NHL Daily Fantasy Helper: Friday 3/26/21
NHL DFS is similar to MLB in terms of how you build lineups, how you view stacking, and how to value players.
Two main points to always focus on in NHL DFS are what lines the players are on and making sure the goalies you are rostering are confirmed as the starters. Two of the best resources for that are LeftWingLock.com or DailyFaceOff.com. That is where you can find updated forward and power-play lines for each team, along with which goalies are confirmed as the starters.
Let's jump in to take a look at today's slate and some players to consider for your lineups.
Goalie to Target
Ilya Samsonov ($8,200): Samsonov is expected to be the starting goalie for the Washington Capitals. They are on the second night of a back-to-back, and Vitek Vanecek was in net yesterday. The Capitals are -230 home favorites versus the New Jersey Devils, who they just beat last night. You want to run it right back with another Capitals' goalie today since the Devils have the 11th lowest (2.23) goals scored per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations this season. Nothing has changed in this matchup from last night to tonight, so go back to the well.
High-Priced Skaters
Ryan O'Reilly ($7,400): O'Reilly comes in with 11 NHL points and 16 shots on goal over his last 10 games, making him one of the more consistent options at center on this slate. Ideally, we'd see his volume of shots on goal be a bit higher so he has a higher floor of points, but we'll certainly take someone who is posting more than one NHL point per game. However, his shot volume is in a spot to increase tonight because he is up against the Anaheim Ducks, who have the 10th worst (54.34) Corsi Against per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations. With O'Reilly seeing time on the second forward line and the first power-play unit for the St. Louis Blues, who have a 3.15 implied goal total, he's in a great spot to continue his strong production.
Clayton Keller ($6,600): The Arizona Coyotes have a 2.80 implied goal total tonight and can exceed that in a plus matchup versus the San Jose Sharks. This season, the Sharks find themselves in the bottom four of the league in both goals (2.80) against and Corsi Against (58.09) per 60 minutes in five-on-five situations. We've attacked them all season, and we want to continue to do so. Keller has a solid 8 NHL points, 18 shots on goal, and 2 blocked shots across his last 10 games. While the Coyotes' offense hasn't been that strong overall this season, Keller is using his time on the first forward line and the first power play efficiently, racking up 0.72 NHL points per game on the year.
Values Skaters
Josh Morrissey ($4,500): For his salary, Morrissey is a stud. He puts up fantasy points every single night and still isn't above $5,000. Over the past 10 games, Morrissey has piled up 7 NHL points, 29 shots on goal, and 17 blocked shots. If he was doing more in terms of real-world points, he could be over $6,000 and a nightly cog in cash games. He hasn't done that, but that's good from a DFS perspective since he remains a value play. Morrissey will always have the upside to reach for more NHL points since he is on the first defensive pairing and the first power-play unit for the Winnipeg Jets.
Janne Kuokkanen ($3,700): I don't have much to say about Kuokkanen other than I'm very impressed with the rookie. He is up to 10 NHL points in his last 10 games and has 16 shots on goal in that time while seeing minutes on the first forward line and the first power-play unit for the Devils. We don't often see a player with a salary under $4,000 with this type of offensive role and this level of production, making Kuokkanen a clear value target tonight.
