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Welcome, RotoBallers. Hockey season is back and I am thrilled to be covering this sport over at RotoBaller! As always, I will do my best to give you the stats and info you need to build the best lineups possible for your GPP and cash game NHL contests on DraftKings, FanDuel, and SuperDraft.
If you are new to playing NHL DFS, there are several things to know that will help you get caught up to speed. The first thing to know is that stacking lines is important and correlating your plays can pay off. In hockey, if someone scores a goal, there's a good chance that some on his team will receive an assist on that goal, so you want to build lineups around players skating together. The second thing is to make sure you look at the two sites and see the different ways to obtain points. On DraftKings, you get bonus points for 5+ shots or 3+ blocked shots so someone like Alex Ovechkin who is a volume shooter tends to be a better play there just because he can rack up additional points based on his style of play.
Today I'll be bringing you my NHL lineup picks, analysis, and advice for NHL DFS contests on DraftKings, Fanduel, and SuperDraft for Wednesday, February 10th, 2020 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! Feel free to follow me on Twitter @ChrisWasselDFS as I am happy to engage with readers and try to answer your questions. Good luck RotoBallers!
NHL DFS Analysis and Picks for 2/10
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- Boston Bruins vs. New York Rangers
- Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Montreal Canadiens
NHL DFS Goalie Analysis
With the short two-game slate, picking the right goalie is essential. Out of the four goaltenders, which goalie gives the player the best chance at the most DFS points? Does one even touch the North Division clash between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens? It's a great question. Picking between Carey Price and Frederik Andersen may just be too rough of a proposition for most to stomach. Flipping a coin will not be easy.
The matchup that generates some intrigue is the Boston Bruins and New York Rangers. New York has been dominated at home in recent years by Boston. On the other hand, the shot volume has been rather good for the New York goaltender. This is why taking a shot at Alexandar Georgiev is not completely out of bounds. He is the projected goaltender and will be the lowest priced in net tonight ($7,300 -- FD, $7,200 -- DK). At the very least, Georgiev could easily face 30+ shots given the way Boston controls play (32 shots per 60).
NHL DFS Power Play Analysis
The Toronto Maple Leafs top tonight's slate and then there is the Boston Bruins. After that, it becomes ugly. New York ranks in the middle of the pack. Montreal ranks 25th which should not surprise anyone. So, if one looks at a power-play stack, one is looking at Toronto or Boston.
It will be the top power-play units that draw the focus but Toronto's second unit may be something to look at also. John Tavares and William Nylander are flanked by Jason Spezza, T.J. Brodie, and Ilya Mikheyev. That gives one cheaper options to look at. Now, watch for the lack of correlation aside from Nylander and Tavares. Pairing one of the cheaper players allows the option to spend up for Boston or even some of New York's top six or a Montreal top six one off.
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NHL DFS Core Plays
The Core plays below are the players that you should focus on incorporating into your cash game builds and tournament builds. When it comes to cash games, you want guys that offer high floors that rack up peripheral stats (shots, blocks, etc).
When it comes to tournaments, it is best to take a core play and see who their linemates are and build line stacks based on that. I will give 2-3 plays (varies on slate size) at each position at different pricing ranges so that you can have a variety of plays to choose from when building your cash builds.
NHL DFS Center Picks
- Auston Matthews, TOR ($8,300 DK / $8,700 FD) - Matthews is our top pick because of the goal potential. He keeps scoring goals and as long as he does that, Matthews is valuable anytime. He generates scoring chances and shots at an Alex Ovechkin like level and that expects to continue tonight. It is hard to stray too far away from players on Toronto's top line.
- Nick Suzuki, MTL ($5,200 DK / $6,100 FD) - Suzuki is one of the hardest working forwards in the NHL. As a result, his production and ice time have gone up this season. The one concern is shots on net -- one shot per game over the last seven contests. Suzuki does have 14 scoring chances during this span.
- David Krejci, BOS ($4,100 DK/ $5,800 FD) - Krejci is always the secondary option for Boston and whom he plays with gets a value boost. While "The Perfection Line" gets all the accolades, Krejci is ridiculously cheap on DraftKings and will likely draw some of the worst the Rangers have to offer defensively. There will be opportunity and scoring chances per 60 should be elevated.
This is again a shorter slate, so the idea is to keep this simple. As we mentioned above, it is okay to look at a player like Jason Spezza (wing on DraftKings) as well because of his power-play value and price. Short slates give the player the ability to change things up and be a bit different. This may not work out but could pay off handsomely. Call it a risk-reward of the highest kind.
NHL DFS Wing Picks
- David Pastrnak, VGK ($8,500 DK / $8,600 FD) - It is too hard to not place Pastrnak somewhere in one's lineup especially if multiple or MME (mass multi-entry) is your specialty. Boston's top-unit at even strength and even on the man advantage has been something New York has had difficulty with for several seasons now.
- Artemi Panarin, NYR ($5,800 DK / $7,700 FD) - Some funky DraftKings pricing leads us to Panarin and maybe a glitch in the matrix. Panarin is averaging 3.1 shots per game and over three scoring chances per contest for New York. He has been the one scoring goals and piling up points. While Mika Zibanejad has regressed, it is Panarin that has carried the offensive load. Maybe a lower-priced Zibanejad is a decent choice tonight because he has fallen so much ($5,000 DK, $6,200 FD). Even Kaapo Kakko at a minimum price on DraftKings may be worth a look.
- Zach Hyman, TOR ($4,700 DK / $4,900 FD) - Hyman fires shots on net at just about three per contest. His points are lower but against teams like Montreal, Hyman may be more of an asset offensively than usual. He had a three-game point streak before his clunker on Monday. Again, this is a way to be a bit different while still getting exposure to the best Toronto has to offer.
Please understand that there will be some inevitable in-game shifts particularly with Boston IF Jake DeBrusk looks healthy. He expects to return tonight on the third line to start but may be moved up depending on how he looks on the ice.
NHL DFS Defenseman Picks
- Jeff Petry, MTL ($6,200 DK / $6,100 FD) - Petry is the highest-priced defenseman on this slate, and for good reason. His price raise finally happened as many had been wondering when it would. His floor has been excellent all season long, chances created are high and garners enough ice time to at least sustain production within reason. He finds a way to get shot attempts on net and Toronto does have a tough time sometimes blocking shots from the point. That may even set up Shea Weber as well.
- Morgan Reilly, FLA ($5,200 DK / $5,300 FD) - Let's keep this simple. Reilly on the power play for better or for worse is solid tonight against a Montreal team that will get undisciplined. The Canadiens get this way against Toronto for some reason more than other teams. It is prudent to have the Toronto defender in a few places tonight for correlation.
Look to Charlie McAvoy for Boston tonight as well or maybe even Adam Fox for lower-priced alternatives as focus will be heavy on the Toronto-Montreal clash. Remember, the overall numbers dictate it.
NHL DFS Goalie Picks
- Alexandar Georgiev, NYR ($7,300 DK / $7,200 FD) - With the higher volume expected, Georgiev may not need a win. The risk is if Boston gets off to a slow start and the only risk. Toronto and Montreal could be too high-scoring. Frederik Andersen may be worthwhile given the series history of late but most will argue Tuukka Rask has the best chance of a win. Again, it is all about how much one wants to save or spend.
Other goalies to consider: Andersen
Note: If you do roster a goalie listed above, it is sometimes best to make a hedge lineup in tournaments and take the opposing offense against them incase he gives up a few goals while that opposing team carries lower ownership.
Favorite NHL DFS Line Stacks
- TOR 1
- Matthews/ Hyman/ Marner (Reilly, D-men add on)
- NYR 2
- Panarin/ Strome/ Kakko (Fox, D-men add on)
- MTL 2
- Drouin/ Suzuki/ Anderson(Petry, D-men add on)
Other Stacks to consider: BOS 1, MTL 1, TOR 2, TOR PP 1, BOS PP 1
Key Abbreviations:
xGF/60= expected goal for per 60 minutes of ice time
GF/60= goals for per 60 minutes of ice time
SC/60= Scoring Chances per 60 minutes of ice time
If you have any additional questions, make sure to reach out to me on Twitter or in our NHL room at the RotoBaller slack chat!
