(AP Photo/Jim Mone)
Welcome back hockey fans. It has seemed like forever since we had normal DFS NHL to play and now that the All-Star break is over we can get back on track. Tonight we get a huge 12-game slate so let's dig in and take a look at some of the top plays at each position.
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.
Opponent - MON
Proj Pts FD - 15.88 DK - 3.97
Carter Hutton has taken over as the Blues #1 goalie and has all the stats to back it up. He went into the All-Star break with a 7-1-1 record over his last nine starts pushing his record to 12-4-1 on the season with two shutouts and an elite .943 save %. He will between the pipes tonight in an elite matchup vs. the Habs who hold a 3-6 record over their last nine road games while scoring just 1.8 goals per game and rank 27th in road offense on the season. Hutton is safe in all formats.
Opponent - MIN
Proj Pts FD - 17.32 DK - 4.33
The two-time Vezina Trophy winner hasn't quite been himself this season and it can be contributed to a mix of road struggles and the fact the offense hasn't been much help ranking 29th overall. The good news is that he has still been money on home ice with a 12-6 record, elite .933 save % and four shutouts. There is a good chance he will be lower owned tonight on a big slate and that could work in our favor as he gets a good matchup vs. the Wild who drop from a 12th ranked offense at home to a 24th ranked offense on the road.
Also Consider: Jonathan Bernier(COL) for GPP formats
Opponent - FLA
Proj Pts FD - 15.4 DK - 4.42
Opponent - NYI
Proj Pts FD - 15.96 DK - 4.55
I like the idea of targeting both centers in this game in the highest projected scoring game of the night as the over/under is set at 6.5 in Vegas. Johnny T has been a beast all season and ranks 5th overall in total points with 57 and also provides us with a stable floor averaging over three shots on goal per game. Tonight he will face a struggling Panthers team that is without their top two goalies(Luongo & Reimer both on IR) and has dropped seven of their last nine games before the break and have given up 37 goals(4.1 per game).
I think we can consider rostering both the Panthers top centers but I lean Trocheck tonight as he comes at a discount on both sites. He is getting a ton of opportunity skating over 21 minutes per game and is providing a very high floor averaging 3.6 shots per game and has seen a huge uptick lately with 49 over his last 10 games. There is also upside in this play as he has 44 points in 47 games this season and now faces an Islanders team ranked dead last in defense this season. Both centers are safe in cash game and make a great start to a game stack in GPP's.
Stack Tavares with: Anders Lee, Josh Bailey
Stack Trocheck with: Jonathan Huberdeau, Denis Malgin, Aleksander Barkov(PP)
Opponent - MIN
Proj Pts FD - 9.71 DK - 2.78
There is literally no safety in Wennberg who has tallied just 10 shots on goal in his last 10 games and 46 on the season but he does provide upside at a value price. He has put up eight points over his last 10 games with two multi-point efforts and gets a ton of opportunity skating over 18 minutes per game on the second line that recently got one of their best players in Cam Atkinson back. We also talked about the matchup against the Wild before the break as they rank #1 in defense on home ice but on the road, they drop down to 30th overall. On DraftKings in the low $4K range, I would even consider using him for a stars and scrubs cash lineup and he is definitely in play in GPP's on both sites.
Stack with: Nick Foligno, Cam Atkinson
Also Consider: Ryan Getzlaf(ANH) for GPP formats
Opponent - MON
Proj Pts FD - 15.42 DK - 4.52
With Nikita Kucherov in a tough matchup in Winnipeg and Brad Marchand suspended, Vladimir Tarasenko is my top winger if you are paying up tonight. He not only provides us with an elite floor for cash games as he sits third in the league with an average of 4.1 shots per game behind only Alex Ovechkin and Brent Burns, but he also provides elite multi-point upside. The offense hasn't maybe been as consistent as others in the top tier but he has recorded multiple points in 13 games this season and has a good chance at making it 14 tonight vs. the Habs 27th ranked defense on the road.
Stack with: Paul Stastny, Ivan Barbashev, Brayden Schenn(PP)
Opponent - VAN
Proj Pts FD - 11.01 DK - 3.83
Rantanen has taken a huge step forward in his second full season with the Avalanche and had himself a tremendous first half. After recording 38 points all of last season, he has already tallied 47 in 48 games and is thriving on the top line with Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog. He was held without a point in two straight going into the break but has 14 points over his last 10 games with huge upside thanks to five multi-point efforts. He is hard to trust in cash games with lower shot volume but has been lower owned lately and makes an excellent GPP play vs. the Canucks 25th ranked defense that has actually been close to a half goal worse at home.
Stack with: Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog
Opponent - ANA
Proj Pts FD - 10.46 DK - 3.05
Digging down into the value range we find Danton Heinen of the Bruins who has been getting more opportunity with Brad Marchand serving a suspension. It paid off in the Bruins last game before the break as he scored a goal on four shots and skated just over 15 minutes and now has seven points in his last 10 games. Considering the price is still cheap on both sites, I will be using him in all formats tonight.
Stack with: Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak
Also Consider: Jordan Eberle(NYI) who is still cheap enough both sites to be considered in all formats vs. the Panthers
DEFENSEMEN
Opponent - VAN
Proj Pts FD - 9.12 DK - 2.73
I will be going the value route on defense tonight, at least in cash games, and it starts with Erik Johnson of the Avalanche. He provides us with a steady floor for cash games with a nice balance of shot and blocks and has 24 of each over the last 10 games to go along with some upside as he has tallied six points in that time and now has 21 on the season. The opportunity is also not an issue as he skates over 25 minutes per game on the season with the top pairing and powerplay unit. From a PTS/$ perspective, he is my top D-man tonight in all formats.
Opponent - NYI
Proj Pts FD - 10.13 DK - 3.05
Ekblad is a little pricey over on FanDuel and should be reserved for GPP only but on DraftKings in the mid $4K range, I will have shares of him in all formats. The upside is limited as he has just 16 points on the season but he saw a big uptick in shot volume going into the break with 3+ shots in five straight games and had three points in that time. Tonight he gets a terrific matchup vs. the Islanders who rank dead last in offense.
Also Consider: Alec Martinez(LAK)
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.
Get a free trial to DFSR NFL DFS projections for DraftKings and FanDuel.
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NHL sheet for today:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Mlz4YQydG7hKT_rVe7elnZygSLUdvdjhgdb9r0utAl8/edit?usp=sharing