Mini-Games to Earn Your Money Back

We are now four weeks away from the hockey pool draft and the plan for the mini-games have been planned out and I think we're in for one hell of a season!

Here is what we know already... the hockey pool entry fee is going up this year to $60, in order to accommodate the new mini-games and with enough players in the pool, this will mean each game will earn you your money back.

We know that the first mini-game will be the rookie scoring pool, where the rookies that are taken for your hockey pool team will count in a separate contest.  The rookies will still count in the grand scheme of things, once they are on your team, they'll count to the overall total, but their points will be separated in a different contest and counted again... most points from the rookies wins their money back, $60.

Now, the second game has been decided as a final as well and that will be the overall penalty minutes from your team.  A stat that is completely irrelevant to the overall scoring of the pool, you're not going to get anything towards the big prize at the end of the year with this one, but you could definitely make a push in the category, come the Waiver Draft, if you felt so compelled.  Players like Dustin Byfuglien, Dion Phaneuf, David Backes and/or Scott Hartnell would be good double dose players, as they are all pool worthy for points and they were all 100+ PIM players.

The PIM contest will also be good for those teams that feel that they are too far out of the running for the points and it gives reason for players like Steve Downie, Cody McLeod, Derek Dorsett and/or Tom Wilson to be taken instead.  Just in case you were wondering, these four were the PIM leaders from last season, who have no business being in a pool for points.

The third game is kind of in the air and it depends on how many teams we feature in the pool this year.  The desired game to play will be the Goalie Survivor Pool.  Each team will have two goalies on their team and in order to stay in the game, from week to week (Monday to Sunday, 27 weeks), is to have your goalies register at least 1 win.  Win to stay in.  If in the week, Monday to Sunday, neither of your goalies pick up a statistical win, your team is out.  It's pretty simple and it was a fun game to watch last season, as it unfolded in the Newsletter, every Monday morning.

Of course, with the push that has been going on for a larger membership this year, there is a chance that we may exceed the fairness of this game.  The game would certainly benefit the teams that pick their goalies early and the quality of keepers diminishes rapidly after the starters go, so not only would a team that managed to snag a couple of starters be in line for a big payday in a 30-team pool, they would also be the favourite for the goalie survivor pool and that's not what these mini-games are about.

The draft has topped out at 24 teams, back in the 2014 season, and Doug K., who finished in 24th, he drafted Jaroslav Halak and Jason LaBarbera at the draft itself, which suggests that goalies weren't in terrible shape for the last place team in the pool.  Doug was far more unlucky, when it came to injuries.  In that year, Wyllie drafted poorly with his goalies, but to be fair, he took Viktor Fasth in the 5th round, long after everyone was done with the keepers... so who's fault is that?

Nevertheless, I will likely set the bar at about 28 teams, where if we hit or exceed 28 teams, we'll move to a different contest for the third mini-game, the collective points from the All-Star Game in Nashville.  Last year's All-Star Game was off the charts, in terms of scoring, and it was a non-money team, which came out ahead in the scoring.

The All-Star Game contest will be aided by the Week Nine Waiver Draft this year, as the Week Eighteen Waiver Draft will likely be shortly after the game, which will likely have a focus on the rookies and the goons, leaving some of the better players for the actual money race.

The first priority will be the Goalie Survivor Pool, but if we're matching or exceeding 28 teams, we'll go to the All-Star Game, where the contest should be spread out well over every team... in theory.

So, there you have it.  Plan your projections and your strategy accordingly.  Go for the trophy, but if you leave yourself a trail of bread crumbs for the rookies and/or the goons, so won't have so far to go, if your team fails miserably or becomes horribly unlucky.