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Biggest Fantasy Disappointments-Defensemen

Just as there are always players who perform well above expectations in a given Fantasy Hockey year, the reverse is also true: There are always those high draft picks that disappoint and crush your dreams of championship glory.


Injuries sometimes play a part in their demise. In other cases, a player can be traded to a team that doesn't have the necessary pieces to complement their style. Many times, you'll find you drafted that guy who had what was thought to be a "breakout" season last year, only to find he was incapable of repeating it.


Frank Mazzola takes you through a look back at last season's biggest reasons that you might have had to watch someone else take home the big prize in your league and recommends whom may be worth drafting again (and whom you may wish to take off your draft board entirely.) 


Lubomir Visnovsky- LA Kings- 8 goals, 33 assists, 41 points, -18


(Average Draft Position in ESPN leagues: 49)


Fantasy owners drafted Visnovsky high, expecting him to be a huge gun in their offensive arsenal. What they ended up with was hockey's version of a cap pistol. 16 defensemen scored more points than the Czech product last season, many of whom were drafted much later. More disturbing than his lack of production was his crippling -18 statistic, the worst in his seven year career. His 22 points with the man advantage were particularly low for a guy who is supposed to be a power play specialist. However, there is a bright spot for Lubomir: He was recently traded to Edmonton and should see his totals rise back to their normal levels when he is paired on their PP with Sheldon Souray. 


Bryan McCabe- Toronto Maple Leafs- 5 goals, 18 assists, 23 points, -2


(Average Draft Position in ESPN leagues: 50)


Granted, McCabe wasn't having a horrible season prior to missing 22 games with a broken hand. However, he wasn't the same offensive force that he had been in recent years. You would expect a player drafted as high as McCabe was to produce better power play numbers (a total of 16). He would also disappear for stretches at a time (he went without recording a point for more than 5 games in a row twice last season.) He certainly doesn't appear to be in the Maple Leafs long term plans. Depending on where he may actually end up next season, you may not want him in your plans either. 


Alexi Zhitnik- Atlanta Thrashers- 3 goals, 5 assists, 8 points, -8


(Average Draft Position in ESPN leagues: 99)


Zhitnik's career appears to be just about at an end, which is sad for him. For Fantasy owners, though, the news is a relief as it means no one will ever again waste a pick on him. Zhitnik contributed a measly 8 points last season to fantasy rosters. His two power play points did little to offset his -8 statistic. To those unfortunate owners who were saddled with him, try not to think about all the defensemen you could have drafted later and gotten more than four times the production from. Just remember his name the next time you reach too high for a player who is clearly on the downside of his career.


Frank Mazzola is a staff hockey writer for Sportsbuff.com. He can be contacted at frank.mazzola@sportsbuff.com

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