RADIO
HOCKEY IS ON FIRE!!! Thursday features five more games including a few more potential eliminations from the play-in round. Calgary plays Winnipeg who will again be without Mark Scheifele. Toronto and Columbus continue their clash of contrasts series, and Vancouver plays Minnesota to start the slate at 2:30 pm ET (12:30 pm Edmonton time).
Remember, when looking around for plays, an over/under of 6 dictates offense, but an over/under of 5 or sometimes 5.5 tilts towards the goalies. There are several games at 6.5, as that has become the new norm in hockey now. Also, note that FanDuel has a split slate with an early (two game slate) an evening main, and an all-day slate as well.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy hockey lineup picks for DraftKings and FanDuel on 8/6/20. The lineup picks will range from some of the elite players to mid-priced options and value plays. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to hit me up on Twitter @ChrisWasselDFS. Let's get to it, shall we?
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DFS Forwards to Consider
Auston Matthews - C, TOR vs. CBJ (FD - $8,800, DK - $8,400)
Some rules are simple to follow. If it is not broken, then why change now? Rolling Matthews along at this point is okay given the slate. The round-robin games have been a bit of a crapshoot and Toronto still is not out of the woods. What has been a common theme in this series is Matthews' ability to garner scoring chances. He is the thrust of the Toronto offense and will continue to be so. Yes, his price is rather high but there are so many options to mitigate that cost. Columbus has not come up with an effective way to slow him down other than the goaltender. Matthews has the best probability to score a goal out of any forward on this slate.
J.T. Miller - W, VAN vs. MIN (FD - $7,100, DK - $6,200)
The forward remains the key player for Vancouver if they expect to go forward and not Elias Pettersson. Why? Miller has been the complement to finish the chances created. In Game 2, Miller scored once and helped on another tally as Vancouver rolled. This is the key to the series -- how Vancouver keeps Miller going and how Minnesota tries to stop the Pettersson-Miller duo. When these two get going, the Canucks are a much more difficult team to play against. Miller is that vital fantasy wise also because of his ability to generate shots on net. That has been something underrated throughout his career.
Also, Consider:
It is a prudent idea to consider Alex Ovechkin against the Flyers and even Mark Stone against the Blues.
Does the Brock Boeser goal in Game 2 signal a breakout game in Game 3? That is something to keep an eye on. Also, how does Kevin Fiala respond from Minnesota? Fiala has had several quality chances foiled in this series so far.
Watch for the third lines again. Take a look at value players that have been pushed down the lineup on Thursday. This is not a stars and scrubs approach by any means. Some coaches are just looking for matchups to exploit in short series and round robins alike.
DFS Defenders to Consider
Alex Edler - D, VAN vs. MIN (FD - $4,400, DK - $5,700)
This is a floor option again on Thursday. Edler had two assists in the Game 2 win and provides a floor of shots and blocked shots. He had four shots and three blocked shots in Game 1 then had several chances in Game 2 as well. His DraftKings price has come up $600 since the start of the series but is still affordable. The older rearguard has been a great mentor to Quinn Hughes (who can be considered as well). That FanDuel value is hard to ignore but the blocks bonus on DraftKings for Edler is quite enticing.
Nate Schmidt - D, VGK vs STL (FD - $4,500, DK - $4,300)
Easily, Schmidt represents a cheaper option to Shea Theodore, who is now in the upper tier when it comes to pricing among defensemen. Also, Schmidt has three points in his first two round robin contests. Rolling with a hot hand that has an underrated floor is okay here given the price. He has better value on DraftKings arguably but still is a bit under priced on FanDuel as well. The argument is one has to save money somewhere and defensemen can be found for lower prices today. The playoffs always have heroes and so far Schmidt has been one for Vegas.
When does John Carlson wake up or even play in this round robin? Consider looking elsewhere for now even at Neal Pionk, who has points in his last two games for Winnipeg.
Other choices for Thursday may include Ivan Provorov, and especially Matt Dumba who has been a great floor add so far for the Wild.
DFS Goalie to Consider
Joonas Korpisalo - G, CLB vs TOR (FD - $7,300, DK - $7,100)
Korpisalo is the risk-reward option of the night. Our only concern is that his price is so low that his ownership could spike. He has faced 35+ shots in both games so far this series and has only allowed two goals. The risk is he could crack but what if he does not? Remember on DraftKings, there is the save bonus for 35+ saves (Korpisalo is 2 for 2 there). Among the higher priced goalies, Frederik Andersen becomes a play but does Columbus mount enough shots to mitigate the goal risk? That's a great question.
Jacob Markstrom is slotted at a reasonable price on FanDuel at $7,800 and can thrive under a higher volume of shots. Vancouver's middle of their defense is quite porous as Minnesota has been able to create many chances in their series. Look at the wrinkle of starting Brian Elliott versus a Washington team that has looked a little off in the round robin.
We will be in the slack chat throughout the afternoon and evening. Also, if there are any other questions, the expert chat will be open through Saturday. Good luck today.
