Daily Fantasy Hockey Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings 2/26/18

Hello hockey fans and welcome to another day of exciting NHL action here at DFSR. Today, we have a small five-game slate on tap for us, but there are some high powered offenses in action to go along with a couple of weak defenses, so let's not waste any more time and get started with some picks.

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

Semyon Varlamov FD - $7700 DK - $8300
Opponent - VAN
Proj Pts FD - 17.1 DK - 4.27

There are some tough matchups for a couple of great goalies today so we need to dig a little deeper and for me, it starts with Varlamov. The veteran tender has an overall record of 15-13-3, but when playing in Colorado he has an impressive 9-4-1 record to go along with a stifling .931 save percentage and a 2.40 GAA. The Canucks aren't much of a threat as they are ranked 23rd in offense and the Av's are listed as -180 favorites, so with all of these things considered, Varlamov is a great play and my top goalie in all formats.

Petr Mrazek FD - $7900 DK - $8100
Opponent - MON
Proj Pts FD - 15.27 DK - 3.82

Do you think that this guy likes his current situation or what? The young tender was the backup on a losing team and now he comes over as the starter for a surging Flyers squad who have won five-in-a-row and are 9-0-1 in their last 10 games. In his first two games with his new team, Mrazek has two victories while allowing only four goals and the Canadiens are ranked 28th offensively, so after Varlamov, Mrazek is my second favorite goalie today and a solid play in all formats.

CENTERS

Nathan MacKinnon FD - $7900 DK - $7500
Opponent - VAN
Proj Pts FD - 15.39 DK - 4.46

There are so many young players performing at elite levels this season that the NHL is going to be very exciting for many, many years to come and this guy should be a large part of it. The young superstar has 66 points in 53 games to go along with a 3.43 shot per game average and he has two goals, three assists, and 14 shots in his last three games. The mixture of upside and safety are just too good to ignore here, so make sure you fire Mackinnon up in all formats against the Canucks and their 26th ranked defense.

Stack with: Mikko Rantanen, Gabriel Landeskog

Nolan Patrick FD - $4500 DK - $4800
Opponent - MON
Proj Pts FD - 9.43 DK - 2.71

Finally, the former Brandon Wheat King has found some life offensively as he is on an impressive five-game point streak with four goals and an assist to go along with a whopping 13 shots in his last two games. Patrick centers the #2 line for the Flyers and what makes the rookie more enticing is the fact that he was recently bumped up to the #1 powerplay unit alongside some extremely talented players and the Canadiens are ranked fourth-worst defensively, so lock and load Patrick in all formats at these dirt cheap prices.

PP Stack with: Claude Giroux, Jakub Voracek

WINGERS

Nikita Kucherov FD - $9200 DK - $7800
Opponent - TOR
Proj Pts FD - 17.55 DK - 5.11

I just couldn't get away from this superstar today as he is on quite a roll lately with six goals and 10 assists during his current nine-game point streak. What pushes things over the edge though, is the fact that he's averaged an insane 5.4 shots on goal in his last 10 games, which gives him an elite floor to go along with his extremely high ceiling. Even though the Leafs are ranked 12th defensively which is respective, I don't think anyone can slow Kucherov down at the moment, so all things considered, he is an elite play in all formats.

Stack with: Brayden Point, Alex Killorn

Mitchell Marner FD - $6600 DK - $6300
Opponent - TB
Proj Pts FD - 9.78 DK - 2.85

When Auston Matthews went down with an injury, this young man grabbed the bull by the horns as he has two goals and three assists in his last two games to go along with 11 shots in his last four. The sophomore winger plays on the #1 powerplay unit and it looks like he will now be playing with Matthews' line-mates on the #1 line. The Lightning own the league's eighth-ranked defense, but the Leafs are ranked seventh in offense and have been scoring goals in bunches lately, so fire up Marner in all formats for this small slate.

Stack with: William Nylander, Nazem Kadri(PP)

Boone Jenner FD - $4500 DK - $3900
Opponent - WAS
Proj Pts FD - 8.92 DK - 2.6

Adding a value winger to the mix who has been performing well lately just makes things a whole lot easier when constructing your lineups on any given day. Enter Jenner, who plays on the #2 line and the #2 powerplay unit for the Jackets and he has a goal, two assists, nine shots, and three blocks in his last four games. While the Capitals own the eighth-best defense at home, they are tied for second-worst in goals allowed per game on the road, which are some wicked splits, so lock Jenner into your lineups in all formats and spend elsewhere folks.

Stack with: Josh Anderson, Alexander Wennberg

Also Consider: Alex Ovechkin(WSH), Reilly Smith(VEG)

DEFENSEMEN

Shayne Gostisbehere FD - $6700 DK - $6100
Opponent - MON
Proj Pts FD - 13.38 DK - 4.07

"The Ghost Bear" has been playing well lately as he has five assists, six shots, and five blocks in his last three games while playing on the #1 defensive pairing as well as the #1 powerplay unit for the Flyers. The young point man has an impressive 50 points in only 58 games this season and is second amongst defensemen with five powerplay goals, so if you are spending up here, fire this guy up in all formats against a weak Habs team.

Patrik Nemeth FD - $3600 DK - $3500
Opponent - VAN
Proj Pts FD - 7.28 DK - 2.12

After disappearing from here for awhile, the veteran has found his way back as he has five shots and 12 blocks in his last three games while averaging 24 minutes of ice-time. The Avalanche are hurting at this position and even though he has little upside, Nemeth makes for a great cash game option.

Also Consider: Seth Jones(CLB) All formats, Dmitry  Orlov(WSH) cash game formats.

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.