NHL Daily Fantasy Helper: Tuesday 10/30/18
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
Cam Talbot ($7,900): The Edmonton Oilers suddenly are heating up with six wins in their last eight games. Talbot has been a big part of that with four quality starts (two goals or less allowed) in his last five appearances. Talbot becomes more of a cash goalie play because Minnesota will be playing on no rest. However, the Oilers have a propensity to allow 30+ shots a night. Carter Hutton of the Buffalo Sabres at $7,500 is another interesting option. At this price, this play is good for both cash games and GPPs, despite what should be elevated ownership rate. Keep an eye on goalie confirmations as several late changes have caught people off guard lately. Waiting on those confirmations is important tonight because the abundance of value is high!
High-Priced Skaters
Artemi Panarin ($7,700): Better choices may exist, but Panarin is in a prime matchup against the Detroit Red Wings tonight. The Red Wings yield 4.5 goals per game on the road and multiple points to top-line players. And considering the Blue Jackets score 3.6 goals per night and allow 3.8, Panarin will get tons of chances along with the entire first line (which makes for a nice stack). Detroit is fifth-worst in the league, allowing 35+ scoring chances per 60. Panarin's line is in the top 10 in creating those opportunities. Watch to see how Detroit rearranges their lines as they could become a good, contrarian choice.
Nikita Kucherov ($7,900): Kucherov is less of a risk than usual against the New Jersey Devils. New Jersey allows high danger scoring chances at a very low rate, and only 25.41% actually lead to scoring chances, which is the NHL's best mark in chance suppression. However, Tampa Bay provides a matchup nightmare for New Jersey. Kucherov was a one-man wrecking crew against New Jersey in April, and the winger has not heated up yet (less than 13 FanDuel points per game). It is weird to say a player with 9 points in 10 games is struggling. Yet, here we are. After a donut against Arizona, projections are high (25+ point potential) for the winger tonight. Filip Forsberg ($8,000) is always out there, with 10 goals on the season and one of the best wrist shots in the league.
Value Skaters
Anthony Duclair ($3,600): Duclair is quietly delivering goals for the Blue Jackets this year, with 4 goals and 20 shots in 10 games. He has played 15 minutes, on average, in his last 2 games, and his speed could wreak havoc on Detroit's less mobile defense. Another inexpensive winger option could be Warren Foegele ($3,900), who is still on Carolina's top six and generated four scoring chances along with three shots. Even Andrei Svechnikov, at $3,500, could be a decent one-off. Just watch for his erratic shot volume, as he can tend to get on multiple shots one night and none on the next.
Ryan Pulock ($3,900): The Pittsburgh Penguins can allow four goals as easily as they score four. But when the New York Islanders come to town, throw records out the window. Pulock has had some awful shot luck so far but did score in his last game. His blocks per game have come up over the last five or six games. He has three-plus block potential, so if the shot volume creeps up, his floor is solid tonight. Hitting the net is important for Pulock, as he had been hitting the net on less than 40% of his shots in the early going. His possession metrics were 6-8% negative relative to his team but a plus against Philadelphia. The goal may be the catalyst he needs. Maxime Lajoie and Neal Pionk are both at $4,000, and may be safer value plays on Tuesday night given how many high-event games are on the slate.
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.
