Daily Fantasy Hockey Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings 11/8/18

Welcome back hockey fans. Thursday is another busy night in the NHL with nine games on tap and while no teams are playing on a back to back, three teams(EDM, MON, DAL) are playing a third game in four nights. Let's jump in and take a look at some of the top plays at each position.

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GOALIE

Andrei Vasilevskiy FD - $9400 DK - $8400
Opponent - NYI
Proj Pts FD - 20.29 DK - 5.07

From a raw points standpoint, Vasilevskiy is our top projected goalie on Thursday night as the Lightning are at home as -210 favorites against the Islanders. The Isles have won five of their last six games and have climbed into the Metropolitan Division lead but Vasi has been equally impressive this season as he sits tied with Frederik Andersen with eight wins and sits fourth in both GAA(1.95) and save %(.935) after allowing just two goals on 70 shots over his last two starts. He has an explosive offense(2nd overall) and rock-solid defense(5th overall) in front of him and he generates a high floor facing over 30 shots per game and has big-time win potential on any given night. He is my top overall goalie in all formats.

Jaroslav Halak FD - $8200 DK - $8200
Opponent - VAN
Proj Pts FD - 13.76 DK - 3.44

Halak has been a bit of a pleasant surprise for the Bruins early this season as he has split time with Tuukka Rask who has struggled mightily. Halak has made seven starts this season and comes into this game leading the league with an elite 1.45 GAA and .952 save %. The Bruins are also the biggest favorites(-235) on this slate as they have been terrific at home(5-1) and face a Canucks team who has been much worse on the road this season with a 4-4-1 record and have scored just 2.6 goals per game. While I wouldn't argue if you wanted to pay up $200 more for Vasilevskiy on DraftKings, Halak is my choice on FanDuel where he costs $1,200 less tonight in a better matchup.

Also Consider: Corey Crawford(CHI) for GPP formats at home vs. a Hurricanes team that has lost five straight and eight of their last 10 games scoring just an average of 1.8 goals per game

CENTERS

Brayden Point FD - $6900 DK - $7100
Opponent - NYI
Proj Pts FD - 11.67 DK - 4.49

Point may not provide the same shot volume(2.3 per game) as the elite centers on this slate but he is currently on a career-high offensive pace and leads the Lightning with 19 points through the first 15 games of the season. he comes in with points in three straight games including back to back multi-point efforts and is getting a ton of opportunity skating over 17 minutes per game on the second line and powerplay unit. The choice is a lot closer on DraftKings where he has reached a season-high salary but on FanDuel he is a near lock for me in cash games tonight as the 11th most expensive center.

Stack with: Yanni Gourde, Tyler Johnson

Alex Galchenyuk FD - $5300 DK - $5500
Opponent - PHI
Proj Pts FD - 8 DK - 3.07

Galchenuk got a late start to the season for his new team after suffering a lower-body injury in a preseason game. Since returning, he has been exactly what the Coyotes had hoped for as their top line center. He was held off the scoresheet in his first game but has since tallied points in four of five games with 13 shots on goal. The Coyotes will play the second of a home at home with the Flyers tonight and like I have mentioned many times this season, targeting against the Flyers is always a good idea as they have played 11 games(out of 15) with a total of seven or more goals scored and rank second to last in defense allowing 3.73 goals per game. With a mid $5K price on both sites, Galchenyuk is a nice value play in all formats tonight.

Stack with: Clayton Keller, Richard Panik

Also Consider: Jeff Carter(LAK) in all formats, especially on DraftKings in the low $5K range. He has seven points in his last 10 games while averaging over three shots per game

WINGERS

Patrick Kane FD - $8500 DK - $7400
Opponent - CAR
Proj Pts FD - 11.47 DK - 5.25

Kane checks all the boxes and is my top player at any position on this slate. While he is coming off a zero-shot effort against the Flames, he still sits second in the league with an average of 4.6 per game and has an elite 22.3 iCorsi/60 rating. His upside also continues to be among the best in the league as he comes in hot with points in seven of his last eight games and sits comfortably inside the top 10 overall with 19 points in 14 games. Kane and the Hawks get a plus matchup tonight against a Hurricanes team that has dropped five straight and eight of their last 10 games while allowing an average of three goals per game. Fire up Kane in all formats.

Stack with: Nick Schmaltz, Alex Debrincat(PP), Jonathan Toews(PP)

Mike Hoffman FD - $5500 DK - $5700
Opponent - EDM
Proj Pts FD - 9.56 DK - 3.92

Looking at things from a PTS/$ perspective, Mike Hoffman is right near the top of the list tonight. First of all, he gives us a high floor averaging 3.8 shots per game on the season and while his ice-time(17.1 per game) is slightly down from last year with the Sens, he is back on the top line with Barkov and Dadonov and will likely see it go up moving forward. While bouncing around from line to line, Hoffman has still provided upside and after staying off the scoresheet in his first two games comes in with a nine-game point streak. At these prices, Hoffman is in play in all formats against an Oiler team that is playing a third game in four nights and has been slightly worse defensively on the road.

Stack with: Evgeny Dadonov, Aleksander Barkov

Also Consider: Brendan Gallagher(MTL) who is averaging just under a point per game on the season and 3.8 shots per game over his last 10 games

DEFENSEMEN

Matt Dumba FD - $5500 DK - $4900
Opponent - ANA
Proj Pts FD - 8.31 DK - 3.63

Going the value route on defense leads to a very consistent player who has seen an uptick in production lately. Matt Dumba skates on the top pairing and second powerplay unit for the Wild and has been skating over 24 minutes per game this season. The Wild have been red hot lately winning seven of their last 10 games and Dumba has played his part with six points(two on the powerplay) in that time and has also provided a nice floor with 32 shots and 17 blocks. For his price, he makes a nice high floor/high upside PTS/$ play in all formats.

Kris Russell FD - $3700 DK - $3800
Opponent - FLA
Proj Pts FD - 7.09 DK - 2.61

If you are looking for some salary relief, there is no better place to get it than the defense position and tonight I will be going right back to Kris Russell. He offers little to no upside with just four points in 15 games this season but the good news is that three have come in the last 10 games. What he does provide us is a stable flooring as he has tallied 33 shot blocks in his last 10 games and sits second behind Ian Cole(regular in my articles) for the season with 47. At a price under $4K, he is a near lock for me in cash games and I will even consider him in GPP's to get multiple tot tier forwards in my lineup.

Also Consider: Keith Yandle(FLA) as a high floor/high upside play

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