RADIO
Welcome, RotoBallers! If you do not know me, my name is Mark and I write primarily MLB and NFL on Rotoballer but I play a lot of NHL DFS and am excited to bring you my thoughts on today's slate!
Today I'll be bringing you my NHL lineup picks, analysis, and advice for NHL DFS contests on DraftKings and FanDuel for Thursday, February 10th, 2022 at 7:00 PM EST. 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 hit me up on Twitter @Mark_Kieffer or in our premium slack chat. Good luck, RotoBallers!
NHL DFS Analysis and Picks for 2/10/22
We have four games starting at 7 p.m. Eastern Time, one at 8 p.m. Eastern Time, and two at 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time. We haven't seen as many players get ruled out late, but it's always good to check if projected starting goalies are indeed starting before lock. Nothing is more frustrating than having a great lineup and getting a zero from the goalie position!
NHL DFS Goalies
Ville Husso - DK $8.3K || FD $7.8K
Opponent - New Jersey Devils
Ville Husso should be in the net against the New Jersey Devils. Saint Louis is one of the biggest favorites on the slate, New Jersey is implied for 2.3 goals (lowest on the slate) and with a high variable position, there should be a decent floor here. This slate has two of my favorite goalies to roster in bad spots: Frederik Andersen against Boston, and Andrei Vasilevsky going against Colorado. I think both of them make for interesting GPP plays potentially as they will likely face many shots and the opportunity to rack up saves. With both as road underdogs, I could see the field looking away from those two in tough matchups and looking to go for favored goalies against weaker opponents.
On this slate, 11 of the 14 teams playing are implied for three or more goals. Depending on your build, you might want to roster who you can afford and hope they pile on the saves.
Others To Consider (Cash/GPP): Samsonov (DK $8.1K || FD $8.6K), Jarry (DK $8.2K || FD $7.9K), Andersen (DK $7.5K || FD $8.2K - GPP only), Vasilevsky ($7.4K || FD $8.3K - GPP Only)
NHL DFS Centers
When rostering a Center you have to decide if you are going to pair or stack with a winger. If pairing or stacking, you can go for a pass-first center that will be a little less expensive in hopes of them getting an assist to the winger(s) you have. If you are looking for a Center as a stand alone player, I recommend rostering Centers that are expected to take a lot of shots on goal. Below you will find recommendations that fall in both camps.
Auston Matthews - DK $9.7K || FD $10.4K
Opponent - Calgary Flames
Auston Matthews is the top spend up option for me on this slate. He has scored 31 goals in 40 games. He has score two or more points in the last five games. Also, he averages 4.5 shots on goal per game. At a position that has many pass first players, Matthews is shot first, always a threat to score multiple goals in a game. It is difficult to spend up this high
Evgeny Kuznetsov - DK $6.5K || FD $8.2K
Opponent - Montreal Canadiens
This is a better play on DraftKings than on FanDuel as there is a large price discrepancy. Kuzentsov is a point per game player, he has had a goal in each of his last three games. Going against arguably the worst team in the NHL with Alex Ovechkin out, I like Kuznetsov's chances to score multiple points and at a nice price on DraftKings.
Others To Consider (CASH/GPP): Kadri (DK $8.3K || FD $10.1K), Crosby (DK $7.0K || FD $8.8K), O'Reilly (DK $5.9K || FD $5.6K), Carter (DK $4.4K || FD $5.8K), Thompson (DK $5.1K || FD $5.7K)
NHL DFS Wings
Generally with wingers, I want players that are likely to take many shots on goal at a reduced price. I play tournaments and generally stack, but if I am playing a winger as a one-off I want a guy that is going to shoot a lot and hopefully score a lot.
Brady Tkachuk - DK $5.8K || FD $7.4K
Opponent - Pittsburgh Penguines
Although Ottawa is implied for just 2.7 goals, but Tkachuck takes a lot of shots. He averages 3.58 shots per game on the season and had a two-assist, nine shot game against Pittsburgh earlier this season. While I do not expect a repeat of that performance, I am always up for taking guys that take a lot of shots at a reduced price, and this is a game that Senators should get on board a couple of times.
Alex Tuch - DK $5.1K || FD $6.5K
Opponent - Columbus Bluejackets
I like the spot Buffalo is in tonight, implied for 3.1 goals and a decent chance to win the game. He is a point per game player and averages 2.85 shots on goal per game. I like pairing him with Tage Thompson as part of a two-man stack or a line stack and I also am fine with him being standalone as well.
Others To Consider (CASH/GPP): Pastrnak (DK $8.3K || FD $8.9k), Skinner (DK $4.8K || FD $5.7K), Kyrou (DK $5.9K || FD $7.9K), Rantanen (DK $8.2K - C eligible only || FD $9.4K), Laine (DK $4.5K || FD $7.0)
NHL DFS Defensemen
My general rule of thumb with Defensemen is if I am spending up at the position, I want that player on be on the Powerplay with a chance to score a goal. This is also a position I will punt quite a bit at. If I am punting, I want a player that is projected to get a good amount of ice time and has a chance to get a blocked shot bonus on DraftKings.
John Carlson - DK $6.5K || FD $6.8K
Opponent - Montreal Canadiens
John Carlson is on the top power play, Ovechkin is out and the team will look for scoring help, and he averages 2.41 shots on goal per game. He is more likely to get an assist than a goal. He is a good player to include in a Washington stack and also a good player to have standalone as well depending on your construction.
Zach Werenski- DK $6.1K || FD $6.3K
Opponent - Buffalo Sabres
Zach Werenski averages 3.04 shots on goal per game and this is a game that Columbus is implied for 3.1 goals.
Others To Consider (CASH/GPP): Makar (DK $7.3K || FD $7.4K), Chabot (DK $5.9K || FD $6.4K), Letang (DK $7.0K || FD $6.9K), McDonagh (DK $3.1K || FD $4.6K), Parayko (DK $5.0K || FD $4.8K)
NHL DFS GPP Strategy
This will come at no surprise, as I am a single entry and 3 max type of a player, but I will look to fade all of those lowest implied total teams and try to target stacks in the high implied total games.
That said my top stacks tonight are as follows:
Washington 2/1: Implied for 3.7 goals, Montreal is a mess. We will see what the line combinations look like, but there is looking like there is not going to be a perfect correlation between a line and the power play. I would be into rostering any combination of the Top 6 skaters on Washington that have exposure to Power Play 1, but Washington 2 at the moment looks like the best one to roster.
Pittsburgh 1/PP1: Implied for 4.0 goals, has Power Play correlation, and the expensive nature of the stack will keep ownership at bay. If you can find a value filler stack you like or some cheap one off plays, this stack is viable.
Saint Louis 1/2/PP1: Saint Louis is implied for 3.9 goals going against one of the worst teams in New Jersey. I do think Saint Louis will be highly targeted but there are several different ways to go regarding stacking.
Buffalo 1/PP1: This is my sneaky stack of the night. Buffalo is implied for 3.1 goals, the total doesn't stand out, but they are one of the teams I think has a great chance of going over the 3.1 goals by a goal or two. At their price, it creates opportunities to go to a lot of different places for a secondary stack.
I am fading Colorado and Tampa Bay. I don't see them having a ceiling game against each other.
