NHL Daily Plays: Tuesday, November 18th
What’s up Grinders! After a few days off recovering from the disastrous performance by the Toronto Maple Leafs in Buffalo last Saturday, we are back in action Tuesday with another full slate of NHL excitement. With some nice tournaments available throughout the industry, it’s nice to see the industry remain committed to the growth of NHL despite the fact it largely remains a niche sport. Whether or not you’re diehard hockey fan, there’s plenty of money to be made, so let’s jump right into it and take a look at my top plays for Tuesday, November 18th:
Goalies
Make sure to check the RotoGrinders Starting Goalies Page to confirm that the goalies listed below are starting prior to puck-drop
Jonathan Quick – Los Angeles Kings – With many established starting goalies finding themselves in tough matchups tonight, Quick instantly becomes my top option at home against a Florida Panthers team that has struggled scoring goals all season long. Quick is playing elite hockey for most of the season, especially at home, where he has a 7-1 record to go along with a 1.35 GAA and a stellar .956 SV% at the Staples Center this season. Florida managed to score a whopping 6 goals against the Ducks on Sunday, but even after that performance still rank 27th in the league in goals per game. Quick won’t be cheap, but he has the best matchup on paper and he should see a decent amount of low percentage shots to easily pay off his high salary tonight.
Ondrej Pavelec – Winnipeg Jets – You won’t see me recommending Pavelec very often as he always has the ability to blow up each time he touches the ice but it’s hard to ignore how good he has been this season. Even after getting yanked in his last start, Pavelec hasn’t allowed more than three goals in any start this season and a home matchup against a New Jersey Devils team that ranks 28th in the league in scoring. In what I expect to be a low scoring game, Pavelec and his moderate price tag makes for a decent tournament play that will give you the salary relief to load up your lineup with some high priced studs.
EDIT: Pavelec will not start tonight’s game, pivot to Troy Groseneck (SJ) for a cheap GPP goalie.
Defense
Disclaimer: Shea Weber, Mark Giordano, Kevin Shattenkirk, P.K. Subban, and Kris Letang, are elite defensemen and are always in play.
Brent Burns – San Jose Sharks – If there’s ever a night to pay up for a stud defenseman of the caliber of Burns, tonight is the night. After spending most of last season at forward, San Jose has moved Brent Burns back to the blue-line this season where he has been among the league leaders in fantasy production. Burns has a juicy matchup against the Sabres and enters tonight’s game leading all Sharks defensemen in almost every statistical category. I expect him to join the rush off plenty of times tonight off Sabres’ turnovers and have no problem finding his way involved in San Jose’s scoring mix tonight.
Tobias Enstrom – Winnipeg Jets – If you’re looking to save salary on defense tonight, Enstrom is my top mid-range play against the Devils. He logs heavy ice-time on Winnipeg’s top power play unit and will be taking on a New Jersey team that ranks dead-last in penalty kill percentage this season. The Jets have had trouble scoring throughout much of the season, especially on the power play, but if there’s ever an opportunity to breakout on the man advantage, it’s tonight.
Top Value Plays: Cody Franson (TOR), Marc-Edouard Vlasic (SJ)
Center
Disclaimer: Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Tyler Seguin, John Tavares, Ryan Johansen, Logan Couture, and Ryan Getzlaf are elite fantasy centers and are always in play.
Steven Stamkos – Tampa Bay Lightning – My top play across the board tonight, “Stammer” has been on fire of late; entering tonight’s game with points in 6 consecutive games and 14 in his last 10. He’s one of the few players in the league that I do whatever it takes to get in my lineup, since he has the ability to single-handedly burn your lineups. His recent success has put him atop the league in goals and he should have no problem getting involved in the Bolts’ scoring tonight taking on an Islanders team that has surrendered the third-most goals per game at home this season.
Ryan Kesler – Anaheim Ducks – Heading to Anaheim after an offseason blockbuster trade, Kesler has been exactly what the Ducks had hoped for with 15 points in his first 19 games. Featured on Anaheim’s top power play unit, he will be up against a Flames team that ranks 24th in the league in penalty kill percentage. He may not be solely responsible for the Ducks early season power play magic, but he is definitely a major factor to the team’s ability to score early this season on the man advantage. With the Flames likely putting their focus on Anaheim’s top line of Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, I expect Kesler to have his way against an inexperienced Flames defensive core tonight and continue his strong play in what should be a very physical game.
Top Value Plays: Mike Ribeiro (NSH), Nick Spaling (PIT)
Wing
Disclaimer: Chris Kunitz, Alex Ovechkin, Patrick Marleau, joe Pavelski, Corey Perry, Jamie Benn, Max Pacioretty, Vladimir Tarasenko, and James Neal are elite fantasy forwards and are always in play.
Patric Hornqvist – Pittsburgh Penguins – In his inaugural campaign with Penguins, Hornqvist kicked off the year skating on the Pens’ top line alongside Sidney Crosby and Chris Kunitz. Despite his tremendous production, Hornqvist has since been moved to Pittsburgh’s second line alongside Evgeni Malkin, but the scoring hasn’t stopped. He enters tonight’s game with 19 points in 16 games this season which includes 10 power play points. Tonight Hornqvist and the Pens’ top ranked power play will be up against a tough Montreal team that boasts one of the league’s best penalty kill percentages in a marquee game. Even with the tough matchup, the scoring opportunities will be there, which is why I’ll be paying up for Hornqvist tonight.
Gustav Nyquist – Detroit Red Wings – After an unbelievable second half of last season in which Nyquist scored 23 goals and carried the Red Wings to the playoffs, Nyquist has picked up right where he left off with a goal in each of his first 4 games this season. He has since cooled off a bit, but will have a great opportunity to get back on track tonight against a Columbus team that has allowed 3.63 goals per game at home this season. Nyquist has some of the most incredible instincts in the league, using his remarkable anticipation to put himself in terrific scoring chances. He is also moderately priced and will likely be the focal point of Detroit’s offensive attack tonight.
Filip Forsberg – Nashville Predators – After being buried on Nashville’s bottom 6 rotation for much of his early years, Forsberg has been given an opportunity on the Preds’ top line under new coach Peter Laviolette and is making the most of his opportunity. The young Swede already has 20 points and leads the league with a ridiculous +19 rating for the Preds and will have the luxury of taking on an inconsistent Maple Leafs team that is once again surrendering too many shots per game for their own good this season. His price won’t remain as cheap as you’ll see it for long, so get him while you can at his manageable price tag.
Troy Brouwer – Washington Capitals – If you’re looking for some salary relief at forward tonight, consider taking Brouwer, who skates on Washington’s second line at even strength and is also featured on the Caps’ lethal power play unit. Most of Brouwer’s goals are of the ugly variety, but if you’re looking for some cheap exposure to Ovechkin and Washington’s top power play unit, taking Brouwer is a wise strategy that will allow you to load up elsewhere. The only concerning part about taking Brouwer tonight is that almost all of his production has come at home this season, but he should receive plenty of rebound opportunities on the power play with Mike Smith in net, who remains one of the worst goalies in the league.
Top Value Plays: Tom Wilson (WSH), Tomas Hertl (SJ), Matt Nieto (SJ), Ales Hemsky (DAL)