Yahoo Fantasy Hockey: Must-own John Klingberg; what to do with Marty Brodeur?

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

For the first time in 25 years, a rookie defenseman in the Dallas franchise (dating back to the Minnesota days) has a point in five consecutive contests, per Elias.

John Klingberg, take a bow. The 22-year-old now has eight points in eight career NHL games and already sits tied for second in that department  among rookie blueliners.  

Just how good has he been? Here is a list of some notable active NHL defensemen - and how they did after their first eight career NHL contests…

Klingberg's hot start is both notable and impressive, given how the other big names did when they kicked off their careers. There will be plenty of ups and downs - look no further than Zidlicky's career. But from a long-term standpoint, things are looking swell for this guy and is a must-own in most fantasy formats. He's still just 23% owned in Yahoo. 

Studs...

These fellas are wielding a hot stick. Take that into consideration when you go after them in trade talks.. 

Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins (6-5-6-11, even, 6 PIM, 15 SOG, 3 PPPts) - I try not to fill this area with a Malkin or Crosby note week after week, but they just keep putting up stupid numbers. Sometimes they take turns. Sid's ridiculous one week, Gino the next. But yeah, congrats on your 300th career win Mr. Fleury. Looks like it's been tough.

Drew Doughty, Los Angeles Kings (8-2-5-7, plus-3, 6 PIM, 25 SOG, 1 PPPts) - Doughty was off to a slow start. Most years, he calls that "the regular season". But Coach Sutter tried something new a few games ago - when the puck is in play, have Doughty on the ice. Doughty's usual 27 minutes per game has been up over 31 or 32 minutes lately and his numbers have risen accordingly.

Jaroslav Halak, New York Islanders (8-0-0, 1.21 GAA, 0.953 SV%, 3 SO) - It's hard to believe that Halak's career high in wins is 29, but not if you consider the fact that he was splitting starts in St. Louis. No such drawbacks with the Islanders - and his current pro-rated total for this season is 41

Duds...

Somebody wake these guys up – their fantasy owners are counting on them...

Jake Gardiner, Toronto Maple Leafs (6-0-0-0, minus-8, 2 PIM, 13 SOG, 0 PPPts) - Gardiner is playing tentative hockey and he seems to be second-guessing himself. Unwilling or unable to tap into his vast creativity, Carlyle something will have to give here or we'll never see what he can truly do. Don't bet on it.

Chris Kunitz, Pittsburgh Penguins (8-0-2-2, 2 PIM, minus-2, 20 SOG, 0 PPPts) - Playing with Crosby, this will probably be the only eight-game stretch in which he's held to just two points.

Niklas Kronwall, Detroit Red Wings (7-0-1-1, minus-1, 4 PIM, 5 SOG, 1 PPPts) - Five shots on goal in seven games for a player who sees 23 minutes per game or more, well that's kind of embarrassing. But Kronwall has never been a big SOG guy (usually around 1.5 per game), so chalk the latest slump to a market correction. He's on pace for 48 points now and he had 49 last year.

The Wire...

Mostly short-term grabs here, but as always some potential steals...

Jarret Stoll, Los Angeles Kings (6-2-4-6, plus-4, 2 PIM, 8 SOG, 3 PPPts) - Rather than the two big lines featuring Anze Kopitar and Jeff Carter, the Kings have shifted to four lines of distributed scoring and checking. Stoll finds himself with Dustin Brown and Justin Williams these days. He also finds himself on the power play.

Jamie McBain, Los Angeles Kings (2-1-1-2, plus-1, 0 PIM, 2 SOG) - Be very cautious here and only take a flier on him if you're truly desperate for defensemen. This is a player, remember, who was unable to land an NHL contract until two months into the season, despite a camp tryout. But his ice time is creeping upwards and he's starting to chip in points.

Tomas Jurco, Detroit Red Wings (5-2-3-5, plus-4, 2 PIM, 9 SOG, 2 PPPts) - Just imagine if he got some ice time. Jurco has been a healthy scratch three times this season and has seen his ice time above the 13-minute mark on just four occasions.

Patrick Maroon, Anaheim Ducks (6-1-3-4, plus-2, 9 PIM, 11 SOG) - With ice time that's up over two-and-a-half minutes over last year, the 26-year-old Maroon finally has a secure hold on regular NHL duty. A fairly reliable depth player to own in roto leagues because he can chip in points on a scoring line, or penalty minutes on a checking line.

Matt Beleskey, Anaheim Ducks (4-3-1-4, plus-1, 0 PIM, 8 SOG) - Here are Beleskey's most common linemates this season (courtesy of the free Frozen Pool tools):

There's a reason why he's already just one goal shy of his 2010 career high of 11. 

Stephen Weiss, Detroit Red Wings (2-3-1-4, plus-4, 0 PIM, 4 SOG) - We all know Weiss's track record.  We also know that for the better part of a year and a half, he's been battling injuries that have made his production the equivalent of a Chris Thorburn. He says he's healthy for the first time in months, and his two games since his NHL return are impressive.

Calvin Pickard, Colorado Avalanche (2-1-0, 1.20 GAA, 0.966 SV%) - Pickard came on in relief of Reto Berra Saturday and allowed zero goals as the Avalanche came from behind to win. Then he did it again Tuesday - Berra was pulled, Pickard allowed zero goals, the Avs came back and won. According to Elias, he is the first goalie in NHL history to register his first two NHL wins in consecutive games - both in relief. With Semyon Varlamov still battling a groin injury, Pickard should get in a couple more starts before being sent back down. His start Wednesday night was fantastic, despite the loss.

One player who will be a hot commodity on the waiver wire is goaltender Martin Brodeur, who is now practicing with the Blues. With Brian Elliott out "week to week", poolies figure that in Brodeur they can get a solid 1B goaltender. Don't be one of those poolies. Yes, he'll get some spot starts. Yes, of all the NHL team systems to play behind, St. Louis is the one system that is best suited to make a bad goaltender look good. But don't get your hopes up. Jake Allen is the future of the organization and giving him five out of every six starts is what is in the cards, barring a massive collapse. Sure, if Brodeur can be snagged and it costs you nothing and you have plenty of room - then it can't hurt. But don't strain your thumb hitting the "claim" button and certainly don't compete with other managers over the claim

Happy Thanksgiving to my American compadres - enjoy the turkey

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