Spending lower in any daily fantasy lineup is a way to incorporate some diversity into your roster. In NHL DFS, there is typically more value in this strategy but also a good deal more risk. This is especially true on tonight's slate, where there are lots of lower-salaried plays. Plugging in these options will afford you more chances to play some studs, as well.
Monday night expects to feature ten games on the main slate. Let's take a look at what values we can find.
Victor Rask, Center, Minnesota Wild
FanDuel Salary: $3,800
The Minnesota Wild feature several intriguing forwards that carry value. One may just be Victor Rask. Rask has just four goals on the season but has double-digit FanDuel points in two of his last three contests. His increased minutes have not gone unnoticed. Rask averages nearly 14 minutes a night in this latest stretch.
He had three shots on goal and three scoring chances on Saturday. If Rask can stay healthy enough and show some of the skills from his glory days, then he will carry more fantasy value. Minnesota needs scoring depth in the worst way and Rask will have opportunities.
If you want to look into other center value plays, Gabriel Vilardi is still a possibility from the Los Angeles Kings on Monday night.
Martin Necas, Wing, Carolina Hurricanes
FanDuel Salary: $4,100
Martin Necas keeps finding a way to produce real-world and FanDuel points. Yet, his salary has not appreciated in the way one would expect. He still has remained right around $4,000. Aside from the points in five of the previous six contests, Necas blocks shots at a rate of a little over one a night. Few expected that and it is an underrated part of his game.
That being said, one has to roster him given the eight assists and Necas' ability to find ways to create chances for himself. Necas has 2+ scoring chances in six straight games. He sneaks in shifts on the man advantage along with this increasing presence of a two-way game similar to his coach, Rod Brind'Amour.
If, for some reason, one feels a little uneasy playing Necas, Jordan Greenway remains in the top-six for Minnesota, and Mats Zuccarello at $3,900 could be a viable option as well.
Alec Martinez, Defenseman, Vegas Golden Knights
FanDuel Salary: $4,300
Value is more plentiful than expected on Monday night but Martinez plays at a higher-point per salary rate. The fact that Alec Martinez has a salary so low becomes beneficial as a free-space play. Martinez averages almost two shots a night but a whopping 3.5 shots a contest for the Vegas Golden Knights.
Part of this stems from Vegas employing a five defensemen scheme most of the night but a bigger part is that Vegas has Shea Theodore and Alex Pietrangelo on the roster along with Mark Stone. This allows Martinez to play a role much more suited to his talents while providing the occasional offense DFS owners had become accustomed to.
Elsewhere, Mathew Dumba ($4,000) from the Minnesota Wild is quite intriguing.
John Gibson, Goalie, Anaheim Ducks
FanDuel Salary: $6,700
This is such an awful idea on the surface, considering that John Gibson has yielded 11 goals in his last three appearances for the Anaheim Ducks -- all losses. He has allowed three or more goals in all of those games and looked burnt out.
The ability to stop high-danger chances became troubling in these games as Gibson was stopping only two of every three of these chances (he was above 80% on the season). That is a big drop-off. There is this positive. Gibson played well in the last mini-series against the Arizona Coyotes. He pitched a shutout and only allowed three goals overall in those two games while facing 68 shots.
Goaltenders are a minefield on Monday night from the value tiers. Wait for confirmations for possible alternatives, because lately, there have been a few last minute changes.
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.