Today’s NHL Cash Game Breakdown goes over Wednesday’s six (6) game slate that has a roster lock of 7:30 PM ET/4:30 PM PT.
UPDATE (5:40 PM ET): It’s going to be Kahkonen in net instead of Talbot, which is fine. I think the Minnesota goalie was gonna be a tough play regardless just because I think most of our builds are going to feature Karlsson. If you’re looking for another goalie, it might have to be Brian Elliott who is 4-0 against the Sabres this year, but even with that, I somehow don’t love it. The Flyers are a very inconsistent team who should have lost last time around.
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Positional Cash Game Rankings
Centers
- Nathan MacKinnon, Avalanche (DK: $9000, FD: $9000)
- Pierre-Luc Dubois, Jets (DK: $4000, FD: $5300)
- Kevin Hayes, Flyers (DK: $5500, FD: $5000)
- Tomas Hertl, Sharks (DK: $4800, FD: $6100)
- Chandler Stephenson, Golden Knights (DK: $4400, FD: $4100)
- Casey Mittelstadt, Sabres (DK: $2600, FD: $3000)
- Just play MacKinnon. There’s really no reason not to. If you’re bitter because you played him a few nights ago when he got zero points, just understand that’s a part of hockey.
- Dubois needs to be more consistent, but centering a line with Connor and Ehlers is always going to make him a huge threat on any given night. At $4k on DK, you can take a stab with him and not feel like you’re taking a huge risk.
- Getting exposure to the Flyers against the Sabres is PROBABLY a wise thing to do, but don’t force it. The Sabres are in better shape with Ullmark in net and the pace in Flyers games has been pretty slow. I think if I were to roster a Flyers center, it’s probably going to be Kevin Hayes, but I probably won’t be happy about it.
Wingers
- Joonas Donskoi, Avalanche (DK: $4000, FD: $3400)
- Mikko Rantanen (DK: $7600, FD: $8500) and Gabriel Landeskog, Avalanche (DK: $7200, FD: $7800)
- Max Pacioretty, Golden Knights (DK: $8000, FD: $8200)
- Paul Stastny, Jets (DK: $3800, FD: $5100)
- Mitch Marner, Maple Leafs (DK: $8200, FD: $7400)
- Jakub Voracek, Flyers (DK: $4000, FD: $6000) // DK preferred
- Tage Thompson, Sabres (DK: $2500, FD: $3000)
- Ryan Donato, Sharks (DK: $3000, FD: $3000)
- Jimmy Vesey, Canucks (DK: $3100, FD: $3300)
- Alex Iafallo, Kings (DK: $4900, FD: $4600)
- Phil Kessel, Coyotes (DK: $3600, FD: $6000) // DK preferred
- Alex Galchenyuk, Maple Leafs (DK: $2900, FD: $3000)
- Donskoi has just replaced Kadri on the top power-play unit, but even if we didn’t take that into consideration, he’s leaning towards being a must play. With six goals over his last nine games and being a beast at both ends of the ice, it’s absolutely criminal that he’s still this cheap on both sites.
- At this point, I don’t know how to predict who will be the best dollar for dollar play out of Rantanen and Landeksog. Rantanen is a safer bet for points, but Landeskog has double the high-danger chances..
- Tough to get excited about a guy like Stastny, who does not shoot the puck very often, but playing on the top line and getting quality PP time is helping him get some cheap points. He has five points over his last five games.
- I am probably not going to play Auston Matthews at this point, given a matchup against a hot goalie in Hellebuyck, and Nathan MacKinnon being on today’s slate. Obviously, his production has dropped off, but it’s tough to pinpoint exactly why that’s happening, but there’s a good chance it is health related. I’ll actually happily roster Mitch Marner, who has been playing much better than Matthews at a discount.
- Tage Thompson is surprisingly my favorite Sabres player to roster tonight. His min price definitely helps, but I also like that he has a history with Interim Coach Don Granato, who coached him on the US Development Team. He is getting time with the “top” line and power-play time on the 2nd unit.
- Donato has been very productive against his former team this season, and was rewarded with a big minutes bump in Game 1. Why not try again at $3000?
- I am not a Jimmy Vesey guy, but the Canucks coaching staff seems to love him because he’s playing more more minutes than at any point in his career, and getting top power-play minutes, even though he has contributed zero points.
Defensemen
- Erik Karlsson, Sharks (DK: $4100, FD: $4200)
- Ivan Provorov, Flyers (DK: $5200, FD: $5000)
- Alec Martinez, Golden Knights (DK: $5800, FD: $4600)
- Alex Goligoski, Coyotes (DK: $2900, FD: $3500)
- Josh Morrissey, Jets (DK: $4400, FD: $4500)
- Jared Spurgeon, Wild (DK: $4300, FD: $4100)
- Mikey Anderson, Kings (DK: $2500, FD: Not in Play)
- Erik Karlsson woke up from the dead this past Monday in Game 1 against the Wild, netting 2 goals, as well as a crazy slap shot shootout goal from the slot. After the game, he wasn’t amused at the post-game presser where he was questioned if that was the best game of his career. I think he has another…. at least productive game in the 2nd game of the series.
- Provorov has been shooting the puck more than he ever has in his career, and it has helped him load up the fantasy points. On DK where those SOG really matter, he has put together nine games over 11.2 points or more in his last 12 (75% hit rate).
- Three of Martinez’s biggest games of the season have come against his old friends, the LA Kings. Price is a problem but he comes with as high of a floor as anyone.
- Goligoski has been putting it on the line a lot lately, achieving the 3+ blocked shot bonus on DK three games in a row, and is also getting a ton of minutes, which will help his cause.
Goalies
- Connor Hellebuyck, Jets (DK: $7500, FD: $8000)
Cam Talbot, Wild (DK: $7900, FD: $8300)- Thatcher Demko, Canucks (DK: $7600, FD: $7700)
Core Four
DraftKings: Nathan MacKinnon, Joonas Donskoi, Tage Thompson, Erik Karlsson
FanDuel: Nathan MacKinnon, Joonas Donskoi, Paul Stastny, Ivan Provorov
