Idk man, I'm hoping for 20ish goals, 30 assists but that's just me being a biased Sabres fan. Obviously I want more but I'll be happy with that. Like I said in my last post, our defense/goaltending is very weak in my opinion. If we had another top 2 defenseman + Lehner playing well I think we could really push for playoffs. Hopefully Bylsma can work his magic on these guys.
I don't know if Rinehart is NHL ready just yet, but last year's junior team leaned on him and he definitely delivered in the gold metal game. I'd expect him to see a little NHL action next year (as a call up) maybe full go by 2017. Who knows though, he could be good enough. I still expect them to snag a defenseman (Cody Franson keeps coming up) but that's definitely going to be a shortcoming this year. Lehner definitely demanded a steep price for a guy with a lot to prove. Tim Murray's track record with goalies is rock solid though, so hope for the best. On Eichel- I feel like high 40-50 points is reasonable. I won't get a look at him in my Buffalo-centric keeper leagues, but in public leagues I'd give it a shot in the middle rounds. I love taking chances on rookies.
Been buying on a lot of rookies and sophomores in my drafts lately...strome, reilly, stone, jones, gaudreau, eichel Kuznetsov is one of the best middle to late round buys u can make imo...especially with backstrom's injury. but i am a bit biased
I took Kuznetsov last year and it didn't really pan out. I've been a year early on a ton of guys (Forsberg, Tarasenko) lately. If he's sitting around late I'd try again. Backstrom was a hip I think- is he missing a lot of time?
Last year was still kuznetsov's feeling out the nhl type of year. There were glimpses of his skill but he didnt really put it all together until the playoffs. He's firmly got a hold on the 2C spot and will most likely have some time between ovi and oshie while backstrom's out for a couple weeks to start the season He'a gonna break out this year, just like what we saw in the playoffs. 60+ points, kid's a stud
I got to see Kuznetsov when the world juniors were here a few years ago. Dude had a way of standing out. He and Tarasenko were worth the price of admission.
thinking about starting up an espn or yahoo fantasy league if anyones interested. 10 or 12 man, h2h cats ill probably make a separate thread about it as well
if u guys got any friends that may be interested then by all means let em know. the last league we did was shit lol but h2h is much more fun than roto. and no fuckin auction drafts
I might be interested even though I've never done fantasy hockey. Is it just for fun or is there money involved? How many people so far in this?
Nah we dont need to do a money league, makes it more complicated and i'd rather have a chill league to just have fun with. Plus you'd be at a disadvantage if you're new Just us so far ive got a few friends who might join but we've got a good month until the season starts so no rush. It's really easy to pick up on once u get goin
Gotcha, just seen this reply now. I'll definitely think about joining. The only disadvantage to me would be getting use to the format or whatever for the league. It's not like I don't know many NHL players, I know most players in the league pretty well.
Cody Franson to Buffalo is now a done deal per Bob Mckenzie. Two year deal averaging 3.3 million per year. I'm optimistic
That's a bargain of sorts. He stood to make a decent buck in free agency before the disastrous trade to Nashville. I'll take him over Mike Weber for sure.
Franson is a solid d-man. Always liked him. Dont expect huge numbers from him, although he will have a couple bursts. He just does his job on the blueline and doesnt try to be too fancy.
That's good to know, now that I'm thinking about it I'm glad we got him instead of Oduya. Oduya never really impressed me and Murray wanted to throw big money at a guy who's in his mid thirties.
Nice to have traffic back in this thread. It used to be hopping constantly with a good amount of regular posters and mostly everyone besides me and NoPot just disappeared. sucks cuz i love talking hockey u guys should stick around for a bit haha. cool to have some buffalo fans here, certainly beats a thread dominated by blackhawk fans
Definitely subscribed to the thread. I'm getting my first look at Eichel at the prospects tourney later today. I'll be sure to give a report.