Yahoo Sports Fantasy Hockey Draft: How to choose between the biggest superstars at every position
By Sasha Yodashkin, RotoWire
Special to Yahoo Sports
We’ve all been there: left with a seat too far back in the draft, where the first-round fantasy picks aren’t cut and dried, or paralyzed in an auction by having so many stars available to you that the choice isn’t clear. It’s not always easy to differentiate between the league’s elite players, so allow me do the heavy lifting by comparing and contrasting your top choices at every position.
[Yahoo Fantasy Hockey leagues are open: Sign up now for free]
Center
Connor McDavid vs. Sidney Crosby
There’s not much of a debate to be had here. Crosby may not even be the best center on his own team, while the 21-year-old McDavid is primed to widen the gap even further after leading the league in points each of the past two seasons. The Pittsburgh center benefits from a stronger supporting cast, but he’s broken 90 points just once in the past eight seasons. Meanwhile, McDavid’s coming off consecutive campaigns with at least 100. You’re doing yourself a disservice by taking anyone other than the Edmonton pivot with the first overall selection in pretty much any format.
Right Wing
Nikita Kucherov vs. Patrik Laine
The 25-year-old Kucherov has seen his point total rise in each of his first five NHL seasons, with that number jumping from 85 in 2016-17 to 100 last year. That most recent improvement can be attributed to skating alongside a healthy Steven Stamkos for the entire campaign, as Stamkos dressed for 78 games in 2017-18 after playing in only 17 contests the previous year.
Laine will have trouble matching Kucherov’s gaudy point totals, but the Finnish sniper has 80 goals in his first two seasons to the Russian’s 79 in that same span. Laine will likely push for 50 goals in Year 3, but Kucherov should be the better overall fantasy asset as long as both he and Stamkos stay healthy.
[Make sports predictions to win cash prizes with Yahoo Fantasy Slate. Play for free]
Alex Ovechkin vs. Taylor Hall
Ovie proved doubters wrong both on the ice and in the fantasy realm last year, bouncing back from a disappointing 33-goal campaign by coming one tally short of topping 50 for the eighth time en route to his first Stanley Cup. Hall brought home some hardware of his own in the form of the Hart Trophy as the league’s MVP last season, but he was given that award in large part because of the stark contrast between his production and that of his weak supporting cast. The former Oilers winger will still have to work much harder to score since Nico Hischier has a long way to go before he’s regarded anywhere near Evgeny Kuznetsov or Nicklas Backstrom in terms of playmaking ability.
While Hall’s probably going to finish with more points, Ovechkin should provide more total value considering he’s the favorite to lead the league in both goals and shots for the umpteenth time after doing so last season. Hall’s late-April surgery to repair torn ligaments in his left hand is also a non-factor in this discussion, as he’s been completely recovered on that front since late June. Some will probably clamor for Brad Marchand’s inclusion here after consecutive 85-point campaigns, but he doesn’t approach Hall’s shot volume. Not to mention, Marchand’s repeat offender status could lead to a lengthy suspension if the NHL ever decides to actually crack down on one of its dirtiest players.
Defensemen
Victor Hedman vs. Brent Burns
Fantasy value is inextricably tied to a player’s supporting cast — especially for defensemen, who have a much harder time creating goals on their own than forwards do. Hedman enjoys the best of both worlds, as the reigning Norris Trophy winner can make things happen with the best of them, but also benefits from playing on a stacked Lightning team that just led the league with 3.54 goals per game. He’s accrued 33 goals, 135 points and 382 shots over the past two seasons, so nobody would be faulted for taking him as the first defenseman off the board. That said, Burns is my pick to finish as the top fantasy defenseman this season.
After back-to-back campaigns with at least 27 goals and 75 points, Burns dropped to just 12 goals and 67 points last year. It’s easy to say the 33-year-old is simply declining, but a closer look suggests a bounce-back campaign is likely in the cards. Burns’ 332 shots on goal last season were three back of Tyler Seguin for second in the entire league, but the career 7.1-percent shooter converted at a career-low 3.6 after finishing the previous two years at 7.6 and 9.1. Despite that poor luck, Burns’ 41 goals, 143 points and 652 shots in the last two seasons compare favorably to Hedman’s aforementioned output over that span. Hedman’s undeniably a stronger performer in the rating category, but Burns’ higher offensive ceiling is too tantalizing to pass up when picking between the two. San Jose’s addition of Erik Karlsson should only help Burns, as it gives him another elite offensive player with whom to share the ice. Karlsson isn’t at Burns’ level as a goal-scorer and could need an adjustment period, which is why he narrowly missed entering this conversation himself.
Goalie
Connor Hellebuyck vs. Andrei Vasilevskiy
These guys led the league with 44 wins each last year, and both are in excellent position to approach that total once again given the tremendous teams around them. Vasilevskiy’s 24 years old and Hellebuyck’s 25, so age-related decline isn’t a factor, either. Hellebuyck’s 2.36 GAA and .924 save percentage in last year’s breakout campaign were easily superior to Vasilevskiy’s 2.62 and .920 marks, giving him the nod.
At the end of the day, their easy path to victories and room for further growth separate these two from the field in net. Sergei Bobrovsky has built a strong case for himself over the past two seasons as well, but his checkered injury history, murky contract situation and Columbus’ less formidable roster present more potential barriers compared to the incumbents in Winnipeg and Tampa Bay.
