Frozen Fantasy: Tracking Predictions

Preseason predictions – we all make them and we all get some wrong. I made some fearless ones to start the season. Let's take a look at how they stand up so far.

Gulp.

Prediction: Carey Price will win the Vezina. He hasn't been money so far, but there's still time. I'm not giving up yet, but he's nowhere close to the shortlist yet.

Prediction: Seth Jones will take the Norris. Spit. He's tied for 38th in scoring from the blue line. John Carlson. John Carlson. John Carlson.

Prediction: Auston Matthews stays healthy, flirts with 60 goals and wins the Rocket Richard. So far, so good (knock on wood). He's on pace for 62 and David Pastrnak can be caught.

Prediction: Connor McDavid will nab the Hart and Art Ross. Still on track. The Bruins' boys are good, but I am not convinced in an 82-game push for them.

Prediction: Top coach will be Joel Quenneville. Well, he's in the running because the team is doing OK without the help of Sergei Bobrovsky. When he clicks, the kitties will take off. Travis Green is looking mighty fine in Vancouver, though …

Prediction: Antti Raanta and Darcy Kuemper win the Jennings. Kuemper has been all that and a bag of chips. Raanta needs to get his game together. There's time.

Prediction: MacKenzie Blackwood snags the Calder. Thatcher Demko has been better. Cale Makar is running away with it.

The season is still early. Sometimes it's good to hold on; sometimes it's better to move on.

Now, if I could just bring myself to move on from Shea Theodore. Gak.

Let's take a look at who caught my eye this week.

Connor Brown, LW/RW, Ottawa (9 percent Yahoo! owned) – Brown went quiet this week, but he's still the leading scorer for the Sens. Yes, you read that right. Brown was jettisoned from the Leafs where he barely earned ice time. Opportunity has knocked and the redheaded buzzsaw has found real chemistry with Jean-Gabriel Pageau (below). Brown leads the Sens with 12 points - including 10 helpers - in 15 games. And he's in rare positive territory. How is that even possible on a team like the Sens? He's not delivering much on the power play, but Brown can help you in a depth role. Don't overlook him, like everyone else seems to be doing.

Casey Cizikas, C, NY Islanders (1 percent Yahoo! owned) – Cizikas hit 20 goals and 33 points for the first time last season. Although that production came on the back of an unrepeatable shooting percentage. And prior to this week, it looked like a fluke. But Cizikas has put up two consecutive, two-point games this week and now has five points in 10 games. Since last Saturday, he's also been Patrice Bergeron-esque in the faceoff circle – count 35 wins in three games. Cizikas's value is limited, but this week's production was top-10 among skaters in some formats. Check him out in deep leagues.

Robby Fabbri, LW/RW, Detroit (5 percent Yahoo! owned) – Fabbri has been enigma forever – so much talent, yet so many injuries. I held on, year after year, in one keeper league – he just had too much promise to let go. This week's trade to Detroit could finally be the ticket to his success. His speed fits with that young squad and two power-play goals Friday night mean he's on two of my teams now. And more (here's hoping) come FAAB day. There's so much talent in this guy. He's definitely worth the gamble.

Noah Hanifin, D, Calgary (7 percent Yahoo! owned) – Hanifin's game leapt off the live stream Thursday night. He scored and added two helpers; two of those points came on the power play. Hanifin hasn't lived up to the hype of his draft year, but he's still a remarkably smooth-skating, puck mover. His seven points overall don't jump out, but he does when you consider five of those points have come in his last five games. Couple those with eight blocks, seven hits and 10 shots in those five games and Hanifin's ownership should be higher.

Duncan Keith, D, Chicago (13 percent Yahoo! owned) – It seems like Keith has been on the downside of his career for a while. We're probably all biased – after all, he's 36 and we tend to discount veterans. Or at least I catch myself doing that a lot. Keith got off to a slow start this season and that puts him on a low-30s pace. But he's riding a four-game, four-point streak heading into Pittsburgh on Saturday night. And that makes him one of the most productive defenders over the last week-plus. You can do worse.

Jared McCann, LW/C, Pittsburgh (5 percent Yahoo! owned) – Go get him now. His pivot is back and he happens to be Evgeni Malkin. Anyone can score beside Malkin and McCann is proving that and more. Thursday, he rang up a goal and two assists. Monday, he put up a single helper. And he's plus-6 over those two games.

Martin Necas, RW, Carolina (2 percent Yahoo! owned) – Dang, this guy is good. Necas is on his second four-game scoring streak of the season and has 10 points (three goals, seven assists) in 16 games. Not bad for a 20-year-old – that's a 50-point pace. Necas is fifth in rookie scoring and playing in the top-nine of one of the NHL's most exciting squads. Yes, he's still a bit skinny for his height, but most of the draft-day fears about his size are gone. Necas's skill package – speed, stickhandling, agility and power – is elite. A Calder nom could be in his future. He might as well be on your team while he's earning it.

Anders Nilsson, G, Ottawa (5 percent Yahoo! owned) – So, the Sens aren't exactly a place you go looking for a goalie. But Nilsson has won his last two outings – he beat the Rangers on Monday night and Kings on Thursday. And he's 3-1 in four starts since Oct. 23. Overall, his .923 save percentage is remarkably shiny given his jersey. Platoon-mate Craig Anderson is struggling with a 2-6 record and .897 save percentage. Nilsson is the man to own right now, even if he has played in six different cities in eight seasons. Maybe this town is the right one.

Jean-Gabriel Pageau, C, Ottawa (25 percent Yahoo! owned) – Pageau and Connor Brown (above) are making beautiful music together. Pageau is riding a four-game, five-point scoring streak heading into the weekend. And it includes at least a goal in each of the last three games. But the most impressive part is his plus-15 overall – who does that on a team that bad? On Saturday morning, Mr. Pageau was rated second overall for the previous last days in my 2019 Yahoo! Friends and Family league. Crazy, I know. But sometimes there's fantasy gold in the most unlikely of places.

Back to predictions and forecasting.

American Thanksgiving is looming. That's the time when people start to panic about their teams – fantasy and on the ice.

Last year's Blues proved there's hope for every last-place team. My own Friends and Family team from last year climbed from the basement to fourth by season's end. And I was just 1.5 points from third.

Take a deep breath. Enjoy all of the discussion about the greats, the goods and the pathetic. And the surprises and disappointments, too.

And then sneak in and swipe someone away from a panicker. I think I told you about a new league I'm in where last year's winner was trying to move Connor Hellebuyck after week one.

There are lots of guys like him. Go take advantage.

Until next week.