What to do with Dahlin

[striderz]

Team in sig. Drafted Dahlin relatively early (round 9, after first 7 rounds are our keepers). Wanted to take a shot, as predictions on this forum were anywhere from 30-60 points for his first season.. Was hoping I could rebuild on the fly and keep him under Burns' wing long enough to stay competitive while he develops.

Conundrum is.. I'm in first place in my league so far this year, and may need to consider dropping him at some point to stay competitive (not sure if I could even trade him.. maaaybe a GM close to being out of the running will want him, if he starts to pick up more points at the right time)

So what are opinions, should I try to hold onto Dahlin for the remainder of the season to see if he improves his point pace and shapes up into a keeper? Or am I crazy for even thinking he should be a top 18 Dman keeper by the end of the season?

[MZac]

Well he's on a 33 point pace so far, lower end of the predictions. He could improve as the season wares on or he could tire out like alot of rookies do, my money is on improvement but who knows really.

At first glance your team/roster looks deep enough to be able to continue to stash him and not really lose anything.

I think he should be owned 171 players deep. In your league I imagine there are a number of 30-40 point pacing d men owned.

It's too early to tell if he'll be worth keeping just like it's too early to drop him imo. I don't see him as a liability on your squad yet so I'd just continue holding him as long as possible and re evaluating along the way.

[Jouko-Pouko]

A rebuilding / lower-end team should want him once they realize they're not going anywhere this season. 35-40 points is still possible, and that was the reasonable projection going into this season. If you were expecting more than that, well, maybe that's on you then.

[striderz]

A rebuilding / lower-end team should want him once they realize they're not going anywhere this season. 35-40 points is still possible, and that was the reasonable projection going into this season. If you were expecting more than that, well, maybe that's on you then.

Lol. Maybe I need to repeat myself. Was expecting anywhere from 30-60 this year. Was taking a shot. Not many guys enter the league with people throwing around the 'gemerational' label.

So at this point, part way into the season, just looking for some opinions on his keeper value given my league format. Dahlin will no doubt be a keeper, but the question is just.. is he already a player who should be kept in my league? Or am I too early in thinking of keeping him?

[striderz]

Also asking about his value this early into season, should I think about trading him. But I'm thinking advice at this point will just be to sit tight and see where the season goes...

[MZac]

Lol. Maybe I need to repeat myself. Was expecting anywhere from 30-60 this year. Was taking a shot. Not many guys enter the league with people throwing around the 'gemerational' label.

So at this point, part way into the season, just looking for some opinions on his keeper value given my league format. Dahlin will no doubt be a keeper, but the question is just.. is he already a player who should be kept in my league? Or am I too early in thinking of keeping him?

I think it depends. He's the kind of player where it's a really difficult decision for a strong competitive team. A weaker team will probably happily keep him just for his potential upside. Hes the type of player that if you let him go you may never get him back. But you may have to wait a few years before he really becomes worth keeping. Or you may not. No one really knows.

I think it's safe to say that burns locks up one d keeper. Yandle, werenski, and gio are all good players in a similar tier but none are must absolutely keep right now. That may change by the end of the season. Dahlin might close the gap a bit on them in the coming months or he may fall further behind them. Both situations probably make your decision easier.

I think Dahlin is good enough to take a wait and see approach this season if he's on your team. My advice is don't drop him and don't make a keeper decision on him in November. Wait and see.

Edit: I wouldn't trade him for nothing either. I'd rather wait. If you can get good value that you believe helps you win this season then that could be your best choice. Don't give him away though.

[LeTrefle]

Also drafted Dahlin (1st OA after we kept 6 players each), just for the keeper value.
I have a team to compete.
Traded Dahlin two weeks in the season to a rebuilding team for Burns.
I’m happy with my return.
He’s happy with his return.

[MZac]

Also drafted Dahlin (1st OA after we kept 6 players each), just for the keeper value.
I have a team to compete.
Traded Dahlin two weeks in the season to a rebuilding team for Burns.
I’m happy with my return.
He’s happy with his return.

Ya you should be happy. That's a steal in a keep 6.

[Kofax]

If you think you can win it this year, I'd trade him to a rebuilding team for a boost. He should hold value and you should be able to get something solid in return that does a decent job increasing your win chance.

[ericdaoust]

You're in a great spot to trade him for "win now" guys if you're in a position to win. Dahlin is doing very well for an 18 year old rookie D. There will be a market for him in any keeper league.

[Wonko]

Dahlin has been seeing some PP #1 time again. The kid is doing damn good for an 18 year old as far as production is concerned. Defensively, however, he has a long way to go. Watching the game tonight against Pittsburgh Dahlin is pretty much to blame for the first 2 goals against Buffalo. Growing pains.

[Wonko]

Wow. Dahlin a -4 after a period and a half. He has made so many defensive errors. I know Buffalo has a man crush on Dahlin, and he is gonna be a super stud in the league one day, but throwing him straight into the fire at 18 is not gonna help him or the club in the long run. This was my worry ever since all the hype started around him.

[GinFizz]

Dahlin has been seeing some PP #1 time again. The kid is doing damn good for an 18 year old as far as production is concerned. Defensively, however, he has a long way to go. Watching the game tonight against Pittsburgh Dahlin is pretty much to blame for the first 2 goals against Buffalo. Growing pains.

Yep. he looks like an orange cone.

[EnglishJet]

He has actually stood out today as being poor. But he's an 18 year old kid playing against Malkin, Kessel et al. These nights were going to happen and if he is as good/talented/smart as we think he'll get better as a result.

[lannymcdonald]

I agree with this. Dmen take a while to develop - you really don't know what you're getting for the next few seasons and you have greater other keeper options.