DFO Fantasy Mailbag: June 19
What round should Bedard be picked
— michaelll (@Metsrangersfan) June 18, 2023Matthews or M. Tkachuk keeper league
— Tyler VD (@TyVanDusen7) June 18, 2023This one’s close, but I’m banking on an Auston Matthews bounce-back season, so I’ll side with the Toronto pivot.
And don’t get me wrong, I love Tkachuk. From a fantasy standpoint, he had an incredible year, and there’s no question he grossly outplayed and outproduced Matthews. That said, for a variety reasons – mostly injury related – I think he’s a regression candidate. At this point, it’s understandable to wonder if he’ll be ready to go for the start of training camp in September. On top of that, once Tkachuk is good to go, how affective will he be coming off a broken sternum? It could take some time.
PRESENTED BY BETWAY
Meantime, by his standards, Matthews had an “off” season. Additionally, it’s easy to forget the fact that he entered 2022-23 on the heels of back-to-back Rocket Richards. Yeah, he’s pretty good.
Who’s your top underrated multi-cat player??
— Blake Creamer (@BlakeCreamerSE) June 18, 2023Right away when I saw this question, I thought of Andrei Kuzmenko. I mean, the dude scored 39 goals in his first NHL season. Impressively, 20 of those 39 came in a 36-game span under Rick Tocchet. For what it’s worth, that’s a 55-goal pace. Suffice it is to say, I love Kuzmenko going into next season.
Tage Thompson continue his last two seasons?
— Patrick Schaus (@Pschaus105) June 18, 2023Considering the body of work, I don’t see why not. Look, I understand that once you’re at the top, it’s tough to stay there, but Thompson’s such a unicorn. When’s the last time we saw a 6’6” centre with that skillset, skating ability, shot, and IQ? Maybe in the NBA.
Who’s going to get drafted too high next season?
— Co-Founder Unhinged Labs (@burner314159262) June 18, 2023Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Linus Ullmark, and Nico Hischier are three names that come to mind.
It’s tough to tell, though. It’s too early in the offseason. Let’s revisit in a month.
And is time to give up on Quentin Byfield?
— Coach Leslie Simon (@LeslieEricSimon) June 18, 2023I should qualify this answer by saying that despite his early career struggles, I do think Byfield has a bright future. Additionally, honestly, I feel like he has all the tools to be a fantasy monster one day. Everything just needs to click. Easier said than done, of course.
With all that in mind, there’s no point waiting around. Once Byfield can demonstrate some consistency at the NHL level, I’ll jump back on board the hype train. For now, peace out.
In a keeper league… do I hang on to Ullmark?🤷🏼♀️
— Mishka (@secrtgrl_68) June 18, 2023Considering he’s about to win a Vezina Trophy, I feel like you almost have to give Ullmark the benefit of the doubt and keep him for next season. Furthermore, regardless of what happens this summer, I’ll be very careful to write Boston off. Yes, they’re clearly a strong regression candidate, but there’s no way – at least in my opinion – that they fall completely off a cliff in 2023-24.
How many points for Nick Schmaltz next year?
— Brendan Richardson (@BrendanBrich) June 18, 2023Cheeky question.
If Schmaltz can find way to stay healthy – which has been an issue the past few seasons – I don’t see why he can’t flirt with 30-35 goals and 75-80 points. Weirdly, he’s coming off two nearly identical seasons where he capped out at 63 outings and finished just short of 60 points. Additionally, there’s a chance he could get traded this summer, so there’s no telling what that could potentially do for his fantasy value as well.
What to do with Spencer Knight?
— Coach Leslie Simon (@LeslieEricSimon) June 18, 2023This is purely speculation on my behalf, but I would just assume he’ll be back in the mix to start next season. Knight’s extremely talented, and for my money, he’s still the goalie of the future in Sunrise.