Player News – Page 47 – FantasySP Blog

Last Call On Slava Voynov

Slava Voynov has been playing some major minutes for the Kings as his stock continues to rise.

Analysis: Voynov is plus-7 this year on a team with a negative six goal differential. To put Voynov’s plus-7 rating in perspective, Drew Doughty is minus-10 this year. Not only is Slava’s plus/minus a strength so are other areas of his fantasy game. He’s receiving about 26 minutes of ice time over his last four games while his seasonal average is a solid 21 minutes per game. Voynov’s success should not come as a surprise, he posted a plus-12 and 20 points last year in limited ice time and in just 52 games.

This year Voynov has a very respectable 6 points in 11 games played. He is getting secondary power play minutes but he’s not going to put up tons of points. The only areas he can hurt you is penalty minutes and power play points but outside of those areas he’s fine. Voynov is not just a deep league add, he’s a twenty-three year old coming into form on a team that really needs him at the moment. He’s available in 40-50% of fantasy leagues nationwide.

Stock Rising- Tyutin, Visnovsky

Fedor Tyutin appears to be having a career year and Lubomir Visnovsky is two games into his NHL return after his “issue.”

Analysis: Fedor Tyutin is getting 23 minutes of ice time and plenty of power play minutes this year but he’s had that his past four years in Columbus. So… what’s different this year? Well, the twenty-nine year old is simply having a career year. Tyutin has 10 points in 13 games this season which is fourth most in the NHL among defensemen. He’s not a big penalty minute guy nor does he shoot a ton so he can hurt you a bit in those areas. His points production will decrease a bit but he has taken his game to another level this year. As of today he is outperforming Shea Weber and Brent Seabrook.

It doesn’t matter what you think of Lubomir Visnovsky as long as you can clearly see he still has some tread on those thirty-six year old tires. Yes, he had a down year with the Ducks last year but two years ago he was a 68 point defenseman with a plus-18. He has 2 points in 2 games with the Islanders so far who are one of the better offensive teams this year. Visnovsky already has over nine power play minutes as well so pick him up if he’s available in your league because he racks up points in bunches on the man advantage.

Blocks And Boards Help

The inconsistent Derrick Favors is on one of his hot streaks and now is the time to pick him up.

Analysis: There aren’t many players out there that can stuff a stat sheet like Derrick Favors and then disappear for weeks at a time. Regardless, Favors is at it again and it’s time to ride his hot streak. The twenty-one year old is averaging 9.75 RPG, 1.25 BPG and 1.5 SPG over his last four contests. He’s doing all this still averaging 22 minutes per game which is right in line with his minute totals this season. He has been relatively consistent with the blocks and steals this year but his rebounding numbers have been rather strong lately. Favors is available in 30-60% of fantasy leagues nationwide.

Marreese Speights is another fantasy big man to watch. He’s averaging 9.3 RPG, 1.3 BPG and 16.3 PPG over his last three games in increased minutes with the Cavs. Speights is available in 40-80% of fantasy leagues and HE IS THE STEAL right now on the wire considering his minutes are up a ton in Cleveland. He’s also a career 75% free throw shooter, not bad for a guy with center position eligibility.

Deep League Help- Tomas Kopecky

The Florida Panthers may be playing awful this season but Tomas Kopecky is quietly producing.

Analysis: Tomas Kopecky has nine games under his belt and the fantasy world is starting to take notice. The first thing that stands out is the 14 penalty minutes. Couple that with the six points he has this year and you have an intriguing fantasy forward. Kopecky is only a minus-3 this year on a team that has a negative 11 goal differential, so that isn’t too bad. Another surprise with Kopecky this year is his ice time. He’s averaging eighteen minutes of ice time per game which is a career high for the thirty-one year old.

Kopecky is shooting more than ever as well. He has amassed 24 shots in just nine games this year and has 8 shots in his last two games. He’s getting power play minutes/points, penalty minutes, ice time and he’s scoring. In fact, he’s the highest fantasy rated Florida Panther this year ahead of Tomas Fleischmann. At the moment Kopecky is available in over ninety percent of fantasy leagues. Keep an eye on him for a few more games and see if he continues to contribute in at least five fantasy categories.

The Case For Spencer Hawes

Spencer Hawes only recorded one rebound against the Kings in his last game but his fantasy value remains underrated.

Analysis: Despite a one rebound performance in 26 minutes against the Kings there is still a case to be made for Spencer Hawes. He’s averaging 6.6 RPG, 11.0 PPG, 1.8 BPG and is shooting 45% from the field over his last five games. Hawes is also averaging over thirty minutes per game in that span. He has power forward and center position eligibility and he is shooting a career high from the stripe this year(72%).

Take a look at the Sixers’ roster and tell me who is going to eat away at Spencer Hawes’ minutes down the road. Kwame Brown? That’s funny. The fact is that no one is going to stop him(a decent big man) from getting 25 minutes every night. His rebounds may hover in the 6-7 per game range but he blocks shots, scores ten points a game and is not a liability at the line. He’s available in half of fantasy leagues.

Up next for Hawes is Orlando Monday night.