Fistric is one of those guys who’s more valuable on the ice than in the fantasy arena. He’s never played a full season anywhere and he’s a one-hit wonder … literally. He’ll get you several hits a game, but he won’t get you anything else.
Despite his bruising nature and solid size, Fistric continues to dish out the hits, but offers nothing from a scoring perspective. And his 41 PIMs in 60 games doesn't play well in sin bin leagues. Dallas is expected to give longer looks at some young defensemen this season, so there's a decent chance that Fistric will be limited to third-pair minutes as the season wanes.
Fistric went from a plus-27 to a minus-10 in the course of a single season, and found himself a scratch on more occasions than in the past. He projects as a nice option on the third pair, but offers little in PIMs and even less in points to hold any sort of value.
Fistric has developed into a solid shutdown defenseman, posting a nice +27 rating on a poor Dallas team last year. He doesn't fight (just 135 PIMS in 140 NHL games in his career) or score (10 points was his career high last year), but does provide some value in leagues that count +/- as a scoring category.
Fistric battled injuries and a few demotions to the minors last season, but still projects as a tough, solid, stay-at-home presence on the blue line for the better part of the next decade. Similar to style and stature to former Star Richard Matvichuk, he'll offer nothing in terms of fantasy value but offers plenty of help to the Dallas defense.
He enters the season as Dallas' sixth or seventh defenseman along with Niklas Grossman, but was excellent when thrown into the fire as a 21-year old when injuries forced him into the Dallas lineup last year. His fantasy value is limited in that he provides nothing on offense and doesn't rack up the PIMs, but he'll be a mainstay on the next wave of Dallas blueliners.
Fistric played his first professional season at Iowa of the AHL last year, and played well. He's a shutdown defenseman however, offering no offensive upside, similiar to a John Erskine on recent Dallas teams.
Fistric makes his pro debut this season after racking up 29 points and 148 PIMs in 60 games in juniors. The former first round pick will need some seasoning in the AHL before he's ready for the NHL.
Punishing, big defenseman who should see time in Dallas in a few years.
