Friday night in NHL DFS didn’t go as anyone expected as the game with the lowest implied total provided the optimal stack with Dallas2 going crazy at sub-5% ownership. Today’s fantasy hockey main slate is only half the size of last night’s but still carries a slew of good plays and value we can take advantage of. Using our Top Stacks Tool and daily fantasy projections we’ll find the best NHL DFS picks to help you build winning lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel.
As always, be sure to check our premium Slack for crucial lineup information in the 20-30 minutes leading up to every game’s lock. With the COVID-19 pandemic still looming, teams have taxi squads and are ready to fill positions daily as teams scratch players. Our Slack chat is hands down one of the best places to get news and line change notifications.
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NHL Power Plays: DraftKings + FanDuel DFS Picks | Jan. 23
NHL DFS Picks: Centers
Anze Kopitar ($7,300 FanDuel / $6,300 DraftKings)
The Center position can be a difficult one to navigate for NHL DFS on many slates because it lacks depth but carries tons of talent. In a tier below the top we get the well-aged Kings Centerman. A world champion, perennial all-star, and Selke finalist, Anze Kopitar continues to put up relevant DFS numbers despite surrounding talent. Fortunately, the Kings have started to build a younger and faster roster to exploit the skills of the Slovenian native.
With over 1,000 games played in his career, he can still get it done with the best of them, averaging over 23 minutes per game this year and 18 fantasy points (FanDuel). Still yet to score a goal this year through four games, the production has not been an issue. A near point-per-game career average (.89 per game) can give us solace in a floor along with his projection north of 13 on FanDuel (10.7 DK). Now, being paired with two speedsters at full-strength and the top powerplay the correlation is there for a big ceiling as well.
On the wings are Alex Iafallo and Adrian Kempe. This trio has not had much time to gel so far this year with just over 12 minutes of ice time together but did produce a goal last game against the Avalanche in leading them to victory. Where these three have thrived together is on the PowerPlay with four high-danger chances and two goals in 12:52 of ice-time. That coincides well here with the St. Louis Blues propensity for taking penalties at 5.4/penalties per game thus far and 2 PPG per game average.
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Nick Suzuki ($5,900 FanDuel / $5,700 DraftKings)
If we are looking for a bit of value then dropping down to Nick Suzuki here makes a boatload of sense. The second-year Center finds himself in a great matchup for NHL DFS with an injury riddled Canucks defensive core. Suzuki burst onto the scene in the playoff rounds last year scoring nearly at will and hasn’t let up to start this year with a point per game (1 goal 4 Assists).
It’s not often 2nd line Centers are the focal point of the top PowerPlay but the former first rounder doesn’t disappoint. Averaging over 11 fantasy points per game on both sites and just under 18 minutes of ice-time he’s got everything you look for along with a fully-correlated line mate in Jonathan Drouin. To go along with the finesse of those two you get the “powerhorse” in Josh Anderson at the Right Wing. These three have completely dominated their opponents thus far at 5-on-5 with eye-popping metrics and production. In 47:03 of ice-time they possess a Corsi-For, Shots-For, and High Danger Chances-For of over 59% in all three categories while scoring three goals in just 5 games. In the grand scheme Suzuki’s projection of 8.28 DK/10.64 FD doesn’t grade out great but once you factor in all things I still love the spot.
Vancouver is an absolute mess on their own end of the ice allowing opponents to score 4.66 goals per game (Montreal got 7 last time out). This game sets up great again for the youngster to have plenty of opportunities to put up points in bunches.
NHL DFS Picks: Wingers
Blake Wheeler ($6,700 FanDuel / $6,200 DraftKings)
This pick may come at no surprise to many NHL DFS’ers but when you get value this good you shouldn’t pass it up. Blake Wheeler is a NHL DFS staple because his team often plays at a high pace and his line mates are absolute weapons.
Coming off somewhat of a down year with less than a point per game it was plausible to assume the 34-year-old may be taking a step back but that rust hasn’t shown in this early season with four points in four games. Amongst Wingers on the slate Wheeler is the fourth-highest projected on both sites and priced as such. To help him reach that projection are Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor along side him. Going back to this year and last these three have skated together nearly 240 mins producing a 59% Corsi-For and 57% High Danger Chances-For. Where they really make their hay is on the PowerPlay producing 34 goals between them in that same time frame.
The young Senators team is middle of the pack in goals allowed per game at 3.5 but they are taking an average of 7 minor penalties per game which should give Wheeler ample shots at scoring Goals and dishing out Assists.
Tyler Toffoli ($4,900 FanDuel / $5,100 DraftKings)
You may be noticing a theme here now and that’s by design. This spot, similar to above mentions, looks fantastic for the fantasy machine known as Tyler Toffoli. Not only do we get a player who is absolutely scorching with 5 goals in his last two games we get to use him against the very same team he’s done so against.
Even as a member of the Los Angeles Kings we often leaned on the floor that Toffoli provided with 2.9 Shots per game (career). Then once he was dealt to Vancouver he exploited being on the Canucks top line. Now he gets to face that same team for the third game straight and will look to continue to punish them. Toffoli is not correlated with his Line Mates which can eliminate some ceiling but is still projected for double digits on FanDuel. He is more than capable of creating his own shots, and fantasy points.
Coach Claude Julien is obviously a fan. Toffoli’s output has him tied for the team-lead in ice-time amongst forwards (16:26). Playing on both the Penalty Kill and the PowerPlay can only lead to good things for his fantasy production.
NHL DFS Picks: Defensemen
Jeff Petry ($5,500 FanDuel / $6,500 DraftKings)
This slate is lacking depth at a position where it is often frequent so spending up for defensmen like Jeff Petry is always a good idea. Normally a great value on FanDuel the Canadiens defensemen may finally be priced up for good. To combat that we are getting him at projected low ownership on DraftKings at 6% and FanDuel 12%.
There is little in the way of arguing when a player is averaging the most points at his position (20.54 FanDuel / 16.3 DraftKings) on any NHL DFS slate so I won’t even pretend his ownership bothers me. Petry is normally a slam dunk for any slate because he gives you everything you want in a defensemen and then some. Averaging over two shots and nearly 1.5 blocks per game you can bank on a solid floor. Now add to the fact he’s on the top powerplay in a phenomenal matchup you basically get a “must-play” tag.
The Canadiens as a whole will be largely owned on this slate for good reason. Rostering an expensive defensemen may be a way to get a bit different and still have all of the upside.
Additional Defensive Values:
It’s with great certainty that Drew Doughty will see the ice the most on this slate. He is priced far too low on FanDuel at $5000 and $6300 on DraftKings. Beyond him there is PP1 Qb Josh Morrissey (A grade on FanDuel) for Winnipeg and Alexander Romanov (correlates well with MTL1) in the mid-range. If you’re going way down I’d look at Erik Gustafsson on DraftKings and Derek Forbort or Tyler Myers on FanDuel.
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