Complete 2010 Projections
The default order for player projections is based on ESPN.com's recommended draft rankings, which take into account projected total points as well as upside and risk.

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PROJECTED 2010 SEASON STATS
1. Alex Ovechkin, Was LWYEARGA+/-PIMPPGATOI
2009 Statistics56548721922:59
2010 Projections614913571824:24
2010 Outlook: Ummm ...Two straight Hart Trophies. Two straight Maurice Richard Trophies. Two straight Lester B. Pearson Trophies. An average of 55 goals and 105 points per season for his four-year career. An enormous advantage in your fantasy league's shots-on-goal category. Just some of the things Ovechkin brings to the table. Consider that he may lead the league in goals, points, shots and power-play goals -- four of the seven skater categories in ESPN standard leagues. How can you not pick him first overall?
2. Evgeni Malkin, Pit CYEARGA+/-PIMPPGATOI
2009 Statistics357817801422:30
2010 Projections436515711522:49
2010 Outlook: So Malkin's goal total dropped by 12 last season. So what? He made up for it by notching 19 more assists to garner the Art Ross Trophy as the league's leading scorer. Malkin finds a way to get it done. He's averaged 16 power-play goals and 79 penalty minutes for his three-year career and really, the only reason he falls No. 2 to Alexander Ovechkin is the ridiculous number of shots on goal his countryman takes. Consider him the no-brainer second overall pick in your fantasy league.
3. Pavel Datsyuk, Det CYEARGA+/-PIMPPGATOI
2009 Statistics326534221119:12
2010 Projections36553118920:35
2010 Outlook: Plus/minus is one of the more unpredictable fantasy categories, but we still project it because it's equally unpredictable for 99 percent of the league. Then there is Pavel Datsyuk. He has averaged (averaged!) plus-37 for the past three seasons and has averaged a plus-23 for his seven-year NHL career. He is to plus/minus what Alexander Ovechkin is to shots on goal: a significant advantage. Then there is the fact that Datsyuk is also quite the accomplished scorer. His four-year average is 92 points. He won't help you in penalty minutes, but that is Datsyuk's only drawback in fantasy hockey.
4. Tim Thomas, Bos GYEARWGAASV%
2009 Statistics362.10.933
2010 Projections362.28.927
2010 Outlook: Is his style unconventional? Absolutely. Does he have only five years of NHL experience even though he's 35 years old? It's true. Whatever your thoughts on how Thomas came into the league and how he covers the net, the numbers don't lie. The Bruins have transformed into a powerhouse of team defense and earned Thomas a Vezina Trophy and Jennings Trophy last season because of it. All the same pieces are returning and Thomas should have no trouble once again helping this Bruins team shut down opposing defenses.
5. Sidney Crosby, Pit CYEARGA+/-PIMPPGATOI
2009 Statistics3370376721:56
2010 Projections386415811222:19
2010 Outlook: You may be wondering why hockey's golden boy is only the fourth-best skater when it comes to ESPN's fantasy hockey game. Fair question. It's no knock on Crosby, and we have him projected to put in one of his best seasons, but it's really a statement about the three skaters ahead of him. Alexander Ovechkin provides dominance in several categories with no holes in his game. Evgeni Malkin gives you all-around production in every category. Pavel Datsyuk offers slightly less scoring than Crosby, but his proficiency in the ever-fickle plus/minus category gives him the edge. Crosby's edge as an elite playmaker simply isn't rewarded by our game, so make sure you don't 'reach' for him. But as the fourth skater off the board, how can you lose?
6. Zach Parise, NJ LWYEARGA+/-PIMPPGATOI
2009 Statistics454930241418:45
2010 Projections424023221220:18
2010 Outlook: You might think we should shave off a few points from Parise given the return of uberdefensive coach Jacques Lemaire. Well, we did. Projecting Parise for a 12-point drop in his scoring still lands him as the fifth-best skater in ESPN's standard game. Lemaire may bring in some of his defensive tactics from Minnesota, but at the end of the day, Parise and Travis Zajac aren't going to be reined in too much offensively. The only caution to offer is that you should monitor Parise's shots on goal through the early part of the season. Much of his increased value stems from the 37 percent increase in shooting he experienced last season. If that tails off because of Lemaire's defensive leanings, Parise could be in trouble.
7. Zdeno Chara, Bos DYEARGA+/-PIMPPGATOI
2009 Statistics193123951126:03
2010 Projections202723102929:12
2010 Outlook: He's consistent quality across the board. How can we not like Chara as the best fantasy defenseman? Coming off his first Norris Trophy win, Chara posts above-average numbers in every standard category. Although he was a diamond in the rough for his first two seasons in Boston, the rest of his Bruins teammates finally caught up with their captain last season to help elevate him to a whole new level. You could argue for Mike Green here, but Chara's ice time and penalty minutes put him over the top!
8. Jeff Carter, Phi CYEARGA+/-PIMPPGATOI
2009 Statistics463823681320:56
2010 Projections413417601121:46
2010 Outlook: What do you get if you reduce Alexander Ovechkin's output by 20 percent? That's right; Carter generates his value along the same categorical strengths as Ovechkin, only to a lesser degree. Lots of goals, lots of power-play goals and lots of shots on goal help Carter fit easily into our top fantasy assets this season. There is even a little upside as his points per game slipped from 1.12 to 0.92 after the All-Star break. If he can maintain his stamina all season, he could even go from being a poor man's Ovechkin to being, well, Ovechkin.
9. Olli Jokinen, NYR CYEARGA+/-PIMPPGATOI
2009 Statistics2928-1267918:52
2010 Projections404612671222:35
2010 Outlook: Turmoil in Florida over his future and new surroundings in Calgary led to Jokinen's worst season since 2001-02, but here's calling for a huge bounce back from the powerful Finnish center. First, he'll be comfortable with his teammates this season. Secondly, he gets to play consistently with Jarome Iginla. Third, a familiar face in Jay Bouwmeester will be on the blue line. Look for Jokinen to, at worst, return to the 84 points he averaged over his final three full seasons in Miami.
10. Marc Savard, Bos CYEARGA+/-PIMPPGATOI
2009 Statistics25632570919:31
2010 Projections30622159720:10
2010 Outlook: Even though assists are slightly undervalued in the ESPN standard game, if you average more than 60 of them over the past four seasons, you'll still be quite a valuable commodity. Savard is quite simply an assist machine. With an above-average plus/minus, Savard also contributes sufficiently in goals and shots to be counted as a No. 1 forward.
11. Niklas Backstrom*, Min GYEARWGAASV%
2009 Statistics372.33.923
2010 Projections342.27.923
2010 Outlook: Backstrom has been a threat for the Vezina Trophy every season, and no doubt, deserves some credit in fantasy circles. The Wild might not benefit from Jacques Lemaire's defensive genius anymore, but the team is still built to be strong in its own end. Backstrom has a career goals-against average of 2.24 and, while it's a close call, we'll take him over Martin Brodeur at the moment. With the Wild poised to be more aggressive on offense under new coach Todd Richards, Backstrom's fantasy worth should benefit from a few more wins.
12. Martin Brodeur, NJ GYEARWGAASV%
2009 Statistics192.42.916
2010 Projections412.22.919
2010 Outlook: Brodeur returned from his first major injury absence in his career to post stellar numbers down the stretch, and there is no doubt he will be in top form again. So you might ask why he is ranked third amongst goaltenders. Well, it's actually so close between him and Niklas Backstrom that you might as well call them tied, and Tim Thomas has earned the right, as the starter for the best defensive team in the league, to be No. 1. This ranking is no slight against Brodeur and he can easily be selected as your No. 1 goaltender yet again, should you so chose.
13. Henrik Zetterberg, Det LWYEARGA+/-PIMPPGATOI
2009 Statistics314213361219:52
2010 Projections353819301121:17
2010 Outlook: Consider our projection for Zetterberg as the absolute basement for his season. If you are feeling a bit daring, you can bump him up several spots in the rankings. The arguments for leaving him here: He was quite effective as Detroit's second-line center and spreading out the offense really did make the Red Wings a better team last season. The arguments for bumping him up: With Marian Hossa out of town, Zetterberg could easily slide back onto Pavel Datsyuk's line, where he finished the 2007-08 season with 92 points and a plus-30. Zetterberg is a nice, safe second-round pick with first-round upside.
14. Eric Staal, Car C, RWYEARGA+/-PIMPPGATOI
2009 Statistics403515501421:03
2010 Projections45459441322:49
2010 Outlook: Staal started a bit slow last season, but finished with 26 points in his final 18 games. What was the difference? The return of former linemate Erik Cole. After signing in Edmonton as a free agent, Cole returned to the Hurricanes at the deadline and provided the chemistry that Staal needed on his line. Both players are lined up to play together again for the whole season, so Staal should bounce back to the 90-point range after falling short of that mark for the past three seasons.
15. Pekka Rinne, Nsh GYEARWGAASV%
2009 Statistics292.38.917
2010 Projections362.25.920
2010 Outlook: Rinne won the starting job from Dan Ellis last season and finished among the league leaders in most categories. Rinne now goes into the season as the clear No. 1 and will have that starting job for years to come. We are being a bit bold with the projections on Rinne, but the Predators do have a solid team defense and a terrific set of top-four defensemen. His track record in the minors, and at every stage of his development, suggests he can be an elite goaltender for fantasy purposes.
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