Help Me Choose Last Two Keepers - Barzal, Dahlin, Morrissey, etc.

[Rockies & Hockeys]

This is not something a consistent fantasy hockey winner should ever say, FWIW. Who they play for should have no bearing on how you value them or whether you keep them; and if it does, you are vulnerable to hurting your chances of fielding a winning team.

Fair point. I generally am quite able to keep my fandom and my strategies separate, but once in a while it just feels good to own your favourites from your favourite team. That being said, in a different league earlier this year (during McDavid's cold streak) I traded Marner, Rielly & a 2nd for McDavid. No looking back!

But legitimately though, I appreciate your reminder about this. Sometimes I've been offered a LOT for those two (from another Leaf fan) and this reminds me that maybe I should take one of those offers next season.

[Rockies & Hockeys]

Interesting discussion. Tough call for sure. I didn't even really consider keeping Skinner, so for me (like many here), it's Dahlin, Morrissey and Barzal for the final two spots. Barzal is pretty solid, but having two bonafide offensive studs on the back end is what I would lean towards. Last season, Morrissey was 2nd in D scoring, while Dahlin was 7th. This year, they are 8th and 9th respectively. That said, I have been called a "defence-whore" when it comes to fantasy hockey, so I might be a tad biased. Good luck with whatever your decision is!

With several of my other keepers being centers, I think it makes more sense for me to keep Morrissey than Barzal. I can snag some good C options late in the draft, but all the good offensive D will be snapped up early. Thanks for the thoughts!

[RizzeeDizzee]

Fair point. I generally am quite able to keep my fandom and my strategies separate, but once in a while it just feels good to own your favourites from your favourite team. That being said, in a different league earlier this year (during McDavid's cold streak) I traded Marner, Rielly & a 2nd for McDavid. No looking back!

But legitimately though, I appreciate your reminder about this. Sometimes I've been offered a LOT for those two (from another Leaf fan) and this reminds me that maybe I should take one of those offers next season.

No worries, and it does sound like you have your head on straight, which is good. I would especially consider this with Marner. He is what he is. If he had another gear I think we'd have seen it by now. But the fact that he's been consistently great, plus plays for a high profile team, leads to him - I feel - having a name value higher than his actual value. Your trade in your other league only underscores this. I would look into possibly trading Marner sooner rather than later, as his value can only drop. That having been said, I'm not saying it will drop anytime soon. But as he ages, people will be less inclined to feel they could be getting him for what might be a good rate because one of these days he's going to go nuts.

[RizzeeDizzee]

With several of my other keepers being centers, I think it makes more sense for me to keep Morrissey than Barzal. I can snag some good C options late in the draft, but all the good offensive D will be snapped up early. Thanks for the thoughts!

First off, I don't think he's your keep, but I still believe there is a realistic chance Barzal could score 100 points in the NHL if he was put into more favorable circumstances. He had 85 points as a teen rookie center. That does not happen often, with the last two being Crosby and Malkin. I only hope he gets a chance to truly strut his stuff while in his prime.

[TheDard]

All this talk of Barzal, Morrissey and Skinner.

Any chance you could package all 3 or even 2 of them to upgrade your 6th keeper?

[RizzeeDizzee]

All this talk of Barzal, Morrissey and Skinner.

Any chance you could package all 3 or even 2 of them to upgrade your 6th keeper?

Of course he should answer; however, I can't envision many scenarios where there are two for one - let alone three for one - trades in a keep six league, as I'm guessing all teams have an excess of keepers rather than a shortage. But hey, maybe I'm wrong.

[The Comish]

First off, I don't think he's your keep, but I still believe there is a realistic chance Barzal could score 100 points in the NHL if he was put into more favorable circumstances. He had 85 points as a teen rookie center. That does not happen often, with the last two being Crosby and Malkin. I only hope he gets a chance to truly strut his stuff while in his prime.

I agree with you on Barzal's point potential, however, in his current circumstances, I don't see him more than a point per game player.

I wanted to see if the new head coach affected Barzal's point production, but he's been nicely consistent. In the 44 games prior to Coach Roy, Barzal scored 46 points (1.045 points per game). In the 23 games since the new head coach, he's had 23 points, so it seems that a new coach hasn't changed his points trajectory this season.

My biggest concern was Barzal's penchant for missing decent amounts of games. His first two seasons, he played 81 and 82 games, but over the next four seasons, he only played 68, 55, 73 and 58. The team also doesn't have a ton of talented wingers.

Love this discussion though and respect the different viewpoints.

[Rockies & Hockeys]

All this talk of Barzal, Morrissey and Skinner.

Any chance you could package all 3 or even 2 of them to upgrade your 6th keeper?

Definitely a good idea! Most teams have enough keepers. However there are a couple weak ones who might want to take a combo of Morrissey/Scheifele/Barzal/Skinner/Saros etc. in exchange for one of their top dogs. I'll do a bit of sniffing around in the off-season to see if there are any takers.

[TheDard]

Definitely a good idea! Most teams have enough keepers. However there are a couple weak ones who might want to take a combo of Morrissey/Scheifele/Barzal/Skinner/Saros etc. in exchange for one of their top dogs. I'll do a bit of sniffing around in the off-season to see if there are any takers.

If Scheifele and Morrissey can both finish fairly strong and healthy. That could be a nice 1-2 punch to offer another GM.
Best of luck