Daily Fantasy Hockey Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings 3/17/18

Welcome back hockey fans. We have a busy day that starts with a three-game early slate on DraftKings, two-game on Fanduel. For the purpose of this article, I will be concentrating on the seven-game main slate that starts at 7:00 p.m. ET tonight. Let's dig in and take a look at some of the top plays at each position and don't forget to grab a copy of the cheatsheet in the comments section.

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

Sergei Bobrovsky FD - $9300 DK - $8400
Opponent - OTT
Proj Pts FD - 15.33 DK - 3.83

Bobrovsky has my full attention tonight as everything has me to believe he is the top option in all formats. He has been playing terrific lately winning four straight and six of his last seven starts while posting a .928 save %. Bob has also been much better on home ice this season with a 17-9-2 record, a .930 save %, and four shutouts. The matchup is also heavily in his favor as the Blue Jackets are big -245 favorites to the Senators who are playing the second of a back to back and rank 30th overall when looking at road offensive ranks.

Jake Allen FD - $8100 DK - $8100
Opponent - NYR
Proj Pts FD - 19.38 DK - 4.84

The 2017-18 season has been a struggle for Jake Allen who sits with a 21-21-2 record and disappointing .907 save %. Some could be contributed to the constant discussion of Carter Hutton taking over the top role but that won't be a factor tonight as he is day-to-day with neck soreness leaving the starting job to Allen who has been better as of late. Despite the overall lack of goal support, he has played well in his last four starts going 2-2 with a .938 save % and now gets a plus matchup as a -200 favorite vs. the Rangers who rank 25th in road offense. I don't trust him in cash games, by any means, but think he makes a terrific GPP play at a projected lower ownership than Bobrovsky.

 

 

CENTERS

Eric Staal FD - $7400 DK - $7400
Opponent - ARI
Proj Pts FD - 13.73 DK - 3.92

With Auston Matthews and Patrice Bergeron out and Steven Stamkos with a tough matchup vs. the Bruins, the decision at the top is fairly easy tonight. Enter Eric Staal who has been playing his best hockey since his early days with the Hurricanes as he is averaging just under a point per game on the season. He comes in hot with 10 goals and 14 points over his last 10 games and has also seen a huge uptick in shot volume with 38 over those games. To top it off, he gets a plus matchup vs. the Coyotes who rank 26th overall in defense. Fire up Staal in all formats.

Stack with: Jason Zucker, Mikael Granlund

Nolan Patrick FD - $4800 DK - $4100
Opponent - CAR
Proj Pts FD - 9.78 DK - 2.81

To fit some of the top plays in tonight on a somewhat smaller slate we are going to need some value. Enter Nolan Patrick who was drafted second overall this past season and had a ton of growing pains jumping right into the fire in the NHL but has continually gotten better and has a bright future. He is consistently skating on the Flyers second line and powerplay unit so the opportunity is definitely there game in and game out and he has provided a steady floor lately with three straight games with three shots and 27 over his last 10 games with six points. The price is cheap, especially on DraftKings where I will consider him in all formats to make the rest of my lineup work.

Stack with: Jakub Voracek, Oskar Lindblom

 

Also Consider: Brayden Schenn(STL) in GPP formats

 

WINGERS

Artemi Panarin FD - $7500 DK - $7000
Opponent - OTT
Proj Pts FD - 15.15 DK - 4.34

The fact Vladimir Tarasenko is more expensive on both sites while running through a cold streak makes the decision at winger quite easy tonight. The "Bread Man" has been red-hot lately with points in six straight and 12 of his last 13 games with a total of 17 points and 40 shots on goal giving us a high floor and ceiling. He also gets a great opportunity to add to those numbers tonight as the Blue Jackets will be at home facing a Senators team that ranks 30th overall in defense and is already looking forward to next season. All things considered, Panarin is safe in all formats tonight.

Stack with: Cam Atkinson, Pierre-Luc Dubois

Mitchell Marner FD - $6400 DK - $6400
Opponent - MON
Proj Pts FD - 12.83 DK - 3.68

With Auston Matthews out of the lineup, it has been Mitch Marner carrying the Leafs offense. He comes into tonight with points in four straight and seven of his last nine games with four multi-point efforts and 13 total points. He doesn't provide a ton of safety with 2.4 shots per game but gets a ton of opportunity on the top line and powerplay unit and tonight gets an elite matchup. The Habs have dropped 14 of their last 18 games while giving up 3.4 goals per game and rank 29th in road defense. Combine the matchup with mid $6K price tag on both sites and we can consider Marner in all formats tonight.

Stack with: William Nylander, Zach Hyman

Brendan Gallagher FD - $6700 DK - $5500
Opponent - TOR
Proj Pts FD - 12.63 DK - 3.68

This pick is best used on DraftKings where the price is still in the mid $5K range. Despite the Habs lack of offense this season, Gallagher has provided a steady floor with an average of 3.3 shots per game and also provided some upside leading the team with 26 goals and 44 points and comes in on a roll with points in three straight. He and the Habs also get somewhat of a plus matchup as the Leafs will be using their backup goalie and will be playing a third game in four nights. I think we can use Gallagher in cash games on DraftKings and he also makes a nice GPP powerplay stack on both sites.

PP Stack with: Alex Galchenyuk, Jonathan Drouin

 

DEFENSEMEN

Seth Jones FD - $6100 DK - $6500
Opponent - OTT
Proj Pts FD - 14.41 DK - 4.23

After being pulled from the game on Monday, it appears Jones is just fine as he returned on Thursday to pick up an assist in a win vs. the Flyers. He is once again the top PTS/$ play at defense tonight as he comes in red hot with 13 points in his last 10 games with 37 shots on goal and 15 blocks for an average of 5.8 DraftKings/21.4 FanDuel points per game. Like I have mentioned already, the Blue Jackets get a top matchup tonight vs. the Senators 30th ranked defense making Jones a terrific play in all formats as he has an elite floor and ceiling.

Neal Pionk FD - $3900 DK - $3500
Opponent - STL
Proj Pts FD - 8.91 DK - 2.7

Things have been looking up for Pionk since being called up to the Rangers and we need to jump on board now before the price takes a big jump. He was finally given a nice run on the powerplay last game and didn't disappoint with two assists(three total in the game) and now has points in three straight games. Overall, he has been seeing a ton of ice-time averaging over 24 minutes per game over the last four games and best of all comes at a sub $4K price tag allowing you to load up at other positions.

Also Consider: Marc-Edouard Vlasic(SJ) in cash games

 

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.