Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews (34) skates during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Washington Capitals, Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2017, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
The season begins with a smaller four-game slate but does it really matter? Hockey is back! In the following article, I will go over a few core plays I will be using in my lineups on both FanDuel and DraftKings. Let's get started.
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Opponent - OTT
Proj Pts FD - 22.27 DK - 16.56
With just four games on the slate, I am going to be paying up for Frederik Anderson who may not be the best goalie on the slate(I see you Jordan Binnington) but he is easily in the best spot on opening night. The Leafs open at home as -290 favorites against the Senators who finished last season ranked dead last in offense and projected to have similar results this season as well. More good news for Andersen as he provides us a very high floor and ceiling as he faced the fourth-most shots against per 60 minutes(goalies with 50+ GP) last season. All things considered, he is my top goalie in all formats.
Opponent - VAN
Proj Pts FD - 18.15 DK - 13.48
If you are looking to go the value route and load up on a top stack tonight, Koskinen makes sense in the mid $7K range on both sites. He was good, not great in his full first season as the starter in Edmonton and over 55 games(51 starts) he tallied a .906 save % with four shutouts and like Andersen faced a ton of shots(31.1 per 60) helping out with his PTS/$ floor. He and the Oilers also open in a plus matchup against the Canucks who ranked 26th in offense last season and didn't really make many waves in the offseason to upgrade their lineup. All in all, Koskinen is my top value goalie of the night.
Aldo Consider: Jordan Binnington(STL) as a GPP play in a tougher matchup vs. Ovi and the Capitals
Opponent - OTT
Proj Pts FD - 20.2 DK - 15.62
Opponent - OTT
Proj Pts FD - 20.71 DK - 16.07
Opponent - OTT
Proj Pts FD - 9.34 DK - 7.16
At center, I will be turning to the Leafs for most of my exposure. Not only do they get the best matchup on the board against the Senators but they have options in multiple price tiers. In the top tier, I lean John Tavares slightly over teammate, Auston Matthews due to the slight discount on both sites. Tavares is second to Matthews(on this slate) in shots per 60(11.0), Corsi for per 60(18.6), and scoring chances per 60(14.0) but Tavares gets the edge in the high-danger areas(7.8 high danger scoring chances per 60). Both are great plays to build around tonight and skate together on the top powerplay line as well.
Alexander Kerfoot was signed in the offseason to take over the third line center role vacated by Kadri's exit and opens the season as a top PTS/$ on this slate on both sites. He has posted 40+ points in each of his first two seasons with the Avalanche while playing a role on the powerplay(2+ minutes per game) and will get the same opportunity with the Leafs centering the second unit. At his opening night price in this plus matchup, I will have exposure in all formats.
Top Leafs Stack: Auston Matthews, John Tavares, Andreas Johnsson, & Mitch Marner on the top powerplay
Also Consider: Connor McDavid(EDM) as a high upside GPP play or Ryan O'Reilly(STL) as a mid-tier option
Opponent - VEG
Proj Pts FD - 15.26 DK - 11.9
Ovechkin is the elite option at winger and the Maple Leafs(Marner, Nylander, Johnson, Kapanen) are most certainly in play as well but it will be hard Timo Meier at these prices. From a PTS/$ perspective, he was one of my top wingers last season with an elite 11.3 shots per 60 backed up by a 20.1 Corsi per 60 and while he did record a career-high 66 points, the ceiling is much higher as he also averaged a whopping 13.8 scoring chances per 60, 6.8 of which came in the high danger area. The matchup is not the greatest against but the price is right for consideration in all formats.
Stack with: Logan Couture, Kevin Labanc
Opponent - STL
Proj Pts FD - 8.38 DK - 6.57
Opportunity is everything in fantasy sports and buy-low is the name of the game. Richard Panik checks both boxes as he opens the season in the sub $4k range on both sites and will get added opportunity skating on the top powerplay unit with Evgeny Kuznetsov serving a suspension. He isn't going to provide GPP winning upside, by any means, but provides a ton of salary relief to help pay up at goalie and/or for a top stack. He is in play in all formats.
PP Stack with: Nicklas Backstrom, Alex Ovechkin, T.J. Oshie, John Carlson
Also Consider: Brady Tkachuk(OTT) as GPP option or James Neal/Joakim Nygard(EDM) who are projected to skate top line with McDavid
Opponent - EDM
Proj Pts FD - 12.33 DK - 9.8
Opponent - EDM
Proj Pts FD - 8.58 DK - 6.56
On defense, I am going to turn to the Canucks tonight and to start things off, let's discuss a familiar face. Edler was a regular in my articles and in my cash-game player pools all last season due to his second-tier price and very high floor as he finished 8th overall in blocks. There is also a new bonus on DraftKings this season awarding three points if a player records three or more blocks in a game. That is right up Edler's alley as he would have hit that bonus 32 times last season. Quinn Hughes was the Canucks 1st round pick(7th overall) in the 2018 entry draft and big things are expected from him as he transitions into a full-time NHLer. It appears he will open the season on the second pairing with Chris Tanev and also skate with the second powerplay unit. He is very offensively talented and provides big upside at a very reasonable price to open the season. Both players are in play in all formats tonight.
Also Consider: Brent Burns(SJ) who has the highest floor & ceiling of any D-man or Tyson Barrie(TOR) who has big upside as an offensive force & gets an elite matchup
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.
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