ESPN

One thing most fantasy owners probably expected coming into the season was that young, speedy players with great skating ability would thrive under the NHL's new rules. What they might not have anticipated, however, was that in the early weeks of the season, it's the 30-year-and-older crowd that has been making most of the headlines.

There's an obvious explanation for that: Where we might have had concerns about older players being able to maintain a level of health in the past, the strike year provided veterans some much-needed rest, essentially a method of refreshing themselves. Remember, between the preseason, regular season and postseason, hockey is essentially a 10-month a year sport, and that catches up with a player on the wrong side of his 30th birthday. This year, some of those same players have now gone 22 months between seasons, or at least the daily grind of an NHL schedule even if they played hockey elsewhere, so they're better rested.

Keep in mind, however, that age does have a way of catching up to an athlete sooner or later. While age and a player's injury history might not be a major issue right now, the lengthy offseason of rest could help a veteran now and hurt him later, as he might not be so prepared for the six-month season after so much time off. Monitor the ice time of an older player, because heavy usage now could wear him down after the new year. Here's a quick look at some of the more notable early-season veteran standouts:

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