NHL Daily Fantasy Helper: Thursday 10/11/18
A good chunk of you probably already play daily fantasy football, and I'd be willing to bet a significant portion have also tried out daily fantasy basketball and baseball. But hockey? Hockey?
It's time to give it a try over on FanDuel, because it's a ton of fun. And our analysis and projections can help you win.
To help, let's take a look at some goalies, high-priced skaters, and lower-priced players to target for today's slate.
Goalie to Target
Andrei Vasilevskiy ($8,700): The Tampa Bay Lightning are heavy favorites (-280 on the moneyline) against the Vancouver Canucks. Vasilevskiy faced 43 shots against the Florida Panthers and is well-rested, which is important this time of year. Vancouver carries risk because of lower shot outputs (projections imply in the 22-26 range). The Tampa Bay goaltender is priced more for a cash play than a GPP option, but his upside makes him worth a look in all formats. There are a few other options -- like whomever starts for Los Angeles (low-priced), and Pheonix Copley (high risk) -- but there will be more clarity on the slate's goalies once the other starters are confirmed.
High-Priced Skaters
Taylor Hall ($8,000): The New Jersey Devils' forward is in a good spot at home against the Washington Capitals. Hall has not played in five days, and Washington is on the back end of a back-to-back scenario. Also, the forward created several High-Danger opportunities against the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday. The Devils' top line costs $19,800, which is expensive but not like some of the other top line stacks on Thursday night. There is a way of sneaking in a power-play stack to save a little bit of money, but Hall is the crown piece as he's got huge upside.
Jack Eichel ($7,700): Eichel bounced back in a big way against the Vegas Golden Knights on Monday with two goals and an onslaught of scoring chances. He has gone for more than 30 FanDuel points in his last two contests. The Buffalo Sabres' top-line forward will have a solid chance to extend his good run tonight as the Colorado Avalanche had immense problems containing the Columbus Blue Jackets first line on Tuesday. The speed and puck-possession ability of Buffalo makes them a good pivot off some of the higher priced stacks. Other high-priced forward options on Thursday include Evgeny Kuznetsov ($7,300), Patrice Bergeron ($7,900), and Nikita Kucherov ($8,300).
Value Skaters
Jesper Fast ($3,700): Fast has garnered a top-six spot on the New York Rangers, and he now has three real-world points in three games. He does not have immense shot volume (six shots so far) but possesses an ability to create chances even in limited ice time. His increase in ice time the past two games (16-plus minutes in each) indicates a rising ceiling. Again, make sure he is not shifted around during morning skate. Even then, the likelihood exists that Fast winds up getting top-line time at both even strength and sees at least some power-play time, as well.
Jakub Vrana ($3,600): Vrana presents less risk than last season as he is shooting the puck more (three shots a game in the early going). The forward moved up in the first two games and rushed the puck up ice pretty well, and he fired off five shots in his last outing. The 22-year old should enjoy a nice matchup against the New Jersey Devils (their defense usually gives up a high amount of chances). Elsewhere, Nikolay Goldobin ($3,600) and Anthony Cirelli ($3,500) are worth checking out as cheap ways to get exposure to the Tampa Bay offense. As always, watch for late injury news and last-minute line shifts for potential high-value options.
Chris Wassel is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Chris Wassel also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username chriswassel. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.
