Saturday night’s NHL slate features eight (8) games and a 7:00 PM ET/4:00 PM PT roster lock.
Saturday night’s NHL slate features eight (8) games and a 7:00 PM ET/4:00 PM PT roster lock.
As a reminder, my GPP articles this season will include three types of stacks: Projected High-Ownership (chalky), Projected Mid-Level Ownership and Projected Low-Ownership. On top of that, every once in a while, I will also throw an Extremely Low Ownership dart throw as well.
While GPP lineups often focus on stacking, there will be plenty of times where you need to insert a value play, so I will also include a few of my favorite value plays in each of these GPP focused write-ups. I wouldn’t want your lineups to be scattered with value plays, but I do know that you will end up needing to play a cheap option or two every now and then.
If you haven’t done so already, be sure to read my DFS NHL Frequently Asked Questions article. This article goes through some important information about what you need to know as a Guru Elite NHL Subscriber. This article will continue to be updated throughout the season. If I haven’t answered your question yet, don’t sweat it, because I promise you I will.
Also, please check out the following important information….
Please be sure to keep track of the LINES (who plays with who) and goalie confirmations (who are the starting goalies). Here are the resources I recommend to keep an eye on any developments:
This information comes straight from writers who follow each of the NHL teams closely. If anything important ever comes up, they are surely the first to know and will know earlier than any DFS or NHL website. Following this list will make it easier for you to keep an eye on all types of changes throughout the day (e.g. line changes, goalie confirmations, and late scratches).
Goalie Confirmations via LeftWingLock.com:
If a goalie gets confirmed as the starter throughout the day, this is where you’ll want to go to make sure they are locked in.
Current Line Combinations via LeftWingLock.com:
This resource is very good to check on line combinations from the previous game and the projected lines for the next game. Be aware that lines may update as they come in, so if a team holds a morning skate, there’s a good chance that the lines that are updated from the morning skate are going to be used in that night’s game.
RECOMMENDED STACKS
*Stacks are not listed in order of preference
Projected High-Ownership Stacks:
WSHPP1: (in order of preference) Alex Ovechkin/Nicklas Backstrom/John Carlson/Evgeny Kuznetsov/T.J. Oshie
Both teams are going to be playing their second game in as many nights. While the Capitals were able to win their contest against the Sabres, it was definitely a quiet night for the Washington top line and power-play. With a matchup against the Senators, and potentially against Mike McKenna, I think this could easily end up being a very high scoring game. The Senators continue to be among the worst in the NHL on the PK, and as a top-six PP unit, I think the Capitals will be pretty popular.
I also like COL1, WPG1, and TORPP1 in that order. But they are all VERY expensive stacks, so you definitely need to weigh out all of the options.
Projected Mid-Level Ownership Stacks:
BUF1: Jeff Skinner/Jack Eichel/Sam Reinhart with Rasmus Ristolainen
I know Buffalo didn’t do much last night in Washington, but it’d be a major mistake if you faded them again tonight against Anaheim. In Thursday’s Cash Game Breakdown, I talked about how poorly the Ducks have been playing defensively even though their record may suggest that they’re a team you don’t want to target against. Well, let me give you another reason why you want to target against the Ducks…. They lead the league in minor penalties. It’s no surprise that Boston’s top PP unit was busy the other night, and I expect a similar situation tonight against the Sabres. We know that Eichel has been on fire and we know that his top line has the ability to score in bunches. I’d be very surprised if they don’t produce tonight.
TB1: Tyler Johnson/Brayden Point/Nikita Kucherov
Embarrassingly, EDM1 continues to allow an extremely high number of high-danger scoring chances, and it has been happening on a regular basis. It’s difficult to understand how that’s happening considering the defensive emphasis from Head Coach Ken Hitchcock, but the numbers rarely lie, and the line that matches up against EDM1 will generally be in a good spot to produce. Amazingly, even though McDavid’s crew allows 2.5x as many high-danger scoring chances than they produce, it’s a situation where they’ve been able to produce 3x more than the opposition. The production is going to eventually even out, but for now, we will take advantage of it and roster TB1 at much lower ownership than they should probably be at.
MIN1: Jason Zucker/Eric Staal/Mikael Granlund with Ryan Suter
As I typed the letters “M” “I” “N” with the number “1”, my stomach churned a bit given their lack of success every single damn time I have them in a writeup. This cannot possibly keep happening. They have been outstanding when it comes to the puck possession game and generating quality opportunities, but they rarely break out with a big performance. They are coming off of a very annoying Pittsburgh game when they completely outplayed Crosby’s line and generated 4x as many scoring chances. I would expect them to match up against the Seguin line, which is playing with the fastest pace on the Stars roster, and who may struggle while John Klingberg gets up to game speed. Klingberg was on the ice for three goals against and somehow led the team in ice time in his first game back, so I’d be surprised if his ice time drops tonight in Minnesota.
Projected Low Ownership Stacks:
CAR3: Andrei Svechnikov/Lucas Wallmark/Justin Williams
You can call this CAR2 or CAR3, but it doesn’t really matter. The important thing is, I have a hunch that they’re going to match up against the Malkin line, and that’s definitely the line you want to match up against when you face the Penguins. Over the last eight games, Malkin has only produced one even-strength goal while allowing six. For those worried about playing Carolina guys after Thursday’s result against the Red Wings, I wouldn’t sweat it. They nearly doubled Detroit in Corsi and controlled a game that had the lowest number of high-danger attempts (of those they’ve participated in) in months.
INDIVIDUAL OPTIONS
*I am now separating the value plays by site because there are so many drastic differences in value. Also, keep in mind that none of these value options are “must plays”. They are all values for a reason.
DraftKings Value Plays:
Lucas Wallmark (C-CAR): $3200
Josh Leivo (W-VAN): $2600
Filip Chytil (W-NYR): $3100
Daniel Sprong (W-ANA): $2600
Rasmus Dahlin (D-BUF): $4000
Jonas Brodin (D-MIN): $3200
Marc Staal (D-NYR): $2500
FanDuel Value Plays:
Lucas Wallmark (C-CAR): $3200
Andrei Svechnikov (W-CAR): $4000
Andreas Johnsson (W-TOR): $3700
Josh Leivo (W-VAN): $3500
Darnell Nurse (D-EDM): $4400
Jaccob Slavin (D-CAR): $4000
Goalies:
*Make sure your goalie is starting. I would generally recommend just correlating your goalie with a stack that you are using (as long as it’s not a game stack), but if not, these are my favorites…
Freddie Andersen, Maple Leafs (DK: $8300; FD: $9400)
Devan Dubnyk, Wild (DK: $7800; FD: $8500)
Pheonix Copley, Capitals (DK: $7600; FD: $7500)
