Anthony DeAngelo

[GoNucks]

He looks like the real deal, but likely won't get an opportunity for some time on that team with them contending. I expect 2-3 years before he see's full time NHL duty there.

[fungchen3]

I love DeAngelo as a prospect. With his skill set and possible situation he'll be walking into, he could be fantasy gold. A RHD who can co-anchor the top PP with Hedman should be money in a year or two.

[Pengwin7]

Some good comments.

Keep in mind that not every hyped D man will pan out.
Back in summer of 2011, everybody was ga-ga about the 11th overall pick in the 2009 entry draft: Ryan Ellis.
And Ellis went off with the Spitfires putting up 101pts (in 58gp) in 2010-2011.
Well, it's 2015 and we still don't have a 30pt season out of the 5'-11" Ryan Ellis.

TB has a ton of depth.
And very likely they won't be able to re-sign all of their skilled players.
The team will look differently in 2018, say.

I mean... how many of us were lickin' our chops at the prospect of Dougie Hamilton anchoring a lock-talented future Bruins team?!
Dougie Hamilton, Boston Bruin... nope.
Talented Boston team... nope.

Anthony Deangelo might become a Mike Green... he might become a Ryan Ellis.
Ellis just went 288th overall in the WHL.
Deangelo went 224th overall in the WHL. (I had him on my queue, he went about 15 picks before I took Darnell Nurse.)

Personally, I've been scarred a bit from believing in Stefan Elliott and Ryan Murphy.
I can't honestly say I've seen Deangelo play enough to peg him well... but I do know that we (as a forums community) have been very hit & miss on young D-prospects over the years.
From what I've read... the top forward prospects have panned out signifcantly better in fantasy hockey than the top offense D-men prospects.

All that said, I'd personally hedge towards the top 10 drafted forward: Mikko Rantanen or Pavel Zacha.

[fungchen3]

P7

You're certainly right about one thing - it's a lot easier to predict future success among elite forward prospects than it is with D kids. I think there's a track record to prove that. Predicting young D involves a lot of gut instinct IMO. When I look at DeAngelo, I see a kid with elite-level offensive chops. I see a kid who Yzerman drilled into for 4 hours to get a handle on his character. I see a kid who put the OHL through the shredder. I see a kid who has a very unique skill set among all the D on Tampa's roster and in their system. I see a kid who's skill set is tailor made for a high-octane Bolts system. My gut tells me that DeAngelo is a year or 2 away from making a John Klingberg-like splash and has the offensive upside of a Letang, Subban or Shattenkirk... let alone Green (if all goes perfect).

That said, anything can happen. If we're comparing him to Rantanen - a player who I also really like - I guess Rantanen is the "safer" play but there's risk there too. What if Rantanen develops the way Joel Armia has - another lanky, Finn sniper who hasn't yet panned out as planned? In fact, I don't think any of the "top" Finns have made an impact immediately - Granlund, Pulkkinen, Armia, Teravainen, etc.

Outside of the Big 2, and maybe Marner and Strome, there is a decent amount of risk associated with all prospects. Forwards are easier to predict for sure, but I think DeAngelo is the "Marner, Strome or Ehlers of D prospects" right now. I think his upside is higher than Ellis' simply due to the fact that he should be walking into a better situation. We all knew Ellis would be stuck behind Weber, Josi, Jones, etc. I think when DeAngelo makes the show full-time, his only real competition will be Hedman, and the fact that he is a RHD makes him more valuable on Tampa. Ellis is a righty, jammed up behind other righties like Weber and Jones. If there were no Weber or Jones and Ellis was running the Top PP with Josi, I think we could add +10 points to his annual production.

[JHM]

He is VERY interesting. You've got to want to have him stashed on your roster.

HOWEVER!

He's pretty small for a D-man. Ryan Ellis did similar things in Junior, and has taken his time to adjust to the NHL. He's a first round pick, but he slipped a bit despite 71 points in his draft year. There's usually a reason for this.

HOWEVER!

Karlsson isn't a big guy and was drafted similarly.... Numerous outstanding NHL D-men were not taken at the very top of their draft class. Selecting blueliners is a very tricky business in fantasy. You could make that argument for all the positions though.

One of the elite prospects. The type with some of the boom/bust attributes. Many more positives than negatives. I'm very interested in stashing him, at the right price!

[Jouko-Pouko]

Outside of the Big 2, and maybe Marner and Strome, there is a decent amount of risk associated with all prospects. Forwards are easier to predict for sure, but I think DeAngelo is the "Marner, Strome or Ehlers of D prospects" right now. I think his upside is higher than Ellis' simply due to the fact that he should be walking into a better situation. We all knew Ellis would be stuck behind Weber, Josi, Jones, etc. I think when DeAngelo makes the show full-time, his only real competition will be Hedman, and the fact that he is a RHD makes him more valuable on Tampa. Ellis is a righty, jammed up behind other righties like Weber and Jones. If there were no Weber or Jones and Ellis was running the Top PP with Josi, I think we could add +10 points to his annual production.

Jones wasn't even drafted when everyone was high on Ellis. And that's really what Pengwin7 was trying to say; you never know what happens in the future. Maybe the Lightning acquire a stud right-handed D-man to run their powerplay. DeAngelo becomes just another Ellis then.

I agree that DeAngelo deserves consideration after the Top-4 guys from 2015 class are taken. But I would probably take a forward like Zacha or Rantanen instead because they're easier to predict and can be traded for a D-man later if needed.

[Crazy Joe Davola]

I'm very high on this kid's skill set. I see elite puck movement and IQ. Toss in very capable skating and shot and I see a potential fantasy shark. I'm concerned it'll be 2017-2018 before we see him be fantasy relevant, but I can't shake the feeling I should grab him at #8 this year and just see what happens. I would like to have a more 'marinated' player (Schultz, Dumba..) But I doubt I can get an elite talent like DeAngelo when I pick again at 25.

Tough business this fantasy is.

Do you all think I should gamble on the elite talent or take the guy who should be on Edmonton's top PP this year (Schultz)?

[The Black Panther]

Bobby Orr 2

[PenguinHunter]

Bobby Orr 2

With or without all the knee injuries? I hope he doesn't have to deal with injuries like Orr did.

[GoNucks]

I think with the young TBay squad he could put up pretty big numbers once he makes NHL likely in 2016-17. He will not have to be THE guy with Hedman there and in a small market will allow for a smooth transition will little pressure too.

[havanablast21]

Deangelo, Rantanen and Hedman for Karlsson... What side do you want?

[VincentVega]

Deangelo, Rantanen and Hedman for Karlsson... What side do you want?

Karlsson.

[ericdaoust]

Karlsson.

This.