I don't think it's any secret that LW is the shallowest of the forward positions this season. In my opinion, the top 5 are Ovechkin (12g, 25a), D. Sedin (16g, 22a), Heatley (14g, 17a), Datsyuk (11g, 26a), and Sharp (18g, 14a), in no particular order. After them, the next tier of players doing well might surprise you. Guys like Milan Lucic (16g, 11a), Andrew Ladd (11g, 19a), and Ryan Clowe (9g, 21a) certainly never would have been picked to be in the top 10. While there are always pleasant surprises, are there always this many disappointments? Let's go through some of them.
Ilya Kovalchuk (8g, 10a, -21): Here lies the biggest bust so far this season by leaps and bounds. During pre-season we saw the elite line of Parise-Zajac-Kovalchuk. This no doubt bumped Kovalchuk up a spot or two in our pre-draft rankings. That line obviously didn't last with Parise getting injured after 12 games. Fast forward to the present day and Kovalchuk's minus 21 is the worst in all of the NHL. It's tough to figure out what's going on with Kovalchuk. With Parise out, he became the obvious focal point of the Devils. It could be that teams are focusing on him and taking him out. But that was the case in Atlanta and he still flourished. Is it the losing? Well, his team has always been a loser. He may just be unhappy. Whatever it is, he has just looked bad. He hasn't shown any signs of life and neither have the Devils, for that matter. I don't think there are good times ahead for Kovalchuk; not this season at least. My advice is that you look for a sucker in your league who is gaga for the name. The player is not the same.
Patrick Marleau (11g, 13a, -15): Another huge LW disappointment. What exactly is going on with Marleau? We all remember his disappointing 07-08 campaign but after two straight outstanding seasons including 44 goals and 83 points last season, we all figured this guy was a lock for another excellent season. Surely, playing on the same line and PP unit as the greatest passer of this generation, Thornton and fellow sniper, Heatley would yield fruitful returns. Well, his PP numbers are actually on pace with previous seasons. It's his dreadful even strength play that's killing his owners. While last year Marleau-Thornton-Heatley were together basically all year, that certainly isn't the case this year. With Logan Couture in the mix, there has been plenty of juggling between the 1st and 2nd line. Marleau may be struggling to find consistency which is not easy when your linemates are constantly changing. I would expect him to get it together at some point. By the end of the year he should be near 70 points.
Zach Parise (3g, 3a, -1): This is based almost solely on his injury. Parise was picked a 1st round pick staple this season after putting up 94 and 82 points the last two seasons. His injury was the type that usually breaks your fantasy team. Even through the 12 games he played, he only put up 6 points. Reports have him returning in early February, but that's best case scenario. He may be able to help you for the stretch run, but the better idea may be trying to trade him for help now.
Simon Gagne (3g, 3a, -12): Another injury riddled player, at least Gagne is currently playing, if that's what you want to call it. Drafting teams were dreaming of Gagne playing with any one of Stamkos, St. Louis, or Lecavalier. Let's just say, it hasn't seemed to matter who he's played with. Anyone who can manage a -12 rating in the span of 14 games has got to be doing a whole lot wrong. He did have a PPG last night, so there's a glimmer of hope here, but there's no denying that you definitely didn't have this in mind if and when you drafted Gagne.
Bobby Ryan (14g, 13a, +11): Some may be surprised by this pick. In all honesty, Ryan has not been much of a disappointment. That's unless you took him sometime after the 3rd round. Teams who spent their 2nd and 3rd round pick's on Ryan are surely a bit disappointed. This is based SOLELY on his PP production. Just 2 PPG and 1 PPA have owners wanting more from this young stud. With the Ducks ranking 9th in the NHL on the power play hitting at a 20.6% clip, it's hard to understand why Ryan's PP stats are so poor. I believe it is somewhat of an anomaly and he'll start raking in the PPP sooner rather than later. He's shooting more than he did last year, and fantasy owners always love to see that.
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