Posted - 09/29/2010 : 17:05:53 For the second on three installments on draft strategy:
Do Measure your Goalie Pick Wisely
In most drafts I have been a part of everyone needs one goalie but can’t have more than one. If that is the case in your draft, consider the number of people in your draft. I would suggest that most snake drafts are 10-15 people. If that is the case, you are assured one of the top 15 goalies. Unless you can get your hands on one of the top 3-5 guys(Brodeur, Luongo, Lundvist, Miller, Kipprusoff) then wait until your last pick for your goalie. Don’t waste your earlier round picks for a player that will be there at the end anyway. The difference between the 6th goalie and the 15th goalie is really insignificant and quite predictable. Spend your mid-late round picks on players with potential to produce more than projected. Don’t worry, a good goalie will still be there in the end.
Don’t spend your research time on 1st-3rd Round Picks
Really, a computer can pick most people’s first 2-3 rounds of the draft and definitely the first round. It will be the exact same players as every other draft in North America with a few changes to the order. Knowing that, don’t waste your time trying to figure out how you will get your friends to let Ovechkin to fall to 10th overall. Spend your time doing your research between the 40th and 120th ranked scorers from last season. That should be rounds 4-10 in most drafts and that is where you will win. You can definitely lose your draft if you make a fatal mistake in the first round but that pick doesn’t win the draft. For example, picking Ovechkin 1st overall in a draft last year did not win the draft. What won my draft was picking Loui Eriksson in the 7th round. His 71 points was 25 pts higher than average for that round. 95% of the time a draft is won by one player over achieving. Find your Loui Eriksson and start counting your cash.
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