Daily Fantasy Hockey Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings 1/9/17

Welcome back hockey fans. After a quiet Monday night where there was just one game, we are back on Tuesday with a seven-game slate that includes six of the bottom 10 defenses so gear up for some possible high-scoring action. Let's jump 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.

GOALIE

Andrei Vasilevskiy FD - $9600 DK - $8300
Opponent - CAR
Proj Pts FD - 16.58 DK - 4.14

He put up his worst start of the season in his last start in Ottawa allowing six goals but I am not at all worried and will be going right back to the well tonight. To start with, he has been arguably the best goalie in the league this season with 26 wins, a 2.04 GAA, and an elite .935 save % and he and the Lightning have been nearly unstoppable on home ice. Vegas is also on board tonight as the Bolts are huge -200 favorites vs. the Hurricanes who have lost three of their last four games and rank 21st overall in offense. All things considered, Vasilevskiy is my top choice in all formats tonight.

Braden Holtby FD - $9300 DK - $8200
Opponent - VAN
Proj Pts FD - 15.25 DK - 3.81

If you are at all worried about Vasilevskiy(I am not), consider Braden Holtby is also in an elite spot tonight. The Capitals open as -225 home favorites vs. a struggling Canucks team that has lost four straight and 12 of their last 14 games and have fallen to 28th overall in offense. Holtby hasn't been his elite self this season with a .917 save % but he has a dominant team around him and has gone 8-1 in his last nine starts to push his win total to 24 on the season. My plan right now is to split Holtby and Vasilevskiy in almost all my lineups in all formats tonight.

**Update - Holtby will be getting a rest day and Phillip Grubauer will get the start and makes a nice value GPP play. **

Also Consider: Pekka Rinne(NSH) in GPP formats

CENTERS

Blake Wheeler FD - $7600 DK - $7700
Opponent - BUF
Proj Pts FD - 16.72 DK - 4.89

Back on the Blake Wheeler train tonight. He has been carrying the team since Mark Scheifele went on injured reserve with eight points in his last five games with three multi-point efforts and now has 50 points on the season. He is not only a high upside play as he has been consistently providing a high floor as well with 35 shots in his last 10 games and 133 on the season(3.1 per game). He is priced right with Stamkos and McDavid on DraftKings but comes at a big discount on FanDuel and facing the Sabres 29th ranked defense, is in play in all formats.

Stack with: Kyle Connor, Patrik Laine

Nicklas Backstrom FD - $6500 DK - $6200
Opponent - VAN
Proj Pts FD - 12.52 DK - 3.76

I wouldn't normally consider Backstrom in cash games with his 1.9 shots per game but tonight everything lines up perfectly. He has been red-hot lately with three straight multi-point games including nine shots on goal as he skates on the elite top line with Alexander Ovechkin. And to top things off, he gets an elite home matchup vs. a struggling Canucks team that has dropped 12 of their last 14 games while giving up an average of 4.5 goals per game. I will have exposure to Backstrom in all cash games and will be stacking him with Ovi for an extremely high-upside GPP stack.

Stack with: Alex Ovechkin, T.J. Oshie(PP)

Also Consider: Brayden Schenn(STL)

WINGERS

Nikita Kucherov FD - $9200 DK - $8200
Opponent - CAR
Proj Pts FD - 17.33 DK - 5.08

I could possibly see the argument for fading Kucherov in GPP's and hope he has an off game but even then, it's very risky. He has only gone pointless in seven of his 42 games this season and has an incredible 20 multi-point efforts. He leads the league with 59 points and has also provided a high floor averaging 3.5 shots per game while skating over 20 minutes per contest on the top line and powerplay unit. There is definitely enough value on this seven-game slate to build your cash game lineups around him and stacking him with Stamkos and Namestnikov creates an elite GPP stack.

Stack with: Steven Stamkos, Vladislav Namestnikov

Evander Kane FD - $6700 DK - $6700
Opponent - WPG
Proj Pts FD - 15.26 DK - 4.44

Kane has been an excellent play for cash games all season as he is one of just five players to average over four shots on goal per game. Tonight he also makes a nice GP pivot at a projected lower ownership with so many elite wingers at the top of the salary. He backs it up with the upside having tallied 16 goals and 35 points on the season with an elite 1.36 expected goals per 60 minutes and although he faces a tough Jets 9th ranked defense, they haven't been nearly as good on the road.

Stack with: Jack Eichel, Sam Reinhart

Craig Smith FD - $4400 DK - $5500
Opponent - EDM
Proj Pts FD - 11.01 DK - 3.2

The offensive upside has tailed off a bit lately as he has tallied just four points over his last 10 games but he continues to provide elite shot volume as he has 42 shots on goal in that timeframe. Tonight, he may be able to get back on track in a near elite matchup vs. a struggling Oilers team that has dropped six of their last seven games and given up 28 goals against(4 per game). I will have exposure to Smith in all formats on FanDuel in the mid $4K range and be using him in a GPP stack with Turris and Fiala on DraftKings.

Stack with: Kevin Fiala, Kyle Turris

Also Consider: Ryan Hartman(CHI) as a cheap punt play on a line with Patrick Kane

DEFENSEMEN

Victor Hedman FD - $6600 DK - $6800
Opponent - CAR
Proj Pts FD - 13.07 DK - 3.94

There are three excellent options at the top of the salary at the position so this may be the day we want to pay up for one in cash games. My favorite of the bunch is Victor Hedman who is providing us with a huge floor lately as he has fired 40 shots on goal over his last 10 games and added 16 blocks. He has also flashed his upside in that time with 10 points(4 on PP) which now puts him fourth among D-men this season with 31 points. He skates over 25 minutes per game on average on the top unit and powerful #1 powerplay unit and is my top option today.

Alexander Edler FD - $4800 DK - $4700
Opponent - WAS
Proj Pts FD - 10.51 DK - 3.05

When looking at the mid-tier options you may not pick out Alexander Edler, especially considering the road matchup vs. the Capitals. By no means did I choose him here because of his upside as it is pretty much non-existent with 10 points on the season but rather I chose him due to his extremely high floor. Over his last 10 games, he has not only tallied 29 shots but also added a whopping 37 blocks for an average of 4.1 DraftKings/13.8 FanDuel points per game. That is more than enough production considering the sub $5K price tag to consider him in cash games tonight.

Also Consider: Roman Josi(NSH), Josh Morrissey(WPG)

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.