THE COMMISH:

Many of you will be happy to know that today's version of the report is not nearly as lengthy as the previous. Once again, I hope Earl Sleek doesn't mind me using his format! Let's get right to it.

AC H2H:

Platypuslighting (1^st) vs. OC Wolverines (6^th)

Platypuslighting wins a deceiver 8-1!

MVP: Jason Spezza has a huge week for Platypuslighting with three goals, one assist, four PIM, and fifteen shots.

LVP: Andrew Ladd had a miniscule two shots on the week and did nothing else to help OC Wolverines.

This matchup was a huge deceiver because every category was so close. The numbers for each team were almost identical, but Platypuslighting found a way to barely edge OC Wolverines in numerous categories.

 ***

Kings of Bedside (2^nd) vs. Hockey Heros (8^th)

Tied for the first official tie, this match-up was a wash at 4-4!

MVP: Nikolai Khabibulin continues the trend of elite net-minders playing out of their minds as he put up three wins on the week. He also had 1.67 GAA and .951 SV% for Kings of Bedside.

LVP: Patrik Elias had three shots and was goose eggs on everything else for Hockey Heros.

Kings of Bedside got the sweep for goalies and Hockey Heros lost in only one category (PPP) for the skaters as this match-up was even-steven.

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THE COMMISH:

I’ve decided to borrow Earl Sleek’s approach of bringing you the Anaheim Calling Fantasy Hockey Report. Since we have four leagues, I'll be reporting on the Keeper League and H2H Expansion League today. The other two leagues will be reported on later this week.

AC Keeper:

Cologne Hockey Frogs (1^st) vs. SLODucks (5^th)

SLODucks wins 10-2!

MVP:  Marc-Andre Fleury earned two wins (including a shut-out) and had 0.96 GAA and .962 SV% on the week.

LVP: Brett Connolly with goose eggs across the board with the exception of one shot and one hit for the week.

Goalies for both teams had decent weeks, but SLODucks’ skaters made the difference by going 6-2-1.

***

Natesaduck (2^nd) vs. Wisco Badgers (8^th)

Natesaduck wins 12-0!

MVP: Brad Boyes with two goals and three assists on the week contributed significantly on the offensive for the skaters on Natesaduck.

LVP: Thomas Vokun posted 3.81 GAA and .861 SV% for Wisco Badgers. Seems to me like a freak week. Gotta think he’ll pick it up next week.

It was a pretty decisive week for the skaters, however it could have easily gone either way with the goalie match-ups.

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MR. COMMISSIONER:

Greetings fantasy hockey fanatics! We had a tremendous turn-out on draft day. Let's get caught up on everything that went down last Sunday.

First up, the twenty-team deep Head-to-Head Keepers League. This draft was by far the most challenging for me. Team Need More Boyntons was fortunate enough to have the first pick and went with Stephen Stamkos (a safe and wise choice). Unlike many fantasy drafts, goalies were being drafted early and often. It got to the point where I had to take James Reimer in the fifth round. Also taken in the fifth round were Teemu Selanne (by Team Dynasty H.C.) and immediately after Cam Fowler by Jen (Team Light Treason), of course. Having drafted with Jen before, I really shouldn't have been surprised at some of her picks as her draft strategy is, well, unorthodox. To be honest, I was dumbfounded at quite a few of them. All in all, this was probably the most competitive draft of the day. There was a lot of banter going back and forth as well as some odd draft choices that will be intriguing to watch the rest of the year.

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MR. COMMISSIONER:

Hello everyone!

I just wanted to remind everyone that signed up for any of the four official Anaheim Calling fantasy hockey leagues that the drafts are TONIGHT. Keep in mind that all drafts are live. If you can't make it, you need to modify your pre-draft rankings to avoid any sub-par auto-picks the computer might give you.

I also wanted to take this opportunity to gauge any interest there might be in starting a Rotisserie keeper league. I've received a couple requests, but I would like to see if there is more interest before I commit to managing another league. If you missed your opportunity to join one of the other leagues or if you just think this is something you might be interested in, let me know in the comments!

If you have any inexperience in drafts or if you just want to get some practice in before tonight's drafts, you can utilize the mock drafts that Yahoo! has provided on their fantasy website. Mock drafts are a great way to get a general idea on who will be available at any given draft position.

I hope everybody is as excited as I am for this year. Let the banter begin!

[Editor's Note: For any draft coverage, make sure you check out our buddies at Dobber Hockey and Fantasy Hockey scouts.]

JEN:

Finally, the time has arrived to begin recruiting players for our Fantasy Leagues. This year is going to be different. Aside from the four leagues being offered, we're going to run every-other-week posts recapping the previous two weeks action. Do well and Nate writes a glowing review of your genius roster moves. Do poorly and Nate will remind everyone why you're a fan and not a GM. The winner of each league will receive some signed stuff from the Jen-cave, including this lovely NHL Awards Media Advisory signed by one, Bobby Ryan. (Did you hear that? It was Robby squealing.)

Before the Commish take the podium, please take a look at our sister SBN site, Fantasy Hockey Scouts, for all your draft needs. Not knowing my fantasy record, the guys over there asked me to comment on the outlook for the Ducks, fantasy and otherwise, for the upcoming season. You can take a look at my interview here. FHS also offers an extremely comprehensive draft guide that I've seen a preview of. I will NOT be sharing my copy with all of you because it would void my competitive advantage. If you'd like to take a look for yourself, go here. Best of luck, to everyone. May the best woman win :)

MR. COMMISSIONER:

Greetings once again my fellow fantasy fanatics!

It is with great excitement that I am pleased to announce the start of this season's official Anaheim Calling Fantasy Hockey League! I have created four separate leagues for everyone to join. Each league was molded to reflect the feedback you generously provided me. There is room for 12 players in each league. We'll be holding the live drafts throughout Sunday, September 25th. Each draft will be exactly an hour and fifteen minutes apart to facilitate those of you that wish to join more than one league.

If you aren't available to be present at the draft, don't fret. Yahoo! has compiled a list of players of whom they think you should draft. The great thing about this is that you can edit their order to suit your preferences (i.e. Getzlaf 1st overall, or what have you). Although to avoid any bad picks, I would advise you to be present at the draft. That, and it's much more fun to have playful banter with everyone in the league!

After the jump are the four leagues, their descriptions, and the login info needed to get yourself added to the league.  Click on the title of the league you want to join and it will take you to the Yahoo! Fantasy Hockey homepage. On the left-hand side of the page, there is a box that says "Accept Invite". Type in the ID number and password provided, and click "Join Your League". If your ID and password are accepted, you will be taken through the process of officially registering yourself for the league. Should a particular league fill up quickly, we can create additional leagues to meet demand. Any questions, email Jen at AnaheimCalling [at] gmail [dot] com.

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JEN:

Ahh, you know the season is getting close when we start talking fantasy hockey. I love it! This year, we're going to bring back the Anaheim Calling fantasy hockey leagues. It will be pretty much the same as last time, but with a few added perks (like fame and signed stuff) that we'll get into later. If you're new to fantasy hockey, please read up on Yahoo! on how the different types of leagues work. I am horrible at fantasy hockey, but they are so fun (and I'm overly competitive).

Duck Buddy, Natesaduck, has been tapped by me to officially assume the role as Commissioner for the upcoming season. He'll be organizing everything going forward. Make sure you give him a lot of feedback and suggestions for this year's league. We want everyone involved! If you have anything you'd like to ask off-line, email me at AnaheimCalling [at] gmail [dot] com. Without further ado, I give you, Nate!

MR. COMMISSIONER:

Greetings and Salutations!

This is your brand spankin' new Commissioner. I'd like to introduce another opportunity to all readers that enjoy a good old fashioned fantasy hockey melee. We had a lot of fun last year. I attribute much of the success to the input I received from you on how like your fantasy hockey leagues run. Before we get things rolling, I want everyone to chime in and let me know how to improve on last year's leagues.

For now, I will likely run the leagues very similar to last year. I plan on offering two rotisserie and two head-to-head leagues with default settings and rules for each league. If this sort of setup is too generic, speak-up now. I have no problem throwing in some new categories to shake things up (i.e. face-offs, hits, shooting percentage etc.). In addition to new categories, I can also do roster adjustments to add more players for a more competitive environment that will really test your skills on drafting decent depth players.

We had a lot of fun last season with the live drafts. I want to implement that again for this season. Like usual, scheduling will be difficult but we've made it work before. Once deciding on the league you want to join, tell me the times and dates that work best for you. The goal is to get as many people online at the same time in order to eliminate the moronic computer auto-picks.

Finally, Jeff over at Dobber Hockey was kind enough to spend some time with me in order to bestow some very valuable fantasy insights on our beloved Anaheim Ducks. I cannot stress how helpful this website can be for fantasy hockey players of all skill levels. They've provided a cornucopia (you have no idea how long I've waited to use that word) of spectacular analysis on drafting.

You've heard enough from me. Here's the expert, Jeff from Dobber Hockey:

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