Opening Night of the 2011-12 NHL season is still three months away. Training camps open up in a bit more than two months. There are still baseball pennants to be won and a full summer to enjoy.
But make no mistake, the start of the next hockey season is well underway already.
If the NHL Draft two weeks ago did not signal the start of next season's cycle, then the dizzying flurry of trades and free agent signings around the league of late most assuredly drives this point home.
Brad Richards is a Ranger, and Mike Richards is a King. Ilya Bryzgalov signed with the Flyers before July 1, while Philly added Jaromir Jagr on the first. Shockingly Columbus stole the headlines prior to July 1 with a pair of big-time moves involving Jeff Carter and James Wisniewski, and even more stunning, the Florida Panthers became major free agent players on the opening day of free agency.
New ownership in Buffalo was quick to show that it---in similar fashion to that of Florida---was more than willing to keep writing big checks, with the likes of Christian Ehrhoff and Ville Leino more than happy to cash in. Washington played Goaltender Musical Chairs, farming Semyon Varlamov out to Colorado before signing Tomas Vokoun for a pittance of what one would have expected a few months---or even, weeks---ago. And San Jose and Minnesota became common trading partners, making a pair of big deals involving Brent Burns, Devon Setoguchi, Dany Heatley, and Martin Havlat.
And really that's just scratching the surface of all that has taken place of late in the NHL.
So how does it all affect fantasy hockey owners? Well it can't be said for sure until the final chips are in place for each team, but I am going to take a stab at breaking things down from a fantasy hockey perspective over the coming days and weeks to help you fantasy hockey owners begin planning your strategies for the season ahead.
And we are going to open up the mailbag again, as well, because now is a great time for your fantasy hockey questions.
So remember to send your fantasy hockey questions and comments to jimcerny@gmail.com.
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