NHL

4 NHL FanDuel Studs to Target on 2/2/21

Chris Wassel  —  @ChrisWasselDFS Feb 2nd, 2021
There are six more weeks of winter and eight games on Tuesday's DFS slate. So, who can you trust tonight?

Spending up in any daily fantasy lineup is how to get the superstars and the highest upside players in your lineup. In NHL DFS, it’s different from paying up in sports like NBA or NFL. Someone can be one of the highest salaried players at his position and put up a total dud of a performance, and paying that much for him would be a huge mistake. Let’s make sure we are paying up in the right spots when building our lineups tonight.

Tuesday night's slate is just eight games, as the Buffalo-New York game is not part of the main slate, and the New Jersey-Pittsburgh game has been postponed.

Leon Draisaitl, Center, Edmonton Oilers

FanDuel Salary: $8,700

All I keep seeing is Connor McDavid talk against the Ottawa Senators, and that is warranted. After all, he had a goal and four assists in their last meeting. Ottawa is the worst defensively in unblocked shot attempts per 60 and is yielding a whopping 4.89 goals per game.

However, going with Draisaitl saves a few hundred dollars and may allow one to stack a bit differently on Tuesday night. This is a dicey proposition, but Draisaitl is arguably more of the goal scorer here. Goals are worth more than assists.

Also, Ottawa is 28th on the penalty kill at just below 70%. If the Edmonton Oilers score multiple power-play goals tonight, would anyone be surprised? Matt Murray is starting for Ottawa, and he has just a .849 save percentage on the season. It is as ugly as it looks for the Senators and facing the best 1-2 scoring punch in the NHL almost seems unfair.

Johnny Gaudreau, Wing, Calgary Flames

FanDuel Salary: $7,800

John Gaudreau has been consistent with real-world points coming in every single game this season for Calgary. The only concern may be shot volume, where the winger is only getting about two-to-three shots a night. However, he is producing at around 17 FanDuel points per game without a single 30-point effort.

The Winnipeg Jets are a sieve defensively, much like most teams from the North Division it would appear. They yield 3.11 goals per game and nearly 32 shots per 60. Also, Connor Hellebuyck is expected to not be in the net, and Sean Monahan could be with Gaudreau again tonight. The duo combined for seven scoring chances alone on Monday night and seemed dangerous on almost every shift.

Look to see if Patrik Laine plays tonight for the Columbus Blue Jackets. As of press time, he had not been activated from the injured reserve-quarantine list, but that may change. If that does not work out, then look at Brendan Gallagher from the Montreal Canadiens, who has high-goal potential versus the Vancouver Canucks.

Jeff Petry, Defenseman, Montreal Canadiens

FanDuel Salary: $5,500

There is this strange sense of including someone at this low a salary. However, if one looks at the slate, the most expensive defenseman is John Klingberg at $6,600. Jeff Petry has been successful all year at getting shots on the net while padding his floor with blocked shots. He has racked up 11 real-world points on the season already -- four goals and seven assists.

The good news for Petry backers is that Montreal again faces the Vancouver team they have dominated all season long. Vancouver has shown little to no ability to stop what Montreal does offensively. Vancouver takes the most penalties in the league (13.5 minutes per contest) and allows 36.3 shots per contest (highest in the NHL). Petry should have little trouble padding his floor tonight while maybe adding a goal or assist, as well.

Jake Allen, Goalie, Montreal Canadiens

FanDuel Salary: $8,600

Jake Allen has been solid in net for Montreal, and that is all they need because they have been so good offensively.

He has one win against Vancouver already this year, and that was his worst start, allowing three goals. That may be a concern, along with low shot output. However, few expect Vancouver to fire fewer than 20 shots on goal again. For Allen to be worth this salary, the goalie has to likely see at least 25-30 shots his way.

The tricky part about this slate is waiting for confirmations. It will be a theme throughout this season over and over. Some coaches have said they will not name their starter until warmups. The best move is to be patient and wait.

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/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.