NHL Daily Fantasy Helper: Tuesday 4/30/19
A good chunk of you played daily fantasy football this year, 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
Philipp Grubauer ($7,700): Grubauer starts for Colorado against San Jose Sharks on Tuesday night. The only risk may be San Jose's ability to score goals, as they have struck eight times in the first two games. On the other hand, the Colorado goalie is not only the cheapest option but he could still face 30+ shots. He has done just that in four of six playoff games, and San Jose does tend to travel well, as they produce shots and scoring opportunities on the road. If Colorado comes out like the are expected to, then that may give Grubauer a bit of a cushion, which is rare for this series. Sergei Bobrovsky at $8,100 against the Boston Bruins is not bad; it's just not quite the value that is Grubauer.
High-Priced Skaters
Nathan MacKinnon ($9,100): MacKinnon bounced back with a brilliant Game 2 after an off-kilter Game 1. Overall, in Game 2, he had a goal, an assist, seven shots, and five scoring chances against the Sharks in San Jose. MacKinnon was skating as fast as ever and seemed like he was hitting Sharks players left, right, and sideways. San Jose, as currently constructed, will have much difficulty slowing him down. The scary part is that MacKinnon skates even freer on his home ice. Matt Duchene ($6,700) is a cheaper option from the Columbus Blue Jackets, who could hit value on Tuesday night.
Cam Atkinson ($6,900): Choices dwindling in Round 2 lead to a toss-up between Atkinson and the Sharks' Evander Kane. Both can produce high shot outputs, however, the home-ice advantage for Atkinson is just enough of a tipping point. Atkinson had two assists, three shots, and a block in Game 2. There were a couple chances where the right winger just missed. It seems more a matter of time with the Columbus forward than anything else. Atkinson has just 12 shots in his last 12 games but does have six real-world points in that span. The Columbus top line could be even better on Tuesday night.
Value Skaters
Matthew Nieto ($3,800): This may be a bit of a stretch but Nieto is a bottom-six spark-plug. He has hit or exceeded value in three of his last four starts. And with Colin Wilson putting up a goose-egg in Game 2, that may mean more ice time for Nieto. That is always a bit of a crapshoot, yet the winger's speed has caused San Jose some fits in this series. Maybe a little more ice time would not be a bad thing, as Nieto racks up those scoring chances. Aside from knowing his former team well, the winger could play as much as 13-15 minutes on Tuesday night.
Matthew Grzelcyk ($4,300): Grzelcyk presents a true hit-or miss-play on Tuesday night. The one ability he has is a quick release on his shot. He was excellent in Game 2 with five shots, three scoring chances, and one goal. His floor for a defenseman is nothing special, but he is efficient. For his price, just remember there are quite a few nights where he typically plays just 16 minutes or so (third pairing minutes). His deployment is key, as he typically faces the depth forwards and defensemen more often. As for those who want a higher floor, you can slide down to David Savard ($3,800) as a secondary option 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