Daily Fantasy Hockey Picks for DraftKings and FanDuel - 10/17/15

The NHL season is here and we’ll be bringing you picks 3-4 days a week for the bigger slates to start. We are also beta-testing a new NHL projection system.

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We get a full sate of games Saturday with 20 teams in action. Six teams(CAR, CBJ, CAL, DET, SJ, TOR) are playing in back to back games with two teams(OTT, CHI) playing in their third game in four nights. Goalie pricing is a little softer on DraftKings making it easier to get the top forwards and defense in your lineups.

The first thing to know when playing DFS hockey is that choosing your goalie is very important. In most cases, especially cash games, it is smart to pay up for the best goalie who is the biggest favorite to win on any given night. If you are going to play multi lineups in GPP formats you can start to stray away from the top guys and pick some lower end goalies and stack your forwards and defense. Another thing I watch closely when looking for value picks in DFS hockey is to watch the line combinations as new guys jump up the depth chart and start playing with superstars. The pricing on these players doesn't catch up fast enough and close to minimum priced players can be found nightly with plenty of upside.

The two sites I will be making picks for will be DraftKings and FanDuel. Here is the breakdown of the points for each site:

DraftKings:
Goal(3 Pts)                                                   Goalie Win(3 Pts)
Assist(2 Pts)                                                 Goalie Save(.2 Pts)
Shot(.5 Pts)                                                  Goal Against(-1 Pt)
Short Handed Point Bonus(1 Pt)             Shutout Bonus(2 Pts)
Shootout Goal(.2 Pts)
Hat Trick Bonus(1.5 Pts)
Blocked Shot(.5 Pt)

Fanduel:
Goal(3 Pts)                                                    Goalie Win (3 Pts)
Assist(2 Pts)                                                 Goalie Saves(.2 Pts)
+/-(1 Pt)                                                        Goal Against(-1 Pt)
PIM(.25 Pts)                                                Shutout Bonus(2 Pts)
Power Play Point Bonus(.5 Pts)
Shot(.4 Pts)

There is no difference in goalie scoring between the two sites but there is a significant difference in forward/defense points. On DraftKings you get awarded points for short hand points, blocks, shootout goals, and can receive a hat trick bonus. FanDuel has none of these categories but awards powerplay points, +/-, and penalty minutes. More than anything this affects how I choose my defense. On DraftKings I look for defense who block a lot of shots while on FanDuel I really concentrate on +/- more than anything as it is worth 1 point either way.

GOALIES

Braden Holtby - Washington Capitals vs. CAR **PROBABLE**
DraftKings - $8,000 FanDuel - $9,300
He is coming off a win vs. a tough Blackhawks team after starting the year giving up 3 goals in back to back games. The Capitals are -230 favorites at home and Holtby is in a great spot to pickup a win vs. the Hurricanes who are ranked near the bottom in both offense and defense.

Alex Stalock - San Jose Sharks @NYI *CONFIRMED*
DraftKings - $6,500 FanDuel - $7,000
San Jose is outscoring opponents 14-2 to start the year and now turn to their backup for a start Saturday night. It is a nice spot to get a value priced goalie on a good team in your lineup for GPP lineups.

CENTER

Steven Stamkos - Tampa Bay Lightning vs. BUF
DraftKings - $7,500 FanDuel - $8,500
He is heating up with five points on the season and has multi point upside every time he steps on the ice. The Lightning are home Saturday night as big favorites vs. a Sabres team lacking in offense. He makes a great play i any format.

Evgeni Malkin - Pittsburgh Penguins vs. TOR
DraftKings - $6,900 FanDuel - $8,50
He is currently $1000 less than teammate Sidney Crosby and out producing him to this point in the season. The Penguins will be at home Saturday as favorites against the Leafs who are giving up 3.67 goals a game. He is a + player so far on a struggling team so lookout when they catch fire. A matchup vs. Leafs could be just what the Pens need.

Also Consider Martin Hanzal - Arizona Coyotes

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WINGERS

Phil Kessel - Pittsburgh Penguins vs. TOR
DraftKings - $7,200 FanDuel(LW) - $7,900
It has been a disappointing start with his new team but a matchup vs. his old team might spark some offense on Saturday. He is playing on a line with Crosby who always seems to play the Leafs well and they are home favorites to top it off. Look for Kessel and Penguins to break out of the early season slump.

Filip Forsberg - Nashvilel Predators @ OTT
DraftKings - $6,100 FanDuel(LW) - $6,600
He makes a great cash game play Saturday vs. the Senators. He as 4 points in 4 games t start the year and has been a + player on a very good defensive team in Nashville. When the offense clicks it is usually through Forsberg who is growing into a superstar in the NHL.

Jiri Hudler - Calgary Flames vs. EDM
DraftKings - $4,900 FanDuel(RW) - $5,800
Staying with Hudler at this price for my cash games on DraftKings Saturday. He and the Flames had an off night Friday in Winnipeg and will look to get back on track in a mathcup vs. the Oilers who have allowed over 3 goals a game. He is more of GPP play on FanDuel as his +/- can be an issue on that site.

DEFENSE

Kris Letang - Pittsburgh Penguins vs. TOR
DraftKings - $6,400 FanDuel - $6,100
I am trying to get as much exposure to the Pens as possible on Saturday in a meeting with the Leafs. Letang is the Pens top D man who logs around 27:00 a game and plays top minutes on the powerplay as well. If the Pens are going to break out and put a bunch of goals on the board Letang should be right in the middle of it all.

Jason Garrison - Tampa Bay Lightning vs. BUF
DraftKings - $4,600 FanDuel - $3,700
His a nice salary relief cash game D man on both sites. He has a nice floor as he takes 2-3 shots a game to go with 2-3 blocks and gets top minutes on the Lightning and the occasional PP shift each game.

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