NHL Daily Plays: Tuesday, January 13th
Happy Tournament Tuesday Grinders! With several key tournaments throughout the industry, the NHL excitement continues to grow in the DFS industry. We’ve got a packed 10 game slate with several juicy matchups spread throughout the league, which should make for an interesting night. Let’s take a look at some of my top plays for Tuesday to help boost that bankroll:
Goalies
Make sure to check the RotoGrinders Starting Goalies Page to confirm that the goalies listed below are starting prior to puck-drop
Marc-Andre Fleury – Pittsburgh Penguins – Fleury is one of the most polarizing goalies in the NHL because of the drastic discrepancy between his regular season numbers and his performance in the postseason, but tonight he draws a Minnesota Wild team that ranks 28th in the league in goals per game this month. Fleury has excellent numbers at home this season; entering tonight’s game with a 14-5 record to go along with a 2.05 GAA and a stellar .930 SV% in 21 starts at Consol Energy Center. With several great options in net tonight, his ownership percentage won’t be as high as it typically would be, making him a great option for me in both cash games and GPPs.
Anton Khudobin – Carolina Hurricanes – If you’re looking for value in net tonight, Khudobin and his moderate price tag is where I would turn with a home matchup against the Avalanche who will be playing on consecutive nights on the road. Colorado has a 1-3 record on the tail end of back-to-backs this season and haven’t scored more than 2 goals in any of their 4 games in those situations. Enter Khudobin, who is coming off his best game of the season and despite owning a losing record at home has a 1.75 GAA and a respectable .929 SV% in his four home starts this season. I expect Carolina to dominate possession and control the pace of this game; giving Khudobin just enough goal support to comfortably cruise to an easy victory tonight.
Defense
Disclaimer: Kris Letang, Dustin Byfuglien, Kevin Shattenkirk, Alex Pietrangelo, Erik Karlsson, Shea Weber, and Keith Yandle are elite defensemen and are always in play.
Brent Burns – San Jose Sharks – After spending most of last season at forward, San Jose has moved Brent Burns back to the blue-line this season where he has unsurprisingly been among the league leaders in fantasy production. He won’t be cheap, but he has a knack for scoring and is 3rd on his team in scoring. Tonight Burns and the Sharks will be taking on Mike Smith and the Coyotes, who allow the 8th most shots per game in the NHL at home. The ‘Yotes are also rank 29th in penalty kill percentage, which should give Burns plenty of opportunities to light up the box score as the quarterback on San Jose’s lethal top power play unit.
Dan Boyle – New York Rangers – With 7 points in his last 10 games, Dan Boyle is starting to find his groove in New York after a miserable start to the season. With just two goals this season, Boyle has been a major disappointment in his first season with the Rangers, but he has struggled with injuries and illness and is an offensive-minded defenseman that is capable of posting monster games. He’s still averaging around 20 minutes of ice time per game and is featured on the Rangers’ 9th ranked power play unit, making him a great mid-range option tonight against the Islanders’ 26th ranked penalty kill.
Top Value Plays: Jay Bouwmeester (STL), Seth Jones (NSH)
Center
Disclaimer: Sidney Crosby, Steven Stamkos, John Tavares, Pavel Datsyuk, Logan Couture, and Tyler Seguin (if starting) are elite fantasy centers and are always in play.
Evgeni Malkin – Pittsburgh Penguins – Malkin is off to yet another incredible start with 47 points in just 41 games this season. Despite playing with numerous linemates throughout much of this season, he continues to get it done on a nightly basis and is also featured on the league’s best power play unit. He also has 28 points in 23 home games and averages over 3 shots per game at Consol Energy Center this season. Without many of his usual weapons at his disposal, Malkin will be expected to step up and carry the offensive load, a role he has proven very capable of doing in the past which is why I’ll be paying up for him tonight.
Henrik Zetterberg – Detroit Red Wings – Another second line center that I’ll be targeting heavily tonight is Zetterberg, who has 10 points in as many games and will be taking on the lowly Buffalo Sabres. Unsurprisingly, the veteran playmaker leads the Wings in points and shots, but what does surprise me is very reasonable price tag across most of the industry. In a game Detroit should dominate from start to finish, look for Zetterberg to be heavily involved in Detroit’s offensive onslaught tonight.
Top Value Plays: Jori Lehtera (STL), Elias Lindholm (CAR)
Wing
Disclaimer: Rick Nash, Alex Steen, Zach Parise, Taylor Hall, Jamie Benn (if starting) and Joe Pavelski are elite fantasy forwards and are always in play.
Vladimir Tarasenko – St. Louis Blues – After scoring a goal and taking a whopping 8 shots in his last game, Tarasenko continues to make me look good whenever I recommend him. He now has 44 points in 42 games this season and there appears to be no end in sight for the extremely talented Russian superstar. His price remains criminally low and he will have the luxury of taking on one of the league’s worst teams tonight in the Oilers. Not that Edmonton has the ability to slow down Tarasenko, but with St. Louis getting goals from multiple lines of late, opposing teams no longer have the ability to focus their attention on Tarasenko and the “STL” line. He still gets ample power play minutes and should be heavily involved in the Blues domination over the Oilers tonight.
Filip Forsberg – Nashville Predators – Another talented young forward in the midst of a breakout season is Forsberg, who can be had for a relative bargain tonight given his production this season. A solid all-around player with no real deficiencies in his game, the Swede is starting to shoot the puck again, making up for a minor slump he experienced recently. Home ice advantage will allow head coach Peter Laviolette to match Forsberg and Nashville’s productive top line against one of the weaker defensive lines for Vancouver, making Forsberg an excellent play at his moderate price.
Patrick Marleau – San Jose Sharks – With just 1 point in his last 10 games, Marleau is officially in the biggest slump of his career. And if there’s ever a guy that needs a slump buster, it’s Marleau, but because he’s a married man, Mike Smith (worst goalie in the league) is the next best thing for the veteran playmaker. The good news is that he’s still shooting the puck and will have a healthy Joe Thornton by his side. Even better for us DFSers is the the fact that Marleau’s price has come down across most of the industry, presenting owners with a great opportunity to capitalize on one of the most productive players of his generation at a discounted price.
Jeff Skinner – Carolina Hurricanes – If you’re looking for a high-upside play that will fly under the radar, consider taking Jeff Skinner tonight. Skinner loves to shoot the puck and he should get plenty of opportunities to fire away tonight against a Colorado Avalanche team that allows the 4th most shots per game on the road and remains one of the worst puck possession teams in the NHL.. With points in consecutive games entering tonight’s game, Skinner should have no problem continuing his scoring streak in a favorable home matchup against the Av’s..
Top Value Plays: David Pastrnak (BOS), Justin Abdelkader (DET), Brett Ritchie (DAL), Matt Nieto (SJ)