Daily Fantasy Hockey Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings 12/17/17

Welcome back daily fantasy hockey fans. Another quiet Sunday on tap with just four games but there are a ton of fantasy options all the way from goalie to defense. Let's jump in and take a look at some of the top plays at each position and then head to the comments section or chatroom and grab a copy of my cheatsheet.

Hockey is back and with it come our NHL projections which help inform these picks every night. When you purchase a DFSR NHL subscription to our base hockey projections you also get access to our brand new NFL DFS suite of tools including full projections, optimal NFL lineups and our Player Lab, which includes filters to help you create NFL lineups for FanDuel and DraftKings for any format. It’s a set of tools well beyond anything we’ve ever had, and something we feel will help our users *ahem* tackle the NFL season.

If you want to see the numbers behind our projections, create lineups with a single click, or research as deeply as your heart desires, click the button below to test out yourself.

GOALIE

Marc-Andre Fleury FD - $7800 DK - $8200
Opponent - FLA
Proj Pts FD - 18.05 DK - 4.51

After receiving a hard-luck loss in overtime in his first game back(saved 35 of 37 shots), Fleury faced his former team in an emotional game on Thursday night. He got the better of the Penguins in a hard fought 2-1 win where he saved 24 shots and has now saved 59 of 62 shots he has faced since returning from injury. He is not confirmed for Sunday night at this point but I would be shocked if he isn't back between the pipes and he gets an excellent matchup to boot. The Panthers, at one point, had a Top 10 offense but have struggled a ton lately and have dropped down to the bottom third after scoring just 21 goals over their last eight games, six of which they have lost. On a small slate, Fleury is my top choice and safe in all formats.

Corey Crawford FD - $9100 DK - $7900
Opponent - MIN
Proj Pts FD - 15.22 DK - 3.8

It's very rare on a small four-game slate like this that we get multiple goalies in great spots but here we are. Corey Crawford has been tremendous lately winning four straight starts while holding opponents to two or fewer goals in each and has also won eight of his last 10 games while posting an impressive .936 save percentage. He now gets a plus matchup at home vs. the Wild who are playing the second of a back to back, third game in four nights, and also their fourth game of the week. Fire up Crawford in all formats.

CENTERS

Vincent Trocheck FD - $6600 DK - $7100
Opponent - VEG
Proj Pts FD - 17.55 DK - 4.99

The center position is a nightmare today with my favorite options going up against my top goalies. It starts with Trocheck of the Panthers who will go to Vegas and face Marc-Andre Fleury and the Golden Knights. The thing here is that I don't think we can avoid the floor he offers even as the most expensive option(on DraftKings). He is not only averaging a point per game this season but over the last 10 games, he has tallied a ridiculous 48 shots on goal and averaging 5.5 DraftKings/19.6 FanDuel points per game. The good news is that I mentioned two excellent goalie options so you can avoid your top player going against you goalie.

Stack with: Evgenii Dadonov, Radim Vrbata

Henrik Sedin FD - $5400 DK - $3600
Opponent - CGY
Proj Pts FD - 7.83 DK - 2.16

I won't be considering Henrik on FanDuel for anything more than deep GPP play but on DraftKings I think he is a near must-play in all formats with a bargain-bin price tag. He lacks any kind of floor with just 11 shots over his last 10 games but in that time he has been a red-hot setup man with 11 assists. He provides a ton of salary relief on his own and you can pair him with his linemates for an upside stack play.

Stack with: Daniel Sedin, Thomas Vanek

Also Consider: Artem Anisimov(CHI)

WINGERS

James Neal FD - $7100 DK - $6300
Opponent - FLA
Proj Pts FD - 13.48 DK - 3.89

It's been awhile since we talked about James Neal but it has been the Golden Knights second line that has been playing better lately, at least from a fantasy perspective. For Neal, he has tallied points in four of his last five games while also providing a high floor with 23 shots on goal. Elevating his play has also helped his linemates as David Perron has points in four straight and Erik Haula has points in five straight games. Neal is a great option on his own in all formats and you can safely stack the entire line in GPP's as they get an upside matchup vs. the Panthers who rank 20th overall in defense.

Stack with: David Perron, Erik Haula

Alex Debrincat FD - $5900 DK - $5400
Opponent - MIN
Proj Pts FD - 10.67 DK - 3.02

For value at the position, I am going to go back to Alex Debrincat of the Blackhawks who has taken a grasp on his top line role. The price is starting to go up but I feel there is still enough value there that we can play him comfortably in all formats, especially today on a smaller slate vs. a Wild team that has been much better at home than on the road. Over his last 10 games, Debrincat has lacked the shot volume with just 21 shots on goal but is averaging a point per game and flashed multi-point upside along the way.

Stack with: Jonathan Toews, Brandon Saad

Also Consider: Kyle Connor(WPG)

DEFENSEMEN

Colton Parayko FD - $5100 DK - $5500
Opponent - WPG
Proj Pts FD - 11.12 DK - 3.27

Parayko has been providing consistent value all season with an average of 1.5 blocks and 2.7 shots per game but since Alex Pietrangelo was placed on injured reserve he has taken on a much larger role. He has gone from seeing around 21 minutes per game to over 27 per game over the last three games while skating on the top unit. The extra opportunity has also added up in the fantasy world as well as in those three games he has an assist along with seven shots and 13 blocks. The best part is that the price hasn't really gone up that much and with that, he is safe in all formats.

Also Consider: Deryk Engelland(VEG) as a punt option who has a high floor for the price with 15 blocks in his last three games and Aaron Ekblad(FLA) who also has provided a high floor for the price with four points and 33 shots on goal in his last 10 games. 

Hockey is back and with it comes our NHL projections which help inform these picks every night. When you purchase a DFSR NHL subscription to our base hockey projections you also get access to our brand new NFL DFS suite of tools including full projections, optimal NFL lineups and our Player Lab, which includes filters to help you create NFL lineups for FanDuel and DraftKings for any format. It’s a set of tools well beyond anything we’ve ever had, and something we feel will help our users *ahem* tackle the NFL season.

If you want to see the numbers behind our projections, create linueps with a single click, or research as deeply as your heart desires, click the button below to test out yourself.