With just about a quarter of the 2010-11 NHL season in the past, it's time to take a look at NHL.com's modified top-50 overall fantasy player rankings. These new rankings are here for you to help gauge where your fantasy players fit in with everyone else in the League, not just where they fit in with players of the same position. There are plenty changes, as you'll notice, but our two leaders remain the same:
Alex Ovechkin and
Sidney Crosby.
While
Steven Stamkos is the universal No. 1 fantasy player in every single league at this point, he doesn't quite surpass the League's two biggest superstars -- not just yet, anyway. However, if Stamkos keeps at this unbelievable goal-per-game pace, he could find himself at the top of the charts in our next set of rankings. For now, Ovi and Sid remain our top two players to own.
These modified rankings are based on expectations of the season going forward (including injuries). The plus or minus for each player is based on the increase or decrease from our
preseason rankings (NR indicates not ranked in previous rankings). Position eligibility predicated on
NHL.com's original preseason rankings as well.
| 1 |
 Alex Ovechkin, LW |
(same) |
Low-down: Alex the Great has yet to hit a hot streak and he's still on pace for 41 goals and 103 points.
|
| 2 |
 Sidney Crosby, C |
(same) |
Low-down: With 14 goals and 33 points in just 21 games, Sid's career-high of 51 goals from last year doesn't seem too outlandish.
|
| 3 |
 Steven Stamkos, C |
(+8) |
Low-down: Leads the NHL in goals (19), points (34) and power play points (17) -- Stammer could become just the second 60-plus goal-scorer in the last 14 years.
|
| 4 |
Evgeni Malkin, C |
(-1) |
Low-down: Leads the NHL with 91 shots and has 20 points in 20 games -- 100 points is certainly not out of the question.
|
| 5 |
Nicklas Backstrom, C |
(-1) |
| Low-down: Backstrom might not reach the 33 goals he had last season, but the points will always be there. |
| 6 |
Alexander Semin, RW |
(+14) |
| Low-down: Semin compares with Ovechkin in every offensive category and could surpass Backstrom next time around. |
| 7 |
 Corey Perry, RW |
(+14) |
| Low-down: Arguably the most underrated fantasy player, Perry seems to improve every season, with this campaign looking brighter than ever. |
| 8 |
 Daniel Sedin, LW |
(+4) |
| Low-down: Dominant in all fantasy categories except penalty minutes, Daniel should eclipse 40 goals for the first time with ease. |
| 9 |
 Dany Heatley, LW, RW |
(-3) |
Low-down: Consistent every year, Heatley should finish with close to 40 goals and 80-plus points for the Sharks.
|
| 10 |
Ryan Getzlaf, C |
(+3) |
Low-down: Getzlaf scores his points in bunches, but he's still a point-per-game player with upside for 100 points.
|
| 11 |
Mike Green, D |
(+4) |
Low-down: Green seems to be focusing on defense this season a bit more, but he's still the most valuable defenseman in fantasy hockey.
|
| 12 |
 Pavel Datsyuk, C |
(-2) |
Low-down: The League's best playmaker might not score 30 goals, but 90 points is still very realistic.
|
| 13 |
Henrik Sedin, C |
(+1) |
Low-down: Last season's MVP has just 2 goals in 2010, but he's still on pace for 109 points -- eventually he'll score some goals.
|
| 14 |
Jimmy Howard, G |
(+24) |
Low-down: With none of the elite goalies playing the way they normally do, Howard has taken charge as our current top goalie -- he very well could end up as the No. 1 goalie at season's end.
|
| 15 |
Martin St. Louis, RW |
(+11) |
Low-down: Currently the fifth-ranked Yahoo! fantasy player, St. Louis seems to get better with age. Oh, and it helps he plays every shift with Stamkos.
|
| 16 |
 Henrik Lundqvist, G |
(+6) |
Low-down: The most consistent goaltender in the League has an improved and hungry Rangers team in front of him this year.
|
| 17 |
Henrik Zetterberg, LW |
(same) |
Low-down: The 43-goal season from 2007-08 seems distant, but Z-berg is still at a point-per game pace with tons of shots to show for.
|
| 18 |
 Patrick Kane, RW |
(same) |
Low-down: The minus-7 rating is the most worrisome stat for Kane, but that's eventually going to change playing for the Hawks. Right?
|
| 19 |
Roberto Luongo, G |
(+5) |
Low-down: His 2.69 GAA isn't stellar, but Luongo still gets the bump in the rankings because of the team he plays for and his potential.
|
| 20 |
 Eric Staal, C |
(+3) |
Low-down: Staal is on pace for 39 goals and 99 points while playing pretty much on his own in Carolina.
|
| 21 |
Bobby Ryan, LW |
(+14) |
Low-down: The third part of Anaheim's Big Three, Ryan has a whopping 83 shots on goal, 35 PIMs and a solid 18 points.
|
| 22 |
 Mike Richards, C |
(+18) |
Low-down: Richards has been tremendous in every offensive category this season and should stay that way while playing on a powerhouse Flyers squad.
|
| 23 |
 Brad Richards, C |
(+26) |
Low-down: Richards' 18 PIMs are an anomaly, but his 9 goals, 15 assists, 10 power play points and 83 shots are legit.
|
| 24 |
 Ryan Miller, G |
(-15) |
Low-down: With just six wins in 14 starts and a mediocre 2.63 GAA, Miller will continue to drop in the ranks until Buffalo proves they are a better team.
|
| 25 |
Marian Gaborik, RW |
(-6) |
Low-down: Gaborik missed 12 games, but still has 4 goals, 4 assists, a plus-5, 8 PIMs and 24 shots on goal in 8 games -- he's still one of the League's most gifted players when healthy.
|
| 26 |
Marian Hossa, RW |
(+3) |
Low-down: Hossa hasn't quite found his rhythm since returning from a minor injury, but he still has 14 points in 17 games.
|
| 27 |
Dan Boyle, D |
(+3) |
Low-down: Boyle will be in the Norris Trophy discussion this season -- he is as reliable as they come on the blue line.
|
| 28 |
 Chris Stewart, RW |
(NR) |
Low-down: One of the League's most pleasant surprises this season, Stewart should easily improve in every offensive category.
|
| 29 |
Nicklas Lidstrom, D |
(+18) |
Low-down: He's back. 17 points in 17 games from the veteran defenseman says enough.
|
| 30 |
Patrick Marleau, C, LW |
(+3) |
Low-down: Marleau should find himself right where he's been the last two years: close to 40 goals and 80 points.
|
| 31 |
Duncan Keith, D |
(-4) |
Low-down: The defending Norris Trophy-winner has seen his PP ice time drop recently, and has just 1 goal, 12 helpers and a minus-8 rating in 22 games.
|
| 32 |
 Rick Nash, LW, RW |
(-16) |
Low-down: With just 13 points in 16 games, Rick Nash-ty got off to a brutal start, but he has come alive lately -- 6 G, 3 A in his last seven games.
|
| 33 |
Jeff Carter, C |
(+3) |
Low-down: Carter might not record 70 points, but 35-plus goals should be expected from a player with one of the League's best shots.
|
| 34 |
 Anze Kopitar, C |
(+8) |
Low-down: He's not scoring goals like he did last season, but he's still shooting plenty and is over a point-per-game pace.
|
| 35 |
 Ilya Kovalchuk, LW |
(-28) |
Low-down: Kovy hasn't scored less than 40 goals since his second NHL season in 2002-03. It's looking very likely he won't come close to that this year -- he's on pace for 17 goals and 43 points. Ouch!
|
| 36 |
Joe Thornton, C |
(-12) |
Low-down: Take away Jumbo Joe's 17-PIM game on Nov. 4 and his five-point game on Oct. 27 and Thornton would have just 3 goals, 12 points and zero PIMs on the season.
|
| 38 |
Patrick Sharp, LW, C |
(NR) |
Low-down: If it wasn't for his minus-11 rating, Sharp would be among the top-10 fantasy players to this point.
|
| 39 |
 Niklas Backstrom, G |
(NR) |
Low-down: Backstrom has a solid track record in the past, so we tend to believe he's capable of remaining a top-10 goalie for the rest of the way.
|
| 40 |
 Michael Cammalleri, LW |
(+5) |
Low-down: Cammalleri has just 5 goals and 13 points in 18 games, but the rest of his fantasy stats have been outstanding.
|
| 41 |
 Jaroslav Halak, G |
(+2) |
Low-down: Halak was the hottest goalie at the start of the year, but has struggled lately. The Blues are an outstanding defensive club -- believe in Halak.
|
| 42 |
Drew Doughty, D |
(-8) |
Low-down: After struggling and missing time with an injury early on, Doughty has come alive recently with 1 goal and 5 assists in his last four contests.
|
| 43 |
Jonathan Toews, C |
(+3) |
Low-down: Toews has been completely inconsistent this season, but he should still end up with around his usual 65 points (he had 69 and 68 points in the two previous seasons).
|
| 44 |
Paul Stastny, C |
(NR) |
Low-down: Stastny has been a rock, recording at least a point in all but seven games this season -- he should approach his career-high of 79 points from last campaign.
|
| 45 |
 Dustin Byfuglien, D |
(NR) |
Low-down: Currently the top-ranked Yahoo! fantasy defenseman, Big Buff has been nothing short of spectacular -- here's hoping he keeps it up.
|
| 46 |
Martin Brodeur, G |
(-38) |
Low-down: Marty entered the season as our top-ranked goalie, but has clearly underachieved when healthy. He still has the capability of going on a major hot streak and turning the Devils around single-handedly.
|
| 47 |
Carey Price, G |
(NR) |
Low-down: Price is on pace to start in 78 games, which obviously won't happen, but it is very possible he sets career-bests in GAA and save percentage.
|
| 48 |
 Jason Spezza, C |
(same) |
Low-down: Spezza will continue to miss games here and there, but he will also continue to put up points at a point-per-game pace.
|
| 49 |
Derek Roy, C |
(NR) |
Low-down: Roy has carried his hot start throughout his 21 games this season and is currently on pace for career-highs with 35 goals and 90 points.
|
| 50 |
 Tim Thomas, G |
(NR) |
Low-down: Thomas turned back the clock, bringing back his pads from his Vezina Trophy-winning season, and it has clearly showed -- we believe in him again.
|
Players that dropped out of our preseason top-50: Zach Parise,
Miikka Kiprusoff,
Jarome Iginla,
Vincent Lecavalier,
Johan Franzen,
Ilya Bryzgalov,
Alexandre Burrows,
Shea Weber,
Phil Kessel
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