NHL DFS Picks, Top Stacks & Lineup Optimizer

The NHL gave every team in the league the day off for Thanksgiving. They make up for it with a split slate with three different NHL DFS slates in one. The afternoon slate will have four games with a 3:30 p.m. lock. The turbo will lock at 5:00 p.m. For the purpose of today’s article, we will be mainly focusing on the main slate that locks at 7:00 p.m. with six games. This Power Play article will use Awesemo’s Premium NHL Tools to help dole out the NHL DFS advice to help with building lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel tonight. The Awesemo NHL projections and ownership projections are two of the best tools to utilize when constructing stacks and making the optimal NHL DFS picks. Let’s go position by position and pinpoint some of the top plays and stacks for Friday, Nov. 26.

NHL DFS Picks, Tops Stacks & Lineup Optimizer Plays

Center

Auston Matthews (TOR vs. NYR): DraftKings – $9,300 | FanDuel – $9,400

The Maple Leafs have strung a couple wins together and come into tonight winning 12 of their last 14 games. Matthews continues to be one of the best pivots in the game, with four multi-point games in the last nine. His shot volume has been phenomenal, averaging a hair under the shot bonus in the last 10 as well. The Sharks have been dealing with a short-handed roster for a lot of the season due to injuries and illness. That reflects in their middling metrics, and Vegas thinks the Leafs come in and take care of business, as they are -162 favorites on the road tonight. Over the last 10 games, San Jose has the 28th-ranked Corsi, and they are allowing the seventh-most scoring chances at five-on-five. The Sharks penalty kill has been very good this year, but they have spent a ton of time in the box over the last 10 games.

Roope Hintz (DAL vs. COL): DraftKings – $5,400 | FanDuel – $6,000

After a slow start to the year, Hintz has been a steady source of production. He has 7 points in the last five games, and he has meshed very well with his top line. He is playing in every situation for the Stars, even though he is averaging just 17 minutes of ice time. Colorado is a dangerous team offensively, but they can also give up chances. The
Avalanche are missing Nathan MacKinnon, J.T. Compher and Bowen Byram. That will open up the ice for the Stars, as they are crucial pieces of the Avalanche. Over the last 10 games Dallas has had one of the best power plays. Meanwhile, the Avalanche have struggled with their penalty kill.

Wingers

Oliver Bjorkstrand (CBJ vs. VAN): DraftKings – $7,400 | FanDuel – $6,800

Bjorkstrand has made positive strides in every season as an NHL winger. He has rifled off at least four shots on goal in five of the last six games. His shooting percentage is down this year by just 2%. That will likely regress as long as his shot volume stays where it is. Since Brad Larsen formed the top line of Bjorkstrand, Boon Jenner and Gustav Nyquist, the trio has been very good offensively. The Canucks have been a team to target for a couple seasons now, and they are still a team to target. Vancouver is ranked 16th in Corsi, 19th in expected goals, 20th in shots against and 22nd in high-dancer chances allowed. The biggest blemish for the Canucks though is their penalty kill. Vancouver has the worst penalty kill in the league, and their metrics confirm it as well. Attacking the Canucks penalty kill tonight is a solid idea tonight.

In the NHL lineup optimizer, Bjorkstrand was showing up as one of the best plays on the slate. For more free NHL DFS picks, check out Awesemo’s DraftKings NHL cheat sheet and FanDuel NHL cheat sheet.

Jake Guentzel (PIT at NYI): DraftKings – $6,400 | FanDuel – $7,800

Guentzel getting Sidney Crosby back cemented his production run even more. He is riding a seven-game point streak and has hit the shot bonus in four of the last five games. The Islanders have dealt with missing players, which has made them struggle to be the dominant defensive team that they have been known to be in the past, ranking 27th in Corsi, 20th in expected goals per 60, 29th in scoring chances allowed and 26th in high-danger chances allowed. They are going to have their hands full with the Penguins top line tonight.

Alex Barré-Boulet (TB vs. SEA): DraftKings – $2,900 | FanDuel – $3,500

Barre-Boulet makes for an interesting value punt tonight. With the Lightning missing Brayden Point, Barre-Boulet was promoted to the top line with Steven Stamkos and Ondrej Palat. He did not log a ton of ice time (11 minutes), but just being on the line gave him the exposure to two elite linemates. He managed to light the lamp on three shots on goal, which paid his price tag off instantly. Barre-Boulet also played a small amount of power-play time, and if he can keep the same exposure tonight, he should not have a problem paying off his salary again. Seattle has been stingy defensively, but talent on the Lightning top line will lead to chances tonight.

Defensemen

Cale Makar (COL at DAL): DraftKings – $7,200 | FanDuel – $7,100

Makar has stepped up huge in the absence of missing three of their top players. He has 8 points in his last four games while averaging five shots/blocks per game. He plays in every situation, and he will not hesitate to log over 25 minutes if asked. Dallas has struggled on the penalty kill as well and with Makar quarterbacking the top unit, he will likely be involved if there are any extra man advantage points. Adding Makar to a stack would be the preferred play, before paying up to make him a single one-off defenseman.

Zach Weresnki (CBJ vs. VAN): DraftKings – $7,400 | FanDuel – $6,200

Zach Werenski could also be a solid low-owned play. Werenski has been the backbone of the Jackets blue line since Seth Jones was dealt to the Blackhawks in the offseason. Werenski has been averaging over 27 minutes of ice time, to go along with six shots/blocks per game. He quarterbacks the top power play unit as well and gets a very favorable matchup against the Canucks tonight.

Mario Ferraro (SJ vs. TOR): DraftKings – $4,900 | FanDuel – $4,400

Ferraro has been a mainstay on the power plays article this year because he has been a great source of value. His salary has come up to just under $5k, but he is still viable tonight. In a league of offensive defenseman, Ferraro is the direct opposite. That probably takes him out of consideration for being a high ceiling play, but he has been an extremely good shot blocker that is averaging the block bonus almost nightly. He is playing on the top pairing alongside Brent Burns. That leaves Ferraro as a stay-at-home defenseman that has to make up for the lack of defense when Burns is on the rush. Ferraro also plays on the top penalty kill unit, and with a matchup against the Leaf’s tonight he will get plenty of chances for blocks.

Latest NHL DFS Content

Top NHL DFS Stacks

TOR1 – Michael Bunting – Auston Matthews – Mitch Marner

Toronto will likely be the chalk stack of the night and for good reason. As of this writing, the Leaf’s have the highest implied team total on the slate at 3.4. In the small sample that the trio has played together, they have been very good. San Jose has dealt with a ton of injuries and illnesses, which has made them a middling team. Awesemo has the Leafs top line as the highest top 2 stack % at 21.5%. Getting some exposure to the Leafs top line in multiple entries is a smart idea.

CBJ1 – Gustav Nyquist – Boone Jenner – Oliver Bjorkstrand

The Jackets top line has been very good since being constructed. Boon Jenner and Oliver Bjorkstrand correlate on the top power play unit, which is a great place to target Vancouver. The Canucks have the worst penalty kill in the league through 20 games. Their metrics are just as bad, ranking 31st in expected goals against, 32nd in goals against, and 30th in shots against on the penalty kill. Vancouver’s five on five numbers are not much better either. 16th in Corsi, and bottom ten in every other metric against. Stacking up the Jackets top line along with Zach Werenski could be a solid contrarian take today.

*Additional Data from Natural Stat Trick

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Author

Jeff Votteler

As an avid competitor, Jeff "Votts" Votteler grew up playing all types of sports. But as he grew up, he gravitated towards hockey and played at a very competitive level. Fantasy sports became a passion of Votts' over 10 years ago, which in turn moved over to the emerging world of daily fantasy sports for the last five years. Votts likes to dive into the analytics of all the sports, where he can turn over those value "rocks" that players depend on to win on a daily basis.