Originally Posted by bizzl

I'd happily move Carter and Smith or Kulikov for Ekman-Larsson. If given the choice between moving Kulikov or Smith I'd move Kulikov.

Have you given any thought to shopping Halak and keeping Backstrom? I know it sounds crazy and it's not what you asked in the first place, but it's something to think about. If GAA and Sv% were included I'd never even think about it. With your categories Backstrom scored 489 points last year to Halak's 701. A 212 point difference. They both played the same amount of games (46), facing an average of less than 30 shots per game (28 per for Backstrom and 26 per for Halak).

Here's my reasoning: the Wild's team defense will improve with Parise, Suter and Granlund in the fold, and so will their offense. That means that they'll be giving up fewer quality chances and scoring more, and will therefore win more games. Barring injury, Backstrom will also start more games than last year, meaning still more points. The last time Backstrom played more than 70 games he was almost a 1000 point player with your set up. His wins weren't great last year, but his Sv% and GAA were the best they've been in the last 3 years and they've been trending up. I think it's only a matter of time until his other numbers start to reflect that.

Halak, on the other hand, is in a pontoon situation and will probably end up around the same GP totals as last year. I'd say he's a pretty solid bet to finish around where he did last year points-wise, but unless he starts 60+ games I'd be surprised if he could do much better. Because his GAA and sv% were so awesome I think there's a general perception that Halak is more valuable than he is in reality. Especially in a league like yours he's probably more highly thought of than he should be. If the Elliott owner needs nother goalie I think that's a great opportunity to upgrade elsewhere. At the very least I would shop him around and see what's out there.

It's definitely a risk, but I think it could pay off huge if I've read the tea leaves correctly.

Originally Posted by bizzl

I'd happily move Carter and Smith or Kulikov for Ekman-Larsson. If given the choice between moving Kulikov or Smith I'd move Kulikov.

Have you given any thought to shopping Halak and keeping Backstrom? I know it sounds crazy and it's not what you asked in the first place, but it's something to think about. If GAA and Sv% were included I'd never even think about it. With your categories Backstrom scored 489 points last year to Halak's 701. A 212 point difference. They both played the same amount of games (46), facing an average of less than 30 shots per game (28 per for Backstrom and 26 per for Halak).

Here's my reasoning: the Wild's team defense will improve with Parise, Suter and Granlund in the fold, and so will their offense. That means that they'll be giving up fewer quality chances and scoring more, and will therefore win more games. Barring injury, Backstrom will also start more games than last year, meaning still more points. The last time Backstrom played more than 70 games he was almost a 1000 point player with your set up. His wins weren't great last year, but his Sv% and GAA were the best they've been in the last 3 years and they've been trending up. I think it's only a matter of time until his other numbers start to reflect that.

Halak, on the other hand, is in a pontoon situation and will probably end up around the same GP totals as last year. I'd say he's a pretty solid bet to finish around where he did last year points-wise, but unless he starts 60+ games I'd be surprised if he could do much better. Because his GAA and sv% were so awesome I think there's a general perception that Halak is more valuable than he is in reality. Especially in a league like yours he's probably more highly thought of than he should be. If the Elliott owner needs nother goalie I think that's a great opportunity to upgrade elsewhere. At the very least I would shop him around and see what's out there.

It's definitely a risk, but I think it could pay off huge if I've read the tea leaves correctly.