Russell LaBounty-US PRESSWIRE
This week’s installment of Phoenix Coyotes fantasy hockey revolves around Left Wingers. Four Coyotes players use the left wing as their primary position. Should any of them make your fantasy team?
The newest left wing on the Coyotes roster is Steve Sullivan. Sullivan signed with the Coyotes after playing last season inPittsburgh. Sullivan scored 17 goals and 31 assists for 48 points last season. Sullivan also had 21 power play points. Sullivan should receive top-6 minutes and power play time with the Coyotes. Sullivan could crack the 20-goal and 50-point mark this season in Phoenix making him a very useful fantasy option.
The playoff heroics of Mikkel Boedker has alerted the city of Chicago (and the rest of the NHL) of Boedker’s scoring ability. Yet, before April, Boedker never could quite showcase his talents in box scores on a consistent basis. Boedker managed to score 11 goals and 13 assists for 24 points last season. Boedker provides little consistency in any category but managed to get more than 100 hits for the first time in his career. If Boedker plays at the level he showed in the postseason, the 20-goal plateau is attainable.
Lauri Korpikoski is the wildcard among Phoenix’s left wingers. He followed up his 19-goal, 40-point season in 2010-2011 with a 17-goal, 37-point season last year. Not only does Korpikoski have 20-goal potential, he can also contribute short-handed as he has five short-handed goals and seven short-handed points over the last two seasons. In the last two seasons, Koripkoski has scored 36 goals, 77 points and seven game winning goals all while having a +20 rating. Korpikoski could be a 20-goal, 40-point player who helps in other categories as well.
The fourth left winger is the often scrutinized Raffi Torres. Torres will miss the first handful of games next season but can he still contribute to a fantasy team? Torres did score 15 goals last season but will likely be dropped to the 4th line where his days of seeing double digit minutes per game may be over. An injury to a top-9 forward could propel Torres up a line and toward another 20-goal season. Torres has more value in real hockey than he does in fantasy hockey.
