Just Fantasy Hockey - Week 5 Rookie Report

It's Tuesday, time for the JFH Rookie Report.

John Tavares (C), NYI - 10GP, 3G, 4A, 7PTS
Tavares has slowed down of late, going pointless in his past 4. The bad news for JT owners is that his ice-time has also decreased as he has averaged roughly 18 minutes on the ice over the past 5 games. That is down on his over 20 minutes from the first 5 games.
Fantasy Impact:
The 18 year-old has shown that he is human afterall. He'll have his ups and downs throughout the year, just don't get too high or too low on him and do something you'll regret. At the end of the year, 65-70 points is a strong possibility.

Ryan O'Reilly (C), COL - 11GP, 2G, 8A, 10PTS
The hottest of all the freshman, O'Reilly has 6 points in his last 4 and points in his past 7 games (9). His ice-time has also gone up and he played a season-high 20:13 on Saturday night. The Avs love the progress O'Reilly has made in transitioning to the NHL game and are giving him the opportunity to blossom.
Fantasy Impact:
While O'Reilly is red hot, he doesn't have a scorer's pedigree. His career-high in points with Erie (OHL) was 66 in 68 games. Hard to imagine him coming close to a PPG at the NHL level this year. Sell a fellow owner on O'Reilly's hot start and you'll be happy when he slows down in a few weeks.

Niklas Bergfors (RW), NJ - 9GP, 2G, 3A, 5 PTS
With 3 points in his past 2 games, Bergfors is showing the Devils why they drafted him 23rd overall in the '05 Draft. Niklas has spent the past 4 years adapting to the North American game in the AHL. He received over 17 minutes of ice-time in back to back games last week, showing that the Devils feel his game has finally matured enough to become a reliable NHLer. Playing on an effective line with Clarkson and Zubrus, the Devils are setting this youngster up for success.
Fantasy Impact:
Bergfors has great offensive instincts and can be a productive scorer if he sticks on the Devil's 2nd line. Not as heralded as some of the other rookies, Niklas could be just as valuable the rest of the way. If he is a FA, pick him up, especially in keeper leagues.

Michael Grabner (RW), VAN - 6GP, 2G, 3A, 5PTS
With injuries to Daniel Sedin and Pavol Demitra, Grabner is getting the opportunity to show his talent. The young Austrian has responded well with 4 points in his past 3 games. Playing on a lightning quick line with Ryan Kesler and Mason Raymond, Grabner is making the most of his audition.
Fantasy Impact:
The 14th overall pick in the 2006 Draft, Raymond has high-end offensive skills and speed to burn. He could be a nice find for the Canucks, and your fantasy team.

Michael Del Zotto (D), NYR - 12GP, 4G, 8A, 12 PTS
While we thought Del Zotto would start to slow down, he has actually heated up. The 19 year-old rearguard has 7 points in his last 6 games and has seen his ice-time steadily increase, playing a season high 20:14 against NJ last week. His 12 points is tops among all rookies and tied with Dan Boyle for the league lead among all Dman.
Fantasy Impact:
We still think it will be impossible for Del Zotto to keep this pace up. That said, he may be more advanced than we thought. You may want to ride him out through his first tough stretch (it will happen) and see how he recovers. He could end up being a great keeper DMan by the end of the year.

Other notables:
A slow week for Dallas winger Jamie Benn with just 1 goal in his past 3. Flyers winger James van Riemsdyk has 4 points in his past 4. Rangers Centre Artem Anisimov has 2 goals in his past 2 games while continuing to get minimal ice-time. Pre-season sleeper LW Ville Leino has just 1 assist in his past 5 games with the Red Wings. TB D Victor Hedman is pointless in his past 4.

Chris