Am I missing something here? From what I can tell, this question is with regards to a 12 team league where they're allowed to keep 13. In that format, none of these guys are relevant unless you have a farm team that you haven't mentioned. You certainly can't be waiting on guys who are 2-3 years from NHL action. In fact, this format would ensure that no prospect outside those with 'elite' designations would ever be worth having on your roster.

I could be wrong, you might have a farm system that you haven't mentioned but out of all the guys you've listed the only ones who would even hold a shred of intrest for me would be Couturier, Zibanejad and Dalpe.....in that order. Guys like Kristo and Holland don't have the upside to ever make your active roster and guys like Rattie and Jurco are way too far away from NHL action to warrant consideration.

We have a prospect team
We draft a team of prospects, 6 forwards, 3 defensemen, and 1 goalie. These prospects can be protected year by year as long as they meet the rookie standards. A player can be called up to the "big" team an any time, but once they are called up they cannot be sent down. If at the end of a year a player does not meet rookie standards, then the player must be protected as a keeper or let go as a free agent.

I did have connolly and leblanc and traded them. The prospect rosters in our league are pretty relevant, maybe not as relevant as some formats though. When I drafted guys like Holland and Kristo I wasn't as informed as I am now. So yes, if you know your shit and draft strong prospects then they are worth a lot. I can trade them to a rebuilding team (which often happens) or call them up (as I did with Subban, OEL and Pietrangelo).

I think I'll keep Etem and Dalpe. My plan is to go for the W not this year but next.

I think dalpe will play over 50 games this year and in 2-3 years be a 60+ point guy. Or even better, he tears it up out of the gate this year and I sell him high before he comes back down.

As for etem, I got patience and don't mind keeping him on my prospect team for a few years and see what happens. I like his game and who knows what could happen in a few years. He seems like a natural scorer and since our League counts GWG I value goals slightly more than assists. Fun little project.

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ESPN - 12 Team H2H Keeper League, 25 Players - 13 Keepers
(G, A, +/-, PIM, PPP, SOG, GWG, W, GAA, SV%)
Keepers
C: Tavares, Benn, Stepan
LW: Galchenyuk, Parenteau, Ryan.
RW: Brunner, Conacher.
D: Pietrangelo, Subban, Schultz.
G: Price, Dubnyk.

ESPN - 12 Team H2H Keeper League, 24 Players - 10 Keepers
(G, A, +/-, PIM, PPP, SOG, PTS, W, GAA, SV%)
Keepers
C: Duchene, B. Richards
LW: Skinner, Ovechkin,
RW: Ryan, Eriksson
D: Subban, Shattenkirk,
G:Halak, Quick

Yeah, that changes everything. I re-read your initial post and did notice that there is a bit in there about a prospect team.....my mistake. However, even with the existence of a prospect team, I'd be very careful to only focus only on those players who might actually have a solid shot at becoming useful assets and not just guys you're going to have to drop after they've played 25 NHL games without showing any glimmer of hope that they'll crack your roster.

Your projections on Dalpe are very optimistic. It's a complete longshot that this guy will ever put up 60+ points, let alone in a timeline that will fit your keeper requirements. I'm not saying don't take a chance, just don't be surprised when 8 months from now you're completely underwhelmed by his performance and find yourself wondering what you're going to do with him now. If I could package Dalpe and Etem for a better prospect or a top pick next year I'd do it in a heartbeat.