Who Are The Top Fantasy Hockey Options On The New York Rangers?
Who are the top fantasy options in New York?
NHL.com recently did two separate segments in which they ranked both the Top 50 and Top 200 players in the NHL in terms of fantasy this season. I know fantasy hockey is something of a big deal around these parts (who doesn't love fantasy sports?) so I thought this would be of some interest.
Three players from the New York Rangers crack the Top 50. You can probably guess the top two pretty easily, and even the third without much trouble. Anyway, to the Top 50:
| 6. | Henrik Lundqvist, G |  |
| Outlook: No one is more reliable -- over past three years (of goalies with at least 100 GP): Second in wins (99), best GAA (2.11), second in SV% (.926), most SO (21) -- best year could be coming with contract on line. | ||
| 20. | Rick Nash, LW | |
| Outlook: Many drafters will point to subpar playoff performance (1 G, 4 A in 12 games), but regular season was extremely productive (finished 15th in Yahoo!) and 40-plus goals is attainable in year two with Rangers. | ||
| 50. | Derek Stepan, C | |
| Outlook: Finished 30th among all players in Yahoo! after breakout year (18 G, 44 points, plus-25) and could better those stats if centering Rick Nash for a full season under new offensive-minded coach Alain Vigneault. | ||
No real surprises there. Nash could even be ranked a little higher, honestly, but the trio is ranked pretty fairly. I think Lundqvist is pretty clearly the best goalie in the draft (and thus, in the league) and Nash is easily worth a first round pick (you can pencil Nash in for 30 or more goals this year). As for Stepan, there's more of a risk because last year was his first true breakout year but he's easily worth 50 points at his worst.
As for the Rangers who made the Top 200?
Ryan Callahan - 124th
Brad Richards -- 138th
Derick Brassard -- 145th
Michael Del Zotto -- 179th
Ryan McDonagh -- 196th
I think you could easily have Richards higher on the list -- last year isn't the norm for his career, regardless of how bad of a season it was -- but it's justifiable because of last year's issues. Brassard is another name that could be higher, but he needs to be more consistent during a full regular season.
As for Del Zotto and McDonagh? Obviously Del Zotto is more valuable to a fantasy team because of the offense, but it wouldn't shock me to see McDonagh break 40 points this year.
Anyway, thoughts on all this guys?
