It is unfortunate that many people who are in fantasy pools make decisions based entirely on players' recent scoring numbers. If a player has not registered a point in a few games he is often discarded. This is not always the best course of action.

Let's look at two young defensemen to illustrate this point. Altanta's Tobias Enstrom has registered only two assists so far this season. Yet he plays on every power play and actually has averaged almost two more minutes of ice time when the Thrashers have the man advantage than Alexei Zhitnik. Similarly, Columbus' Kris Russell has not yet found his scoring groove. He, too, is his team's primary power-play quarterback (he averages half a minute more of power-play ice time than Ron Hainsey) but he has only registered two assists.

If you were to judge these two talented rearguards exclusively on their scoring totals to date, they would likely no longer be on your roster. Look behind the numbers and be patient. Especially with young developing players.