T.S.O. - 3 Keys to Fantasy Dominance

[bills09]

Let this be known that I did not write this nor claim to have written this but I found it interesting and useful.

[Three Keys to Fantasy Dominance]
No matter what type of fantasy pool you are in. No matter if you are preparing for the initial draft, and expansion draft, supplemental draft or mid season trades and roster adds/drops, these three key concepts will help guide you towards fantasy pool supremacy among your peers.

Identifying Talent
Watching a lot of hockey is your best means of identifying talent. Sure it is much less time consuming to buy a new stand magazine like McKeens or the Forecaster (the two best by far) or get an on line ranking from a website like fantasyhockeycoach.com or dobberhockey.com and they will help. But seeing a player with your own eyes is the most reliable means of finding talent. Watching lots and lots of NHL hockey is the most important way to understand how a player will perform in the NHL. There have been countless players who dominated other leagues but failed to translate that success into NHL success. Watching players in the NHL allows you to see how well certain players compare against others in regards to different skill sets. such as; Skating ability, shooting, passing, and hitting. Get as much information that you can from online and print media to help you talent analysis, but watch the games yourself. Not a pro scout you say. Not sure what to look for? Perhaps this will help.

Scouting
Gus Katsaros who scouts and writes for Mckeens once told me "when scouting a player look for the four S's. Skating, Speed, Skill, and Smarts. Players who posses all four are elite superstars like Sidney Crosby. A player who has three is a star like Jason Spezza. Players who demonstrate only two are valuable better than average players such as David Backes. If a player only has one, no matter how good he is at it, he is not likely to pan out to a top tier player. Therefore not worthy of you serious consideration. A good example of this is Rob Schremp. Schremp has lots and lots of talent but little else to go with it. Lets take a closer look at the four S's.

What to look for in terms of skating. Foot speed and agility or balance. There is a difference between quickness and speed. Don't be fooled by a player who is quick down low or in the corners to thinking he is fast. As for Agility, is he smooth skating backwards and laterally?

Smarts or hockey sense are if he makes good plays consistently. Or does he turn the puck over by making blind drop passes at the blue line (Jason Spezza). Does he get position on defenders, find open ice, create picks making room for team mates or just stand around waiting for something to happen. Is he leading the play or following it?

Skill is easier to notice. Goals and assists stats are a clear indication that players like Steven Stamkos have skill! But look for more subtle details. Can he make and receive hard smooth passes consistently? Does he take, and win key face-offs? Can he stick-handle and deek past defenders and on shoot outs? Can he handle the puck while skating at top speed?

Speed is perhaps the most obvious to notice. Does he have elite level speed that allows him to separate himself from or catch up to other players?

Opportunity
Knowing a players talent level is important, but the opportunity he currently has to work with is a significant influence on his value. Tyler Seguin is supremely talented but a little buried on a deep Boston bruins depth chart for example. Look at the teams depth chart (thn.com) and understand what opportunities he will have. Top six forward or top four defender? Starting goalie or back up? Will he see any time on the power play? Is the team he plays on any good or will his plus/minus bring down his value? Is he an over priced declining veteran fighting off younger, more talented prospects?

Talent, scouting, and opportunity are three key factors you need to constantly be analyzing from your initial draft and on to be best prepared to make the most informed decisions in managing your fantasy roster. It is not easy. It is time consuming. It is also fun, but most of all, it works! And the reward of being champion at the end of the season is more rewarding than any prize money you will win. Good luck!

[Tony]

But ... does Scott agree? If not this has no value ...

[MSP4LYFE]

Watch hockey and measure value vs. opportunity...I NEVER WOULD HAVE GUESSED. This is some revolutionary shit Billy, thanks for sharing.

[bills09]

Watch hockey and measure value vs. opportunity...I NEVER WOULD HAVE GUESSED. This is some revolutionary shit Billy, thanks for sharing.

cool story bro, I didnt write it.

[Nick]

Thanks for posting Billy, more information is always welcome.

Don't worry about Kareem, it's that time of the month (as a CC member you can see he's just PMS-ing everywhere).

[Monk]

Thanks for posting Billy, more information is always welcome.

Don't worry about Kareem, it's that time of the month (as a CC member you can see he's just PMS-ing everywhere).

Kareem has a point its pretty standard stuff. Scott's tips on the other hand are helpful

[Scott]

Thanks for posting Billy, more information is always welcome.

Don't worry about Kareem, it's that time of the month (as a CC member you can see he's just PMS-ing everywhere).

Kareem has a point its pretty standard stuff. Scott's tips on the other hand are helpful

I wrote 100% my strategy and how I approach fantasy hockey. I'm glad, if you are being genuine, that they are helpful.

[Monk]

Thanks for posting Billy, more information is always welcome.

Don't worry about Kareem, it's that time of the month (as a CC member you can see he's just PMS-ing everywhere).

Kareem has a point its pretty standard stuff. Scott's tips on the other hand are helpful

I wrote 100% my strategy and how I approach fantasy hockey. I'm glad, if you are being genuine, that they are helpful.

I am being genuine and I do think they are helpful although they are not suited to everyone's needs but regardless you can always learn something from and try to adapt in some part to your own

Edit: my second point which I initially forgot to make was that your tips actually show a practical approach of the steps you can take to better your team where as the points posted by the op tell you nothing

[Robin Hood]

Nice post Billy. Never harmed to read anything even if its old school stuff.

That being said, Kareem is right. And IMO that post does not address what it takes to win in this league. It's more for casual leagues with fewer stat categories like Yahoo. Our league takes a whole different mind-set.

Those who hate on Scott's posts, should really pay attention. A lot of stuff he writes is key to winning, yet it seems most teams in this league ignore it. There is a reason 8-10 teams have been at the top of this league since the beginning.

[MSP4LYFE]

Thanks for posting Billy, more information is always welcome.

Don't worry about Kareem, it's that time of the month (as a CC member you can see he's just PMS-ing everywhere).

It was a sarcastic jab at Billy, and he threw it right back at me... Not sure what your problem is, perhaps a rose colored leak?

To echo what others have said, I agree, Scott's advice, though controversial and (arguably) egotistical were helpful. You don't dominate this league two years running without knowing a little something about fantasy hockey.

[Scott]

I think I took a very pro-active approach at bragging, amirite?

[Nick]

thataboy.

I still believe there are two things that hurt BBKL teams more then any lack of vision/plan:
-the concept of Line 1 (and related-->line 4, bottom pairing)
-the concept of rebuilding (particularly through youth/draft)


Watching games (and not just highlights) is also rather helpful, hindsight arguments on point production are usually too late, and often miss the point - is it a hot/cold streak or is the guy actually playing that way.

Just a final comment in this post -> some stats need to be checked, as physical play, shot blocking, and +/- can sometimes seem somewhat random compared to the players play, not entirely, just the magnitude of it occurring.