formats where plus-minus still counts. He's the kind of defender who'll erase any good he brings with his zebra mussel-crusted anchor. 

Michael Bunting, LW, Pittsburgh (28 percent Yahoo!) – Not every player can work with a star. You'll know exactly what I mean if you've laced up the skates. Some people with lots of talent never click with the team's best player, but other lesser-talented skaters rise up. That's Bunting, who proved he could team up with Auston Matthews (100 percent Yahoo!) a few seasons ago and who's on Evgeni Malkin's (58 percent Yahoo!) left flank this year. Geno isn't the star he used to be, though he's still good enough to be a second-line pivot at 38. Bunting will benefit, likely to the tune of 55 points or more. The depth of your league will dictate if that'll help you.

Seamus Casey, D, New Jersey (1 percent Yahoo!) – Go YouTube the highlight of Casey's goal on Saturday in the Czechia game. I saw it live, and scrolled back several times to break it down frame-by-frame. The kid deftly toe-dragged the puck about six inches toward his feet and then wired it cheddar above Devon Levi's (11 percent Yahoo!) blocker arm. Bam! I remember one of the goalies in my men's hockey league telling me that my shot was the hardest for him to defend because I did that. In my case, it was purely out of necessity as I needed deception because I certainly wasn't going to fire it hard enough to score. Casey offers power and smarts, so deception means he's plus-plus. And he has a six-to-seven week runway with Luke Hughes (71 percent Yahoo!) on the shelf. Jersey is deep, so Casey may find himself in the AHL mid-November. Take advantage until then. 

Pierre-Luc Dubois, LW/C, Washington (24 percent Yahoo!) - Hear me out since Dubois evoked the same phlegm in my throat as it just did for you. Strip away his name for a minute and consider this: he's a second-line center who may sometimes play with Alex Ovechkin (98 percent Yahoo!) at both even-strength and the PP. Dubois is going to fire more than 200 shots and take close to 1,000 faceoffs. And he's going to score 55-60 points. I've often used that threshold to look at pivots due to positional depth. Dubois could deliver more in Washington than he ever has and will probably not slip below the second unit. They simply can't afford to do that. Yes, Dubois is a risk. But playing it safe in fantasy rarely wins you a title. At minimum, stick his name in your phone and check on him. 

Taylor Hall, LW, Chicago (15 percent Yahoo!) – Shake the image of Hall as Hart winner out of your mind and replace it with the picture of him as a 61-point winger just three seasons removed. Hall is only 32, even though it seems like he's an old man. He's on the second line behind Teuvo Teravainen (37 percent Yahoo!), who earned the plum gig beside Connor Bedard (98 percent Yahoo!) for now. But remember that Teravainen is as much an injury risk as Hall, so one of them will work next to Bedard. Chicago won't be great, yet Bedard will be. And his wingman will benefit. Everyone needs a Goose (or Rooster) for their Maverick. 

Matthew Knies, LW, Toronto (29 percent Yahoo!) - Knies is riding shotgun beside Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner (both 100 percent Yahoo!), and he'll get points for simply hopping the boards. You only need to look at Michael Bunting's (see above) 63-point output when he skated with Matthews to see what might come. And Knies boasts more talent than Bunting (no offense, little penguin). 60-plus points - even with limited PP exposure - is gold in medium-to-deep leagues with positional requirements. 

Joonas Korpisalo, G, Boston (50 percent Yahoo!) - I'm not a huge fan of Korpisalo as he's burned me three or four times too many. But he's in the best position of his career. He's the temporary starter for a strong team, albeit courtesy of Jeremy Swayman's (99 percent Yahoo!) holdout. But Korpisalo had value before Swayman held out. And he'll start until Swayman gets up to speed. Boston platoons its goalies so the starter is fresh for the postseason, and that means Korpisalo was destined to get up to 35-40 outings anyway. I'm on the side of this Massachusetts team making its goalie, just like a certain Californian king. Which means that Korpisalo is a must-stash.

Kirill Marchenko, RW, Columbus (9 percent Yahoo!) - Columbus is in pain. Cripes, the whole hockey world is hurting. But the team still needs to ice a team. Marchenko is showing real chemistry with the newly-arrived Sean Monahan (13 percent Yahoo!). And he could deliver 30 goals and 60 points this season as the team's first-line right winger and pointman on PP1. Marchenko's plus-minus may be a big risk, but how many top-line wingers are ever on the wire? 

Arturs Silovs, G, Vancouver (29 percent Yahoo!) - Here's the bottom line: Thatcher Demko (95 percent Yahoo!) is day-to-day with a popliteus muscle injury in his knee. That's a funny little muscle that's hard to injure in isolation as it's usually associated with something bigger. Like a collateral or cruciate ligament injury, or a meniscal tear. Yup, big things. My gut is churning on Demko's injury because I have him in two true dynasty leagues where goalies rule the day. I hope I'm wrong. Really wrong. Get Silovs on your roster right now. This could be his golden ticket, and he might as well cash it in on your squad. 

Jordan Spence, D, Los Angeles (2 percent Yahoo!) - Drew Doughty (65 percent Yahoo!) is month-to-month after ankle surgery on Friday. He's irreplaceable, but the Kings will need a substitute on the power play. Spence and rookie Brandt Clarke (27 percent Yahoo!) will get that shot. Lots of eyes are on Clarke due to his offensive pedigree. But Spence has more tools with plenty of offensive acumen and gets the puck up efficiently skating circles around Clarke. The Kings are going to struggle without Doughty, though the forward corps is as good a two-way squad as they come. And that makes Spence a penny stock with high potential.

Back to the season.

Post your thoughts on topics we can dig into and discuss. Let's get at this!

Until next week.