NHL Hockey Column: Studs & Duds
Know Your Roots - Trade Game 
Gates ImbeauTo best succeed in Fantasy keeper leagues, you need to have a specific path in mind. Every transaction made has to stay on that path to eventually reach the desired result. There are certain strategies that can help you to properly manage your assets and avoid making costly mistakes. Use this series to guide you into making those sound decisions.
Thus far, we featured a pair of bad management examples. Yes, any fantasy GM has the ability to recover from poor executions, however, successful poolies are the ones that learn from them. Sadly, not everybody can… rinse, repeat. Experienced poolies notice this and will continually feed off of the usual suspects. The difference is that the respectable managers will do so in a way that avoids shifting the balance of the league.
This can be done by quietly completing a string of trades that cumulatively build up to be a nice increase in net worth. Also note that in order to stay on top, sometimes you must take certain risks in hope of reaping eventual rewards. The success rate of such risks usually depends on how well you know your league and its trade market.
Try this : Take a step back and attempt to look at the trade table as a puzzle game, say Tetris. To win, you need to find a way to make all the pieces fit in their appropriate places. Many gamers only look at the piece in their hand, while others look at the next piece in line. Compare that to looking at your own team and then your trade partners team. That is fine, and expected, but why stop there? There is so much potential to gain ground by going deeper than that. If you put in the time, pulling off a handful of back-to-back deals is not that farfetched. It is no different than setting yourself up for a game breaking high score. Which we all gamers strive to do.
Test yourself and play with hypothetical’s : “If I give this to him, I can probably get that, which I can turn into this. So if I then trade with him, I can make this move. If all of the above happens, I can make up for that by moving this.” etc…
Easier said than done right?
Well, by now, you know that every GM values certain assets differently, whether it is draft picks, prospects are prime time players. Once you spot out exactly what your team needs, put it down on paper and brainstorm several ways to get to that finish line. Sometimes it works, most times it doesn't. Best practice? Always go in with the thought that you only get once chance. To attempt such risks, you cannot get greedy. Minimize the possible insult of opposing managers by getting to the point and getting the deal done swiftly. You have the blueprints and you see the bigger picture. In the long run, you will come out on top.
Once complete, recap your haul and trace your roots. What assets became what? Was there a net gain? Was the process worth it?Next week will feature a perfect example of a successful risk/reward string of trades through great management. Stay tuned.
Previous Studs & Duds column Recent NHL columns
NHL Player News
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FEATURED GAMES
 NHL - Commissioner NHL - Playoff Commissioner |
-
Register FREE!
-
View All Games
-
Classic Draft Lobby
-
Mock Draft Lobby
-
Create League
- MLB Commissioner (FREE)
- NHL Playoff Commissioner
- NBA Playoff Commissioner
- NFL Commissioner (FREE)
- NCAAF Commissioner (FREE)
- PGA Commissioner (FREE)
- NASCAR Commissioner (FREE)
- NHL Commissioner (FREE)
- NBA Commissioner (FREE)
- Premier League Commissioner (FREE) (Beta)
- Bundesliga Commissioner (FREE) (Beta)
- La Liga Commissioner (FREE) (Beta)
- Serie A Commissioner (FREE) (Beta)
- Ligue 1 Commissioner (FREE) (Beta)
- MLS Commissioner (FREE) (Beta)
-
Join League (FREE!)