ASK SLAM!
By CHRIS NICHOLS -- SLAM! Sports
Hey Chris: I wish your column ran 7 days a week. What am I suppose to do on Saturday and Sunday? How do you think Jagr will do in New York? Do you think his production will improve? I'm thinking of trying for a trade for him. Would Hejduk be too much to give up?
Alan Szeto
Thanks. I work seven days a week anyway, so maybe next year we'll run it all seven days.
Hejduk is too much to give up for Jagr, in my opinion. Forsberg and Hejduk are going to tear it up and I'd rather have Hejduk.
The Jagr question dominated my inbox on Friday. Despite the thrashing the Sens gave the Rangers on Saturday, I think Jagr's point production should stay similar to what it was in Washington. The bonus should be that Jagr's +/- should finally be on the positive side of zero and if he and Alex Kovalev can take off, the upside for Jagr owners is tremendous. In that game against the Sens, Jagr played mostly with Petr Nedved and Jan Hlavac. We'll have to see if Slats sticks with that or mixes it up.
It's also worth noting that the value of Brian Leetch should rise with the Jagr deal, assuming Jagr can excel on the power play.
Anson Carter's value is going to rise in Washington. How can I say that definitively? Easy - his value could not possibly get any lower than it is right now. Carter's fantasy value this year has been - in a word - pathetic. Carter will get more ice time and better quality ice time in Washington and he will absolutely be a more valuable fantasy player. Does this mean you should rush out and grab him? No. Let's see how he does over the next few weeks and go from there. For Carter's sake, I hope he succeeds. The guy works his tail off and he deserves better than has happened to him in the past few years.
Hey Chris: Where do you think Robert Lang will end up??? Now that they lost Gonchar for a month, does the purge continue???
Thanks
Where Lang will end up is anyone's guess. Gonchar's injury certainly throws a wrench into the entire equation. Since he's only out a month, teams could obviously still use him for the last month and the playoffs, but who's going to want to pay his salary for the next month while he can't play? If Washington is willing to pay his contract for that month, we could see the trades continue. It will certainly be an interesting period of time, as NHL teams pick over what is left on Washington.
Chris: I am in first by a few games in part because of your help. I think my defense needs a little zip. I recently picked up Liles. Our league counts everything and I wanted know if you thought our waiver wire might help me. My current d's are Liles, Modry, Jovanovski, Kuba and Kubina. On the wire are in order Poti, Johnsson, Tarnstrom, Visnovsky and Stuart. Thanks for the helpful opinions and insightful columns. When I raise the cup the second sip is for you!
Mike, Imperial Beach, California
Thanks Mike. Tarnstrom is obviously worth a look, but you've got to endure that horrible +/-. Kubina had gone dry for a long time, but has started to contribute again - so you may as well keep him around for now. Stand pat for the moment, but you'll likely want to keep a short leash on Liles and Poti may be a good solution for him if Poti can pick up his points pace like he was before the injury.
I heard Heatley may return around Feb. 10th or so. Do you think he may be worth picking up or will he be too rusty? Thanks.
If he's available in your league, grab him immediately. It's possible he'll return even earlier than that. I want to caution everyone not to expect the world from him immediately, but he's worth a gamble in most cases. He's got huge upside and his health seems to be great. I would not be surprised if he's at a point-per-game pace within a few weeks of coming back.
Hey Chris: I have a quick question... What do you think of this trade? My Rolston and Selanne 4 Elias and Nash?
Thanks for your time.
Danny in B.C
Nash is the best player in the deal. Elias is consistent and Selanne is the big question mark in the deal. I'd make it though - Nash seems like money in the bank.
Have you heard anything regarding Kiprusoff's return? Do you think he'll regain the starting job over Turek (I do) & if not, should he be traded now if possible?
Kipper should be back right after the All Star break. Turek has been good and bad so far, so the next few weeks will determine how much of a chance Kipper will get. I personally think Kipper is a better goalie and thought that when Kipper was in San Jose, but we'll let Turek's play in the next two weeks decide that.
Hi Chris: Panic is spreading through my league. Some owners try their best to bring new life into their teams. I have just picked up Gagne and Hasek after their owners gave up on them and dropped them. Now Gaborik has been dropped as well. Should I go for him? Minnesota seems terrible up front at the moment. I have:
C - Lecavalier
C - Richards
C - Morrison
W - Hossa
W - Havlat
W - Samsonov
W - Recchi
W - Gagne
W - Carter
D - Blake
D - Lidstroem
D - Gonchar
D - Zubov
G - Roloson
G - Fernandez
G - Luongo
IR - Hasek
Rickard
I'd leave Gaborik where he is for now and look hard for a replacement for Carter. You'll need a replacement on D for Gonchar for now, although your depth should allow you to sustain his loss without too much of a problem.
I give up Wade Redden for Kovalev & Rafalski. It is hard to part with Redden. A consistent performer in our league... As usual - H-2-H, points based, PIM's count against. Your advice would be a great help!!
Ed Dolle, Woodridge, IL
Not bad at all. I like Kovy's upside with Jagr there and Rafalski will still net you nice point totals. Overall, a pretty good move worthy of the risk.
Dear Chris: Bondra, O'Neill, and Todd White are available in my league. I was thinking of dropping some combination of Marleau, Damphousse, and Bonk for one or more of these guys, What do you think?
Thanks, PH
All three available guys have some nice upside. I'd drop Damphousse to get O'Neill.
Have a fantasy hockey question? Drop me a line at
chris_nichols@canoemail.com. I do my best to answer all questions within 24 hours, depending on the volume of emails. Please keep the questions short. Your fantasy questions may be answered in our Ask Slam! section.
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