After a slow three game Friday night slate we are back with a huge 13 game slate on Saturday night. If you have not been paying attention youth is taking over the game. Rookie Auston Matthews stole the show on opening night with a record four goal game in his NHL debut. Not to be outdone, young phenom Connor McDavid has put up back to back three point games against the Flames to open the season and is on pace for 200+ points. Hahaha. Let's take a look at some top plays for tonight.
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 linueps with a single click, or research as deeply as your heart desires, click the button below to test out yourself.
Opponent - DET
Proj Pts FD - 14.83 DK - 3.71
Luongo came out strong in the Panthers season opener stopping 23 of 24 shots in a 2-1 overtime win over the Devils. They will get another home matchup on Saturday night as the Red Wings come to town. The Panthers currently sit as -145 favorites giving Luongo a nice win potential which puts him in the top of the PTS/$ rankings in the upper goalie options. For the most part Luongo makes a better cash game option as the Panthers continue to allow low shot totals. For GPP there are some other options out there that have higher ceilings as their teams allow a ton of shots but of course are much riskier.
Opponent - CGY
Proj Pts FD - 14.11 DK - 3.53
The Canucks will open their season at home tonight as the Calgary Flames come in having played two games already. After a disappointing 75 point season the Canucks will be looking to improve in many areas this year including goaltending. After an impressive first season with the Canucks he struggled last year with a 2.70 GAA and .916 Save % but some of that can be attributed to the defense and poor offense that was one of only four teams to score under 200 goals. The pressure will be on Miller as he has a young Jacob Markstrom waiting in the wings to take over. I will be using Miller as a GPP only option tonight who has big upside as the Flames have fired an average of 38 shots in their first two games against the Oilers.
Opponent - NJ
Proj Pts FD - 18.37 DK - 4.59
The Lightning won their opening game in comeback fashion as Ben Bishop was a little shaky giving up four goals. Vasilevskiy will get the nod tonight in an elite matchup as the Lightning are huge -200 favorites at home vs. the Devils. According to coach Cooper this will be the first of many starts for the youngster who will be close to splitting time with Bishop this season. He is safe in all formats with a $8K price tag against the Devils who scored a league low 184 goals last season.
Opponent - ANA
Proj Pts FD - 13.3 DK - 4.14
With Crosby most likely out again tonight it will be Malkin carrying the load once again. He was impressive in the Pens opening night win against the Caps as he picked up two points(one on PP) on three shots and also added two blocks. He centered a line between Chris Kunitz and Scott Wilson and played the top PP unit. The Pens get a matchup vs. a Ducks team who got off to a bad start allowing four goals to Stars on Thursday night. I fully expect the total to hit the over providing a ton of fantasy value in this game. Malkin is safe in all formats.
Even Strength Stack: Chris Kunitz,Scott wilson
PP Stack: Patric Hornqvist, Nick Bonino, Phil Kessel
Opponent - PIT
Proj Pts FD - 13.41 DK - 4.2
On the other side of the matchup I absolutely love the savings that come with Ryan Getzlaf. He went scoreless in the Ducks first game but fired a game high 10 shots at the net while adding a couple blocks as well. He started the year paired with Corey Perry at even strength and on the powerplay. The two have shown awesome chemistry in the past and should be able to provide a boost to the offense early on in the season. The price is in the mid tier on both sites but if he continues to provide high shot volume will see that salary rise fast. Get on board and enjoy the value now.
Stack with: Corey Perry, Nick Ritchie
Opponent - NYI
Proj Pts FD - 12.09 DK - 3.84
Digging even deeper down the center options tonight we find Nicklas Backstrom under $7K on FanDuel and under $6K on Draftkings. He opened the season centering Marcus Johansson and Andre Burakovsky and the line picked up both of the teams goals in a 3-2 shootout loss to the Penguins. He also centered the top powerplay unit with Alex Ovechkin and TJ Oshie which just adds to his already high value. Lock him in all formats tonight vs. the Islanders.
Even Strength Stack: Marcus Johansson, Andre Burakovsky
PP Stack - Alex Ovechkin, T.J. Oshie, John Carlson
Opponent - COL
Proj Pts FD - 17.95 DK - 5.69
He finished last season second to only Patrick Kane in points(89) with 30 of them coming with the man advantage. He was somewhat quiet(1 A, 1 Shot) in the Stars first game as the 3rd and 4th lines had their way against the Ducks. He and Tyler Seguin make an elite combination the top line and powerplay and if healthy year will do a ton of damage. He and the Stars get a favorable matchup tonight vs. the Avalanche who ranked int he bottom of the league in shots allowed and goals against per game.
Stack with: Tyler Seguin, Patrick Eaves, John Klingberg, Jason Spezza(PP)
Opponent - TOR
Proj Pts FD - 12.45 DK - 3.84
I am sticking with the hot tonight. Marchand lit up the World Cup of Hockey and for those of you who who thought he would come back down to Earth without Patrice Bergeron to start the season were just wrong. He came out flying recording two goals and three assists while adding seven shots on goal in 17 minutes of ice time. Bergeron will be out once again but the Bruins get a very favorable matchup vs. the Leafs in their home opener. Without Bergeron I can't pay up for him in cash but will have a ton of exposure once again in tournaments.
Stack with: David Pastrnak, David Backes
Opponent - NJ
Proj Pts FD - 7.14 DK - 2.2
Dipping down the salary list we find some excellent value plays early in the season. Jonathan Drouin is one of those plays at a mid $5K price tag on both sites. He showed what he can do in the playoffs while Steven Stamkos was out and should be able to take the next step this season. He started the year on a line with Stamkos with is another reason for the high PTS/$ value. If he continues to ride the top line his price will soon be north of $6K. take advantage while you can.
Stack with: Steven Stamkos, Ondrej Palat
Opponent - MON
Proj Pts FD - 15.92 DK - 5.27
I mentioned in my opening article that you were going to see Karlsson and Burns a ton this season in my articles. Karlsson impressed in his first game of season with a goal and two assists and he also added eight shots on goal to give him an elite 12.5 DK/45.6 FD points. He plays big minutes and contribute in almost every aspect including blocks where he averaged over two per game last season and picked three in game one this season. Look for more of the same tonight in a matchup vs. the Canadiens without Carey Price between the pipes.
Opponent - ARI
Proj Pts FD - 11.21 DK - 4.08
I have been waiting three days since the start of the season to write about Ghost Bear. If you read our hockey articles last season you probably came to realize I am a die hard Flyers fan and it's been awhile(Lindros days) since I have been this excited for the team. They mixed young Gostisbehere into the lineup earlier than planned last season due to injury but it worked out in a big way. He recorded a crazy high 46 points in 64 games and provided a +8 rating. He is a force on the powerplay where he gets a ton of volume from the blue line. until his price reaches that of the guys in the top tier he is safe in all formats.
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 accessto 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.
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