Hey all, so I didn't find a thread like this so I figured I'd start one. This thread is all about increasing your chances of success when making an offer. I ask that everyone who posts a tip please headline it in bold to distinguish it from the chatter. I'll start:

Write a short blurb in the trade offer- be sure to acknowledge the benefit for both sides
After 5 years of playing fantasy, I've realized that trade offers prefaced by a paragraph of explanation are more likely to be accepted, or at the very least start a discussion and increase your chances of getting a counter-offer. It's best to not sound too pushy, or downplay the the other GM's players in these paragraphs or you'll come off as desperate.

Expounding on this: keep it simple! I'll give you two examples to explain what I find more effective.

1) "Hey! I need hits and PIM, while it looks like you're looking for +/- boost. Let me know what you think.

2) "Hey! I'll give you my Souray for your Ott. It's a good trade for you man, Souray is putting up a lot of points and Ott isn't much of a goal scorer. Besides, you can get anyone on waivers to replace hits and PIM. Also, you've got more slots open on D than C, and wouldn't you like to play your stars instead of Ott? Whaddya say to this offer?"


So example 2 is a bit extreme, but I wrote it just to illustrate some of the things that I find annoying in trade offers from other owners. Example 1 is simple, gets the point across and doesn't try too hard to sell the trade.

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16 team H2H (We keep everyone)
Positions - 2C, 2LW, 2RW, 4D, 2G, 1Util, 11 Bench, No Farm (We just keep prospects on the bench)

Scoring Cats
G ,A, +/-, PIM, PPP, SOG, Hits
Wins, Saves, SV%, GAA, SO

Year 1 = 2/16
Year 2 = 13/16
Last year = 4/16

C-Crosby, Lecavalier, Ott (LW), Schwartz, Matthias, Toffoli, Leino (LW)
L-Michalek (RW), Pacrioretty, Hagelin
R- Gallagher, Neil, Read,
D- Markov, Rielly, Wisniewski, Hamilton, Fraser, Dumba, Beauchemin, Trouba, Barrie
G-Fleury, Bryzgalov, Ward, S.Mason, Enroth,

Research the League's Trade History

I'm a big advocate of focusing on an owner rather than just focusing on a specific player. Looking through my keeper league's history, I've found that one GM has consistently been trading goalies (who have an inflated value in my league due to 5/12 categories being goalie cats)- while just about every other GM will be reluctant to do so. That's why when I was looking for goalie help earlier this season, the first person I tried to trade with was this owner. (The trade ended up being my Blake Wheeler for his Brian Elliot - this was before Elliot started sucking really bad >.>).

So look at the trends in trading through the league history. Which GMs have traded away superstars? Which GMs only engage in low-profile trades? Which GMs take a gamble on young talent? It wont be hard to research this, and you'll quickly notice trends and tendencies that can help you better select a trading partner and increase your chances of having an offer accepted.

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16 team H2H (We keep everyone)
Positions - 2C, 2LW, 2RW, 4D, 2G, 1Util, 11 Bench, No Farm (We just keep prospects on the bench)

Scoring Cats
G ,A, +/-, PIM, PPP, SOG, Hits
Wins, Saves, SV%, GAA, SO

Year 1 = 2/16
Year 2 = 13/16
Last year = 4/16

C-Crosby, Lecavalier, Ott (LW), Schwartz, Matthias, Toffoli, Leino (LW)
L-Michalek (RW), Pacrioretty, Hagelin
R- Gallagher, Neil, Read,
D- Markov, Rielly, Wisniewski, Hamilton, Fraser, Dumba, Beauchemin, Trouba, Barrie
G-Fleury, Bryzgalov, Ward, S.Mason, Enroth,

Don't be afraid to give to get.

Offering 2 for 1 expecting to get a top player for fringe players or players you plan to drop usually will not work. Fair offers for a good return will usually get it done. That's not say sell high is out. By all means sell high/buy low. Take chances.

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10 team H2H (4 keepers) *Must keep at least 1 D-man or goalie*
Positions - 2C, 2LW, 2RW, 1F, 3D, 2G (daily changes)
Scoring Cats
G ,A, +/-, PIM, PPG, PPA, SHP, SOG
Wins, Saves, S%, GAA
2012-2013 Champs!

C-Crosby, Seguin(C/R), Benn(C/L), Roy
L-Ovechkin(L/R), Moulson, Pacioretty
R-Iginla, Voracek, Ryder, Simmonds, Clowe(L/R)
D- Karlsson, Byfuglien, Pietrangelo, Phanuef,
G-Quick, Niemi, Bobrovsky
IR-