RADIO
The NHL season approaches the end of week number two! Some hockey trends have established themselves but many are still to come. As always, I'll give you the best tools to succeed and the info you need to build the best lineups possible for your GPP and cash game NHL contests on both DraftKings and FanDuel.
Today I'll be bringing you my NHL lineup picks, analysis, and advice for NHL DFS contests on DraftKings and FanDuel for Saturday, October 23rd, 2021 at 7:00 PM. Be sure to also check out our awesome NHL tools including our Lineup Optimizer, Research Station, Projections, and DFS Cheat Sheets!
If you have any questions on today's slate, bankroll management, GPP strategy, Cash game strategy, or anything else don’t hesitate to email me [email protected] or via Twitter @ChrisWasselDFS or in our premium slack chat. Good luck, RotoBallers!
NHL DFS Analysis and Picks for 10/23
We feature just a ten-game slate, featuring Colorado, Tampa Bay, Toronto, Boston, Buffalo, Dallas, Florida, New York, and Los Angeles. Again, please note that there is no 6:00 pm ET lock. The lock is at 7:00 which means Anaheim and Minnesota are not on this main slate.
There is some news worth mentioning. Pittsburgh is down to Evan Rodrigues as their number one center currently. Also, Dustin Tokarski will start for Buffalo on Saturday in New Jersey. Watch out for injuries and sadly much illness (not all COVID-related).
The goal will be to keep things as simple as possible. Our focus will be as much on interactions on social media and in chatrooms. This is because news and numbers have become that fluid now. Everything changes at a breakneck pace.
NHL DFS Goalies
Ilya Sorokin - DK $8.3K || FD $8.4K
Opponent - Arizona Coyotes
The question is goaltending will be crazy enough that we briefly considered Dustin Tokarski just because New Jersey can be so bad at home (see last year's home record). Ilya Sorokin stopped 29 of 32 shots in an overtime loss to Columbus but did beat Chicago before that. The Islanders are starting to show signs of life after the first couple of games. Yes, the defensive concerns are still there but the improvement has been seen. Arizona can put up some shots at home as St. Louis saw last week. The Islanders may need to score some goals but gradually even those numbers should come up. At least, Sorokin is well-rested during this extended 13-game season-opening road trip.
Connor Hellebuyck - DK $8.0K || FD $8.3K
Opponent - Nashville Predators
The Winnipeg goaltender faces the Nashville Predators at home on Saturday night. Winnipeg gets to face a Nashville team that has issues scoring while having further issues shooting straight. Hellebuyck stopped 38 of 39 shots against Anaheim on Thursday night. After three starts saw him give up four or more goals, this felt unexpected. In the last two starts, Hellebuyck has seen 82 shots. That is a lot. Nashville typically does not get to that level but the concern is the Predators and if they break out on Saturday on the road. This game features a lot of risks but a lot of rewards too.
Thomas Greiss - DK $7.2K || FD $7.0K
Opponent - Montreal Canadiens
The risk of playing a goaltender against a team that has not won a game yet is scary but fun. Thomas Greiss is dirt cheap but on a nice mini-run. Again, that salary is hard to pass up on this large of a slate. Two wins in two starts never hurt. The Detroit Red Wings' goaltender has stopped 64 of 66 shots so far this season. Montreal has 30+ shot potential and if they get down on themselves early then lookout. Their special teams' issues are even worse on the power play. Montreal tends to not play their best together on it and that has proved costly so far. This is a value pick of value picks next to the aforementioned Dustin Tokarski, of course.
NHL DFS Centers
Nathan MacKinnon - DK $8.3K || FD $8.6K
Opponent - Tampa Bay Lightning
The idea is to just keep finding ways to roster Nathan MacKinnon has to pay off at some point. It is not like the center has been awful, it is just the pucks have not gone in much. He has seven scoring chances but only three shots on goal. Remember, the forward did have COVID. Though he was asymptomatic, MacKinnon has not looked quite right at times on the ice. It is the little things but Tampa Bay is without Nikita Kucherov and their defense has shown vulnerability all season. It shapes up to be another high-scoring game from Tampa Bay on Saturday. If MacKinnon is going to break into the goal-scoring column, tonight is an ideal time.
Sam Bennett - DK $5.5K || FD $6.5K
Opponent - Philadelphia Flyers
DraftKings and FanDuel finally naturally nix the 6:00 pm ET game on Saturday between Anaheim and Minnesota. However, the Florida Panthers and Philadelphia Flyers expects to be a wild game. Bennett has four goals on the season and is a constant threat on the power play. He averages 3.75 shots per game early on with nearly five scoring chances a night. The center can even block a few shots here and there. The slate is just large enough to try the double center route with Aleksander Barkov even. It is that kind of night.
Evan Rodrigues - DK $3.3K || FD $4.7K
Opponent - Toronto Maple Leafs
Centers tend to do pretty well against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Rodrigues has two goals and an assist on the young season already. Now, he will play top-line minutes at least for Saturday versus a team on the back end of a back-to-back. Even Teddy Blueger, second-line center for the night, will be one to look at as well. The FanDuel salary does not provide quite as much value but Pittsburgh has played better than expected even as the situation around them has not improved. Also, check back in from time to time just to make sure there is no further COVID or injury news.
Others To Consider (CASH/GPP): Matthews (DK $8.7K || FD $8.8K), Kopitar (DK $7.9K || FD $8.9K). Lundell (DK $3.0K || FD $4.5K), Mercer (DK $2.7K || FD $3.0K).
NHL DFS Wings
Kyle Connor - DK $6.9K || FD $7.4K
Opponent - Nashville Predators
There are so many ideas here and Kyle Connor has four goals and two assists in his last two games with ten shots on goal. Connor has even added three blocked shots. Winnipeg faces a team in the Nashville Predators that has poor special teams. Yes, their penalty kill is not as bad but it has been vulnerable. Only Juuse Saros might be able to thwart the Winnipeg power play. The scary part is that this is all being done without Mark Scheifele. Connor strangely has just one assist on the man advantage. That may just change on Saturday night
J.T. Miller - DK $5.5K || FD $6.9K
Opponent - Seattle Kraken
This is one that could be a real helper to DFS lineups. Hopefully, Vancouver's top-six plays against Seattle like other teams have (even New Jersey) of late. Could Seattle's home-opener be too much adrenaline for them to handle? That's a great question. J.T. Miller has been remarkably consistent with nearly three shots a game and five assists in as many contests (one goal too). Also, Vancouver's power play has created quite a few opportunities. Expect an entertaining game where players from both teams could be rostered. If Miller with Brock Boeser sticks, that could be a combination with Elias Pettersson.
Kyle Palmieri - DK $4.3K || FD $4.4K
Opponent - Arizona Coyotes
There are lots of possibilities and even Oliver Wahlstrom but it is Palmieri's shot that could create things tonight. Palmieri has 11 on the season and 14 scoring chances. He does have two assists and one blocked shot. He does not have a single power-play point through four games. The expectation is that could change in what may be a bit more chaotic of a game with several underpriced DFS options. Arizona allows the most points to left-wingers in all of DFS by the way. The Coyotes do so in several categories. If Palmieri is going to score a goal or more, tonight may just be that night.
Andrei Svechnikov - DK $6.6K || FD $8.3K
Opponent - Columbus Blue Jackets
This is one of the riskiest plays on the slate Saturday night. The Columbus Blue Jackets have been able to slow teams' top threats a bit offensively. That was illustrated in their 3-2 overtime win the other night against the New York Islanders. It is not the most aesthetically pleasing on-ice product but effective. Andrei Svechnikov has been very good with 14 shots on goal in his past two games. He also has four goals in the early going and goals in three straight contests. Columbus will have its hands full with the athletic winger.
Others To Consider (CASH/GPP): Kyrou (DK $6.4K || FD $4.9K, Skinner (DK $4.0K || FD $4.5K), Barbashev (DK $2.9K || FD $4.0K), Raymond (DK $3.4K || FD $4.2K), Farabee (DK $5.0K || FD $5.8K)
NHL DFS Defensemen
Victor Hedman - DK $6.9K || FD $7.0K
Opponent - Colorado Avalanche
While the injuries and inconsistency are the order of the day, the biggest constant this season on defense has been two defensemen from the state of Florida. One is Aaron Ekblad and the other is Victor Hedman. Hedman has won the Norris Trophy for best defenseman before and has gotten off to another solid start. He has six assists on the season and 13 shots to go along with eight blocked shots. That is quite a defensive floor. The reality is that Hedman has done everything but score a goal. Yes, his production went down to nine goals last year but that was in 54 games. That translated to almost a 14-goal pace. Do not be alarmed that Hedman has not lit the lamp yet. He will get chances on Saturday as Colorado allows the third-most DFS points to defensemen.
Cale Makar - DK $5.8K || FD $6.6K
Opponent - Tampa Bay Lightning
Load management could have been helpful for Cale Makar who did not have a preseason. Essentially that ends about now. The defenseman has just one point on the season. The chances that continue get slimmer by the day. He has 12 scoring chances and 11 shots on goal in four games. Yes, the defensive aspect has not gone well at all. Consider his -9 and some less than stellar possession numbers, and one can expect some improvement starting Saturday as Nathan MacKinnon is starting to feel more like himself.
Damon Severson - DK $3.5K || FD $4.1K
Opponent - Buffalo Sabres
Damon Severson expects to see a slight bump up in ice time as Ty Smith returns on Saturday to face the Buffalo Sabres. Smith will be the one eased into the lineup. That may eat away at some of Severson's power-play time but not too much. It is expected that Severson will play over 20 minutes at home for New Jersey. The blueliner has a goal and assist on the season and did block three shots in the loss to Washington on Thursday night. Buffalo did play on Friday and showed signs of regression. They may be outright tiresome on Saturday which should open up things for Severson. He could even see some PP2 or perhaps a tiny bit of PP1.
Others To Consider (CASH/GPP): Walker (DK $3.4K || FD $3.6K), Mayo (DK $2.9K || FD $3.5K), Forsling (DK $4.7K || FD $4.1K), Pionk (DK $4.7K || FD $4.9K), Mayfield (DK $3.6K || FD $3,6K).
TOP Power Play Lines/Stacks for Saturday
- FLA 1
- WPG 1
- STL 1
- VAN 1
- BUF 1
- PIT 1
Chris’s Line Stack of the Day
FLA: Barkov-Duclair-Verhaeghe (Can sneak Forsling or Ekblad in)
Obvious Stack
NYI: Barzal-Lee-Palmieri (Mayfield can be subbed in for floor/price relief)
Sneaky Stack
MTL: Drouin-Dvorak-Anderson (High risk)
Please keep in mind that there will be many shifts in lines with most teams especially early.
NHL Player News and Updates
More DFS Lineup Picks and Analysis
