Frozen Fantasy: Time and Objectivity

All-Star weekend is almost here. Yes, the games are painful to watch. But the skills competition Friday night? Count me in.

Even if there wasn't cash on the line. 

Fastest skater, hardest shot, shooting accuracy, passing, one-timers and stickhandling. Twelve players – the best of the best – will participate in four categories. Points will be awarded five down to one, depending on how they place in each group. The top-eight head to a shootout and then the top-six to an obstacle course where points are doubled. 

The shootout should be fun. The top point getter overall gets to pick the goalie he wants to shoot on. And so on down the line, with ostensibly the hardest one to score on as the last pick.

No egos here. And no allegiances. There's $1 million (U.S.) on the line.

For once, this event might be worth watching. Thursday has the draft – will Auston Matthews (100 percent Yahoo!) and Morgan Rielly (93 percent Yahoo!) avoid controversy and leave both William Nylander and Mitchell Marner (both 100 percent Yahoo!) on the board? Or will they stir talk radio in the city with a 'they like Willie more than Mitch (or vice versa)' pick?

Matthews says he can be bought, so at least he's going to have fun with it. 

The PWHL 3-on-3 challenge also happens Thursday. If you haven't been watching the games, you should. The women's game is fast, skilled and incredibly aggressive. 

And who knows what will happen Saturday with celebrity captains Justin Bieber, Tate McRae, Will Arnett and Michael Bublé ready for a rumble. 

There's nothing here for fantasy – every player on the ice has mad skills. We all know that. The thing I like about the break is the time off for players who have scuffled recently and the rejuvenation for those surging. The weekend will also give me a chance to evaluate my lineups. And decide if I am buying, selling or standing pat. 

Some time and real objectivity – it's what we all need to do. 

Now let's take a look at who caught my eye this week. 

Sam Bennett, C, Florida (38 percent Yahoo!) – Bennett has caught fire of late and his kind of game – abrasive offense – is rare. He posted nine points in nine games heading into Saturday night, including four goals, five assists, 24 shots, 12 PIM, 17 hits and eight blocks. A goal and two assists came with the man-advantage. One goal was a winner. Bennett also won 59 faceoffs (46.8 percent). He didn't record any points Saturday, though he did hammer out three hits and fire two shots (don't even look at how badly he was schooled at the dot, though). This kind of multi-cat contribution is almost impossible to find on the wire. 

Brandon Carlo, D, Boston (6 percent Yahoo!) – Carlo came off IR a week ago and instantly settled back into high-minute deployment in the Bruins top-four. And while not historically known for offense, he's generated three points (one goal, two assists) in five games. And five points, including four helpers, in his last eight to go with 14 blocks and 10 hits. Guy-next-door types like Carlo and Darren Raddysh (below) can help in deep formats, even if they aren't sexy names. 

Trent Frederic, RW/C, Boston (20 percent Yahoo!) – Frederic illustrates the trouble with streaming, at least for me. I flagged him here before and picked him up, only to drop him about 10 days ago for the next hottest thing. So how was my decision repaid? Frederic heads into the All-Star break with a five-game, six-point streak that includes five assists. His category coverage on the run is modest at nine hits and eight shots. But he sure helped someone. Streaming means you win some and lose some. Perfectly timing the market is impossible, the same as it is with investments (if you're lucky to have them). But sometimes you hit, so keep at it. 

Thomas Harley, D, Dallas (42 percent Yahoo!) – Harley might get dropped by some managers now that Miro Heiskanen (94 percent Yahoo!) is back, yet he's kept it going with four points - three of those goals - with the star in the lineup and is riding a three-game, six-point (three and three) run. I'm keeping my money on Harley right now. His confidence is soaring. 

Adam Henrique, LW/C, Anaheim (26 percent Yahoo!) – The Cali sun has shone brightly on Henrique with his move to the first line. He's on a five-game, eight-point scoring streak heading into Wednesday that includes four goals on 18 shots. And he's produced 13 points, including five markers, in his last 11 games. Henrique has always been able to play up with talented linemates (dating all the way back to his OHL days). Add on strong faceoff work (92 wins, or 52.3 percent), and you have someone who can quietly help your quest for a title. Alex Killorn (14 percent Yahoo!) is out until early March, so Henrique's top-line love connection is going to last a while.

Wyatt Johnston, RW/C, Dallas (25 percent Yahoo!) – Johnston ascended to the Stars' lead trio earlier this month and he seems to be really settling into the gig. He potted a goal Saturday against the Caps and has eight points - including three goals and three multi-point efforts - from his last seven outings while directing 18 pucks on net. Johnston is clearly not in a sophomore slump. In fact, he's on pace for his first 50-plus point season at just 20. And this gig could stick. Dallas is 7-2-1 in its last 10, and its lines look great. He'll help in single-year formats and dynasty managers need to have him in their crosshairs, especially if you're rebuilding. 

Kyle Palmieri, RW, NY Islanders (7 percent Yahoo!) – Palmieri is someone who regularly rolls on and off the wire in one of my leagues, so I thought I'd dig into his stats. He's often overlooked – age and that kind of injury history will do that. But Thursday night, Palmieri exploded for 11 shots, or almost one-quarter of his team's attempts. And he delivered a goal and an assist on the power play. His overall numbers look pale because of his horrendous minus-15, yet Palmieri has a chance at 200 shots and 45-50 points. He can bring value with 30-plus games left.

Cal Petersen, G, Philadelphia (1 percent Yahoo!) – Petersen has an opportunity to resurrect his NHL career in Philly. I'm not convinced he'll do it – he's been middling at best in the AHL the last two seasons. But John Tortorella is a coach who can motivate and develop players in weird ways. Samuel Ersson (42 percent Yahoo!) looked worn down Saturday and got the yank early. The break will help, but his development may be best handled in a platoon going forward. And the rebuilding Flyers aren't likely to seek a trade to bolster the position. At least not this season. Petersen's chance is here. Let's see what he can do with it. 

Darren Raddysh, D, Tampa Bay (1 percent Yahoo!) – Raddysh quietly impressed late last year and in the postseason. But it took some time for him to find his edges earlier this year. Raddysh is adding a touch of offense to a strong shutdown game while playing beside Victor Hedman (99 percent Yahoo!). He heads into the break on a three-point, three-game streak (one goal, two assists) with six points - including two PPP - across eight appearances. Yes, he's seen time on the man-advantage. Raddysh also has 14 shots and 10 hits in those eight. He can help in deep leagues, even when Mikhail Sergachev (77 percent Yahoo!) returns. 

Nicolas Roy, RW/C, Vegas (9 percent Yahoo!) – I glanced at Roy in early January after a two-goal effort and promptly chose to ignore him as he was only at 15 points from his first 34 games. Those two goals? They were the only points he picked up during an 11-game span. But the Knights were forced to juggle lines mid-month because of Jack Eichel's (96 percent Yahoo!) knee, and Roy is showing he's more than capable to play up a line - at least in the short-term. He heads into an All-Star vacation with 11 points in his last seven games (points in six of seven). His faceoff success has been varied this season, though he's running at a 59.2 success rate (58 wins) on this stretch. Eichel is out four-to-six weeks, so Roy is likely worth the squeeze for a little while longer.

Ilya Samsonov, G, Toronto (60 percent Yahoo!) – The sample size is limited, but Samsonov appears to have his mojo back. His save percentage was .862 in 15 games prior to his demotion to the AHL. Since his return? Samsonov has notched three consecutive wins and his save percentage is a tidy .939 over four starts. And he's showing more competitiveness right now than at any time this year. I know he's hard to trust, but someone will. 

Pius Suter, C, Vancouver (1 percent Yahoo!) – Suter is a tough pickup if you have to deploy him as a pivot, but he's worth a pickup as an F. He's on a three-game, six-point streak heading into the break after getting bumped into the top-six and PP1. Suter has tallied four goalsduring this run on 11 shots, and his confidence is soaring. This too shall pass – line juggling happens all the time. But with this success, he'll come out of the break inspired. I'm in. 

Back to time and objectivity.

I referenced the Flyers in my description of Cal Petersen (above). Their goaltending looks exhausted. They've overperformed their rebuild this year, and there's always the temptation to accelerate their process. And especially when they're sitting in a Eastern Wild Card.

But they're steadfast on their rebuild. And you and I need to act similarly in our assessment of our fantasy teams when compared to our goals. 

Case in point, the RotoWire staff keeper league. Co-manager Darryl Houston-Smith and I started with one objective – be competitive for as long as possible and respect the challenges of our cap situation. And be ready to pull the chute and focus on next season, if it came to that. 

We drafted smartly with almost no money, and now we find ourselves in first place. 

Great, right? We don't really know. We keep winning in weekly matches, but we've never come out with the highest score in any week. High floor, but what's our ceiling? And can we win the whole thing with consistency, rather than flash? 

We have some thinking to do. It's hard to think a top-place team might choose anything but go for it, but we also don't want to make next year even worse. Objectivity needs to reign. 

I'll do the same thing with every league I'm in, regardless of where I am in the standings (or appear to be). Some decisions will be tough. 

Be honest about your squad. Most of all, have fun. And enjoy the skills competition while doing it. 

Until next week.