NHL Daily Plays: Monday, December 8th
We have a typically slow Monday night in the NHL with a three game slate. With that being said, we still have six teams hitting the ice and that gives us plenty of options for our cash games and our GPPs. The St. Louis Blues are the only big favorite on the board tonight and you can expect most daily fantasy hockey players to be using their fair share of them in their cash game lineups. However, in GPPs I suggest avoiding the popular Blues in some lineups in hopes of separating yourself from the pack. The other five teams in play will be a little harder to predict. Let’s see if I can help, with NHL Daily Plays!
GOALTENDERS
Make sure to check the RotoGrinders Starting Goalies Page to confirm that the goalies listed below are starting prior to game time.
Martin Brodeur, St. Louis Blues – Brodeur looked sharp versus the New York Islanders Saturday night in the Blues’ come from behind win. St. Louis is one of the best teams in hockey on home ice (9-3-1) and they come into this game a huge favorite. Florida has been a solid hockey club all year long, but they still struggle offensively. The Panthers lack a true goal scorer and rank 2nd last in the NHL in goals per game (2.20). The Blues are one of the best defensive teams in hockey and I think they control this game from get-go.
Other Goalies To Target (Cash Games) – Henrik Lundqvist
Other Goalies To Target (Tournaments) – Marc-Andre Fleury, Anton Khudobin, Cory Schneider
CENTER
Jori Lehtera, St. Louis Blues – Lehtera continues to be a key piece to the Blues offense and has found great chemistry with linemates Vladimir Tarasenko and Jaden Schwartz. This trio has been one of the NHL’s biggest surprises and most effective lines all season. Lehtera’a price has yet to catch up to his production and I think he makes a tremendous value play tonight.
Other Centers To Target (Cash Games) – Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Derek Stepan
Other Centers To Target (Tournaments) – Eric Staal, Adam Henrique, Paul Stastny
WINGERS 
Rick Nash, New York Rangers – Nash is having a fantastic season (17 G, 27 PTS, +8, 86 SOG in 25 GP) and has played great versus the Penguins this year (1 G, 3 A, 11 SOG in 2 GP). Pittsburgh is a banged up squad and the Rangers have owned them recently. I think the Rangers continue their dominance over the Penguins and Nash has a multi-point night.
T.J. Oshie, St. Louis Blues – Oshie has really struggled this season (8 PTS in 20 GP), but he is a much better player than he has shown. Oshie had a multi-point performance Saturday night and I think he starts to get going from here. He is now playing on the Blues’ top powerplay unit and has seen an increase in overall ice time. Normally I would recommend Oshie as a GPP play, but with only three games on the schedule, I think Oshie is in play for all game types this evening.
Other Wingers To Target (Cash Games) – Vladimir Tarasenko, Martin St. Louis, David Backes, Jaden Schwartz
Other Wingers To Target (Tournaments) – Jeff Skinner, Mats Zuccarello, Alexander Semin, Michael Ryder
DEFENSE
Olli Maatta, Pittsburgh Penguins – With all of Pittsburgh’s injuries (e.g. Kris Letang and Chris Kunitz), Maatta has been bumped up to the Penguins’ number one powerplay unit. Pittsburgh has the top ranked powerplay in the NHL and as the Penguins’ powerplay quarterback, Maatta has great value tonight. The Pens offense has sputtered recently, but they can explode at any time. The Rangers are in a mini slump, losing two in a row, allowing nine goals in the process.
Other Defensemen To Target (Cash Games) – Alex Pietrangelo, Kevin Shattenkirk, Dan Boyle
Other Defensemen To Target (Tournaments) – Damon Severson, Aaron Ekblad, John-Michael Liles
Good Luck Grinders!
Pepsi7