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Welcome to the Daily Fantasy Hockey (NHL DFS) lineup picks article for February 18th of the 2015/2016 NHL season. Each day we'll be providing you with a handful of forward, defensemen, and goaltender picks for DraftKings and FanDuel GPP and cash games.
Tonight we have a really busy night in the NHL with a huge 11 game slate. With only three games last night there are only two teams(MIN, NYR) playing on back to back nights. However, three teams(MIN, ANH, DAL) are playing a third game in four nights and all of them on the road. With so many top end goalies facing tough matchups or possibly getting a night off, it might be a great night to grab some value between the pipes.
For updated goalie confirmations, you can check out leftwinglock.com. Let's get to it!
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NHL DFS Picks for Thursday, February 18th
A couple strategy notes. For cash game construction look for players who can contribute to your score when they are not providing offense. Examples are guys who take a ton of shots, defensemen who block a lot of shots(DraftKings). Also, look for guys who get powerplay time and especially Top 6 forwards. You can find value in players who join a new line due to an injury or just get a promotion and more ice time.
For large field tournaments (GPP's) you want to find players who have multi point upside and can grab double digit fantasy points. To stack the most upside in your forwards a common strategy is to punt the defense position. This doesn't mean just grab anyone. Try and look for a D man who will be playing more PP time or might get a boost in overall playing time due to an injury.
Stacking is also a must if you are to win or consistently cash in any format. For cash games a few two player stacks spreads the risk while two full line stacks has raise your ceiling for tournaments.
Let's take a look at some solid plays for today's action.
Ben Bishop - Goaltender, Lightning (DraftKings - $7,700 FanDuel - $8,600)
He has been inconsistent and very streaky this season but is in a great spot on Thursday. The Bolts have one of the best home records in the league and get a great matchup on home ice vs. the Jets on Thursday. Bishop beat them earlier this year stopping 33 of 36 shots in the victory. He is safe in all formats.
Connor McDavid - Center, Oilers (Draftkings - $6,900 FanDuel - $7,600)
He picked up an assist in his last game vs. the Ducks and seen his price drop $100 on DraftKings. He has provided elite value since returning from injury and has recorded 13 points in eight games. The Oilers are in a great matchup Thursday facing the Wild playing on back to back nights on the road.
Mats Zuccarello - Winger, Rangers (DraftKings - $6,100 FanDuel - $5,900)
After coming back and taking the lead against the Blackhawks last night, the Rangers blew it late losing the game. They get a quick turn around to shake it off in a terrific spot on the road in Toronto. The Leafs have been a great target for opposition players lately and Zuccarello has been hot with eight points in his last six games.
Justin Abdelkader - Winger, Red Wings (DraftKings - $4,700 FanDuel - $4,900)
Fantastic price for a player playing on the Red Wings top line with Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk. He is also a staple on the top PP unit and has eight points (four on the PP) in his last 10 games. This could be a great game to target for offense as the total between these two teams has been five or more combined goals in every matchup dating back to 2011.
Victor Hedman - Defense, Lightning (DraftKings - $6,100 FanDuel - $6,300)
If you are looking for a consistent option on the point you can't do much better than Hedman tonight. He comes at a discount from the top guys(Karlsson/Burns) and has provided a better pts/$ over the past few weeks. He has 10 points (five on the PP) in his last 10 games with 21 shots, 21 blocks, 12 penalty minutes and a +1 rating. Safe in cash games and upside for GPP's in this matchup at home vs. the Jets.
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