When Mario Lemieux appeared healthy and was making noises on playing every game during the exhibition season, he became a near no-brain selection for CDM Fantasy Hockey. And with an amazing 41 points in just 20 games, Mario has actually managed to succeed those lofty expectations. Lemieux is on pace to pile up 166 points. By contrast, Jerome Iginla won last years scoring title with only 96 points.
Obviously, as Mario goes through the roof, the value of his linemates goes up as well. From the start it has made sense to have the services of Alex Kovalev (12 goals, 26 points). After a red-hot first week, many jumped in the pool for Aleksey Morozov (23 points) and his 1860 salary. Now back from injury, Martin Straka (2560) is now a good value as well with eight points in his first nine games. But then you see the name of Dick Tarnstrom show up constantly on the Penguin stat sheet (4/17/21 in just 19 games) � and then realize he�s a defenseman!!!!!
Exactly, who is Dick Tarnstrom??? When did he become the second coming of Bobby Orr??? And where is he on the CDM Player List??? Don�t look too hard, you will not find him. Also do not look too hard on the Penguins roster in THN�s pre-season magazine, for you won�t find Dick there neither. Now look at the New York Islanders pre-season depth chart, where you will see Dick listed as the Isle�s #7 defenseman. That�s #7 defenseman, which is exactly like landing on the #5 line on offense. That usually means a lot of nights either in the press box as a healthy scratch, or logging a lot of ice time with the AHL affiliate. Or it could mean being placed on waivers, which was Dick�s lucky break on August 21 when NYI let him go and was promptly snapped up by the Pens.
But Tarnstrom was not exactly a smashing success during the pre-season, and was left exposed in the October waiver draft, where there were no takers � that was Tarnstrom�s second lucky break. But with the Pens defensive corps a mess, especially with Janne Laukkanen on the shelf (as usual), Tarnstrom has gotten his opportunity and has obviously run with it � and thus has become the unlisted beauty of the season.
This goes to show that in Fantasy Hockey - perhaps even more than other sports, that it is all about landing in the right situation. It is always possible that Tarnstrom could be demoted just as quickly as he landed on the first unit. His plus/minus is acceptable, but not extraordinary at +1. But the Penguins are based on offense, and Tarnstrom has definitely been a monster in that department � so I don�t foresee any changes by the Pittsburgh brass anytime in the near future. And the Pens upcoming schedule is very favorable � with a pair of four-game weeks following a three-gamer this upcoming week. As of this week only 27 of the top 100 CDM players started Tarnstrom, but look for that do go up very soon. Needless to say, it would be wise to burn a purchase here � next week at the very latest.
Now for some other players making waves�
Andrei Markov (MON � 1420) � Do not confuse with the Coyote�s Danny Markov. Has been a solid play for those who started the year with him, especially in the Hab�s recent five game week (unprecedented except for condensed schedules in Olympic years) where he had two goals, two assists, and a +3. With 57.9 CDM points Markov ranks sixth among defensemen, Tarnstrom is currently fourth with 62.4 points.
Zdeno Chara (OTT � 1770) � Was the darling among defensemen at this time last year, when penalty minutes factored larger in the CDM game. However, Chara has now added offense to his game with two goals and eight assists in 18 games, to go along with the PIM�s (42). Chara had only 23 points in 75 contests last year. On the down side, Chara�s +3 so far is a far cry from last season�s final total of +30.
Marian Gaborik (MN � 3040) � A hat trick this past week gives this sensation a league leading 15 goals on the year, putting him on pace for 60. Gaborik now ranks third among all non-goalies.
Marty Turco (DAL � 2050) � Everyone, and I mean everyone has him. And for good reason as Turco leads all NHL players (goalies or skaters) with 123.2 points.
Ed Belfour (TOR � 3780) � Has recorded back-to-back shutouts and now ranks seventh in CDM points.
Martin Brodeur (NJ � 5370) � Those who dare tackle CDM�s highest salary get their money�s worth as Marty is the only goaltender to start every game this season. With a 11-5-1 record with one shutout, Brodeur ranks eighth among goaltenders.
Dwayne Roloson/Manny Fernandez (MN) � The rotation between those two continues with Roloson (6-2-3) and Fernandez (7-3-1) each receiving 11 starts. Could someone please take a tire-iron to the knee of one of these two???
Roman Cechmanek (PHI - 3970) � Has a 7-4-4 record and a 2.14 GAA, however backup Robert Esche (3-0-2, 1.83 GAA) has been more effective and we know how coach Hitchcock (as well as previous Flyer regimes) fall in love with the backup.
And then there is the Milk Carton brigade�
Pavel Bure (NYR � 4700) � NASA must have gotten a hold of the Russian Rocket during his days with Florida, because now he seems stuck on the launch pad as much as the Space Shuttle Endeavor. Bure somehow managed to go nine points with a single point. However Bure has eight points and 14 points in 20 games, so throw out the drought and the numbers aren�t bad.
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This man has provided more excitement in Calgary this year than Jarome Iginla |
FINAL NOTES
The NHL would like to tell you on how much more wide open the game is this year. But the average goals per team stands at 2.72, up from last year�s final of 2.62 � but only a 3.7 percent increase. Which makes the exploits of Mario Lemieux all the more remarkable. Take Lemieux away and we may be right back to 2.62.
I close with the top CDM plays (top 250 games) for the week of November 22�
GOALIES � Turco 248, Cloutier 156, Nabokov 102, Joseph 94, Giguere 89, Khabibulin 74, Lalime 62, Roy 30, Weekes 29, Cechmanek 25
CENTERS � Lemieux 212, Forsberg 169, Comrie 84, Modano 79, Fedorov 71, Thornton 59, Sakic 54, Briere 52, Lindros 45, Koivu 22
WINGERS � Bertuzzi 172, Jagr 130, Guerin 122, Morozov 113, Gaborik 99, Naslund 85, P. Bure 82, Kovalchuk 79, Kovalev 68, St. Louis 66, Kariya 64, Hejduk 49, Heatley 31, Bondra 29, Alfredsson 29
DEFENSE � Boynton 108, Boyle 103, Brewer 99, Chara 93, Morris 81, Berard 70, Tarnstrom 68, Lidstrom 67, Poti 65, Clymer 64, Rathje 61, Boucher 50, Zubov 46, Johnsson 36, Jovanovski 29, A. Markov 29