If you follow the NHL, you already know all of the top players. Obviously, when playing DFS, these players will come at a high cost. In this article, we are looking to find the cheaper value plays to help you afford the superstars.
Andreas Athanasiou, Center, Detroit Red Wings
FanDuel Price: $4,900
Even though he plays on the second even-strength line, Andreas Athanasiou is slotted in on the Detroit Red Wings top power-play unit. He hasn't been great this season with just one point in five games, but Athanasiou put up 30 goals last season which is fantastic.
The Edmonton Oilers have been one of the more surprising teams this season, starting off 6-1-0 and allowing just 2.71 goals against per game — a mark that puts them just outside the top 10. Athanasiou has fired just nine shots in five games, which is concerning but that shot volume should pick up as he averaged 2.84 shots per game last season.
Brett Connolly, Winger, Florida Panthers
FanDuel Price: $4,300
Brett Connolly has settled into a role on the wing for the Florida Panthers' second line at even-strength. He's playing with Mike Hoffman and Vincent Trocheck — two very solid linemates. Connolly also spends time on the second power-play unit when the opportunities arise.
Connolly is a bit of a late bloomer as he broke the 30-point barrier for the first time last season as a 26-year-old, putting up 46 real-life points in the process. He has started this season off great with five points in six games as the Panthers host a Colorado Avalanche team that could be without Nathan MacKinnon this evening.
Joonas Donskoi, Winger, Colorado Avalanche
FanDuel Price: $3,300
On the other side of that matchup, the second line for the Colorado Avalanche is intriguing. Joonas Donskoi is the six-highest point-per-dollar winger value on the slate, per our projections, as he plays with a newly-created second line with J.T. Compher and Andre Burakovsky with Nazem Kadri playing on the top line in light of MacKinnon's injury.
They visit the Panthers and the struggling Sergei Bobrovsky. In 5 games this season, Bobrovsky has a brutal .870 save percentage and a 3.90 goals-against average. These numbers will surely improve but this is not what the Panthers wanted to see from their $10 Million Dollar goaltender.
Justin Schultz, Defense, Pittsburgh Penguins
FanDuel Price: $4,200
Justin Schultz is off to a solid start to the season. He has picked up five real-life points in seven games while firing 21 shots on net. Averaging three shots per game is fantastic to see from a defenseman and while it is unlikely to last, his additional six blocks — almost one per game — is an added bonus.
The Pittsburgh Penguins host the Dallas Stars tonight and the Pens are pretty banged up which will make this difficult. However, the Stars have thrown the Pens a bone by putting Anton Khudobin in net tonight. He's struggled this season with a .877 save percentage and 3.59 goals-against average.
Ryan Sheppard is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Ryan Sheppard also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username donkshow_. 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 articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.