Daily Fantasy Hockey Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings 12/29/17

Welcome back to another exciting day of NHL action here at DFSR. Today, we have a huge 11-game slate in store for us with only five teams playing in a back-to-back(Tor, Phi, TB, Chi, Cgy) so there will be a lot of well-rested teams in action this evening. Let's take a look at some of my favorite picks.

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

Cory Schneider FD - $8400 DK - $8400
Opponent - BUF
Proj Pts FD - 15.03 DK - 3.76

It's not that I like picking on Buffalo, but when their team is this bad, I have no choice. The Sabres are ranked dead last in the league with only 2.16 goals per game and they are about to face one of the hottest goalies in the league right now in Corey Schneider. The veteran tender has won five games in a row and is 6-0-1 in his last seven games to go along with a sensational .937 save %, and a 1.83 GAA in that span. The Devils are tied for first with the Capitals in the Metropolitan Division and look for them to keep on trucking this evening against a lowly Sabres squad. Schneider is an elite play and my top goalie in all formats.

Peter Budaj FD - $7900 DK - $8100
Opponent - PHI
Proj Pts FD - 14.53 DK - 3.63

Andrei Vasilevksiy and the Lightning just defeated the Canadiens 3-1 as I'm writing this, so the Slovakian veteran will most likely get the start this evening against the Flyers as both teams will be in a back-to-back scenario. The Lightning should be a massive favorite this evening against Philly who are playing their second road game in consecutive nights and they're ranked 22nd defensively. Budaj hasn't been great this season, but he still has a 3-2-1 record and while Schneider will be in 100% of my cash game lineups, I like this guy as a lower owned tournament play.

Also Consider: John Gibson(ANA) GPP formats only

CENTERS

John Tavares FD - $8800 DK - $7700
Opponent - WPG
Proj Pts FD - 17.54 DK - 4.99

"Johnny T" just keeps rolling along and you will keep seeing him here until he gets injured(knock on wood), or his legs literally fall off(knock on wood again). The veteran superstar is now on an amazing eight-game point streak with four goals and 13 assists while averaging 3.9 shots per game during that span. The Jets have slid out of the top-10 defensively and they will now be without their best player, Mark Scheifele so look for the Islanders to come out firing early and often. Fire Tavares up in all formats and don't think twice.

Stack with: Josh Bailey, Anders Lee

Evgeni Malkin FD - $8300 DK - $7000
Opponent - CAR
Proj Pts FD - 13.94 DK - 4.15

It's weird how things can change from one night to another. Last night, the center position was very thin and tonight it's absolutely loaded, so let's continue with another superstar who you may have heard of. Malkin has been awesome lately as he has points in 10 of his last 12 games and four goals, three assists, and a whopping 24 shots in his last five. The Hurricanes rank 20th in defense, so look for the Pens to score a few goals this evening and lock and load Malkin in all formats, especially over at Draftkings where he is the ninth most expensive at his position.

Stack with: Jake Guentzel, Phil Kessel

Pierre-Luc Dubois FD - $5700 DK - $5200
Opponent - OTT
Proj Pts FD - 10.31 DK - 2.9

This young man is simply too cheap on both sites as he has two goals, two assists, and 18 shots in his last four games while playing on the #1 line and the #1 powerplay unit for the Jackets. The Senators are playing some of the worst hockey I've ever seen lately as they've allowed 16 goals in their last four games and so far this season, they are ranked fourth-worst defensively, so from a PTS/$ perspective, Dubois is a solid play in all formats.

Stack with: Josh Anderson, Artemi Panarin

Also Consider: Leon Draisaitl(EDM) GPP formats, Auston Matthews(TOR) Cash game formats. 

WINGERS

Nikita Kucherov FD - $9200 DK - $8200
Opponent - PHI
Proj Pts FD - 19.11 DK - 5.57

I recommended this MVP candidate in my most recent article and he recorded an assist against the Habs to extend his very lengthy point-streak to eight games. Like I mentioned yesterday, the Russian superstar leads the league in goals and points and while Philly owns a top-10 offense, they will be playing in back-to-back road games, which means that this game could be a blowout in Tampa's favor. Kucherov could go wild tonight which makes him dangerous to fade this evening and he is an elite play in all formats.

Stack with: Steven Stamkos, Vladislav Namestnikov

Taylor Hall FD - $7400 DK - $7300
Opponent - BUF
Proj Pts FD - 16.36 DK - 4.75

I believe in the quote that says "Don't fix what ain't broken" and Hall definitely isn't broken as he recorded two assists and four shots last game to give him a goal, four assists, and 13 shots in his last three games. The Sabres are also pathetic defensively as they're ranked 29th in that category, so Look for Hall and company to score early and often this evening. Lock and load the stud winger in all formats.

Stack with: Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt

Kyle Connor FD - $4200 DK - $5200
Opponent - NYI
Proj Pts FD - 8.71 DK - 2.44

Like I mentioned earlier, superstar Mark Scheifele is injured for the Jets, so guys like Connor need to step up and I believe that he is up to the task. The second-year winger has 21 points in his first 32 games and he has a goal, an assist, and eight shots on goal in his last two games while playing on the #1 line and averaging 3:07 minutes of powerplay time on the top unit. It looks like the Jets will move Wheeler to center where he started his career in Boston and bring Laine up to the top line, which could be a deadly trio in the near future. Connor is an elite play over at FanDuel where he is at near minimum prices and a solid play on Draftkings.

Stack with: Blake Wheeler, Patrick Laine

 

Also Consider: Patrick Kane(Chi)

DEFENSEMEN

Seth Jones FD - $5400 DK - $5600
Opponent - OTT
Proj Pts FD - 12.3 DK - 3.57

I've already said it, but I'll say it again. Ottawa is awful at hockey this season and this guy already has 22 points and he is third amongst defensemen with seven goals. Jones is on a five-game point streak with three goals and three assists, and he has 10 shots and three blocks in his last two. He plays on the top defensive pairing and the #1 powerplay unit for the Jackets, so fire him up in all formats against a leaky Sens defense.

Kris Russell FD - $3700 DK - $4000
Opponent - CHI
Proj Pts FD - 8.85 DK - 2.73

I think that there should be an award for the most blocked shots in a season because last game this guy took a shot so hard in the ankle that it broke his shot blocker completely in half. He is a trooper who leads the league with an impressive 108 blocked shots and he has two assists, three shots and nine blocks in his last two games. He is simply too cheap for this kind of production, so lock him into your cash game lineups and spend up elsewhere this evening.

Also Consider: Jacob Trouba(WPG) Against the Islanders and their 31st ranked defense.

 

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.