Re: 2022/2023 Rocky Horror Roto Show
Ahhh another year of drafting with the best fantasy hockey minds out there... and another year of feeling a little gutted post draft lol.
First off - new team name for this year - Flower's in the Aho-ttic (Fleury + Aho... two guys that represented my strategy working... if only that kept throughout!)
Drafting from the 10-spot and so my only strategy was just TRUSTING MY DRAFT BOARD. Too often in RHRS I wind up reaching for guys as the draft progresses and I wanted to see what my post-draft squad would look like if I actually followed through on this.
1. (10) N.Kucherov + 2. (15) M.Marner
I actually wanted to go Marner and Rantanen with these picks but Rantanen was scooped before my first pick and I didn't expect Kucherov to be there. Was happy to still land Marner in the 2nd round. Part of trusting my board was trusting the tiers (value-wise) I had guys in and that limited (severely) the D and G I was willing to take here.
3. (34) S.Aho
First test of my "stick to my board" plan. I had full intention/hope of taking J.Eichel with this pick but I had Aho slightly higher (mostly due to durability concerns) and so I went with him. Was hoping Jack would fall another 5 picks back to me.
4. (39) M.Rielly
With Eichel gone, was either taking a D or G as it's a long way back before I pick again. Felt there were enough G's in my next tier that I might get lucky, but only a few D left that I had ranked. Really debated taking Letang here instead due to his full cat coverage, but with Kuch already on board, I played it safe-ish. Also had a lot of peripheral-heavy guys in mind for later (which you'll see I did not execute well)
5. (58) E.Malkin
My entire tier of D and G did NOT make it back so I was stuck having to either reach into my next tier for positional purposes or stick with my board. Adding Geno here was NOT optimal value, since he sucks at FOW and will only give me 40-60 games. But I always get so enamoured with his PPG and PIM (hot head) upside. I also tend to fade FOW a lot in RHRS as I find that stat can overvalue guys moreso than others. Try not to punt the cat - but I'm okay with middling FOWs as long as I can find some from the wing that leave me overall mid-pack.
6. (63) B.Point
Again, going with my board here. It's a long way back to my picks so it would have been safer to go G or D here... but Point's value in the 6th feels great to me.
7. (82) M-A.Fleury
My patience with not reaching for G pays off as I have 3 goalies left in my next tier when it comes back to me. This is exactly where I like to be able to take a solid #1 G.
8. (87) J.Binnington
This is a great example of where my own draft board really differs from other rankings. I am much higher on Binner (well.. STL) than most outlets seem to be. Maybe because I had him last year and he was really solid before imploding and Husso stealing the net. Seeing them let Husso go, I am sure he'll be given the reins over and over even if Greiss is decent. Having him as my #2 I feel like my G's are in good enough shape to compete in the cats.
9. (106) P.Francouz
With a lot of guys across all positions in this tier still available, I didn't expect to pick another G here. Full transparency this was (mostly) a "block" on allowing CCC to grab the COL tandem (he was two picks away from his double-selection at the turn). That said, I'm also a fan and feel like he'll be close to even in terms of games with Georgiev this year. With 2 starters and now a high-end 1A my G's feel like they're in excellent shape to max out GPs and still keep the ratios decent.
10. (111) T.Stuetzle
So in truth, this was the one pick were I did "reach" into the next tier because I only had 3 guys left in my previous tier and they were all straight-C's. Stuetzle fits a BUNCH of my team needs at this point - FOW from the W, some HITS and likely strong production with the upgrades that OTT made.
After 10 rounds - 3C, 2R, 1L, 1D, 3G (this is the first year maybe ever I've had 3 Gs in first 10 picks... and I was fading them!!)
11. (130) C.McAvoy
Obviously short on D at this point (usually I'll have 3 or 4 by now) and looking at my list, McAvoy is standing out despite his injured status to start the year. Great coverage and I'm thrilled with a Rielly-McAvoy 1-2.
12. (135) C.Petersen
Again did NOT expect to take another G here - but trusting my board. Two pieces (in hindsight) that make me comfortable with this pick is that a) I think CP could take over the next in LA this year (and even if he just splits, should still deliver good ratios) and b) goalies get scarce real quick, so I can likely trade him or another G to address other gaps if necessary
13. (154) T.DeAngelo
He's actually the final Dman on my board in this tier... and I REALLY wavered on skipping him as the PHI tire-fire, Torts/ADA potential for explosion, and overall weak peripherals make him a guy I'm just not keen on. That said though I do think he can deliver value at this point in the draft (if he plays) and again, wanted to keep trusting my board.
14. (159) R.Hartman
While I would have much preferred finding a W or even another D at this point, I really like R.Hartman (1C with some truculence) at this stage of the draft.
15. (178) M.Barzal
Do I need a 5th straight C? No. Do I want a straight C with brutal FOWs and light peripherals? No. Should M.Barzal be available in the 15th round? I don't think so... which is why he was the final guy left in my tier... and why he's on my team haha. (Plus I do really love this guy and think he'll have a MUCH better season this year - AND depth at C when you have Malkin is not the worst idea)
16. (183) R.Ristolainen
Seeing my squad I really need D and I'm really light on peripherals. Risto fits the bill and I can see a world where Torts keeps trotting him out to hit and block everything.
17. (202) T.Hall
I dropped Hall a bit after his injury news but still see some strong value here and the tiers for F/D at this point are pretty huge so I liked his upside the best.
18. (207) P.Grubauer
He was the final remaining goalie in this tier and while he's available here because it's SEA and Grubby crapped the bed last year, I think both SEA/he will be better this year. I also never mind having additional depth at G to mitigate against injuries.
19. (226) C.Verhaeghe 20. (231) A.Mantha
Two wingers I had last year that I'm high on. Even though Verhaeghe never gets primo PP time he plays with Barkov and should be decent. Mantha is an injury risk for sure, but really solid upside when he plays. These two cover off a lot a cats together without sacrificing too many other areas.
21. (250) A.Lafreniere
22. (255) S.Couturier
23. (274) J.Kotkaniemi
24. (279) N.Lundkvist
25. (298) B.McNabb
I typically consider all of these rounds to be guys I'll likely cycle/stream out during the season, so usually try to toss some high "upside" darts in the hopes of hitting one. Lafreniere could deliver if he gets enough ice time. Kotkaniemi is a guy I've targeted across most of my leagues as he's clearly CAR's preferred choice for the 2C role... though he may not be ready for that yet. S.Couturier is an IR-stash for now but if he's healthy when he comes back, think Torts will play the hell out him. Lundkvist and C.Addison were my plan for my final two picks, but Addison got scooped just beforehand. If he wrests PP1 in DAL, he'll have value. If not, off to the wire. B.McNabb brings the peripherals but once/if Hague signs, I'm guessing I'll stream him out for other bangers throughout the year.
Overall:
Meh. Don't love the makeup post-draft but I do feel like there's enough meat on the bones here to at least keep me in the game. Will need to address some weaknesses and balance out my positions a bit more, but I tend to be really active both on the wire and with trades, so I'm confident I can tweak as the season progresses. And if a guy like B.Point somehow regains his C/RW as TB plays with line combos, then my balance at F somewhat fixes itself.
I also tend to be really (sometimes overly) patient with my slow starters during the season, so it's going to be a test to stick with a guy if he's slow out of the gates, since more than a few I didn't really "want" but wanted to trust my rankings.
As always - it will be fun and super challenging!
Team:
C: Aho, Malkin, Point, Hartman
R: Kucherov, Marner, Mantha, Lafreniere
L: Stuetzle, Hall (ir), Verhaeghe, Kotkaniemi
D: Rielly, McAvoy (ir), DeAngelo, Ristolainen, N.Lundkvist, McNabb
G: MAF, Binnington
BN: Barzal, Couturier (ir), Francouz, Petersen, Grubauer
RHRS, Yahoo, 12-team, Roto
PQMC, Yahoo, 12-team, Keep 11, H2H
Taro Tsujimoto Draft League, Fantrax, 6-team, pts-only (*2018 draftees or later only)
Hanson Bros., Fantrax, 10-Team, Keep 8, weighted scoring
Black & Blue, Fantrax, 12-Team, Dynasty, H2H weighted
The Dream Team League, Fantrax, 14-Team, Dynasty, H2H
On Frozen Ponds, Fantrax 10-Team, Dynasty, Roto
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