NHL Daily Plays: Sunday, January 11th
The NHL is back in action tonight with the only DFS game in town locking at 7 PM EST. This should draw a little more action on the rink as people need their DFS fix on a Sunday night. There are only three games to work with, so the slate is not great, but we can’t be too greedy. Here are today’s best plays.
Goalies
Make sure to check the Starting Goalies Page to confirm that the goalies listed below are starting prior to game time.
Corey Crawford, Chicago Blackhawks – These teams met just four days ago and Crawford was the star of the game with 42 saves. Wild superstar Zach Parise was out for that game and will be back with the team tonight. I don’t expect Crawford to see as many shots as he did Thursday, but the fact that the Blackhawks are at home makes them the biggest favorite on the night, which is always a safe place to target for your cash games. Minnesota is really struggling right now with only two wins in their last 10 games, and Chicago is 14-5-1 at home this season. This all adds up to the top play of the night in my opinion.
Others to target – Frederik Andersen (These are the only two I will play tonight on the shortened slate.)
Centers
Ryan Kesler, Anaheim Ducks – Kesler is pretty cheap around the industry and that makes him a very appealing play tonight. Kesler has 29 points in 42 games this season. This Jets team must be tired after that back-and-forth game last night at Staples Center where they scored three goals on their first three shots on goal. Coming off of an overtime game against a team as physical as the Kings has to take a toll on their legs and Kesler’s hustle should be able to exploit that.
Andrew Shaw, Chicago Blackhawks – This is another salary relief play that is still getting time on the top power play unit for Chicago. This has been a disappointing season so far for Shaw with only 12 points on the campaign. With Niklas Backstrom likely to be in net for Minnesota, I am loving the Blackhawks’ top power-play unit and this is the cheapest way to get exposure.
Wingers
Taylor Hall, Edmonton Oilers – It is very rare that I will even think about rostering anyone from Edmonton these days, but Hall is the exception on this short slate. He has nine points in as many games and will likely be overlooked as EDM has the league’s 27th ranked offense in goals per game.
Corey Perry, Anaheim Ducks – The $6,000 price tag on DraftKings makes him a 100% must play tonight. The Ducks are in a great spot to score (as I mentioned before with Ryan Kesler) and seeing this price tag inexplicably low means you simply can not afford to fade him. Look for his ownership to be above 50% in the GPP’s tonight, and for good reason.
Others to target – Patrick Maroon, Jonathan Huberdeau
Defense
Aaron Ekblad, Florida Panthers – The rookie sensation has three assists and 13 shots on goal in his last four games. He is getting 22 minutes of ice time per game and skating with the top power play unit for Florida. The Panthers face the 25th ranked penalty kill tonight in Edmonton. Ekbald’s price tag won’t break the bank tonight and is very capable of producing with the top defensemen tonight.
Others to target – Justin Schultz, Francois Beauchemin, Niklas Hjalmarsson (Better on “blocked shots” sites)