December 3,
2007
Passing the Torch
By Darryl Dobbs, TheFourthPeriod.com
Zach Parise and Patrick Elias
seem to be going in opposite directions.
It's absolutely certain that Parise is going nowhere but up as
a fantasy player. Just 23 years of age and coming off a
62-point campaign, his owners had high hopes.
Twenty-five games into the
season Parise has 28 points, which is good for a 91-point
pace. It was thought that the youngster could be the heir
apparent to Elias as the star of the Devils in a couple of
years.
I guess you can fast forward
that proclamation.
With 12 points in his last six
games, Parise is vaulting ahead of his teammates. No longer do
poolies hope he gets placed on a good line – it doesn't seem
to matter anymore. Now poolies are curious to see whom he
plays with, if only so that they can pick up those players
because they know Parise will boost their scoring.
It works with Travis Zajac when they're together and lately it
has been working with Brian Gionta, who has 10 points in his
last six games playing with him.
Parise is a future 85- or 90-point player who is well on his
way to flirting with 80 points this year, just his third in
the NHL. He's durable too, having missed just one game in his
career – a healthy scratch early in his freshman year.
Elias, on the other hand, seems to be on the decline. I find
that hard to believe, given that he is just 31. His poor
production is not the result of his hepatitis C problems of
two years ago – he came back from that and posted 45 points in
38 games. It's more the result of a new coach. Elias will
bounce back, but 70 points is out of the question. Look for
something in the low 60's for this season. Until Elias moves
to a new team, that is probably all you can expect from him
going forward, too. Coach Brent Sutter has tried Elias on
Parise's line many times, but tends to give up on him quickly,
dropping him to the third line (read: doghouse) when the
results aren't immediate. He makes a solid "buy low"
candidate.
One thing is certain, though – the torch has been passed in
New Jersey.
Meanwhile...
...Roto-league owners should scoop up hulking Chicago
defenseman Dustin Byfuglien, if only for the short term. The
22-year-old has six points in his last three games and has
been seeing time on the forward lines. Meanwhile, he qualifies
as a rearguard and thus will help your team in that position.
It is likely just a hot streak, but it's worth the flyer for
sure. Byfuglien has some issues with his skating, but his
offensive prowess as really improved at the AHL level over the
past year.
...Bill Guerin appears to be out of the offensive mix on
Long Island. He had 10 points in eight games to start the
year, but has just one point in his last 15. At 37, he does
not have any more 60-point seasons left in him.
...Los Angeles sophomore Patrick O'Sullivan has seen his
ice time shoot up dramatically over the last couple of games
and he three points in his last two. Besides the fact that he
is streaky, it is quite possible that he has turned the corner
and gained the trust of coach Crawford, in which case you will
see him put points on the board with more regularity now. He
has the talent to produce over 90 points in this league in a
few years.
