30 Teams, 30 Crazy Predictions

Hockey starts tomorrow. No further explanation is necessary. Every year I try to make 30 bold fantasy predictions for a player on each team. Keep in mind these are meant to be "out there", predictions that might seem ridiculous at times but that's what makes it fun.

Make your own predictions in the comments! At year's end we'll come back and take a look and see how we fared.

Anaheim Ducks: Cam Fowler will finally break out, posting 15 goals and 55 points, 20 of which came on the power play. His offensive upside has never been in question. It's just a matter of him developing the confidence and being in the right situation. This is the year for both.

Boston Bruins: Torey Krug, not Chara, leads their defensive corps in goals and points this year with 15 and 48, respectively. Bergeron showcases his underrated offensive skills and puts up career high numbers just under a point-per-game.

Buffalo Sabres: Neither Vanek nor Miller finish the year on the team. Miller will be traded to either the Penguins, Flyers, or Islanders. A good, completely uneducated guess for Vanek would be Minnesota or Carolina.

Experts League Draft Results

Hey guys, in case you haven’t been following @Buccigross on Twitter, hockey starts this week! Which means it’s another season of fantasy hockey and be sure to check right here for the best

fantasy analysis on the web.

My league drafted a few days ago, so I figured I would post it along with some comments to give you all an idea of where players are getting drafted. I posted who I considered to be the best and work pick of each round, as well as my thoughts on the players I drafted and why. I would love to hear your own analysis on the comments below!

Round 1

1.      Mark- Crosby

2.      Ryan- Stamkos

3.      Alex- Malkin

4.      Sam- Ovechkin

5.      Joe- Tavares

6.      Brandon- Rask

7.      Steve- Kane

8.      Dave- Lundqvist

9.      Roto- Kessel

10.  Tim- Giroux

Fantasy Hockey Preview: Forwards

We’re now three weeks away from puck drop, which means some of you probably have already your teams drafted and are anxiously awaiting opening night. For those of you who still have yet to draft, these are some of the forwards I’ve got my eye on this year. Again, whether they’re sleepers, bounce-back candidates, breakout players, or just simply guys I love this season, they’re all worth stashing on your draft sheets.

Ryan Kesler, Vancouver Canucks

Everyone seems down on the ‘Nucks this year, but Kesler might be one of the bright spots who’s still trending upwards in fantasy. A young player nagged by injuries these past years, Kesler has made it known that he has felt the healthiest he has in two seasons. Anyone remember what he did two seasons ago? I’ll tell you. 41 goals. If he can stay healthy,

Fantasy Hockey Draft Primer: Defense

Let’s keep it rolling with the Draft Day preparations and look at defense: an all too important but often underrated position in fantasy hockey. All of these players are of great interest to me going into my drafts, whether they’re sleepers, breakout candidates, guys who will out-perform their draft rankings, or just guys I’d love to have on my team. So, without further ado…

Cam Fowler, Anaheim Ducks

This uber-talented young defenseman was projected by many to go in the top 5 in the 2010 draft, but slipped until the 12^th pick when Anaheim snagged him for his offensive upside. He has many flaws in his game defensively, but luckily those don’t matter for fantasy. With Selanne back for another year, and Souray to miss the first half of the season to a torn ligament, Fowler will have the chance to be the go-to guy on the Ducks powerplay. Will he finally break out?

TSN Got It Wrong

Earlier this week, the writers at TSN published a list of their projected starting lineup for the 2014 Team Canada Olympic roster. Co-authors on this piece included Bob McKenzie, Darren Dreger, James Duthie, Pierre Lebrun, and Ray Ferraro. In the world of hockey, these guys are considered among the very best in their knowledge of players, teams, and the game itself.

So how did they get it so wrong?

Here's what they projected the lineup to be: 

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.

Fantasy Hockey: A First Look

Don’t look now but we’re less than five weeks away from the return of NHL season, which means it’s time to start thinking about your fantasy drafts. Yahoo! typically releases their rankings and mock drafts in late August or the first week of September, which is about the same as we can expect from ESPN.

In the coming weeks, we’ll take a look at player profiles, rankings, break out candidates, sleepers/busts, and more. There are plenty of exciting storylines to be considered this year and lots to talk about.

But before I get ahead of myself, I’m just going to start by looking at a player that I have been on my mind this offseason that I will be targeting on all of my teams this year. There will be more, but this one has me salivating at the thought of drafting him, especially in a keeper leagues.