Fantasy Hockey Draft Day Prep

The anticipation is over. After weeks of research, mock drafts, player analyzing, and stat checking, Draft Day has finally come. DDay is one of the most exciting, nerve-racking, and suspenseful days of the year. If you do it right, you’ll go to bed a happy man. If you don’t, you’ve got the trade offers going out within minutes.

There are many different DDay strategies or methods of approach that people like to use to build their teams, and I’ve used several of them over the years. The truth is, there is no one “right” way of doing it. It all depends on your style as a manager and what you value the most. Let’s take a look at some approaches some people like to take.

The “Offense First” Strategy

Throughout the course of the season, obviously, your offensive players are the ones racking up the most points. For this reason, many managers like to stack their team with the best available forwards in the early rounds and wait until round 5-6 to grab a goalie or defenseman. I’ve seen this strategy work for some and I’ve also seen it burn them.

In theory, grabbing as many of the most productive players as you can makes sense. Taking four or five forwards in a row ensures that your team will have some elite talent up front, but might also make your roster top heavy. By the time you finally pick a goalie, you might be stuck with an average fantasy goaltender like Backstrom or Smith as your number 1. This is fine if it fits into your strategy, but not having a strong goalie can hurt you.

The “Balanced” Strategy

This is the most common approach, and probably the safest. Guys who take this approach will typically have two forwards, a goaltender, and a defenseman in their first 4 rounds. Think something like Stamkos, Rinne, Parise, Subban. Not bad at all. This strategy forces you not to rely too heavily on any certain position, which is a good insurance policy in case the injury bug hits your team.

The “Goalie Priority” Strategy

I’ve seen plenty of managers recognize that every team will only have 2 or 3 guys who typically account for 40% of fantasy stats, so they place a top priority in nabbing two elite goalies. They might not take on in the first round unless they have a late pick, but they’ll have two elite goalies by round 3.

I’ve tried this before and ended up having Lundqvist and Luongo in net all season. It’s a great feeling knowing you’re so secure at the goalie position, leaving all your efforts to really focus on the other positions. I can’t really knock this strategy, but I personally wouldn’t take it again. I might grab one goalie early, and the others I’ll just take another a few rounds later.

(Side note- one year I drafted all goalies for the first 8 rounds, snagging all the elite net minders. Seriously, I had Lundqvist, Brodeur, Miller, Thomas, Fleury, Ward, Rinne, and Kiprusoff. My thought at the time was it would give me all the high roller chips and force managers to trade with me, giving me the ability to make some great trades. I do NOT recommend this approach. All I was left with was a crappy team, some pissed off managers, and a headache.)

The “Best Available Player” Strategy

This strategy probably requires the most work as a manager, but it has the potential to pay off high dividends. The key word for this approach is value. You don’t pay too much attention to positions, especially in the first 10 rounds or so, and just focus on taking the best player left on the board. Even if you’ve grabbed Crosby and E. Staal in the first few rounds, but Kopitar is somehow still available in round 5, you take him.

The rationale here is that it’s better to draft the best value here, even if you already have two centers, than to select a LW who likely won’t produce as much at Kopitar. You can always make a trade later to even out your roster, or hope some guys will get dual-eligibility down the line. Nothing better than having an elite player who can play multiple positions- it works wonders when you’re building your roster.

This is the best high risk/ high reward strategy. For those experienced managers who love to trade, it’s definitely worth looking into.

How should I draft defensemen?

This is one of the most common places where managers disagree. Some are of the mind that having elite defenseman is what put certain teams over the top. If you’re getting 60-70 points where another guy is only getting 40-50, it can certainly add up. Others, however, feel that forwards and goalies are more important and drafting defenseman can wait until the later rounds.

Personally, I like to grab one legit number 1 defenseman by round 5 and then build around him with good, proven depth guys. For example, in past years I’ve taken Kris Letang or PK Subban early and then fill my D core with guys like Kronwall, Enstrom, Boyle, Streit, Campbell, etc. I typically find myself drafting four defenseman before everyone else does, probably because by the time I’m ready to pick them for my team these guys are all available and I snatch them up.

Final Notes

You should take all these things into consideration and find what works best for you. The most important thing to do is practice with the mock drafts many times before your real draft, especially are different places in the draft order. Look for patterns in how players are taken, which positions tend to go quickly, when the inevitable “goalie spree” happens, and which guys are buried in the rankings.

It’s said that drafts are won in the late rounds, not the early ones. While I don’t completely agree with it, I can say that practicing the later rounds is just as important. Take the time do a mock draft all the way through and practice who you take with your last 5 picks. These are usually for the sleepers and breakout candidates. See who you like buried in the rankings, whether it’s a rookie sleeper or an injury bounce back candidate, and surprise everyone with some daring late round picks. It might just put you over the top.

Ultimately, however, you have to think on your feet. Every draft is different and unpredictable. You might be all set to grab someone like Zetterberg in round 2, when all of the sudden Lundqvist is still there. You hadn’t planned on taking a goalie that early but things change. Adapting to the situation and the trends of the draft is key.

We’ll take a deeper look at the player rankings once they’re released by Yahoo!, which should be within the week.