With the calendar about to turn from 2024 to 2025, let’s take a look at some well-timed resolutions for fantasy managers to think about. Within fantasy hockey circles, this can be applied as seriously or as light-heartedly as a person desires. The base for any resolution is always linked to self-improvement. When looking at opportunities for improvement you can view these in two categories: enjoyment and improvement.
Enjoyment
This is a wholesome area to reflect upon when looking towards the time and money you invest in your fantasy hockey league(s). Regardless if you’re a seasoned veteran or a newcomer to an office pool—here are a few ideas to increase your enjoyment of leagues that you’re already a member of.
Activity level
The amount of activity within a league has a direct correlation with the enjoyment of its participants. Activity comes in many forms, from transactions and trades to discussions in the group chat. The more active you and your league members are, the more enjoyment you’ll collectively achieve. You’ll log a few extra hours per year by putting effort into your leagues’ activity levels, but it will increase the end result for you and your league mates. You’ll be excited to play again come the following season.
Engagement
Some of the most memorable moments you’ve had in your leagues likely involve a hot topic or a heated rivalry between managers or their favourite teams. The simplest way to achieve these scenarios is to engage your league mates throughout the season. If you play in a head-to-head style league, try reaching out to your opponent and challenging them for a little extra fun during the week ahead. At the very least, you’ll incite a response. It might even lead to a few more discussions throughout the week. If you play in a season-long format, the group chat is a great place to keep league members engaged and have some healthy banter. The group chat is a good indicator of league engagement and commitment.
Live events
Nothing increases the enjoyment levels for managers quite like getting together for a live draft or a Battle of Alberta. If you can get your league mates together in person, it goes a long way towards developing some chemistry and personal connection over a game that is mainly played in front of a screen. Consider planning ahead for a season-ending wrap-up party or a Hockey Night in Canada during your league playoffs.
Improvement
This area is wide open and really depends on the individual manager. Each of these categories can be of benefit to every manager, no matter how experienced they are.
Roster management
- Don’t be afraid to cut players loose. Too often we hold onto a player for weeks longer than we should have due to common factors like draft capital investment, name brand value, or bias.
- Aim to keep equal amounts of players per position on your roster relative to league settings. You don’t benefit from carrying too many goalies in category-based leagues where the threshold for games played is low.
- Utilize your allowable add/drops on a weekly basis to increase the amount of games played that you can accumulate. This is an effective strategy in category or points-based leagues with volume as the guiding principle.
Research and information
- Take in as much or as little information as you feel necessary. The available resources are vast and come with a variety of costs associated, should you feel compelled to pay up. I don’t recommend in-app purchasing by comparison to the free advice and information you can naturally take in. The features are intriguing but lack league-specific context or season-long factors.
- Engage with members of the fantasy hockey community for advice. Reddit is a great resource for this point. You have dedicated areas where managers like yourself can come together with all aspects of the community to ask and offer advice specific to their league settings.
- Keep up with weekly resources aimed at simplifying your decision-making and time commitment. The Oil Rig has a weekly fantasy hockey preview that can provide you with key points to consider and players to target.
Strategy
- Map out your games played across the entire week. Try to identify players who won’t crack your lineup on chalk schedule days like Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Replace them with players from other teams or nights played in areas of highest need.
- In weekly head-to-head leagues, have a look at what your opponent is strong or weak at. Some teams are heavy on goal scorers, others gather points through assists and lastly, some live in the accessory categories like hits and blocked shots. It’s important to see how you stack up against your opponent and be able to adapt before the week starts.
- Follow along with trending information. Players who are commonly added or dropped are extremely important for you to be aware of. It’s even better if you can be ahead of these trends via trade or free agency.
Whether or not you make a resolution to do anything in the coming year is minor in comparison to the goals of enjoyment and improvement. Keep those things in order and you’ll be headed in the right direction during your 2025 fantasy endeavors. I hope you’re new year is full of success, fantasy-related or not.
One Comment