The RotoWire NHL Top 251: Ovechkin On Top

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Updated on September 11, 2010 2:46PM EST

	First	Last	POS	Team	Comment
1	Alex	Ovechkin	F	WAS	Thank the gods if you get the 1-pick.
2	Sidney	Crosby	F	PIT	Finally emerging into the goal scorer we want.
3	Nicklas	Backstrom	F	WAS	He's the Robin here, but still a superstar.
4	Evgeni	Malkin	F	PIT	Blame the off season on injures.
5	Steven	Stamkos	F	TAM	He'll maintain the breakout and supporting cast will be better.
6	Henrik	Sedin	F	VAN	More shots and assertiveness would be nice.
7	Ryan	Miller	G	BUF	Olympic hero is NHL's best puck-stopper right now.
8	Pavel	Datsyuk	F	DET	World class player but hard to make a profit on Detroit's top guys.
9	Zach	Parise	F	NJD	High-energy forward is an MVP sleeper.
10	Martin	Brodeur	G	NJD	One more time, with feeling.
11	Roberto	Luongo	G	VAN	A little moody and erratic, but what goalie isn't?
12	Mike	Green	D	WAS	Forget the playoffs, pony up for the 82-game carnival.
13	Dany	Heatley	F	SAN	Forty goals a safe bet but he leaves you wanting more.
14	Drew	Doughty	D	LOS	Start building a trophy case for all those Norris Trophies.
15	Joe	Thornton	F	SAN	Brilliant playmaker but how about some shots, Joe.
16	Patrick	Kane	F	CHI	Here's hoping he keeps his focus in the year after.
17	Daniel	Sedin	F	VAN	Foot issue ruined what would have been gigantic year.
18	Ilya	Kovalchuk	F	NJD	Thanks for ruining our summer.
19	Martin	St. Louis	F

	First	Last	POS	Team	Comment
1	Alex	Ovechkin	F	WAS	Thank the gods if you get the 1-pick.
2	Sidney	Crosby	F	PIT	Finally emerging into the goal scorer we want.
3	Nicklas	Backstrom	F	WAS	He's the Robin here, but still a superstar.
4	Evgeni	Malkin	F	PIT	Blame the off season on injures.
5	Steven	Stamkos	F	TAM	He'll maintain the breakout and supporting cast will be better.
6	Henrik	Sedin	F	VAN	More shots and assertiveness would be nice.
7	Ryan	Miller	G	BUF	Olympic hero is NHL's best puck-stopper right now.
8	Pavel	Datsyuk	F	DET	World class player but hard to make a profit on Detroit's top guys.
9	Zach	Parise	F	NJD	High-energy forward is an MVP sleeper.
10	Martin	Brodeur	G	NJD	One more time, with feeling.
11	Roberto	Luongo	G	VAN	A little moody and erratic, but what goalie isn't?
12	Mike	Green	D	WAS	Forget the playoffs, pony up for the 82-game carnival.
13	Dany	Heatley	F	SAN	Forty goals a safe bet but he leaves you wanting more.
14	Drew	Doughty	D	LOS	Start building a trophy case for all those Norris Trophies.
15	Joe	Thornton	F	SAN	Brilliant playmaker but how about some shots, Joe.
16	Patrick	Kane	F	CHI	Here's hoping he keeps his focus in the year after.
17	Daniel	Sedin	F	VAN	Foot issue ruined what would have been gigantic year.
18	Ilya	Kovalchuk	F	NJD	Thanks for ruining our summer.
19	Martin	St. Louis	F	TAM	Mighty-mite hasn't missed a game in four years.
20	Jimmy	Howard	G	DET	Location, location, location.
21	Jarome	Iginla	F	CGY	Upside is gone but the floor works for us.
22	Duncan	Keith	D	CHI	Might be Chicago's most important player.
23	Henrik	Lundqvist	G	NYR	Empire staple hates to miss a game.
24	Tuukka	Rask	G	BOS	Meet the league's next superstar goalie.
25	Anze	Kopitar	F	LOS	The LA Kings, hockey as it oughta be.
26	Jonathan	Toews	F	CHI	Unfortunately, leadership is not a category.
27	Jason	Spezza	F	OTT	Gets more flak in Ottawa than he should.
28	Marian	Gaborik	F	NYR	You want to bet on another healthy year from him?
29	Ryan	Getzlaf	F	ANA	If healthy, he'll return to 2007-09 levels.
30	Marc-Andre	Fleury	G	PIT	He'll play a lot, they'll win a lot.
31	Eric	Staal	F	CAR	Upper-body injury hurt him in first half, expect rebound.
32	Rick	Nash	F	COB	It would be nice to see him on an elite team just once.
33	Tomas	Vokoun	G	FLA	Somehow he's been underrated all these years.
34	Craig	Anderson	G	COL	Don't chase him, necessarily, but he's legit.
35	John	Tavares	F	NYI	If anyone is "this year's Stamkos" it's this guy.
36	Ryan	Kesler	F	VAN	Hidden man in Vancouver, still a value.
37	Miikka	Kiprusoff	G	CGY	When he loses focus, he's Kiprusoft.
38	Pekka	Rinne	G	NAS	Team concept protects his numbers.
39	Patrick	Marleau	F	SAN	Don't pay the freight on a career year.
40	Alexander	Semin	F	WAS	Now you see him, now you don't.
41	Corey	Perry	F	ANA	Still on the escalator, improves every year.
42	Vincent	Lecavalier	F	TAM	Tampa should be one of the most improved teams in 2010-11.
43	Marty	Turco	G	CHI	Skills look spotty but the defense is superb.
44	Mike	Richards	F	PHI	A point-a-game likely, but don't pay for more.
45	Ilya	Bryzgalov	G	PHO	Deserved more of an MVP shake.
46	Antero	Niittymaki	G	SAN	Should be a safe play but Niemi looms.
47	Henrik	Zetterberg	F	DET	Wonderful skills but tends to be overpriced.
48	Shea	Weber	D	NAS	Just be happy you're not a goalie, shaking in front of his howitzer.
49	Danny	Briere	F	PHI	Reminded us of his skills during monster playoffs.
50	Jonathan	Quick	G	LOS	He's a stud but they play run-and-gun.
51	Sergei	Gonchar	D	OTT	Another PP you'll want a piece of.
52	Paul	Stastny	F	COL	He'll eventually make a run at 90-100 points.
53	Jeff	Carter	F	PHI	You have to be pretty good when 33 goals disappoints everyone.
54	Derek	Roy	F	BUF	Probably has peaked but it's not a bad neighborhood.
55	Johan	Franzen	F	DET	If the Mule stays health, 40 goals is possible.
56	Dion	Phaneuf	D	TOR	Let's just forget last winter happened.
57	Cam	Ward	G	CAR	He's riding with the most underrated team in east.
58	Travis	Zajac	F	NJD	Eventually will develop into a 30-50 guy.
59	Semyon	Varlamov	G	WAS	There's no right answer on him.
60	Bobby	Ryan	F	ANA	Rick Nash, OC version.
61	Marc	Savard	F	BOS	Will trade rumors mess with his head?
62	Dan	Boyle	D	SAN	Speed and smarts always have a place in this game.
63	Niklas	Backstrom	G	MIN	Location provides nice backdrop.
64	Jonas	Hiller	G	ANA	A shame we don't see him more on Saturdays.
65	Mark	Streit	D	NYI	This PP will be better than you think.
66	Steve	Mason	G	COB	Not a bad spot-play for home starts.
67	Chris	Stewart	F	COL	Puck kept falling for him in second half, which makes us nervous.
68	Michael	Cammalleri	F	MON	Where did all the PP goals go?
69	Michael	Leighton	G	PHI	Doesn't seem like a horse but that's their issue.
70	Nicklas	Lidstrom	D	DET	This is still an elite power play.
71	Zdeno	Chara	D	BOS	Don't tell him we said so, but he's overrated.
72	Tomas	Plekanec	F	MON	A legitimate top-six forward but not really a horse.
73	Dan	Ellis	G	TAM	If you buy the rebound, you'll want him too.
74	Loui	Eriksson	F	DAL	Bet on 30-35 goals, but stop at that.
75	Brad	Richards	F	DAL	Rebounded in Dallas but doesn't fill scarce categories.
76	Carey	Price	G	MON	Million dollar talent or untrustable flake?
77	Erik	Johnson	D	STL	He's going to be a dynamo very soon, get in.
78	Daniel	Alfredsson	F	OTT	Headed for 38th birthday, be realistic.
79	Andrei	Markov	D	MON	A little erratic but no denying the skills.
80	Kari	Lehtonen	G	DAL	Can he stay healthy and start paying us back?
81	David	Krejci	F	BOS	Better playmates will mean better stats.
82	Tyler	Myers	D	BUF	Baby, you're a big star now.
83	Jaroslav	Halak	G	STL	Playoff hero heads to a weaker club.
84	Chris	Pronger	D	PHI	You hate him unless you're a Flyers fan.
85	Brian	Campbell	D	CHI	Not a Norris guy but good for your second blueliner.
86	Simon	Gagne	F	TAM	Bring your insurance card.
87	Jason	Pominville	F	BUF	A safe bet to play the entire schedule.
88	Marian	Hossa	F	CHI	Hasn't justified the contract but it's not your money.
89	Thomas	Vanek	F	BUF	Pay for 30 goals, hope for 40.
90	Phil	Kessel	F	TOR	As consistent as a paper cup in a hurricane.
91	Bryan	McCabe	D	FLA	At least he's good at the one thing we care about, power-play stuff.
92	Pascal	Leclaire	G	OTT	Looks like their best, but not a long leash.
93	Alexander	Frolov	F	NYR	Gets a change of scenery at right time.
94	Matt	Duchene	F	COL	Fell off the map down the stretch but he's still a kid.
95	Patrick	Sharp	F	CHI	More valuable to the Hawks than he is to us.
96	Brian	Rafalski	D	DET	You'll never lose money on him.
97	Christian	Ehrhoff	F	VAN	Deep blueline here but he's the intriguing guy.
98	Mikko	Koivu	F	MIN	Pass-first centers aren't huge in fantasy.
99	Nik	Antropov	F	ATL	Has a lot of plusses but consistency isn't in there.
100	Ales	Hemsky	F	EDM	Edmonton's train wreck can't be pinned on him.
101	Chris	Mason	G	ATL	Will his defense help him at all?
102	Teemu	Selanne	F	ANA	It wouldn't be the same without Teddy Flash.
103	David	Backes	F	STL	Does a little of everything, helps STL more than us.
104	R.J.	Umberger	F	COB	Underrated scorer if they give him full ice.
105	Jonas	Gustavsson	G	TOR	Fun to watch, but they don't have the horses.
106	Keith	Yandle	D	PHO	Another reason to get your defense late.
107	Tomas	Kaberle	D	TOR	You know what you're getting here.
108	Erik	Karlsson	D	OTT	Make sure he sticks on that first PP group.
109	Ryan	Suter	D	NAS	He's the Rhoda here but still pretty good.
110	Joe	Pavelski	F	SAN	Playoff hero won't be quite as exciting over the grind.
111	Brooks	Laich	F	WAS	Caught up in the Beltway Undertow.
112	Kristian	Huselius	F	COB	Impact player when he feels like it.
113	Jiri	Hudler	F	DET	Back in Detroit and don't laugh, they need him.
114	Alexandre	Burrows	F	VAN	We'd like to see more PP time; expect mild dip.
115	Patrik	Elias	F	NJD	If you get to 75 games, kiss the ice.
116	Patric	Hornqvist	F	NAS	When in doubt, follow the shots on goal.
117	Alex	Goligoski	D	PIT	If he's going to pop, this is the time.
118	Jakub	Voracek	F	COB	Doesn't bring it every night but they'll still lean on him.
119	Dwayne	Roloson	G	NYI	Always gets the most of out of his ability.
120	Kyle	Okposo	F	NYI	Gets the most out of his ability but won't be a star.
121	Mason	Raymond	F	VAN	Decent surrounding but don't bid past 2009-10 production.
122	Pavel	Kubina	D	TAM	Get some Tampa guys this year, trust us.
123	Dustin	Penner	F	EDM	One of the few Oilers who didn't mail it in.
124	Michael	Del Zotto	D	NYR	Moves puck well but has a lot to learn in other end.
125	Jack	Johnson	D	LOS	He's not Doughty but might be a star anyway.
126	Niklas	Kronwall	D	DET	Breakout should have happened by now.
127	Wojtek	Wolski	F	PHO	Should be on the top PP unit.
128	Patrice	Bergeron	F	BOS	Can the hockey gods give him a break some day?
129	Jamie	Benn	F	DAL	Deserves a bigger piece of the pie.
130	Jay	Bouwmeester	D	CGY	How about maxing that talent, big guy?
131	Dustin	Brown	F	LOS	Captain crunch but never will be major scorer.
132	T.J.	Oshie	F	STL	He'll get as much ice as he wants.
133	Ryan	Callahan	F	NYR	He'll be good for a long time, but not a superstar.
134	Nikoli	Khabibulin	G	EDM	A little hep would be nice.
135	Peter	Mueller	F	COL	There's a pedigree here, and he spiked after deal.
136	Milan	Hejduk	F	COL	Name brand doesn't match the recent numbers.
137	Alexei	Ponikarovsky	F	LOS	Not the easiest player to motivate.
138	James	Neal	F	DAL	Last year probably will stand as his best.
139	Nathan	Horton	F	BOS	They'll love him in The Hub.
140	Jamie	Langenbrunner	F	NJD	Intangible guy doesn't have a ton of fantasy juice.
141	Andrew	Brunette	F	MIN	Cagey veteran still knows how to move the puck.
142	Taylor	Hall	F	EDM	He'll be a star someday, but not immediately.
143	Mike	Knuble	F	WAS	Hanging out in the right neighborhood.
144	Andrei	Kostitsyn	F	MON	A star on the right night, invisible on the wrong one.
145	Alexander	Edler	D	VAN	Welcome to the City of Blueliners.
146	Tobias	Enstrom	D	ATL	Ordinary physical skills but sees the ice well.
147	Marek	Zidlicky	D	MIN	Not the star we expected way back but he's still useful.
148	Kurtis	Foster	D	EDM	Great PP skills but has trouble staying healthy.
149	Kris	Versteeg	F	TOR	Probably will see more ice in the YYZ.
150	Brenden	Morrow	F	DAL	Team captains are often overrated in our numbers-grab.
151	Brian	Elliott	G	OTT	One of the more intriguing No. 2 guys.
152	Shane	Doan	F	PHO	Now in mid-30s, no sure thing to get numbers back.
153	Jussi	Jokinen	F	CAR	If only life were a shootout.
154	Rich	Peverley	F	ATL	Ringleader of the Peverly Hillbillies.
155	Stephen	Weiss	F	FLA	Goal jump looks a little suspicious.
156	Brad	Boyes	F	STL	He's a lot better than last year's nightmare.
157	Mike	Fisher	F	OTT	Will celebrity married life affect his game?
158	J.P.	Dumont	F	NAS	Offensive talent but this isn't a go-go team.
159	Tom	Gilbert	D	EDM	Knows what to do on the man-advantage.
160	Matt	Carle	D	PHI	We were hoping for a star career, will have to settle for pretty good.
161	Zach	Bogosian	D	ATL	Worth a spike gamble, but expect a minus rating.
162	Jose	Theodore	G	FA	Still unwanted as we go to press.
163	Antti	Niemi	G	SJ	It's not like he's behind a lock-down guy.
164	Jordan	Staal	F	PIT	More valuable to the Pens than he is to us.
165	Scott	Gomez	F	MON	Pass-first guys don't fry our bacon.
166	Antoine	Vermette	F	COB	So long as he rides with Nash, we're kinda on board.
167	Alex	Steen	F	STL	Underrated scorer but will he be stuck on third line?
168	Ville	Leino	F	PHI	Was that playoff run real or mirage?
169	Mike	Smith	G	TAM	Capable if a change is needed.
170	Ryan	Malone	F	TAM	At least you're not stuck paying him.
171	Niclas	Bergfors	F	ATL	Swaps supporting cast for playing time.
172	Claude	Giroux	F	PHI	Came on late and looms as a sleeper.
173	David	Perron	F	STL	Still just 22, he can get a lot better.
174	Mikael	Samuelsson	F	VAN	Decent puzzle piece but he's not a game-changer.
175	Alex	Kovalev	F	OTT	What if he were born with a work ethic?
176	Rene	Bourque	F	CGY	Nifty season, but don't bet on his health history.
177	Matt	Moulson	F	NYI	Don't sleep on some of these Island scorers.
178	David	Booth	F	FLA	Super talent but coming off concussion issues.
179	Evander	Kane	F	ATL	Ready for a meatier role.
180	Dennis	Wideman	D	FLA	Needed city change after messy winter.
181	Johnny	Boychuk	D	BOS	The reason Wideman was expendable.
182	Jean-Sebastien	Giguere	G	TOR	Goalie values are all about context.
183	Ryan	Smyth	F	LOS	Treated like a star but doesn't deserve label.
184	Sheldon	Souray	D	EDM	Loves to shoot the puck, and get hurt.
185	Ray	Whitney	F	PHO	Estimable pro but it's risky betting on old-timers.
186	Brian	Gionta	F	MON	Handy and useful but doesn't have dominant skills.
187	Michael	Frolik	F	FLA	Didn't flash last year but he's still a kid.
188	Todd	Bertuzzi	F	DET	Babcock keeps him motivated but you know the risks here.
189	Steve	Ott	F	DAL	Give him a bump if you need some PIMs.
190	Ryane	Clowe	F	SAN	Lunch-pail type isn't a fantasy target.
191	Martin	Erat	F	NAS	Handy guy to have around, but doens't score enough goals.
192	Vinny	Prospal	F	NYR	Holding on but there's no longer an upside.
193	Tyler	Seguin	F	BOS	He'll need 2-3 years to get to universal relevance.
194	Michael	Grabner	F	FLA	Panthers will give him a chance to stick on key lines.
195	Victor	Hedman	D	TAM	Give him one more year, then pay up.
196	Brian	Boucher	G	PHI	Plan B, for now.
197	Matt	Cullen	F	MIN	Another nameless, faceless forward in Minnesota.
198	Jason	Blake	F	ANA	Easy guy to root for, but point total doesn't match shot production.
199	Tomas	Fleischmann	F	WAS	On the right club but he isn't an ice-time priority.
200	Joni	Pitkanen	D	CAR	Has a value but there are so many guys just like him.
201	Andrew	Ladd	F	ATL	They'd be wise to make him a Top-6er.
202	Guillaume	Latendresse	F	MIN	Power-play specialist could get 25 again.
203	Olli	Jokinen	F	CGY	911 is a joke in your town.
204	Zack	Boychuk	F	CAR	Looks ready to be a Top-6 guy.
205	Matthew	Lombardi	F	NAS	No point breakout likely in this city.
206	Martin	Havlat	F	MIN	Traditionally, he's been a tease bet.
207	Devin	Setoguchi	F	SAN	Only if he sticks with Thornton.
208	Valtteri	Filppula	F	DET	Upside is 60 points, but wait until late rounds.
209	Brent	Seabrook	D	CHI	Physical player helps Chicago more than us.
210	Michal	Neuvirth	G	WAS	No pedigree but maybe he'll get a chance.
211	Tim	Thomas	G	BOS	It's a cruel game sometime.
212	Lee	Stempniak	F	PHO	One of many worker bees here.
213	Brandon	Sutter	F	CAR	Too versatile for his own good.
214	Joe	Corvo	D	CAR	You always feel he leaves 10-15 points on the table.
215	Jordan	Eberle	F	EDM	It's coming someday, but he's still just 20.
216	Andy	McDonald	F	STL	Another handy center you can add anytime you want.
217	Saku	Koivu	F	ANA	Playmaking center, move along.
218	T.J.	Galiardi	F	COL	Needs strong push to show he's a Top-6er.
219	Alex	Tanguay	F	CGY	He's been overrated for years.
220	Milan	Michalek	F	OTT	Never cheats you, but won't explode on scoresheet.
221	Chris	Drury	F	NYR	Forrest Gump kinda life had to stop sometime.
222	Marco	Sturm	F	BOS	Won't be fully healthy for opener.
223	Dustin	Byfuglien	F	ATL	He'll be overrated after heady playoffs.
224	Stephane	Robidas	D	DAL	Should get enough ice to matter to us.
225	Jonathan	Bernier	G	LOS	Quick would have to get hurt.
226	Tomas	Holmstrom	F	DET	Made a career out of being a pest.
227	Ryan	Whitney	D	EDM	Offensive skills but he's bouncing around for a reason.
228	Niklas	Hagman	F	CGY	Is he good enough to hang with the cool kids?
229	Jason	Demers	D	SAN	Knows offense but has a lot to learn elsewhere.
230	Scott	Hartnell	F	PHI	Good at many things, but not a dynamic point producer.
231	Tim	Connolly	F	BUF	A shame his body hates him so much.
232	Jason	Arnott	F	NJD	There's something left but the upside is long gone.
233	Mikhail	Grabovski	F	TOR	Nobody has whispered the right words to him yet.
234	Michael	Ryder	F	BOS	Unstoppable for a month, and then he stops himself.
235	James	Van Riemsdyk	F	PHI	Bringing up baby, but needs another year for us.
236	Ed	Jovanovski	D	PHO	Probably has another useful year tucked in him.
237	Marc-Andre	Bergeron	D	MON	He's good at one thing but drives coaches crazy.
238	Nikita	Filitov	F	CMB	Can they mend the fences here?
239	Ron	Hainsey	D	ATL	Pride of the River Hawks (a mythical bird).
240	Rick	DiPietro	G	NYI	One for the what-if file.
241	Ondrej	Pavelec	G	ATL	Don't draft backups on bad teams.
242	Matt	Stajan	F	CGY	Don't look for him on the first line.
243	Jochen	Hecht	F	BUF	Probably loses 10-15 percent of last year's haul.
244	Paul	Kariya	F	STL	A nice career but we'll watch without investment.
245	Brandon	Dubinsky	F	NYR	He'll be available for pickup when you need him.
246	Sam	Gagner	F	EDM	Teases us for a month, then skates away.
247	Kris	Letang	D	PIT	Nothing special but his playmates are.
248	Gilbert	Brule	F	EDM	Some offensive chops but not a front liner.
249	Carlo	Colaiacovo	D	STL	He'll be FA available when you need him.
250	Kyle	Quincey	D	COL	Bouncing around but he moves the puck well.
251	Bill	Guerin	F	PIT	Held up longer than we expected.