• Jonas Hiller has played 11 periods and has faced 165 shots! The next closest is Michael Neuvirth with 119.
• Your NHL goal scoring leader is Alex Ovechkin with 7 points. He is also tied for the lead in goals with Derek Roy and… Clarke MacArthur!! However, MacArthur has played one less game than the two. He is on pace for 109 goals.
• The goal of the week happened on opening night and belongs to Jordan Eberle. I saw it live, and I think I woke the neighbours when I saw what he got away with. I’m sure you’ve seen it, but watch it again.

• Eberle’s goal did not come without consequence; however. In Ryan Rishaug’s latest piece, the Oilers were more disappointed than impressed.  Please watch this video, I am putting it under the amazing column.
• Tweet of the week: “I officially giveRyan Miller’s comments the James Wisniewski gesture.” Ha!
• As I tweeted a few days back, Wayne Gretzky’s son, Trevor is off to San Diego State University next year on a scholarship to play… not hockey… not football… but baseball! Trevor Gretzky is the quarterback for Westlake Village Oaks Christian High School, where he played with Nick Montana (son of Joe) and Trey Smith (son of Will). SDSU is where Stephen Strasberg attended university and their current Head Coach is Hall of Famer, Tony Gwynn.
• The Detroit Red Wings are your Western Conference leaders; while your Toronto Maple Leafs are undefeated after 3 games and lead the East. Let’s take a look at some Facebook reaction:

Leafs are gonna win the cup!

Plan the parade! Plan the parade!

‎3-0, fuckin eh

I”M TALKING BOUT PLAYOFFFFS

And so there you go. This is what populated my newsfeed mere minutes after the Leafs beat the Penguins last night.

The Green Jacket Watch

(The Green Jacket is awarded at the end of the year to the player with the worst +/- in the league)

	-7 Matt Beleskey, Anaheim
	-6 Tyler Myers, Buffalo
	-5 Sheldon Brookbank, Anaheim
	-5 Patrick Kane, Chicago

If this was the Ryder Cup, Anaheim would be in the lead.

NEXT WEEK: I will feature the CY Young Race (most goals, least assists). After 1 week, it is too early to determine a bonafide leader, but look out for Clarke MacArthur and Derek Roy are tied at 4-1 (4 goals, 1 assist)

I apologize for the lack of analysis, but it’s the best I can do for now. Hope it helps, and good luck to everyone this season.

Claude Giroux – Ok, let’s try this again. Giroux was the subject of my very first Fantasy Forecast last season. The season review proved that I was a little off. This season, I am still optimistic about Giroux becoming a legitimate fantasy contributor. He has had two consecutive impressive playoffs and has a coach who has a plan on how to use him. He also plays on a Flyers team that has a group of top 9 forwards that are more or less interchangeable. Meaning, that they will have 3 set lines on paper, but at any given time during the game, each player can play with the another. Giroux is set to centre the 3rd line with James vanRiemsdyk and Nikolay Zherdev. Giroux is a ridiculous play maker and being paired up with two goal scorers is perfect. 50MC Fantastically Forecasts 24 grapes and 40 apples for 64 potatoes for Giroux. Put it on the board.

Derek Stepan – I promised I would profile the New York Rangers’ rookie under the assumption that he would be lining up with Marian Gaborik and Alex Frolov on the Rag’s first line. However, the Bergen Record reported earlier today that Erik Christensen will start the season centering the top line. I still think he could see minutes with Gaborik, but it will not be enough to make a fantastical difference on your team. The Rags already have young centers in Dubinsky and Artem Anisimov, so Stepan must compete to rise up from the bottom lines. And even though Stepan has meshed well with Gaborik, John Tortorella is still concerned with his defensive responsibility and giving a young player topline minutes. It is too bad because Stepan could have had an upside of 55-60 points. 50MC Fantastically Forecasts 12 grapes and 23 apples for 35 potatoes.

Olli Jokinen – Jokinen has to prove that he still has a spot in this league. He can help himself by helping out Jarome Iginla score goals and helping Alex Tanguay make plays. After 89 and 91 points seasons from 2005-2007, he proceeded to score 71, 57 and 50 the past 3 seasons. I truly believe that Jokinen will break his downward spiral this season. It may not be by much, but his value has plummeted to the point, where he can be an absolute steal in your draft. Draft him as your 5-6 forward or back up to the back up center. He will have a chip on his shoulder this season and will have linemates who are as motivated as him to have a bounce back season. 50MC Fantastically Forecasts 29 grapes and 36 apples for 65 points.

Kyle Turris – He beat out Kyle Wellwood for the final roster spot and will be in a Coyote uniform to start the season. He played 63 games in 2008 and only scored 20 points (8 goals). I wouldn’t expect much from Turris this year because he may not even be in the group of top 6 in Phoenix. I think he plays the full season in the NHL with 15 grapes, 27 apples for 42 potatoes, with a high upside.

Michael Grabner – Not even a day after he was dropped by the Florida Panthers, he was picked up by the opportunistic New York Islanders. He is not supposed to play in the first few games for the Isles, but with Okposo down and Grabner possessing the offensive skills that he has, there is no question, he will be called upon to score goals. If Matt Moulson can score 30, Grabner is good for at least 25 grapes, 24 apples and 49 potatoes

Andy Greene – This will mark the first time I forecast a player other than a forward! Andy Greene is the only defenseman in New Jersey who has any major experience running an offense as a defenseman. However, historically, Greene is not known for much offense. Before last year, his career high was 10 points (Ouch!). Last season he emerged with 37. This season, with as much firepower as the Devils have up front, Greene does not have to be an offensive mastermind, he just needs to feed the puck to the scorers and occasionally get the puck to the net. He will be Dennis Wideman circa 2008-2009 – a lot of secondary assists. 50MC Fantastically Forecasts 13 grapes and 33 apples for 46 potatoes. He makes a great sleeper candidate and 5th defenseman.

Matt Duchene – 24 goals, 55 points last season. That’s a great stepping stone for a stud with a lot of talent. Duchene will make a bigger step this season en route to having a great career. He really got comfortable near the end of the season, which is a great sign going into his sophomore campaign. 50MC Fantastically Forecasts 29 grapes and 42 apples for 71 potatoes.

Jonathan Cheechoo – Apparently he is back in the Sharks system with the Worcester Sharks on an AHL tryout. If he makes the squad, the chances of him even getting called up are slim. But if he does, I think he will be put on a line with Joe Thornton to try and et some comfort and confidence back in his game. I will go on a limb and give him 10 games in the NHL, scoring 4 grapes and 1 (MacIntosh) apple .

The most talked about players heading into the season have been the Edmonton Oilers’ newest set of toys: Magnus Paajarvi (-Svensson), Jordan Eberle and Taylor Hall. All were drafted in three separate drafts, but have come together this season to make their debuts.

There have been arguments made that perhaps Hall should spend this season in junior, so they do not use up one year of his three year entry level contract. I thought maybe this would be a good idea as well. What’s the point of using up a year when the Oilers are not going to come close to competing for the playoffs? However, there is nothing left for him to do in junior hockey and he deserves to play in the NHL this season.

I believe the Oilers have managed their farm system very well to have all three of their horses debut together. It should be interesting to see all these guys take on the NHL this upcoming season. Let’s take a look.

Jordan Eberle was drafted 22nd overall in the 2008 draft (Steven Stamkos draft). Since then, he has made a name for himself as being a clutch performer in the World Junior Championships. In 2009, he scored the game tying goal in the semi final versus Russia en route to the gold medal. In 2010, again he scored the game-tying goal versus the US to force overtime in the gold medal game. He was named to the tournament all star team, the tournament’s best forward and the tournament MVP. Last season, he was name the CHL Player of the Year (50 goals, 106 points) and scored 14 points in 11 games with the Springfield Falcons (AHL). He also had a 4-point game versus Norway in the World Championships.

I think Eberle is the most NHL-ready of the trio. He has a nose for the net and a knack for scoring goals. He isn’t the fastest guy out there, but he just has great hockey instinct. 50MC fantastically forecasts a 59 point season for Eberle with 24 goals and 35 assists.

Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson was drafted 10th overall in 2009 (Tavares draft). Paajarvi does not have a resume like Eberle’s but was named to the same WJC tournament all star team in 2010. The thing I like about Magnus is that he has played with men already in his career. Last season he played with Timra in the Swedish Elite League and scored 29 points (12 goals) in 49 games. Paajarvi has a lot of hockey sense, but not as much as Eberle. He has skill, speed and flash, but not as much as Hall. I would say he compliments the two quite well. I really liked how he has played in the preseason (even thought I don’t take much stock into the preseason). But he was killing penalties and making plays with Hemsky and Gagner. 50MC fantastically forecasts a 47point season for Magnus with 21 goals and 26 assists.

T-Hizzle was drafted 1st overall in 2010 (Hall draft). Not only is he the most dynamic of the trio, but if the NHL coming into this season. He has tremendous upside; therefore is an absolute asset in fantasy leagues, especially keeper leagues. Remember how I said John Tavares was a must own in all keeper formats? I am going to say the same about Hall. He may not be a monster this year, but next year and for the rest of his career, he will be an NHL stud. He could already be among the fastest skaters in the NHL. Combine that with his ridiculous skill, there is bound to be success. 50MC fantastically forecasts a moderate 55 points for Hall with 26 goals and 29 assists. This may seem tame after everything I just said, but remember that Stamkos only had 46 in his first year and Tavares had 54 in his rookie year.

I would draft all of these guys assuming their downside is roughly 35-40 points; while their upside being 75+ for this season.

Hope this helps, good luck this season.

I think Puck Daddy is the man, so I decided to try my hand at predicting whether or not these players will be over or under their point predictions by the end of the season. Come playoff time, I will review my picks and see how I did.

Atlantic Division

New Jersey Devils Over/Under Player Points

Ilya Kovalchuk: 82.5 OVER

Zach Parise: 78.5 OVER

Travis Zajac: 62.5 OVER (see: article)

Patrik Elias: 57.5 UNDER

New York Islanders Over/Under Player Points

John Tavares: 63.5 hmmm… OVER

Josh Bailey: 41.5 UNDER

Matt Moulson: 41.5 UNDER. I mean, how can I go against Paul Giamatti

New York Rangers Over/Under Player Points

Marian Gaborik: 85.5 UNDER

Alexander Frolov: 59.5 OVER

Vaclav Prospal: 52.5 UNDER

Brandon Dubinsky: 46.5 hmm… OVER

Philadelphia Flyers Over/Under Player Points

Jeff Carter: 71.5 OVER

Mike Richards: 67.5 OVER

Nikolai Zherdev: 57.5 UNDER

Chris Pronger: 50.5 hmm.. OVER

Pittsburgh Penguins Over/Under Player Points

Sidney Crosby: 109.5 OVER

Evgeni Malkin: 99.5 OVER

Jordan Staal: 51.5 UNDER

Chris Kunitz: 41.5 OVER

Northeast Division

Boston Bruins Over/Under Player Points

Marc Savard: 70.5 UNDER

Nathan Horton: 67.5 OVER

Patrice Bergeron: 52.5 OVER

Zdeno Chara: 44.5 OVER

Tyler Seguin: 41.5 OVER

Buffalo Sabres Over/Under Player Points

Derek Roy: 70.5 OVER

Tim Connolly: 60.5 UNDER

Thomas Vanek: 56.5 OVER

Tyler Myers: 51.5 OVER

Montreal Canadiens Over/Under Player Points

Mike Cammalleri: 64.5 OVER

Tomas Plekanec: 61.5 OVER

Scott Gomez: 60.5 UNDER

Brian Gionta: 52.5 UNDER

Andrei Markov: 42.5 OVER

Andrei Kostitsyn: 40.5 OVER

P.K. Subban: 40.5 OVER

Lars Eller: 38.5 UNDER

Ottawa Senators Over/Under Player Points

Jason Spezza: 77.5 UNDER

Daniel Alfredsson: 67.5 OVER

Sergei Gonchar: 56.5 UNDER

Alex Kovalev: 56.5 OVER

Mike Fisher: 47.5 UNDER

Milan Michalek: 41.5 OVER

Erik Karlsson: 39.5 OVER

Toronto Maple Leafs Over/Under Player Points

Phil Kessel: 63.5 OVER

Tyler Bozak: 49.5 OVER

Mikhail Grabovski: 45.5 UNDER

Kris Versteeg: 45.5 OVER

Tomas Kaberle: 44.5 OVER

Dion Phaneuf: 43.5 UNDER

Nazem Kadri: 39.5 UNDER

Southeast Division

Atlanta Thrashers Over/Under Player Points

Nikolai Antropov: 62.5 OVER

Rich Peverley: 45.5 UNDER

Evander Kane: 42.5 OVER

Dustin Byfuglien: 31.5 OVER

Carolina Hurricanes Over/Under Player Points

Eric Staal: 77.5 OVER

Jussi Jokinen: 53.5 UNDER

Brandon Sutter: 44.5 UNDER

Tuomo Ruutu: 44.5 UNDER

Florida Panthers Over/Under Player Points

Stephen Weiss: 60.5 OVER

Michael Frolik: 51.5 OVER

David Booth: 44.5 OVER

Bryan McCabe: 41.5 OVER

Tampa Bay Lightning Over/Under Player Points

Steven Stamkos: 92.5 UNDER

Martin St. Louis: 85.5 UNDER

Vincent Lecavalier: 71.5 OVER

Simon Gagne: 56.5 OVER

Washington Capitals Over/Under Player Points

Alexander Ovechkin: 110.5 OVER

Nicklas Backstrom: 97.5 OVER

Alexander Semin: 75.5 OVER

Mike Green: 75.5 UNDER

Central Division

Chicago Blackhawks Over/Under Player Points

Patrick Kane: 90.5 UNDER

Jonathan Toews: 74.5 OVER

Marian Hossa: 70.5 OVER

Duncan Keith: 58.5 OVER

Columbus Blue Jackets Over/Under Player Points

Rick Nash 78.5 UNDER

Antoine Vermette 60.5 OVER

Kristian Huselius 59.5 OVER

R.J. Umberger 51.5 UNDER

Detroit Red Wings Over/Under Player Points

Pavel Datsyuk 83.5 UNDER

Henrik Zetterberg 74.5 OVER

Johan Franzen 52.5 OVER

Nicklas Lidstrom 44.5 OVER

Mike Modano 42.5 UNDER

Nashville Predators Over/Under Player Points

Patric Hornqvist: 53.5 UNDER

Steve Sullivan: 47.5 UNDER

Matthew Lombardi: 46.5 OVER

Shea Weber: 43.5 OVER

St. Louis Blues Over/Under Player Points

T.J. Oshie: 56.5 OVER

Brad Boyes: 54.5 UNDER

Andy McDonald: 52.5 OVER

David Perron: 51.5 OVER

Northwest Division

Calgary Flames Over/Under Player Points

Jarome Iginla: 82.5 UNDER

Olli Jokinen: 52.5 OVER

Rene Bourque: 48.5 UNDER

Alex Tanguay: 48.5 OVER

Matt Stajan: 46.5 UNDER

Mikael Backlund: 37.5 OVER

Ian White: 28.5 OVER

Colorado Avalanche Over/Under Player Points

Paul Stastny 77.5 UNDER

Matt Duchene 61.5 OVER

Peter Mueller 46.5 OVER hmm.. tough one, with the concussions and all.

Milan Hejduk 45.5 UNDER

Edmonton Oilers Over/Under Player Points

Ales Hemsky 64.5 OVER.. I think he’ll play more than 70 games.

Dustin Penner 57.5 UNDER

Sam Gagner 52.5 OVER

Jordan Eberle 51.5 OVER

Taylor Hall 47.5 OVER

Ryan Whitney 39.5 UNDER

Andrew Cogliano 36.5 UNDER

Minnesota Wild Over/Under Player Points

Mikko Koivu: 71.5 OVER

Martin Havlat: 62.5 UNDER

Andrew Brunette: 54.5 UNDER

Guillaume Latendresse: 45.5 OVER

Vancouver Canucks Over/Under Player Points

Henrik Sedin: 99.5 UNDER

Daniel Sedin: 95.5 UNDER

Ryan Kesler: 71.5 UNDER

Mason Raymond: 55.5 UNDER

Alexandre Burrows: 49.5 UNDER

Mikael Samuelsson: 48.5 UNDER

Alexander Edler: 44.5 OVER

Pacific Division

Anaheim Ducks Over/Under Player Points

Ryan Getzlaf: 85.5 OVER

Corey Perry: 79.5 UNDER

Bobby Ryan: 64.5 OVER

Saku Koivu: 43.5 UNDER

Dallas Stars Over/Under Player Points

Brad Richards 77.5 OVER

Loui Eriksson 66.5 OVER

Mike Ribeiro 60.5 UNDER

Brenden Morrow 46.5 OVER

Los Angeles Kings Over/Under Player Points

Anze Kopitar: 76.5 UNDER

Drew Doughty: 60.5 OVER

Dustin Brown: 58.5 UNDER

Ryan Smyth: 51.5 OVER

Phoenix Coyotes Over/Under Player Points

Wojtek Wolski: 63.5 OVER

Shane Doan: 58.5 OVER

Ray Whitney: 56.5 UNDER

Keith Yandle: 38.5 OVER.. by a good margin

San Jose Sharks Over/Under Player Points

Joe Thornton: 91.5 OVER

Dany Heatley: 89.5 UNDER

Patrick Marleau: 71.5 OVER

Joe Pavelski: 61.5 OVER

And there it is. It was actually a lot harder than I thought it would be. I have a lot of “overs” which I think will bury my predictions under 50%, but we’ll have to wait and see.

I think it would be fun if other bloggers (WordPress, Bleacher Report, etc) made some over/under predictions and we can compare at the end of the year.

Travis Zajac scored 20 goals and 62 points in 2009. He improved with 25 goals and 67 points last season. With Ilya Kovalchuk in town for life and Zach Parise emerging as a legitimate stud; Zajac can no longer be ignored as a fantasy asset.

After the Kovalchuk trade last season, Zajac scored 9 goals and 22 points in 27 games. He was not always playing with Kovalchuk, but he was almost always paired with Parise.

This year, Zajac is set to lineup with Parise on his left and Kovalchuk on his right. Kovalchuk has played left wing for his entire career, but is willing to concede his position to Parise in an effort to create a super line in New Jersey. Zajac is a good enough playmaker and fantasy sleeper on his own. Add Parise and he is a solid contributor. Add Parise AND Kovalchuk and Zajac becomes a top 25 fantasy forward.

The Devils’ powerplay should also be somewhat improved too with a full season with Kovalchuk. On the first unit, Zajac is poised to be the benefactor of 20+ powerplay goals from Parise and Kovalchuk. This factor alone should boost his production by a few points.

He is still not the big name among fantasy circles, so he may slip down further than what he is worth. Do not let him slip too far down your draft board because he is the type of player that could solidify your backup center slot.

The Hockey News predicts Zajac is in line for 69 points this season; while McKeen’s has him for a measly 55. Taking all accounts into consideration, 50MC Fantastically Forecasts a career season for Travis Zajac with 26 grapes, and 45 apples for 71 potatoes.

Go make it happen, Trav.

The reason why I keep this on one page, rather than creating a new page for everyday of the season is because this blog is connected to Bleacherreport, and I don’t want to clog up their webspace. So those of you on B/R, bookmark this page.

Feel free to post in the comment section on any goalie news you hear!

Sunday April 10th, 2011

THANKS EVERYONE FOR THE SUPPORT! HOPE THIS HELPED EVERYONE IN THEIR FANTASY SEASONS!! SEE YOU NEXT YEAR… I apologize for being not as active this season. I was swamped with work, but still managed to do this to my best ability and finish in 3rd place in my fantasy league!

• DET Jimmy Howard
• CHI Corey Crawford
• BOS Tuukka Rask
• NJ Martin Brodeur
• EDM Devan Dubnyk
• COL Brian Elliott
• PIT Brent Johnson
• ATL   Ondrej Pavelec
• DAL Kari Lehtonen
• MIN Jose Theodore

Jakub Voracek is a stud. Not only did he help me win the first ever DobberHockey World Junior Championship pool in 2008; he has good speed, great skill and a gigantic set of curly blonde locks. Most importantly, he is entering his third full season in the NHL and if not poised for a breakout season, an improvement of his 50 point season is inevitable.

Last season, Voracek had a very good sophomore season scoring 16 goals and 50 points, which was an improvement of 38 points from the season prior. Although there were a few inconsistent points during the season, there was no major sophomore slump, which is impressive for any 21 year old player coming into the league. His most impressive period of the season was right after the Olympic break, where he scored 15 point in 13 games, showcasing what he is capable of.

His 50 point campaign was mainly completed playing tertiary minutes. He played most of the season with Derrick Brassard and RJ Umberger on Columbus’ second line. Although there are early training camp reports that he is clicking well on the first line with Rick Nash and Antoine Vermette on the top line, he is likely to start the season on that same line with Brassard as his center. Brassard had a disappointing 36 points last season, but is still capable of distributing the puck and keeping up with Voracek’s skillset.

What is more exciting for the Blue Jackets and fantasy owners is that on the other wing on the second line should be Nikita Filatov. It sounds like the 2008 1st round pick is finally ready to make the leap to the NHL and if so, it could mean a major boost for scoring depth in Columbus. No offense to RJ Umberger, but Filatov is more of a goal scorer and a dynamic skater who would compliment Voracek better.

There is no doubt that Voracek will see time with Rick Nash during point of the season. This fact alone boosts his point total by a few, and if he sticks on his line, then the sky is the limit for him. But for now, I will project him as a second line winger with occasional time on the top line.

Another factor that is surely to boost Voracek’s and the rest of the Blue Jackets’ numbers is a coaching change. For years, fantasy fanatics were in a rage at the defensive style of Ken Hitchcock. Well, Hitchcock is out and Scott Arniel is in. Arniel’s first order of business is to open up the ice and let his skilled players go to work. This is not just music to fantasy owners’ ears, it’s like if ears can eat, they would be shoving cake in there. The Jackets have a solid set of 6 top forwards with a tremendous amount of skill, who have been somewhat hampered over the years by Hitchcock’s defense-first style. With Hitchcock as a “special advisor” to the team, there will still be some defensive mindedness, but with Arniel at the helm, offensive push will become more of a priority.

Okay, so let’s review: Great hair, unreal skill, top 6 forward on a team that includes Rick Nash that will focus more on offense. Taking all this into consideration, 50MC Fantastically Forecasts 23 goals, 36 assists for 59 points in another season of improvement for Voracek. The 60-point plateau is definitely attainable for Voracek, but do not draft him banking on it. His has an upside of 75+ points, but he is still young, learning a new system and still battling some depth issues on a talented team. The Hockey News believes Voracek will finish with 66 points this season, while Forecaster is on board with 69. I think that is a tad high, considering that he may not get topline minutes and Rick Nash led the team in scoring last season with 67 points.

Hope this helps.

Anyways, thanks for reading. Stay tuned for more as the season is just around the corner. With the rest of the forecasts, click here for the archive.

The problem with Zherdev is that as many as there is positives to his game, there are as many negatives. He has great hands, but he is a lazy defender. No questioning his skill, but there are no answers for his attitude. He has decent facial features, but his haircut remains an issue. I can go on and on.

To his defense, he has not had a terrible NHL career. He has averaged 59.5 points in his last two full seasons with the Blue Jackets and Rangers. But with his talent, hockey scouts and fantasy owners know he is capable of so much more. He spent last season overseas playing for Mytishchi Atlant of the KHL, where he scored 39 points (in 59 games), which was good (or bad) for third on his team – four points behind Jan Bulis (JAN BULIS!?!?!? Jan Bulis outpointed YOU??).

On July 9th 2010, Zherdev signed a 1 year, $2 million contract with the Philadelphia Flyers, marking a return to the NHL. It is a fair price to pay for a highly skilled player with flaws. It seems to be a monetary risk for the Flyers to take on Zherdev. He is a nice piece to have for scoring depth, but the Flyers are not relying on him to lead the team in scoring, as they already have Richards, Carter, Briere, Giroux, Leino, Hartnell and van Riemsdyk for that. The Flyers’ scoring depth also makes it easy for them to scratch Zherdev or send him to the 4th line if there are any attitude issues.

As the Flyers do not rely on him to be any sort of scoring leader- neither should you. At your draft, you should keep Zherdev as a 45 point player for this season with a ceiling of 70 points. Which means if he falters early, he can be easily replaced with someone from the waiver wire; but if he excels, he can be a difference maker for you in the standings. This is exactly how the Flyers look at him, and this is how you should as well.

In terms of linemates in Philly, does it matter? No matter where he plays, he is most likely going to be on a scoring line. Early indications have him on the top line with Mike Richards and Jeff Carter. This makes the most sense because both Carter and Richards can make for whatever Zherdev lacks in the defensive zone. Richards and Carter also provide enough skill to keep up with Zherdev’s.

I believe Coach Peter Laviolette will keep Daniel Briere with Scott Hartnell and Ville Leino because they clicked so well together in the playoffs. This leaves a third line of Claude Giroux, James van Riemsdyk and Dan Carcillo. I imagine line combinations will be moved around throughout the season,  but as you can see, there will be more than enough scoring capability on every line for Zherdev to reap the rewards.

For the 2010-2011 season, 50MC fantastically fearlessly forecasts 25 goals, 27 assists for 52 points in 82 games for Nikolai Zherdev who will earn himself another contract in the NHL next season. (THN does not have a prediction, while McKeen’s pegs him for 42 points).

The Flyers have given Zherdev and opportunity to redeem himself in North America. He has a chip on his shoulder and finds himself on a team of winners. For the first time in his career, he is playing on a Stanley Cup contender and has NHL veteran leaders around him to tell him to get a grip, when he gets out of line.

Hey guys. Remember me? The leaves are starting to turn, which means hockey is back and surely I too have to make a return to the blogosphere. Last season was the first ever season of 50MC’s Fearless Fantasy Forecast. I hope it helped some of you out with your pools because it didn’t do me much good (finished in 9th place, but earned me 3rd pick in this years keeper league re-draft, which allowed me to get Jonathan Toews).

Before I get started with this year’s predictions, let’s break down last year’s forecasts.

CLAUDE GIROUX

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 23/39/62

2009-2010 Season – 16/31/47

My very first forecast centered around one of the most talked about fantasy players around. Most experts (THN, Dobber, McKeens) were convinced that Giroux was poised for a breakout season after a very good 2009 playoffs. I drank the kool-aid. I (we) were way off. There is no doubting Giroux’s talent, but the depth of the Flyers’ offense, was/is the main conflict with fantasy owners. He had another very good playoffs last year (21 points in 23 games), and is surely to improve on a somewhat disappointing 47 point campaign.

BRENDEN MORROW

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 31/39/70

2009-2010 Season – 20/26/47

Wow. My deepest apologies for this one. Not only did he finish under 50 points, he only had 69 PIM’s. There was only one consistent line in Dallas last season and Morrow wasn’t on it. James Neal and Loui Eriksson have taken over as top-line wingers alongside Brad Richards in Big D.

Sorry again.

ALEX TANGUAY

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 21/43/64

2009-2010 Season – 10/27/37

I would say sorry for this one again, but I think Tanguay is more to blame than me. I thought 64 would be a moderate forecast for Tanguay. He was surrounded with talent in Tampa, and was an utter incredible disappointment. Not too sure what to expect from Tanguay in Calgary, but he seems enthused.

PATRICK MARLEAU

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 35/40/75

2009-2010 Season – 44/39/83

In my defense, this forecast was made pre-Heatley trade. Obviously, if I had a shot at it again, I would put him over 80 points. Whether he is playing with Thornton or Pavelski, expect the same out of Marleau this season.

SCOTT GOMEZ

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 21/50/71

2009-2010 Season – 12/47/59

I guess I was only 11 points off. He only scored 12 goals, but only took 180 SOG. Perhaps the Markov injury took away a few points from Gomez.

DAVID KREJCI

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 13/33/46

2009-2010 Season – 17/35/52

Oh yeah. Not exactly bang on, but close enough. The point of this forecast was not to emphasize numbers, but to emphasize that he would not have a season like he did in 2008-2009 when he tallied 73 points. Expect around 50-60 points this season.

ALES HEMSKY

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 25/48/73 in 76 games

2009-2010 Season – 7/15/22 in 22 games

Obviously this prediction is a little flawed because of Hemsky’s injury, but I think my forecast was reasonable. I called for an average of 0.328 goals per game, while his season average in 22 games was 0.318. Hemsky is one of my fav’s and I am pulling for him to play 80 games this season.

TJ OSHIE

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 22/36/58

2009-2010 Season – 18/30/48

Not too far off. As expected from a young player, he started off slow, but picked it up in the second half. I was also drunk from the St. Louis Blues’ kool-aid last year, which influenced me in boosting Oshie’s numbers. A 58 point campaign would not be far off this season.

VALTTERI FILPPULA

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 17/39/58

2009-2010 Season – 11/24/35

Ouch. Obviously I thought Filppula was a shoe-in to improve on his numbers from the season prior. With Jiri Hudler AND Johan Franzen gone, Filppula did not step up offensively. Maybe with them back this season, he will have some scorers to play with. I wouldn’t reach for Filppula this season, but I would for Hudler.

MIKKO KOIVU

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 25/49/74 in 82 games (0.91 PPG)

2009-2010 Season – 22/49/71 in 80 games (0.89 PPG)

Bang on!! Put another notch on the bedpost for 50MC. Who knows, if Koivu played those extra 2 games, he may have scored 3 points. This season, I would temper expectations keeping in mind that he had shoulder surgery on BOTH of his wings this off-season.

DANY HEATLEY

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 52/39/91

2009-2010 Season – 39/43/82

A little of the disappointment of a season, especially in the goal scoring department; but can you really complain about a point per game?

BRANDON DUBINSKY

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 20/35/55

2009-2010 Season – 20/24/44

At least I was bang on with goals. Assists are subjective anyways (kidding!). He did not click as well with Marian Gaborik as I thought he would. Can Derek Stepan be Gaborik’s guy this year? A lot think he is. One thing is for sure – I will definitely be forecasting him this year.

JOHN TAVARES

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 25/39/64

2009-2010 Season – 24/30/54

Again, not too far off. Obviously, I thought he would get a few more assists, but I guess there is nobody to pass to on the Island. I would expect 60+ points this season, as he gains more chemistry with Kyle Okposo.

NIKITA FILATOV

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 24/25/49

2009-2010 Season – 2/0/2 in 13 games

So there wasn’t a positive thing that can be said about this prediction. Even with Filatov back in North America this season, 49 points seems high – even with the positive reports out of training camp. I would peg him for about 35 points, if he plays regularly with the BJ’s.

SERGEI SHIROKOV

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 20/28/48

2009-2010 Season – 0/0/0 in 6 games

Ouch. He would have been a late round flier anyways, so he should not have broken your team, but still. Ouch. This was under the assumption that he would play wit the Sedins. Obviously he did not hack it with the big boys, but early reports out of Canucks’ camp is that he is getting another shot this year. I’ll keep you posted.

NIK ANTROPOV

Fearless Fantasy Forecast – 23/42/65

2009-2010 Season – 24/43/67

Good way to end of the 2009-2010 review. Almost bang on. If someone was to argue my prediction, they would bring up Antro’s 67 points was done in only 76 games. But if you drafted him with my analysis, you would have been rewarded anyway.

So I didn’t do quite badly. There were a few bad ones, but not bad for my first attempt. I think the analysis of each player is more valuable than the actual numbers anyways. The analysis provides you with something concrete to think about and used to justify your pick. I hope I didn’t hurt too many of your teams and I look forward to helping you out this season with more forecasts.

Now that the preseason has started, I will try and bang out a forecast everyday until the season starts. This year, I will try and focus on players with some BUZZ (i.e. Derek Stepan) so I will read the forums to see who everyone is talking about, but in the meantime, post some players in the comments you want me to analyze and I will do my best to fantastically forecast them.

Hottest player since being snubbed: Steven Stamkos. I don’t want to say he was snubbed just because Canada is so strong, but since not being named to Team Canada, Stamkos as 32 points in 21 games (13 goals). He is definitely living up to his top pick billing and should be a shoe-in for 2014 in Sochi. Until then, he can look forward to his first 40 goal season in just his second full season.

update: 2 more goals today.