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 Posted - 01/22/2007 : 10:53:14
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By Darryl Dobbs
Dan Boyle is cheap in so many hockey pools because he has a career high of ‘just’ 53 points and he is coming off a 39-point season.
That being said, Tampa Bay’s power-play quarterback should be considered a Top 5 fantasy defenseman. In fantasy circles, his name needs to be inserted right after the names Chris Pronger, Nicklas Lidstrom and Scott Niedermayer. In hockey pools, the likes of Wade Redden, Bryan McCabe and Sheldon Souray are getting more respect than Boyle, but the fact remains that Boyle is tied for second in NHL scoring amongst rearguards.
Not only that, but he started the season off with just 10 points in 21 games.
Since that below-average start, the 30-year-old has peeled off 30 points in his last 29 games and is well on his way to his first career 65-point season with 70 points a very real possibility. He averages more than seven minutes of power-play time per game with the 10th ranked Lightning power play and with high-flyers Martin St. Louis and Vincent Lecavalier to pass to, how can he slow down?
As if that were not enough for fantasy junkies – Boyle’s 40 penalty minutes so far this season already tops his totals from last season and he is well on his way to career numbers in that category as well…
Meanwhile…
Buffalo netminder Martin Biron has lost each of his last two starts and is pretty much doing everything he can to lower his trade value in the eyes of 29 other NHL teams. The Sabres want an arm and a leg for him – and rightfully so – but the way things are going with his game, they will likely pass on trading him, preferring instead to keep the bigger asset for the playoffs and lose him for nothing in the summer. He is 2-3-1 in his last six games…
Senators’ defenseman Tom Preissing has 10 points and is a plus-6 in his last 10 games. He is currently second in the NHL in plus/minus at plus-28. Clearly he is clicking with Wade Redden, who has 11 points in his last nine games. The two of them have pushed Joe Corvo off the top power-play unit and the result has seen Corvo fall into a tailspin of just one point in his last 13 games…
San Jose’s Patrick Marleau has fired 48 shots on net in the past 10 games. This is obviously a direct result of playing on a line with Joe Thornton. This has also directly resulted in Marleau potting six goals and 11 assists in that span…
For more fantasy hockey tips, visit www.dobberhockey.com - also, last chance to pick up the only NHL Midseason Pool Guide out there – get the inside edge in your hockey pool as the trade deadline nears! Final 40 games projected stats, in-depth prospect analysis, insider tips and more!
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Dan Boyle: Underrated, But One of the Best Fantasy 
