Help decide my final keepers!

[Luffy D Monkey]

In a points only pool I can keep 3 of the following:

Gagner
Pacioretty
Pavelski
Ribeiro
Van Riemsdyk
Ryder

OEL
Hedman

Im leaning towards keeping OEL as he will be my only D man so Im really weak there if I dont at least keep him.

That leaves me 2 forwards. I am strongly leaning towards Max Pac but I dont know who the other forward would be. Some of the fwds in the group are really close to me.

Any thoughts appreciated.

[Mattp913]

Pacioretty should not be in this discussion. He is a clear keeper and that's not even a question. So if I'm picking 2 of the rest of them I would go with OEL almost for sure. The final one for me is definitely very tough. I like Hedman a lot but I'm not sure if you'd want to keep 2 defenders. Of the forwards I probably give Gagner the edge over Ribeiro. I wouldn't really be considering the other 3, especially Pavelski and Ryder. Hope that helps!

[jross]

OEL, the Patch man and Pavelski.

[agoodburn]

OEL, Patches and Gagner.

[Southpaw20]

I like OEL, MaxPac and Ribeiro.

I know he is going to the desert, and don't expect him to produce a point per game or anything but He will be the #1 C there and I like him more then Gagner. Simply am not sold on Gagner yet.

[Axeman33]

Gagner, MaxPac and OEL for me

[wendelclark17]

OEL
Pacioretty
Ribeiro

If you don't want to keep Ribeiro I would keep Pavelski. I'm not a big fan of Gagner's and I think you will take a short-term hit in production if you keep JVR. Since they are pretty close in value why don't you see if there is any trade market for Ribeiro, Pavelski, Gagner or JVR?? Might as well try and get a couple of draft picks or something.

[robmyatt]

Gagner, MaxPac and OEL for me

I'm with the Axeman on this one. Gagner will have great wingers no matter if he's #1 or #2C, and with the chance the RNH's shoulder isn't 100% he could see a few weeks with Hall and Eberle which could get him off to a super hot start.

[ross10019]

if this is the league in your signature, and it's salary cap, then I'd likely not keep guys like Pavelski ($6M after this year), but it depends on lots of other factors.

Assuming it's salary cap, I'd probably go Pacioretty and VanRiemsdyk and then OEL at D. Pacioretty has a great cap hit at only $4.5, and so does JVR for the next 6 years at $4.25.

[Rocky71]

Gagner
Pacioretty
Pavelski
Ribeiro
Van Riemsdyk
Ryder

OEL
Hedman

[Chili con Carne]

Patches, OEL and Ribeiro. Ribs is #1C, guaranteed PP1 and everything will move through him on the man advantage. This puts him ahead of Gagner or Pavelski for me. Pavelski would be my next choice.

[Pengwin7]

OEL, MaxPac, Gagner.

Pavelski is one of my favourite players... but I don't know if he'll be given solid linemates.
Ribeiro is in Phoenix and there's just not enough support there to score.

[Luffy D Monkey]

Thanks for the feedback guys keep it coming.

It seems like OEL and Max Pac are the obvious choices but the final one is a toss up between Gagner, Pavelski and Ribeiro.

I like JVR because of his cheap contract, and his streakiness can actually be a good thing if I can trade him during a hot streak.

I am also a firm believer in Ribeiro, he helped me a lot last year and his production was more than simply a byproduct of Ovechkin, as I suspect some people believe. I also dont buy into the "low-scoring Coyotes" argument because theyve got great blueliners like OEL and Yandle on the PP, Vrbata and Whitney are examples of guys that have put up big points yet been overlooked simply because of the Coyotes stigma.

I am ready to ditch Pavelski, even though memories of his uber-hot start last season are fresh in my mind. I can probably draft him if I really feel I need to.

The most intriguing guy to me is Sam Gagner because he's the only one that I think might have a shot at PPG this season. He's shown he can score in streaks, and if the maturing talent on the Oilers leads to more consistency than he could be an incredible asset. His 3 year deal is also very economical considering the forseeable jump in the salary cap in 2014-2015.

Strangely though I feel like Gagner has a lot less value amongst the owners in my pool. I feel like if I drop him I could probably re-draft him probably somewhere in the second to fifth round. Of course that brings an element of risk, but its worth noting when trying to assess keeper values.

[Pengwin7]

I am also a firm believer in Ribeiro, he helped me a lot last year and his production was more than simply a byproduct of Ovechkin, as I suspect some people believe. I also dont buy into the "low-scoring Coyotes" argument because theyve got great blueliners like OEL and Yandle on the PP, Vrbata and Whitney are examples of guys that have put up big points yet been overlooked simply because of the Coyotes stigma.

Ribeiro & Ovechkin tied for the NHL league lead in PPP: 27.
So I think you are wearing blinders if you don't accept that statistic.
Whitney had a big season in the dessert, true.
Whitney has also put up a big season with Florida, and Columbus, AND Carolina. Ray Whitney is/was a good, good player. That's a 2nd thing you should realize.

Ribeiro + Coyotes is not necessarily going to amount to "Whitney-like" points. It won't necessarily be "Ribeiro + Ovechkin" PP points either.

Radim Vrbata is 32.
Shane Doan is 36.
These ain't exactly young chickens... and the NHL seems to be getting younger & faster.

I'm not investing too heavily in Coyotes this year.
My 2 cents.

[SeaDawg]

OEL, Pacioretty, Ribeiro for me.

I do like Pavelski and JvR also, but feel Ribeiro will outpoint both of them this coming season.

My projections:

Ribeiro - 65 pts
Pavelski - 57 pts
JvR - 53 pts