NHL Fantasy Hockey: Crucial training camp battles in Eastern Conference

Dobber launched his fantasy hockey website DobberHockey back in 2005 and has been Puck Daddy's resident fantasy hockey enthusiast since 2009.

Boston Bruins - Ville Leino vs. Simon Gagne vs. Ryan Spooner

The Bruins have a gaping space in the lineup with Jarome Iginla gone. Prospect Ryan Spooner, who is a natural center, is the most NHL-ready forward in the system and appeared to have a job sewn up. But the Bruins invited Simon Gagne and Ville Leino to camp, implying that Spooner won't have a job handed to him. Gagne, who has been out of the league so long that I keep adding an "r" to his name when I type it, last played on April 27 of 2013. A year and a half off could be a good thing for him though, as he is just 34 years old and was battling injury after injury. This kind of time to fully heal may actually counteract the rust. None of the three players are draft-worthy, but the winner of this little battle could be waiver-wire-worthy by Week 2 (say that three times fast).

Buffalo Sabres - Mikhail Grigorenko vs. Sam Reinhart

Grigorenko has already had two kicks at the can when he actually should have been dominating junior hockey instead of rotting in a losing NHL environment. Now that he's 20, he can play in the AHL where he is probably best suited. At least for the first half. But the Sabres are not deep down the middle and a job is there to be had. Did the organization learn any lessons from the treatment of Grigorenko? We'll know soon enough, because Reinhart was the second overall pick of the recent NHL Draft and in most cases that means an NHL job right away. In an ideal world, both prospects would develop in another league for 2014-15 but I think you'll see one of them make the Sabres.

Carolina Hurricanes - None. For Now.

Unless your fantasy team gives you a rooting interest on the question of whether or not Zach Boychuk can stave off the likes of Chris Terry and Brock McGinn (in which case - I'm sorry), the Hurricanes have a set group of 12 forwards and seven defensemen.

In a somewhat related note, Boychuk's fall from fantasy hockey grace has been steep and it would be really cool to see him somehow find his mojo and kick ass to start the season.

Columbus Blue Jackets - Secondary Power-Play Time

Let's assume that Scott Hartnell, Ryan Johansen, Nathan Horton, Brandon Dubinsky and Cam Atkinson are locks for five of the six forward PP spots. That leaves one spot for Boone Jenner/Matt Calvert/Artem Anisimov and newcomer Simon Hjalmarsson to fight over.  The winner of this 'battle' won't exactly make tidal waves in the fantasy hockey community, but it would mean the difference between 35 points and 45 points.

Detroit Red Wings - Kids vs. Vets

Now that Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk and Stephen Weiss are all healthy, what does that mean for Gustav Nyquist, Riley Sheahan, Tomas Tatar and Tomas Jurco? And if Daniel Alfredsson gets signed, just think of how much murkier this scenario will get. Many teams would start riding the young guns. Given that the Wings are looking to bring Daniel Alfredsson back and for some reason re-signed Daniel Cleary…they are obviously not "many teams".

But think about the wide range of possibilities here - Nyquist could get anywhere from 40 points to 70 points, depending on how he is used, if Alfredsson signs, etc., etc. And Sheahan's range could be 30 to 55. Tatar's would be between 35 and 55. Jurco could have zero points…or 50. It's teams like Detroit that make fantasy hockey so challenging. A perceived sixth-line winger could get 50 points, while a tentative first-line winger (i.e. a Justin Abdelkader) could end up with 25.

Florida Panthers - Brandon Pirri vs. Vincent Trocheck vs. Jimmy Hayes

Assuming that Quinton Howden and Drew Shore don't make the team, the Panthers have 12 NHL forwards…plus Pirri, Trocheck and Hayes. Of the three, Trocheck is the only player on a two-way contract. So even though he was one of the best Panthers down the stretch last season and even if he has a dynamite training camp, the politics of his situation would see him sent to the AHL. So which former Blackhawk prospect gets into the lineup? That's what training camp is for.

Montreal Canadiens - Rene Bourque for a Scoring-Line Job

After Bourque's rebirth in the postseason (eight goals in 17 games) and given his $3.3 million ticket, you'd have to think that he gets top six minutes to start the year, no? But if so, who comes out? Fortunately, with the depth that the Habs have up the middle, Bourque will have a talented pivot to play with regardless. Which kind of makes this blurb pointless. But what else is there, Dustin Tokarski vs. Peter Budaj in the battle of "who gets to have eight wins this year"?

New Jersey Devils - Which Reclamation Project Gets PP Time?

Injury-prone (Ryane Clowe, Martin Havlat, Mike Cammalleri), aging (Jaromir Jagr, Patrik Elias), slumping (Tuomo Ruutu, Michael Ryder) or unproven (Damien Brunner). Count'em - that's eight players with upside, but other than Elias there is quite a bit of downside. How the lines shake out (and PP units) in training camp will determine which of these players get off to a hot start and help your fantasy roster. This is not going to be resolved in a couple of practices (it takes a whole training camp to do that) - but at least we'll see how and where some of the pieces will fit for Game 1.

New York Islanders - Anders Lee vs. Brock Nelson

Many poolies have Nelson penciled in on that big line with John Tavares and Kyle Okposo. But Lee boasts size, strength and the talent to keep up. He entered the NHL with a splash, scoring six goals in his first eight games last season. If he could win a job alongside JT it would quite literally mean a nomination for the Calder Trophy. Or he could go back to the AHL. Nelson, on the other hand, seems pegged for close to 40 points as a third/second line tweener… or if he snags that top line job then you can add 15 or 20. Long-shot candidate: Cory Conacher.

New York Rangers - Kevin Hayes vs. Ryan Malone

Hayes was a top prospect for the Blackhawks who elected not to sign with the team that drafted him, as was his right, and become an unrestricted free agent. He chose New York because it offered, in his mind, the best combination of opportunity to play immediately, plus an opportunity to win (which effectively rules out his brother's team in Florida, and his buddy Johnny Gaudreau's team in Calgary). And the Rangers had a depth chart that would have pretty easily allowed for Hayes to make the team out of camp provided he didn't blow it. But now Malone is skating with the team and although there is no official contract as of yet, you have to figure that his arrival would spell 'AHL' for Hayes. Both men will be playing for an NHL job, though at different points in their careers.

Ottawa Senators - Mika Zibanejad vs. David Legwand

The veteran Legwand is capable of playing either a scoring line or a checking line. Is Zibanejad ready to anchor the second line now that Jason Spezza is out of town? Both players seem destined for 40 to 45 points this seasno, but either one of them could emerge from camp as a key to the second power-play unit. A strong start could push either player to the 55-point mark. I'd give the edge to the veteran Legwand here but Zibanejad has real nice upside.

Philadelphia Flyers - Michael Del Zotto vs. Andrew MacDonald

In one corner you have MacDonald, who just turned 28 this past Sunday. He saw secondary power-play time after joining the Flyers late last season, but managed just four points in 19 games. In the other corner is 24-year-old Del Zotto who has already been a 10-goal, 41-point NHL player. But MDZ's season last year was absolutely brutal. Not only did it scare poolies away from drafting him this year, but it scared the Nashville Predators enough to let him become an unrestricted free agent. Somebody has to replace the loss of Kimmo Timonen. If Del Zotto doesn't win the other spot on the first power-play unit alongside Mark Streit, then he's useless to the Flyers. But if all he can do is the pitiful offense he managed last year, then he'll be serving nachos to Ron Hextall in the press box. Del Zotto represents the true definition of the term "boom or bust".

Pittsburgh Penguins - The Lottery Tickets

There are three wingers spots open alongside either Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin, since Chris Kunitz has a spot sewn. Sustained time, game in and game out, on one of those lines could mean adding 20 or even 30 points to what the lucky bastard would have tallied otherwise. Pascal Dupuis has already enjoyed success on the Sidney Crosby line, so he has the inside track. I'm sure the Penguins would like to see Beau Bennett on the Malkin line. And they obviously acquired Patric Hornqvist in the James Neal trade so that they could replace Neal's numbers. On the Malkin line, Hornqvist will surely set career highs. Other candidates to watch - Steve Downie and Blake Comeau.

Tampa Bay Lightning - Chemistry With Stamkos

After the Marty St. Louis trade last season, Stamkos really hit it off with Ondrej Palat and converted winger Tyler Johnson. Will the trio remain together? After all, Johnson is a natural center and Palat has proven that he can anchor his own line with strong two-way play. And with hyped rookie Jonathan Drouin on the way and other options such as Ryan Callahan, Alex Killorn and Nikita Kucherov, the number of possible combinations here rival the number of pucks Evgeni Nabokov will miss. It goes without saying that a spot on the Stamkos line for the long term would mean as many as 25 more points to the end-of-season totals.

Toronto Maple Leafs - Second/Third Line Battles               

Assuming Nazem Kadri and Joffrey Lupul are staples on the second line, there are several options for the other spot on the wing. Obviously the Leafs would like David Clarkson to play there, for reasons that would see an uptick in smashed computer screens and mobile devices in the Toronto area if I reviewed them. But given Mike Santorelli's brief success on the wing of the Sedin line in Vancouver last season, he'll get a look here as well. David Booth and Matt Frattin are less likely options, but options nonetheless. And on the third line Peter Holland will try to stave off recent KHLer Petri Kontiola, with the loser seeing plenty of press box time.

Washington Capitals - Third Member of the Alex Ovechkin-Nicklas Backstrom Line

Obviously poolies want to see rookie Evgeny Kuznetsov win this spot because he's the talented winger on this team with the highest upside other than Ovechkin. Coaches in the past of leaned towards placing Marcus Johansson there, and there are other wingers who can score that will be considered as well (Eric Fehr, Troy Brouwer). Coach Barry Trotz is not known for rushing his rookies to the first line right away, so it will be interesting to see who gets to be placeholder of that spot until Kuznetsov is ready (be it next season or mid-season). It really would mean the difference between Kuznetsov managing 40 points, or surging to a Calder Trophy win with 60 points or more.

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