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I completely see where you were going with your top three forward rankings. However, is it not taken into consideration how many games were played? Considering the number of games played, Alexander Ovechkin has only upped Evgeni Malkin by like 2 percent. Imagine if Malkin had played another 82 games? Where do you think the percentage would be then?
-- Shannon

Because Ovechkin has played four seasons and Malkin three, that is why I chose to compare them with averages rather than total career goals. Ovechkin has played exactly 82 more games than Malkin. Another way you can look at this is to match them head-to-head since Malkin entered the NHL in 2006-07:
Malkin -- 242 games, 115 goals
Ovechkin -- 243 games, 167 goals

If you say that's unfair because it takes into account Malkin's rookie season and doesn't include Ovechkin's rookie season (he only had 52), you can compare the two in their first three seasons only:
Malkin -- 242 games, 115 goals
Ovechkin -- 245 games, 163 goals

Any way you cut it, Ovechkin is the superior player, fantasy or otherwise, but I'm certainly not knocking Malkin in any way.

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Is NHL.com suggesting Paul Kariya's post-op assertion that his hips feel better than ever does not mean he will be fantasy relevant? Although he played just 11 games in 2008-09, he showed he can still put points up, and if he's given himself an extra gear following surgery, I think he could surprise us all with a 70-80 point season.
-- Travis

I've read all about the successful surgery Kariya had and how he's ready to contribute in 2009-10, but last I checked he's still 34 (will turn 35 early in the season), with more than 900 career games, sure signs he's not going to get any better. Once upon a time Kariya was a force, but now he's just fantasy useful, and though he didn't make my top-125 list, I'm not ready to say he's fantasy irrelevant. If he can score 50-55 points, he'll make my list and prove me wrong, but no way am I giving him more than 55. If you're a St. Louis fan, take solace in the fact that I ranked six Blues in my top 125 forwards. St. Louis has the best collection of young talent in the League and I'd rather watch them play and get big minutes rather than an aging Kariya, who is in the final year of his contract.

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Hello,
I am starting a hockey pool for the first time this year, and I want to know if Brad Boyes is worth drafting. If not, is there any other player that you would think is a good risk this year?
-- Thanks, Travis

Boyes certainly is draftable and does not carry a risk label at all. In the last two seasons he has 76 goals, with 27 coming on the power play, and he's not shy about shooting, with 427 shots. I wrote glowingly about him in my forwards preview and listed him as the 47th-leading scorer for 2009-10.

I'd also like to point out that in my 2008-09 fantasy preview I projected Boyes for 38-35-73, and he finished the season with 33-39-72 in 82 games.

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Ottawa Senators trade Brian Elliott to the Anaheim Ducks for Justin Pogge, a second-round draft pick and a conditional pick. This will bring great chemistry in goaltending for both sides between the starter and back-up. Anyways, Ottawa gets two draft picks so they have the future secure for the franchise with young prospects to step up and take the roles from former players.
-- Jazhleason

Sure thing, Jazhleason. I'll dial up Bryan Murray and Bob Murray pronto and get this done for ya! I guess you have no need for fantasy hockey and opt to dive into real world trades.

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In a 20-team keeper league, tell me what the emphasis should be on goalies. Top priority for rounds 3-6, or other?
-- Steven T. Jackson

Try rounds 1-3! Twenty teams is a big league, and if you're playing with keepers, get an elite goalie (Brodeur, Nabokov, Lundqvist) and hang on to him for multiple years. If you're starting two goaltenders, I'd advise getting both before the end of the fifth round. You only need to read the intro to my goalie preview to know how much I value netminders.

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Fantasy Forecaster,
Thank you again for the response to my first roster question. To answer the question you asked about Teemu Selanne, it was an automated draft but I got him in the 14th round.
My next team consists of:
Starting Players
Wings: Alexander Frolov, Martin Havlat, Mike Knuble
Centers: Nicklas Backstrom, Ryan Getzlaf, Marc Savard
Defensemen: Pavel Kubina, Tom Gilbert, Kris Letang, Kimmo Timonen
Goalies: Ryan Miller, Cam Ward
Reserve Players: Ryan Smyth, Nikolai Zherdev, Keith Ballard, Jonas Hiller
Once again I have a strong team overall, especially at center and goal. I know that Zherdev is currently unsigned and potentially unreliable. I am in the process of acquiring Derek Roy (his owner dropped him for Robert Lang). Unless my team's waiver-wire status changes (currently at No. 1) I should have Roy on Saturday.
My question is should I try to replace Ballard and Gilbert? The best free agents available at the moment are Anton Babchuk, Filip Kuba and Keith Yandle. Babchuk is currently without a team and some think he may be a one-season wonder. Kuba and Yandle are both on weaker teams and I will have to be concerned with their plus-minus stats, a category that was vital for my team last season for many close games.
-- Tim

In my defenseman preview I had these players ranked thusly: Gilbert, Yandle, Ballard and Kuba, and I didn't bother to rank Babchuk due to his status (he could be headed to Russia). Hang on to Gilbert. I have Yandle and Ballard ranked very close together, the difference being one point in Yandle's favor. Yandle is a few years younger and did a lot more with far less playing time than Ballard received. Ballard won't be much better than he is right now, so I prefer Yandle and his potential.

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Hi!
I was just reading through your fantasy primer on forwards, and I'm just wondering, how do you guys figure Zach Parise will hit 100 points with Jacques Lemaire being coach?
Thanks,
-- Tim

This kind of logic really gets under my skin. Coaches are given way too much credence at times, but in the case of one of the most dynamic, young, emerging scorers in the NHL, do you really think Lemaire is going to rein him in to backcheck more often? You can argue that Parise will get only 90 points instead of 100, but don't try to tell me a coach with a penchant for a certain system is going to wreck the scoring potential of his best player. And in the case of Parise, he already plays a solid all-round game -- he scores, hustles back on defense, makes plays, drives the net, follows his shots. His tenacity will ensure that he rarely slumps and always contributes even when he doesn't score.

A funny story about Parise -- in his second season he was named the MVP of the YoungStars Game in Dallas after totaling 2 goals and 4 assists. After winning the honor, he told me and a gaggle of reporters on site, "I found myself chipping the puck off the glass once or twice," and we all proceeded to laugh, the inclination being that a Devils player isn't supposed to score but play boring, defensive hockey, even at All-Star Weekend. All Parise has done is get better and better since then.

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Maybe I missed it, but I've looked three times and do not see Paul Kariya's name on your list of forwards. Dude, he was averaging over 1.5 points a game before injury last season.
-- Nathan

Actually, it was 1.36 points per game, and 11 games does not make a season. It means Kariya was really hot out of the starting gate, nothing more. No way could he have kept up that pace for a whole season, which would have netted him a career-high 112 points. And while Kariya was sitting out much of 2008-09 following hip surgery, the Blues discovered that their bushel of young talent is primed to lead this team for years to come.

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Hey, we all saw Johan Franzen finish the 2007-08 season strong, which led to his breakout season the following year in which he scored 34 goals. Near the end of last season we saw David Backes finish strong. Is Backes a breakout player this season?
-- Mike

I'm on the Backes bandwagon big time, but I'm not ready to declare 2009-10 will be a monster breakout. He'll definitely continue to progress and I project a modest 11-point increase, calling for 36-29-65. He's a gritty, physical player and his frequent trips to the penalty box will enhance his value in leagues that count penalty minutes.

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