(AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
Thursday brings us an eight-game slate with no teams playing back to back and just one team(OTT) playing a third in four nights. Let's jump in and take a look at some of the top plays at each position and then make sure to grab a copy of my DFS NHL Cheatsheet where I highlight all my top plays with advanced stats.
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Opponent - ARI
Proj Pts FD - 20.57 DK - 5.14
Rinne is the most expensive goalie on the slate tonight but it will be hard to get away from him in cash games for a couple reasons. First of all, he and the Preds are huge -245 favorites against a Coyotes team that sits near the bottom of the league in scoring(2.4 goals per game) in have lost eight of their last 11 games. For Rinne, he has been outstanding once again this season leading the league in GAA(1.77) and save %(.938) helping the Preds to the #1 overall defense. He is our top projected goalie from a raw points persepctive and a great play in all formats.
Opponent - VAN
Proj Pts FD - 19.66 DK - 4.91
If Fleury was on home ice tonight it would be very close between he and Rinne but the matchup still has him as a top play tonight. He and teh Golden Knights are -160 favorites as they travel to Vancouver to take on the struggling Canucks who have dropped nine of their last 10 games while scoring just 21 goals. After an inconsistent start to the season, Fleury has started to really heat up winning five straight and six of his last seven starts while recording a .940 save % and three shutouts. The only concern for me tonight is that Fleury has faced under 30 shots per game on the season while the Canucks take less than 30 shots per game but Fleury leads the league in shutouts(5) which gives him big upside in a terrific matchup. I will lean on him more in GPP formats but the case can be made for him in cash with his discount off Rinne.
Also Consider: Tuukka Rask(BOS) in GPP formats
Opponent - CHI
Proj Pts FD - 12.47 DK - 4.52
Liek I mentioned on Tuesday when I was all over the Golden Knights, if you continue to pick on the Blackhawks defense you will more times than not come out ahead. They have been brutal this season and more specifically lately losing 12 of their last 15 games while giving up 56 goals(3.7 per game). They have also been worse on the road(27th overall giving up 3.9 goals per game) and now face a tough team in the Jets who are 8-3-2 at home. I will start with their top center in Mark Scheifele who has been red-hot lately with 13 points in his last 10 games and has also provided a high floor with 30 shots on goal in that time. Fire him up in all formats tonight.
Stack with: Nikolaj Ehlers, Blake Wheeler
Opponent - MIN
Proj Pts FD - 6.87 DK - 2.95
Jenner is a player who checks almost every box tonight and is an excellent PTS/$ play. It starts with his high floor as he is averaging 9.2 shots/60 backed up by a 14.4 iCorsi/60 and adding to that high floor is the fact he leads all centers on this slate with 4.1 blocks/60. He is getting a ton of opportunities this season centering the second line and second powerplay unit and is averaging over 19 minutes of ice-time. Offensively, he started off slow this season but has come on lately with eight points in his last 10 games and while the price has caught up on DraftKings(GPP only), he is still sub $5K on FanDuel and a terrific play in all formats tonight.
Stack with: Josh Anderson, Artemi Panarin(PP)
Also Consider: Matt Duchene(OTT) in all formats as he comes in with 16 points in his last 10 games while averaging over three shots per game and faces a Rangers team that ranks 30th overall in road defense(4.2 goals against per game)
Opponent - ARI
Proj Pts FD - 12.73 DK - 5.2
If you can find enough value that you are comfortable with in cash games, David Pastrank and Patrik Laine are elite plays at the top of the salary tonight. Going with a more balanced lineup, I will be turnign to Filip Forsberf tonight in the mid $7K range on both sites. Looking at my cheatsheet, he sits in elite company with 10.6 shots/60, a 21.2 iCorsi/60 and is third among all wingers on this slate with a 12.1 scoring chances per 60 rate. He comes in with points in four of his last five games and has 34 shots over his last 10. Look for him to add to that total tonight against a Coyotes team that has lost eight of their last 11 and in those losses have given up four or more goals six times. I fully expect the Preds to dominate this game making Forsberg a top play in all formats.
Stack with: Ryan Johansen, Kevin Fiala
Opponent - NYI
Proj Pts FD - 7.49 DK - 2.77
One of my top PTS/$ values on this entire slate is Jake DeBrusk of the Bruins who has been getting added opportunities since Patrice Bergeron went down with injury. He has received over 17 minutes of ice-time in four straight games(16 min avg on season) while skating on the second line and top powerplay unit. After starting the season with just four points in his first 14 games, he has come on strong with seven goals and an assist in his last 10 with 29 shots on goal. As long as his price stays in the $5K range, he will continue to be a strong play in all formats on a nightly basis.
Stack with: David Krejci, David Pastrnak(PP)
Also Consider: Brady Tkachuk(OTT) in all formats on FanDuel under $5K. He has been very consistent lately with 10 points in his last 10 games with 29 shots
Opponent - LA
Proj Pts FD - 7.73 DK - 3.2
Same story on defense as with other positions, if you can afford to pay all the way up Roman Josi and Thomas Chabot are the top plays from a raw points perspective tonight. I like taking the slight discount, however, and rolling out Oscar Klefbom as my PTS/$ play for cash games tonight. The upside is somewhat limited as he has just four points in his last 10 games and 11 all season but the floor has been very high as he has tallied 34 shots and 20 blocks in those 10 games good for an average of 3.6 DraftKings/12.7 FanDuel points per game.
Opponent - MIN
Proj Pts FD - 6.09 DK - 2.71
To get access to one of the top d-men and/or forwards on a given slate it makes sense to roster a punt or two in your lineup. One that stands out tonight is David Savard of the Blue Jackets and while the upside is limited as he skates on the third pairing adn gets littel to no upside, he has provided a stable floor. Over his last 10 games, he has tallied a 18 shots and 20 blocks and has recorded two or more DraftKings and six or more FanDuel points in seven of those games. He is my top punt play in cash games on defense and would even consider him in GPP formats if it means getting exposure to a top stack.
Also Consider: Rasmus Dahlin(BUF) in GPP formats and Ryan Pulock(NYI) in all fomats
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NHL sheet for tonight:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1XsKhBBgUrN9p9CFa4itFlOqE4Rqlw-2hUp0sWWOzrrk/edit?usp=sharing