Sean Allen, Special to ESPN.comOct 2, 2024, 11:00 AM ET
CloseSean Allen is a fantasy analyst for ESPN.com. He was the 2008 and 2009 Fantasy Sports Writers Association Hockey Writer of the Year. You can tweet him @seanard.
They don’t make shot blockers like they used to.
In 2014-15, Kris Russell of the Calgary Flames rode his physical play to 147.6 fantasy points from hits and blocked shots alone. He averaged 1.87 fantasy points per game (FPPG) from only throwing checks and getting in front of pucks. All told, he finished with 203.7 fantasy points, ranking third overall among skaters for the season.
It’s a wild total to consider; thinking about the idea that Russell’s physical fantasy categories accounted for the same rate of fantasy points as Dylan Strome or Jordan Kyrou gave us last season overall, which placed them mid-80s for ranking among skaters.
But the opening to this article was a misdirection, because the fact is that we are living in the golden age of physical play. We may not get individual monsters like Russell or Dan Girardi, who both have six separate seasons among the 100 players since 2009-10 that have earned at least 100 fantasy points from hits and blocked shots (let’s shorten that to FPHBS from here on in); But last year accounted for the most players from a single season among that same top 100. There were 15 players in 2023-24 that posted more than 100 points from FPHBS alone.
At least 100 FPHBS* in 2023-24
The 15 players on that top-100 list who made the cut in 2023-24 are:
Moritz Seider, Detroit Red Wings (127.1)
Colton Parayko, St. Louis Blues (120.3)
MacKenzie Weegar, Calgary Flames (119.4)
Brayden McNabb, Vegas Golden Knights (118.4)
Nick Seeler, Philadelphia Flyers (115.7)
Matt Roy, Washington Capitals (113.7)
Jacob Trouba, New York Rangers (110.6)
Mario Ferraro, San Jose Sharks (109.9)
Chris Tanev, Toronto Maple Leafs (108.0)
John Carlson, Washington Capitals (103.9)
Darnell Nurse, Edmonton Oilers (102.8)
Ilya Lyubushkin, Dallas Stars (101.6)
Alexander…
Source link : https://www.espn.com/fantasy/hockey/story/_/id/41556428/espn-nhl-fantasy-hockey-draft-picks-slump-resistant-players-defensemen-forwards
Author : Sean Allen
Publish date : 2024-10-02 21:14:09
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