Loading ...Fantasy Is Better Than Reality
It's time for hockey, so I must break you.
Now, I know that most of the readers of this site are obviously sports fans, but I’d be willing to bet dollars to donuts that most of our coveted readers probably care more about what Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag are up to than my fantasy hockey team. However, to paraphrase Ivan Drago, “When I write, I write for me! For me!” In other words, I really don’t care, but in the interest of not alienating too many people, I will try to expand coverage of my recently-drafted ’09-’10 team to include some commentary on fantasy sports in general and the upcoming NHL season (Also, stay tuned for my upcoming Flyers preview… I know we’re a bunch of homers here). So, if all the folks out there in cyber land don’t have any interest in this piece, meh, I understand, but for anyone who does, buckle up.
Oh yeah, and I’m also well aware that many people out there consider fantasy sports to be silly child’s play, but to that I say, “I know you are but what am I?” Anyway, trust me, fantasy sports are great. For example, the fantasy version of myself is currently the proud general manager and coach of both an NHL and NFL team, and on any given night I can plan, strategize and just plain root for my favorite (and unfortunately sometimes hated, you out there Patrik Elias?) pro players to do well in order to deliver me some bragging rights and a meager cash prize. I know it may sound pathetic to some, but the reality version of myself is only going to sit around the house on a Friday night, get drunk on various leftovers of summer ale, watch reruns of Charles in Charge and contemplate the pros and cons of getting a mail-order bride over the Internet. Therefore, I might as well keep myself busy, right? Right. Don’t get me wrong, anyone losing sleep at night over who to start on Randy Moss’ bye week is a total loser and should probably be forced to smell his jockstrap, but done in moderation, there’s nothing wrong with a little fantasy. Now that that’s out of the way, let’s talk draft.
So, in the spirit of having nothing better to do, I made the hour-long trek to my commish’s
Roberto Luongo: "What do you mean I don't deserve to go #1 overall? I have great hair."
house the other night with the high hopes of acquiring a championship team. Now, I’ve been fortunate enough to finish in the money in this NHL league in five of the last six years, but I’ve only taken home the crown once, so this year I really wanted to focus and do my homework. When I got there, I drew the third pick, so I was in good shape, but I could forget about Alexander Ovechkin (Incidentally, here’s a quick scoring breakdown: goals are 2 points, 3 for D-men, with bonuses for power play, short-handed and game winners, and assists are 1 point. However, goalies are HUGE in our league with 4-5 points for a win, depending on save percentage). It’s in drafters’ best interest to grab net-minders early, but Ovie is just too good to pass up for the sheer amount of goals he scores. Surprisingly, with the first overall pick, player #1 selected Roberto Luongo! Now, while not a bad pick, I didn’t even have Luongo as the #1 goalie. I was hoping player #2 would be equally ignorant, so the prized left-winger would fall in my lap, but it wasn’t to be. I ended up taking my same starting goalie from last year, Evgeni Nabokov. Remember, wins count the most and while San Jose consistently chokes in the playoffs, they’re still going to win plenty of games in the regular season.
Let me explain this selection a bit more, as many will probably criticize me for not taking Martin Brodeur or even Evgeni Malkin. I wouldn’t blame anyone for taking either player over Nabby, but I generally don’t believe in drafting a forward first. Doing the math, as long as Nabokov stays healthy, it makes more sense to take the goalie who is almost assured 40 wins than a forward who will score 100 points. Besides, there are plenty of great centers I can draft later, and the goalie talent is somewhat thin this year, as far as fantasy goes. As far as Brodeur is concerned, I’ll admit I broke my own rule. That rule is that until he shows signs of slowing down, Marty should be the first goalie off the board no matter what. However, I’m worried about the Devils this year. They lost some players, and they’re in a tough division. Conversely, San Jose should wipe the floor with the Pacific, hence my decision.
Moving on, I also must relay that I’m in a league with a bunch of fellow homers, so it should come as no surprise that people reached a little early for Flyers, except for me, of course. However, this year was a little extra ridiculous with players such as Ryan Parent even getting picked, albeit late. The worst pick of the draft? Someone actually selected James vanRiemsdyk in the 11th round, out of 24. Look, I really like the kid but he’s not even a lock to stay with the team all year, and he was taken over guys such as Martin Havlat and Patrick Marleau! I’m proud to report that I was able to snag Danny Briere in the middle rounds, though (he was the only Flyer to go around where he should have, except for maybe Scott Hartnell, selected by my buddy Jason in the later rounds). Please stay healthy, Danny. He looks fantastic in pre-season. He was the only Flyer was I able to get, but if anyone thinks I’m gonna sacrifice a championship season by pulling a groin reaching for Darroll Powe in the fifth round, then they’ve been watching Riley Cote get his head beat in for too long and are getting punch drunk by association.
Riley Cote: "What do I bring to this team, again?"
OK, so I’m not going to go on recounting the entire night, but I am curious to know what everyone thinks, so here’s my team:
At center (3 start) I have Ryan Getzlaf (Ducks), Danny Briere (Flyers), Derek Roy (Sabres) and Mike Ribeiro (Stars).
At left wing (3 start) I have Rick Nash (Blue Jackets), Daniel Sedin (Canucks), Chris Kunitz (Penguins) and Slava Kozlov (Thrashers).
At right wing (ditto) I have Jarome Iginla (Flames), Brad Boyes (Blues), Jason Pomenville (Sabres) and J.P. Dumont (Predators… I broke another of my rules taking him, but more on that later).
On defense (6 start) I have Jay Bouwmeester (Flames), Scott Niedermayer (Ducks), Rob Blake (Sharks), Brent Burns (Wild), Cam Barker (Blackhawks), Jaroslav Spacek (Canadiens), Tom Gilbert (Oilers) and Erik Johnson (Blues).
In goal (2 start) I have Evgeni Nabokov (Sharks), Cam Ward (Hurricanes), Cristobal Huet (Blackhawks) and… we added a new wrinkle this year. It’s called the sleeper pick. At the end of the draft each drafter can select one extra player at any position and that player who does the best gets an extra cash prize at the end of the year. This player can’t be dropped or traded. My pick? Jose Theodore (Capitals). If he can win the starting job, I’m a lock for this.
So, what does everyone think? Can I win the title this year? Does my team suck? Should I have drafted Radek Bonk instead? Let me know.
There’s one more thing I must mention. It seems that fantasy isn’t always better than reality. Our fellow colleague and friend, Brian, and his wife Allison recently gave birth to their first child. A big congratulations to them both. Let’s hope all three of them are doing well, and let’s welcome Abigail Sara into the world. Don’t worry Abby, your daddy’s fantasy football team is a lost cause, so he’ll have plenty of time to take care of you. Oh, and I’ll be sure to teach you all about Star Wars…
talk about reaches…i took asham and he hasn’t even seen the ice. I think i’m going to drop him for frolik of the panthers
Murray Craven didn’t put up the numbers to make a Fantasy Team but he is my all-time favorite Flyer.