Daily Fantasy Hockey Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings 10/4/18

It was a wild opening night in the NHL that featured the Capitals unveil their banner and pick up right where they left off with a 7-0 beatdown of the Bruins. Tonight, we really get things rolling with a big 10-game slate with a ton of fantasy options all around. Let's dig in and take a look at a few of the top plays at each position.

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GOALIE

Pekka Rinne FD - $8600 DK - $8100
Opponent - NYR
Proj Pts FD - 17.59 DK - 4.4

If I knew the health of Ben Bishop, he would be my top goalie tonight as the Stars are huge -185 favorites against the Coyotes who ranked dead last in offense last season. Instead, I will turn to reigning Vezina Trophy winner, Pekka Rinne, who was lights out last year with 42 wins, a 2.31 GAA, .931 save %, and eight shutouts. I am not at all worried about the matchup in New York as he was even better on the road(.937 save %, 2.07 GAA) and is facing a Rangers team that ranked outside the Top 20 in offense a year ago. The Preds as a team also ranked 2nd overall in defense and 1st on road and tonight are -155 favorites. Fire up Rinne in all formats.

Semyon Varlamov FD - $7800 DK - $7300
Opponent - MIN
Proj Pts FD - 16.22 DK - 4.05

There is plenty of value at goaltender position tonight with 10 games and it starts with Semyon Varlamov who was cruising along nicely last season before suffering a season-ending injury at the end of March. Pre-injury he posted a .920 save % for the Avalanche and was a key contributor for the team making it to the playoffs for the first time on four years. He is back and healthy and is already confirmed to start for the Avs tonight in a home matchup against Minnesota and while the matchup doesn't stand out as the Wild ranked 11th in offense last season, the Avs are -135 favorites and the price is well worth the risk as it helps you load up with elite talent in your GPP lineups.

Also Consider: Ben Bishop(DAL) if he is confirmed healthy and starting in an elite matchup at home against the Coyotes

CENTERS

Tyler Seguin FD - $8200 DK - $7700
Opponent - ARI
Proj Pts FD - 14.33 DK - 5.95

I am going to go right to the top to start the center picks tonight as Tyler Seguin provides everything we are looking for in an elite price player. First of all, he is coming off a terrific season where he recorded a career-high 40 goals and ended up with 78 points(2nd most of his career). Not only does he have huge upside, but he also offers a very high floor as he finished second in shots with 335(4.1 per game) and skates on the top line and powerplay unit with Jamie Benn and Alexander Radulov. To top it off, he gets an elite matchup to start the season against a Coyotes team that gave up over three goals per game last season and were even worse on the road(3.32 per game). If you are paying up at the position, Seguin is the way to go tonight.

Stack with: Jamie Benn, Alexander Radulov

Mathew Barzal FD - $6600 DK - $6600
Opponent - CAR
Proj Pts FD - 9.62 DK - 4.05

With John Tavares out of town, the Islanders offense will be centered(no pun intended) around Mathew Barzal. While it may be a lot to put on the 21-year-old's shoulders he showed he can most definitely handle it in his rookie season as he tallied 85 points and never missed a game which was more than enough to earn the Calder Trophy as the NHL's Rookie of the Year. He only averaged just over two shots per game but I expect that and his ice-time to increase this year increasing his floor and making him a top option in all formats, especially early on as his price sits in the mid-range on both sites.

Stack with: Josh Bailey, Anthony Beauvillier, Jordan Eberle(PP)

Pierre-Luc Dubois FD - $6100 DK - $5300
Opponent - DET
Proj Pts FD - 7.75 DK - 3.19

While Dubois didn't have quite the same success in his rookie season as Barzal, he was still productive with 48 points and also didn't miss a game the whole season. The third overall pick in the 2016 draft wasn't a high floor player for cash games last season as he averaged just 16 minutes of ice time and two shots per game but that could change some this season as he is currently slated to skate between Panarin and Atkinson on the top line and powerplay unit. Opportunity is everything so I will definitely consider him in all formats for the time being.

Stack with: Cam Atkinson, Artemi Panarin

WINGERS

Blake Wheeler FD - $7500 DK - $6800
Opponent - STL
Proj Pts FD - 13.81 DK - 5.51

The Winnipeg Jets had an incredible season a year ago finishing with the second-best record overall and also ended up with the #2 offense scoring 3.33 goals per game. One of the keys to that offense was Blake Wheeler who had a career-best 68 assists and 91 points and not only did he give us a ton of upside but he was one of the best cash game options from a PTS/$ perspective as well averaging three shots and over 20 minutes of ice time per game. The matchup may not jump off the page tonight but I will take the discount and talent all day long and fire up Wheeler in all formats.

Stack with: Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor

Max Pacioretty FD - $6800 DK - $6000
Opponent - PHI
Proj Pts FD - 7.67 DK - 3.73

Pacioretty had a very disappointing season with Habs in 2017-18 as he recorded his lowest point total(37) in over seven years. The good news is that he still had a fairly high floor for cash games as he averaged just over 3.3 shots per game. Even better news as he was traded from the last season's 29th ranked offense to the Vegas Golden Knights who were a Top 5 offense last year. He will step into a Top 6 role on the second line and the shot volume should continue as both Stastny and Haula only averaged around two shots per game each. Not only will Pacioretty be a nice cash game option in the mid-range of salary but also has a ton of upside on his new team. Get him in your lineups in all formats against a defensively challenged Flyers team.

Stack with: Paul Stastny, Erik Haula

Alex Debrincat FD - $5700 DK - $4900
Opponent - OTT
Proj Pts FD - 9.14 DK - 3.53

In the value range, I will be turning the Blackhawks top line tonight and it starts with Alex Debrincat who is coming off a very productive rookie season where he recorded 52 points(12 on the PP) in 82 games while bouncing around the top three lines. This season, he is slated to start on the top line with Jonathan Toews as well as the top powerplay unit with Patrick Kane. The matchup is right for the picking tonight as the Hawks will take on a Senators team that recently shipped one of the best defensemen in the league(Erik Karlsson) out of town. At these prices, Debrincat is in play in all formats.

Stack with: Jonathan Toews, Dominik Kahun, Patrick Kane(PP)

DEFENSEMEN

Ryan Ellis FD - $5200 DK - $5200
Opponent - NYR
Proj Pts FD - 8.74 DK - 3.39

Ellis got a late start to the 2017-18 season after getting knee surgery but when finally made his debut in January he was extremely productive. In 44 games, he recorded a career-high 23 assists and ended up with 32 points while averaging 2.5 shots, 1.9 blocks per game, and over 23 minutes of ice-time per game. He will start the season on the top unit alongside Roman Josi in a plus matchup against a Rangers team that ranked 28th in goals against(3.21) last season and appear to be in rebuild mode, especially on the backend. With a low $5K price tag o both sites, Ellis provides near elite PTS/$ value making him safe in all formats.

Patrik Nemeth FD - $3800 DK - $3800
Opponent - MIN
Proj Pts FD - 4.59 DK - 2.02

If you have followed my NHL picks at all over the last couple years you know I always list a low-end value play for cash games and tonight it is Patrik Nemeth of the Avalanche. He has little to no upside as he recorded just 15 points in 68 games last year and skates on the third unit but he does provide a nice floor on blocks alone as he averaged 2.7 per game while getting nearly 20 minutes of ice-time. Not asking for a lot here as he gives us salary relief to help pay up for some of the elite forwards on this big slate.

Also Consider: John Klingberg(DAL) in all formats, Colton Parayko(STL) in all formats as he plays all facets of the game and should average well over 20 minutes per game

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