Erik Karlsson D PIT Thu 1/26/12 8:32 PM
Erik Karlsson
D PIT
Daniel Alfredsson selected teammates Erik Karlsson and Jason Spezza with his first two picks in the All-Star fantasy draft Thursday night in Ottawa.
Good move by Alfie. He will have the crowd on his side for the big game on the weekend. The 21-year-old blueliner leads all NHL rearguards with 47 points and has already shattered his previous career-high of 45 points in a single season. If Karlsson can maintain this pace, he'll become just the fourth blueliner to reach the 70-point mark in a single season since the lockout. The other three are Mike Green, Nicklas Lidstrom, and Sergei Zubov. Another encouraging aspect to his play is his vastly improved plus-minus rating, which currently sits at a plus-5. The young Swede is certainly having a magical campaign and he is clearly establishing himself as one of the NHL's best young blueliners. Needless to say he is having a monster fantasy campaign and was a steal on draft day.