NHL Daily Fantasy Helper: Monday 11/19/18
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
Jake Allen ($7,700): The St. Louis Blues goalie carries a lot of risk and is considered a high-danger play at the level of a Louis Domingue. However, St. Louis carries the highest win probability of the night at 68.6%. The Blues have allowed 3.45 goals per game at home, but the Los Angeles Kings have tallied just 1.62 goals per contest on the road. Allen has looked better in three of his previous four outings. This was highlighted by his 32 save performance against the Vegas Golden Knights -- where he robbed their top line of several quality high-danger chances. Make sure Allen does start but the projection was likely at press time. Also, see who starts for Los Angeles just in case.
High-Priced Skaters
Alex Ovechkin ($8,600): Ovechkin is beginning to shoot the puck a ton again. He carried double-digit shot attempts in the last two games, which resulted in a whopping 16 shots on goal in that span. The Washington Capitals forward figures to have a lot of chances against the Montreal Canadiens on Monday night. It seems the return of Tom Wilson has energized the Capitals forward. Whatever the actual reason is, it is working. When Ovechkin is shooting like this, multiple goal potential always increases. Some other high-priced winger choices may include Vladimir Tarasenko ($8,200) and Phil Kessel ($8,200).
Mika Zibanejad ($7,300): So, Zibanejad may not have to face Ben Bishop on Monday night. The Dallas Stars played the New York Islanders yesterday afternoon and are facing a fun New York Rangers team. New York gives as good as it gets -- allowing 17 and scoring 17 goals in their last five contests. Their top-line center has 17 real-world points in 20 games on 74 shots this year. When Zibanejad is healthy, he is at nearly a point a game production wise. He will draw against Dallas's bottom six and defensively Dallas is missing several starters. That should be a matchup to exploit. More center options may feature Sidney Crosby ($8,500 -- if he can play), Tyler Seguin ($7,600), and Ryan O'Reilly ($7,100).
Value Skaters
Travis Hamonic ($4,000): Hamonic is oddly hitting the net way more than usual (32 shots on net in 12 games this year). He receives some power play ice time with his nearly 20 minutes of ice time a night. His floor is solid with nearly two blocks a game as well. The Calgary Flames enjoy a good matchup at home tonight against a tired Vegas team. Vegas can still generate enough shots to increase that Hamonic floor, yet make enough mistakes so that booming shot can find some openings. If one wants to slide down in price a bit, there is Vince Dunn ($3,800) and Jake McCabe ($3,500) for higher risk punt plays.
Filip Chytil ($3,600): Chytil now has points in three straight games since being placed on the top line. His minutes are mostly sheltered (around 14 a night), but he has 11 shots in those three contests. Chytil's hands and speed are his two biggest assets. He finds space where most players cannot. Dallas is a little banged up at the moment and later in tonight's game this could be exposed. If Chytil is not an appealing enough choice, there is always Drake Batherson ($3,200) or Jesperi Kotkaniemi ($3,700) who both have favorable matchups tonight.
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.