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This week we are joined by our newest Roundtable participant, Ryan Dadoun of Rotoworld.com. Here's our question: Which players are you currently looking to sell while their hot? To me, a good sell-high candidate is a player who has the potential to continue to play at his current pace, but at the same time is someone you can deal for a safer bet. Wojtek Wolski is a name that comes to mind. He’s coming off a streak where he recorded at least one point in 11 of 12 games and he hasn’t really endured a cold streak this season. So far the season has been picture perfect for Wolski and while I have no trouble seeing him surpass the 50-point mark for the first time in his career, I doubt he can maintain his current point-per-game pace. Plus anyone who plays alongside Paul Stastny is at risk of struggling in the not-so-unlikely event that Stastny is sidelined at some point this season. Like I said before, if you can turn Wolski in for a safer bet, do so. Another guy that I’d part with is Marian Gaborik. So far this season he’s been one of the best fantasy players with 21 goals and 39 points in 28 games. He’s even managed to stay strong while the Rangers have fallen apart around him. My issue with Gaborik is not skill-based – I have no doubt that Gaborik can scored 100 points in 82 games – it’s health based. So far he’s managed to get by without a major injury, but do you really want to bet on him staying healthy all season? Gaborik has only played more than 65 games in one of his previous five seasons. He’s better off as someone else’s concern if you can manage to wrestle a star player away from another team for him. Ryan Dadoun, Rotoworld.com In one year leagues the difference between winning and losing can come down to trading away hot players at the most opportune time. Some of these players may seem obvious while others you may question. At forward I'd be looking to sell Chris Stewart who has 13 pts in his last 9 games. A large part of his recent success can be attributed to his new linemates Stastny and Wolski but his current pace will not hold up during the season and will most likely take a big hit when Milan Hejduk gets another chance on the top line. Sell Sell Sell. Tuukka Rask is going to be a star one day but it will not be this season. He has posted great numbers so far this season and has played more than most would have expected due to the injury to Tim Thomas. Thomas is still the #1 in Boston and you might be able to catch another manager sleeping. Michael Del Zotto was the talk of the 1st quarter of the NHL season but like his Rangers teammates he has hit a wall with 2 points in his last 10 games. Due to his hot start he may still have trade value. Del Zotto is going to take time to adjust to the NHL and this is not the year to own him. Marcus Schalle, DobberHockey.com I am looking to sell high on a pair of Islanders, but for different reasons. Matt Moulson fits the profile of the type of player you should sell high on. If you legitimately thought Moulson would have 14 goals over the first 30 games of the season, then you should probably get into the psychic business. No one had any idea who would be playing alongside much-heralded John Tavares, given the Islanders’ glaring lack of depth at forward. But Moulson became the lucky winner, and he has made the most with his opportunity. Moulson isn’t the first ninth-round pick to succeed at the NHL level, but I’m sure you snagged him off the waiver wire for peanuts after he scored five goals over his first seven games. Go make yourself a handsome little profit and sell him for a legitimate scoring threat. If Moulson hits a slump, he’ll be off the Tavares line and his fantasy value will disappear. Surprisingly, the other Islander that I’m looking to sell high on is Tavares. Sometimes positional needs require fantasy owners to part with assets they no doubt feel will produce. In my case, my Yahoo Friends and Family roto team has an overabundance of centers, but next to nothing on the blueline. The presence of top-round picks Ryan Getzlaf and Mike Richards, along with mid-round steal Brad Richards, has made Tavares expendable. Don’t get me wrong: I think he’ll score lots for the rest of the season. But as a rookie, he is more likely to hit a slump than the other guys, and his plus/minus is a riskier number given the projected rebuilding state of his team. Since I have already made a couple trade offers, I hope the other guys in this league aren’t reading this article! Ian Gooding, fantasyhockey.com The hot player I'm considering dumping is Stephen Weiss from the Florida Panthers. He's coming off a December 2 hat trick and has five goals in his last five games. He's got 13 goals and 11 assists in his first 31 games. Weiss is having a career season. Amazingly, he's never scored more than 20 goals in a season and he's never had more than 48 points. One school of thought says Weiss will continue to sizzle, but I'm guessing, as the Panthers continue to struggle, Weiss' production will return to his usual low-to-average levels. There's nothing in his history to suggest he's about to evolve into an offensive superstar. Weiss is doing well right now, and some fantasy players are probably cashing in on his recent hot streak, but I'm betting this is all just an illusion. Steven Ovadia, RotoRob.com Since everyone went with skaters so far, I'm going to throw a goalie out there, Antero Niittymaki. He's currently posting 2.14 GAA with a .931 save %, which are astonishing numbers compared to his career averages at 2.93 GAA and 904 Save %. Although he's lost four consecutive games, many people need help in the average goaltending categories. He's never posted numbers anywhere close to what he's at this season, and still lacks a shutout in 2009. He ranks in the top five in each Save % and GAA to this point, and it's highly unlikely that trend keeps up. Three of his past four games have been against the Maple Leafs and Avalanche, two cold teams, and he has started to slide. Trade him while he's hot and you'll get more for him now than any other point in the season. Kevin Orris, FantasyPros911.com Trackback(0)
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