Mentioned during the season that we would discuss some of the shenanigans that went on during the season regarding rosters. This has always been a grey area because everyone gets busy during the year at various times. I forget to set the lineup or bring a guy back off the IR once in a while, as do most people. We all understand that teams at the bottom of the standings are in essence "tanking" for a better draft position, both in fantasy and in the NHL itself. But that's not an excuse for people to ignore their roster for a month or two, leave their best players on the bench, leave healthy players on the IR, etc.
We instituted the top-up rule years ago of 1 PPG which has done a pretty good job at offsetting a lot of this stuff. But we still need to adjust the league rules to make it easier to apply penalties for egregious actions.
Basically gonna add a line something like this: The Management Team (currently consisting of me, Deckie and HP) reserve the right to impose penalties for teams attempting to subvert the rules, whether it's accidentally or on purpose, for tanking or inactivity. This could includes the following:
- 2 PPG top-up for examples deemed to be extra egregious by the management team
- loss of draft pick, or adjusted placement in the draft order (for example losing 3 draft spots so a team picking 2nd would now be picking 5th)
- alternate penalties deemed appropriate for individual situations
I applaud the thinking here. Fantasy leagues are much better when everybody's trying. Also, props to The Management Team because there isn't a simple solution to tanking, and dealing with it is a thankless task that can upset people. When real sports leagues can't figure it out, it's unlikely fantasy leagues deal with it much better.
I was one of those bottom-dwelling-borderline-lottery teams, and I can say I'm not one to ignore my roster for a month or two, or leave healthy players on the IR. But if I see teams near me / below me in the standings doing that stuff and nothing happens, it jeopardizes my draft position (which, for those of us not in contention, is kinda the biggest standings related goal all year) and there isn't much recourse that I see. So it becomes tempting to play an inferior player now and then to try to keep pace and avoid that mushy middle zone in the standings. None of us want that to happen or to even be a temptation.
Can I propose that we have a clearly outlined process for it, using the rules you outlined? Something along the lines of:
1. Anybody (management team or otherwise) spots a lineup issue and points it out at any time on the message board.
2. Optionally, a warning is given to that manager, because it could be that he's busy and missed it, or it's a legit mistake.
3. If not corrected (or, if you think it's better to skip the warning step), a
specific penalty is applied. Could be any of the ones you mentioned above, so long as we all know it's the same for everyone.
4. If a second infraction occurs and is pointed out, a harsher
specific penalty is applied. Could also be whichever one above you want to use.
I support the end goal, with everybody always playing their best players. Just want to deal with some of the root causes and make sure penalties are clear and standardized for everyone in advance.
