You've seen our fantasy hockey player rankings, sleepers and bounce-back candidates over the past few weeks. Now we're putting it all together for NHL.com's first preseason mock draft.
MOCK DRAFT LEAGUE INFORMATION
- Roster size: 2 C, 2 LW, 2 RW, 4 D, 2 G, 4 BN
- Skater categories: G, A, +/-, PIMs, PPP, SOG
- Goalie categories: W, GAA, SV%, SO
Rankings provide fantasy owners with a look at the strength and depth at each position, but everything changes once you're on the clock. Positional and category needs, league rules and your instincts need to be taken into account when making selections. Also, owners must always be conscious of the best player available.
We gathered 12 NHL.com employees, ranging from fantasy insiders to staff writers to web producers, to each draft a 16-player team based on standard Yahoo! league settings.
Here are the results of NHL.com's Mock Draft, complete with commentary pertaining to each round. Fantasy owners should use this analysis as a guideline for draft-day decisions.
ROUND 1OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
1 | Chris Foster | Sidney Crosby (C) |
2 | Matt Sitkoff | Steven Stamkos (C) |
3 | Frank Marrone | Alex Ovechkin (RW) |
4 | Thomas Imperato | Henrik Lundqvist (G) |
5 | Corey Masisak | John Tavares (C) |
6 | Brian Metzer | Evgeni Malkin (C, RW) |
7 | Brian Schiazza | Tuukka Rask (G) |
8 | Matt Cubeta | Jonathan Toews (C) |
9 | Darryl Haberman | Claude Giroux (C, RW) |
10 | Pete Jensen | Patrick Kane (C, RW) |
11 | Sergei Feldman | Pekka Rinne (G) |
12 | Justin Goldman | Jonathan Quick (G) |
Best Pick: Alex Ovechkin - Steven Stamkos is the safest pick among the top three, but owners should be well aware that the fantasy ceilings of Sidney Crosby and Ovechkin are at another level.
Worst Pick: Pekka Rinne - Nashville's offense (2.27 goals/game in 2012-13, T-last in NHL) has improved, but tough to justify taking Rinne this early, especially coming off hip surgery.
My Pick: Patrick Kane - My top-ranked goalie (Jonathan Quick) was still available, but dual-eligible Kane was too tempting at this spot. Plenty of goalie alternatives down the road.
ROUND 2OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
13 | Justin Goldman | Martin St. Louis (RW) |
14 | Sergei Feldman | Anze Kopitar (C) |
15 | Pete Jensen | P.K. Subban (D) |
16 | Darryl Haberman | Phil Kessel (RW) |
17 | Matt Cubeta | Corey Perry (RW) |
18 | Brian Schiazza | Ryan Getzlaf (C) |
19 | Brian Metzer | Taylor Hall (LW) |
20 | Corey Masisak | Eric Staal (C) |
21 | Thomas Imperato | Pavel Datsyuk (C, LW) |
22 | Frank Marrone | Erik Karlsson (D) |
23 | Matt Sitkoff | Daniel Sedin (LW) |
24 | Chris Foster | Henrik Zetterberg (C, LW) |
Best Pick: Erik Karlsson - Only defenseman who can feasibly score 80 points in this day and age. No-brainer to take him in the 20s, especially when taking position scarcity into account.
Worst Pick: Phil Kessel - Racks up points, shots and power-play points, but other wings in this range flank elite-level centers. More appropriate to take Kessel on later side of Round 2.
My Pick: P.K. Subban - Led all D-men in power-play points (26) last season and has 60-point, 100-PIM potential. Should go in first two rounds in leagues that count penalty minutes.
ROUND 3OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
25 | Chris Foster | Henrik Sedin (C) |
26 | Matt Sitkoff | Antti Niemi (G) |
27 | Frank Marrone | Rick Nash (LW, RW) |
28 | Thomas Imperato | James Neal (LW, RW) |
29 | Corey Masisak | Zach Parise (LW) |
30 | Brian Metzer | Thomas Vanek (LW, RW) |
31 | Brian Schiazza | Bobby Ryan (LW, RW) |
32 | Matt Cubeta | Matt Duchene (C, LW) |
33 | Darryl Haberman | Tyler Seguin (C, RW) |
34 | Pete Jensen | Jason Spezza (C) |
35 | Sergei Feldman | Kris Letang (D) |
36 | Justin Goldman | Mike Smith (G) |
Best Pick: James Neal - My top-ranked fantasy left wing fell way too far in this draft. He had 81 points, 87 PIMs and 329 shots in 2011-12, and plays with Evgeni Malkin. I rest my case.
Worst Pick: Thomas Vanek - Vanek has touched on multiple fantasy categories for years, but no longer has experienced players around him in Buffalo. Trade rumors continue to swirl.
My Pick: Jason Spezza - With Bobby Ryan in town, Spezza should return to form after an injury-plagued season. Don't underestimate this four-time 80-point scorer.
ROUND 4OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
37 | Justin Goldman | Nicklas Backstrom (C) |
38 | Sergei Feldman | Jamie Benn (LW) |
39 | Pete Jensen | Logan Couture (C, LW) |
40 | Darryl Haberman | Jimmy Howard (G) |
41 | Matt Cubeta | Evander Kane (LW) |
42 | Brian Schiazza | Chris Kunitz (LW) |
43 | Brian Metzer | Corey Crawford (G) |
44 | Corey Masisak | Sergei Bobrovsky (G) |
45 | Thomas Imperato | Marian Hossa (RW) |
46 | Frank Marrone | Craig Anderson (G) |
47 | Matt Sitkoff | Jordan Eberle (RW) |
48 | Chris Foster | Carey Price (G) |
Best Pick: Chris Kunitz - Logged the third-most power-play ice time last season among forwards and finished with top-10 totals in goals, points, rating and power-play goals. Crosby deserves a lot of credit for Kunitz's rise.
Worst Pick: Jamie Benn - His shift from center to left wing to accommodate Tyler Seguin is promising, but I wouldn't recommend him over Kunitz, Patrick Sharp, Evander Kane or Matt Moulson.
My Pick: Logan Couture - Could've taken Jimmy Howard in hindsight, but Couture sees more power-play TOI with each passing season. He's the present and future in San Jose.
ROUND 5OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
49 | Chris Foster | Alexander Semin (LW, RW) |
50 | Matt Sitkoff | Roberto Luongo (G) |
51 | Frank Marrone | Shea Weber (D) |
52 | Thomas Imperato | Dustin Byfuglien (RW, D) |
53 | Corey Masisak | Matt Moulson (LW) |
54 | Brian Metzer | Ryan Suter (D) |
55 | Brian Schiazza | Kari Lehtonen (G) |
56 | Matt Cubeta | Marian Gaborik (RW) |
57 | Darryl Haberman | Zdeno Chara (D) |
58 | Pete Jensen | Marc-Andre Fleury (G) |
59 | Sergei Feldman | David Backes (C, RW) |
60 | Justin Goldman | Patrick Sharp (C, LW) |
Best Pick: Patrick Sharp - It's remarkable that a proven player of Sharp's caliber could fall to No. 60 in a draft, especially after a League-leading 10 playoff goals.
Worst Pick: Kari Lehtonen - Lehtonen (2.71 career goals-against average) has been a fantasy enigma in recent years. Borderline top-100 overall player selected too early during a goalie binge.
My Pick: Marc-Andre Fleury - Fleury usually records strong regular-season win totals to follow up postseason woes. If this season is the exception, take Tomas Vokoun later for insurance.
ROUND 6OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
61 | Justin Goldman | Duncan Keith (D) |
62 | Sergei Feldman | Niklas Backstrom (G) |
63 | Pete Jensen | Joffrey Lupul (LW, RW) |
64 | Darryl Haberman | Keith Yandle (D) |
65 | Matt Cubeta | Alex Pietrangelo (D) |
66 | Brian Schiazza | Joe Pavelski (C, RW) |
67 | Brian Metzer | Loui Eriksson (LW, RW) |
68 | Corey Masisak | Braden Holtby (G) |
69 | Thomas Imperato | Jonas Hiller (G) |
70 | Frank Marrone | Max Pacioretty (LW) |
71 | Matt Sitkoff | Jakub Voracek (RW) |
72 | Chris Foster | Nail Yakupov (RW) |
Best Pick: Jakub Voracek - If he sticks with Claude Giroux again, this 24-year-old could build off his breakout season with 70-point, 200-shot totals over 82 games.
Worst Pick: Jonas Hiller - Someone had to eventually break the ice on the timeshare goalies, but waiting for Cory Schneider, Jaroslav Halak or Jonathan Bernier would have been a better strategy.
My Pick: Joffrey Lupul – Lupul's point production last season, despite his injury history, was compelling enough for me to take the risk on him over dual-eligible Loui Eriksson.
ROUND 7OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
73 | Chris Foster | Ryan Miller (G) |
74 | Matt Sitkoff | Justin Schultz (D) |
75 | Frank Marrone | Cory Schneider (G) |
76 | Thomas Imperato | Joe Thornton (C) |
77 | Corey Masisak | Dustin Brown (LW, RW) |
78 | Brian Metzer | PA Parenteau (RW) |
79 | Brian Schiazza | Wayne Simmonds (RW) |
80 | Matt Cubeta | Devan Dubnyk (G) |
81 | Darryl Haberman | Andrew Ladd (LW) |
82 | Pete Jensen | Brent Burns (RW, D) |
83 | Sergei Feldman | Patrick Marleau (C, LW) |
84 | Justin Goldman | Gabriel Landeskog (LW) |
Best Pick: Joe Thornton - Thornton's goal-scoring has dwindled in recent years, but he's still an assist machine. There's no question this dynamic forward remains a top-60 asset.
Worst Pick: Devan Dubnyk - His goals-against average has improved of late and Edmonton added Andrew Ference, but Dubnyk has still never finished with a record above .500.
My Pick: Brent Burns - Burns notched nine goals in 24 games last season after shifting to right wing alongside Thornton. Could post 25-plus goals as a D-eligible player and should be on everyone's radar.
ROUND 8OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
85 | Justin Goldman | Mike Green (D) |
86 | Sergei Feldman | Drew Doughty (D) |
87 | Pete Jensen | Cam Ward (G) |
88 | Darryl Haberman | Jonathan Huberdeau (C, LW) |
89 | Matt Cubeta | Dion Phaneuf (D) |
90 | Brian Schiazza | Niklas Kronwall (D) |
91 | Brian Metzer | David Krejci (C) |
92 | Corey Masisak | Oliver Ekman-Larsson (D) |
93 | Thomas Imperato | Milan Lucic (LW) |
94 | Frank Marrone | Derek Stepan (C) |
95 | Matt Sitkoff | James van Riemsdyk (LW) |
96 | Chris Foster | Mark Streit (D) |
Best Pick: Mike Green - Derek Stepan (RFA) was also a strong pick in this round, but if Green (led D-men with 12 goals in 2012-13) plays anything close to a full season, he'll re-establish himself as a top-five fantasy blueliner.
Worst Pick: Mark Streit - Streit joins a strong offensive team with defensive inefficiencies in Philly, meaning his rating is not guaranteed to improve. He was the power-play quarterback on Long Island, but now will share time with Kimmo Timonen.
My Pick: Cam Ward - Ward has played 60-plus games with 30-plus wins five times in his career. He's in great position to bounce back from injury and rediscover his workhorse goalie form.
ROUND 9OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
97 | Chris Foster | Blake Wheeler (RW) |
98 | Matt Sitkoff | Mike Ribeiro (C) |
99 | Frank Marrone | Patrice Bergeron (C) |
100 | Thomas Imperato | Ryan McDonagh (D) |
101 | Corey Masisak | Alexander Edler (D) |
102 | Brian Metzer | Kevin Shattenkirk (D) |
103 | Brian Schiazza | Jeff Carter (C/LW/RW) |
104 | Matt Cubeta | Jaroslav Halak (G) |
105 | Darryl Haberman | Nazem Kadri (C) |
106 | Pete Jensen | Pascal Dupuis (LW, RW) |
107 | Sergei Feldman | Alexandre Burrows (LW, RW) |
108 | Justin Goldman | Vladimir Tarasenko (RW) |
Best Pick: Nazem Kadri - Based on average draft position (150.8) and final ownership (81 percent) in 2012-13, Kadri was a monumental steal. Don't get fooled again.
Worst Pick: Ryan McDonagh - There's no doubt McDonagh could thrive in Alain Vigneault's offense in all situations, but he could have easily been obtained a few rounds later.
My Pick: Pascal Dupuis - Call it the Crosby effect, but Dupuis enjoyed a career-best goal-scoring pace last season, led the NHL with a plus-31 and managed a point per game over the 12 contests Crosby missed due to injury.
ROUND 10OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
109 | Justin Goldman | Andrei Markov (D) |
110 | Sergei Feldman | Ryan Callahan (RW) |
111 | Pete Jensen | Tobias Enstrom (D) |
112 | Darryl Haberman | Johan Franzen (LW, RW) |
113 | Matt Cubeta | Brad Marchand (LW) |
114 | Brian Schiazza | Kimmo Timonen (D) |
115 | Brian Metzer | Slava Voynov (D) |
116 | Corey Masisak | Dan Boyle (D) |
117 | Thomas Imperato | Cody Franson (D) |
118 | Frank Marrone | Jarome Iginla (RW) |
119 | Matt Sitkoff | Jack Johnson (D) |
120 | Chris Foster | Tomas Plekanec (C) |
Best Pick: Brad Marchand - Marchand's playoff goal-scoring numbers were not reassuring (four in 22 games), but he's a gritty forward more than capable of 50-plus points, 150-plus shots and close to 100 PIMs.
Worst Pick: Jack Johnson - Johnson leads an underrated 'D' corps in Columbus, but is severely overvalued if taken among the top 120 overall. Better fantasy blueliners were available.
My Pick: Tobias Enstrom - Will play with Dustin Byfuglien again on the power play. Missed a chunk of time due to injuries but sported the fourth-best points-per-game average (.68) among defensemen with 20-plus games played.
ROUND 11OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
121 | Chris Foster | John Carlson (D) |
122 | Matt Sitkoff | Alex Goligoski (D) |
123 | Frank Marrone | Chris Stewart (RW) |
124 | Thomas Imperato | Brent Seabrook (D) |
125 | Corey Masisak | Jeff Skinner (C, RW) |
126 | Brian Metzer | Jason Pominville (RW) |
127 | Brian Schiazza | Patrik Elias (C, LW) |
128 | Matt Cubeta | Michael Del Zotto (D) |
129 | Darryl Haberman | Viktor Fasth (G) |
130 | Pete Jensen | Jonathan Drouin (LW) |
131 | Sergei Feldman | Sam Gagner (C, RW) |
132 | Justin Goldman | Nathan MacKinnon (C) |
OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
133 | Justin Goldman | Dany Heatley (LW, RW) |
134 | Sergei Feldman | Justin Williams (RW) |
135 | Pete Jensen | Christian Ehrhoff (D) |
136 | Darryl Haberman | Jason Garrison (D) |
137 | Matt Cubeta | Justin Faulk (D) |
138 | Brian Schiazza | Scott Hartnell (LW) |
139 | Brian Metzer | Alex Galchenyuk (C, LW) |
140 | Corey Masisak | Seth Jones (D) |
141 | Thomas Imperato | Nick Leddy (D) |
142 | Frank Marrone | James Reimer (G) |
143 | Matt Sitkoff | Jakob Silfverberg (LW, RW) |
144 | Chris Foster | Teddy Purcell (RW) |
OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
145 | Chris Foster | Brian Campbell (D) |
146 | Matt Sitkoff | Ryan O'Reilly (C, LW) |
147 | Frank Marrone | Lubomir Visnovsky (D) |
148 | Thomas Imperato | Shane Doan (LW, RW) |
149 | Corey Masisak | Semyon Varlamov (G) |
150 | Brian Metzer | Sergei Gonchar (D) |
151 | Brian Schiazza | Francois Beauchemin (D) |
152 | Matt Cubeta | Brian Elliott (G) |
153 | Darryl Haberman | Jonathan Bernier (G) |
154 | Pete Jensen | Vincent Lecavalier (C) |
155 | Sergei Feldman | Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (C) |
156 | Justin Goldman | Tyson Barrie (D) |
OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
157 | Justin Goldman | T.J. Oshie (C, RW) |
158 | Sergei Feldman | Martin Brodeur (G) |
159 | Pete Jensen | Ray Whitney (LW) |
160 | Darryl Haberman | Dougie Hamilton (D) |
161 | Matt Cubeta | Ryan Kesler (C) |
162 | Brian Schiazza | Mike Richards (C, LW) |
163 | Brian Metzer | Ondrej Pavelec (G) |
164 | Corey Masisak | David Clarkson (RW) |
165 | Thomas Imperato | Radim Vrbata (RW) |
166 | Frank Marrone | Patrick Wiercioch (D) |
167 | Matt Sitkoff | Ben Bishop (G) |
168 | Chris Foster | Victor Hedman (D) |
OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
169 | Chris Foster | Evgeni Nabokov (G) |
170 | Matt Sitkoff | Mikkel Boedker (LW) |
171 | Frank Marrone | Cody Hodgson (C, RW) |
172 | Thomas Imperato | Jaromir Jagr (RW) |
173 | Corey Masisak | David Perron (LW) |
174 | Brian Metzer | Brad Richards (C) |
175 | Brian Schiazza | Roman Josi (D) |
176 | Matt Cubeta | Brandon Dubinsky (C, LW) |
177 | Darryl Haberman | Jake Gardiner (D) |
178 | Pete Jensen | Kevin Bieksa (D) |
179 | Sergei Feldman | Jordan Staal (C, LW) |
180 | Justin Goldman | Tim Thomas (G) |
OVERALL PICK |
TEAM OWNER | PLAYER (POSITION) |
181 | Justin Goldman | Reto Berra (G) |
182 | Sergei Feldman | Jake Muzzin (D) |
183 | Pete Jensen | Tomas Vokoun (G) |
184 | Darryl Haberman | Stephen Weiss (C) |
185 | Matt Cubeta | Justin Abdelkader (LW, RW) |
186 | Brian Schiazza | Brandon Saad (LW) |
187 | Brian Metzer | Ray Emery (G) |
188 | Corey Masisak | Jacob Trouba (D) |
189 | Thomas Imperato | Dan Girardi (D) |
190 | Frank Marrone | Dan Hamhuis (D) |
191 | Matt Sitkoff | Raphael Diaz (D) |
192 | Chris Foster | Tyler Ennis (C, LW) |
Potential Steals: C. Stewart, S. Hartnell, V. Lecavalier, R. Kesler, D. Clarkson, R. Josi, J. Staal, S. Weiss.
Sleeper Picks: J. Drouin, J. Silfverberg, D. Hamilton, M. Boedker, P. Wiercioch, J. Abdelkader, J. Muzzin.
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