Hockey Fantasy Index 2010 – 2011 by Rob Higgins

“The HFI system makes Higgins a first-ballot inductee into the fantasy sports Hall of Fame.”
– Joe Thistel, Director of Programming, Sports & Talk, XM Canada

Rob Higgins knows he can help you win your hockey pool. “Shenanigans,” you’re thinking. “Fool’s gold,” you’re assuming. With all the stats and injuries and real-life trades, a fantasy-win seems more luck than anything. But, believe in Rob. As a fantasy hockey columnist for The Toronto Sun, co-host of XM Radio’s The Point: Fantasy Friday, and a lifelong fantasy junkie, Rob actually manages to make a real living off make-believe GM’ing. It’s neither shenanigans nor fool’s gold. Rob just spends hours and hours watching games. A lot of hours.

Oh, and they aren’t empty hours. They’ve birthed the greatest contribution to fantasy hockey ever: the Hockey Fantasy Index, or HFI for short, a rational, tried and tested, stat-based approach to fantasy. HFI measures the entire stat-pack. Sure it considers goals and assists, but it also accounts for more deceptively important numbers, too, like blocked shots and takeaways. HFI tells you about players in their team context. HFI helps recognize not just the stars like Ovechkin and Thornton who finish five-man rushes. HFI gives props to the grinder who starts the break, the guy whose plus / minus is a diamond in the rough. People might not know it, but these are the guys who win fantasy championships. Round 1 and round 2 drafting is easy. Round 4 and after drafting is what really counts.

So let Rob drop you some knowledge. Listen and learn as he points out those players that are “Sick, Sick, Sick” (tier 1 beasts like Sid the Kid and the Capitals’ Nicklas Backstrom), “Cherry Picks” (tier 2 personifications of productivity and consistency; think Daniel Alfredsson of the Senators or Toronto’s Phil Kessel), or “Foxy by Proxy” (tier 3 guys that need the right context – say the right blue line – to succeed). Oh and keep away from those “Cherry Bombs”, dudes that stank of risk. Two words: Alexi Kovalev.

Yes, some people might consider this all nerd territory, but Rob brings a rock star approach to this nerdiest of sports hobbies. Not rock star in the sense that he’s a jerk. Rock star in the sense that he knows how to make the most fun out of any project. Rob writes, “I’ve been designing and maintaining hockey pools since I was in grade 3. There was no internet back then, so I had to tabulate all the stats and standings the old-fashioned way. I didn’t know any better and I loved the game so much that not once did it feel like a waste of time or effort.”

Trust this man. He’ll show you that the fantasy promised land does really exist.

About the author:
Rob Higgins is cohost of XM Radio’s The Point: Fantasy Friday. He can also be seen onstage with his band, Dearly Beloved who is currently opening for Juliette Lewis. He has worked with such bands as Change of Heart and Our Lady Peace. He lives in Toronto. For more information, visit www.hockeyfantasyindex.com.

Hockey Fantasy Index 2010 - 2011
By Rob Higgins
Touchstone; September 7 2010
496 pages, $19.99
ISBN: 9781439169445