Save Your $$$!!! (Part 2)

Much like in my first Save Your $$$ post, I have to warn you guys away from a hockey publication.

Sad to say, as you can see, its a Hockey News product - their "ULTIMATE" fantasy guide ... it's ultimately useless crap.

I saw it on the newsstands a few weeks back and wondered why I didn't get it with my subscription. I finally called this week and they said that it wasn't included. Now that right there should have rang some warning bells but, as I always admit, I am a hockey geek so I had to have it. I shelled out the eight bucks and, let me tell you, would have had more fun setting that money on fire.

First off, the guide was clearly rushed out so it is hopelessly out of date. The player-by-player listing misses a large chunk of guys (I am guessing that was because of a space issue), and it also doesn't include a shorthanded points category. Then, to top things off, the first two team previews I looked at had embarrassing editorial issues - the Wild preview mentions the Backstrom/Harding goaltending situation and then says "while one of them will be moved in order to fill another hole at some point, these three puck stoppers represent Minnesota's biggest strength." So clearly they edited out the mention of Manny Fernandez without reading through and making sure the rest made sense. And the Rangers preview had a mistake as well: "On defense Staal joins Girardi, Tyutin, Michal Rozsival, Paul Mara and to form an unheralded corps with something to prove." Now while I would love to forget about the existence of Marek Malik, I cannot, and neither should the proofreader. That's just sloppy and inexcusable.

Brian Costello is listed as the "Senior Special Sections Editor" and by the product he put out, should clearly be editing nothing more than a high school newspaper. Sadly the rest of the staff of THN is listed in the masthead so they should go to the box and feel shame as well.

Don't waste your money on this rag, instead spend five minutes and look up the material yourself online. If you aren't one to get hands on, don't waste your time with the fantasy columns at Yahoo or ESPN, instead turn to Dobber because his site is fantastic. Although, just taking a glance at it now, his staff did a review of some fantasy books and gave this very same THN guide four stars for content so I am not sure how much I trust him now ... hmmmmmm ...