NHL DFS Slate Summary: Thursday, October 26th
Welcome to the RotoGrinders NHL DFS Slate Summary. In this article, we’ll concentrate on the key elements of DFS success while delivering analysis on the upcoming slate of NHL games for DraftKings and FanDuel. We’ll discuss today’s NHL DFS player projections, player correlations and NHL stacking, NHL starting lineups, differentiation tactics using NHL projected ownership, and recommendations on ways to create lineup diversity if entering multiple lineups using LineupHQ.
NHL DFS Picks: Slate Summary for Thursday, October 26th
Today’s Games
Slate Overview
I didn’t get to watch a ton of the “Frozen Frenzy” the other night due to familial commitments, but the bits I did get to see were awesome. Hopefully it’s a concept they’ll try again as it appeared to be well-received across the hockey world. Tonight, things are back to usual for a Thursday night slate, which means plenty of teams in action. There are two overwhelming favorites (Bruins and Lightning) who should soak up massive amounts of ownership. What you decide to do with them will go a long way in determining your success.
The biggest injury news to monitor is for Alex Debrincat and Andrei Svechnikov, both of whom are questionable tonight. Svechnikov has been out and would be making his return if he plays, whereas Debrincat is just sick and is still likely to play. Debrincat’s absence would open up some nice value elsewhere given his role and shot volume. Connor McDavid is still out, although the prices for other Oilers has been adjusted by now and seems fair. They aren’t bad plays, just not tremendous values thanks to DraftKing’s pricing. There’s another $555 contest on DraftKings as well as a live final qualifier up for grabs. Hopefully we can keep the momentum going and the RG Discord will take down some more GPPs tonight.
Top Skaters
Nikita Kucherov
DraftKings $8,400
Kucherov came through in a big way on Saturday night when he was 1% owned (which was silly btw, all of you are better than that!). Unfortunately tonight, he’ll be about 30x that in ownership, but is a terrifying fade. As I mentioned on Saturday, he’s shown some extreme home/road splits. Last year, he had 66 points at home compared to just 47 on the road despite playing in all 82 games. Tonight, he draws the matchup of all matchups against the lowly Sharks. San Jose fought admirably the other night against the Panthers, but still ended up conceding three goals. That feels like the absolute minimum they’ll allow tonight. Kucherov should be right in the middle of the action and should be in store for another multi-point night.
Nathan MacKinnon
DraftKings $9,300
I think my biggest stance for the night is that Nathan MacKinnon is still the best play on the slate, despite a tougher matchup than many of his counterparts. MacKinnon’s numbers on the year are exceptional, but they could arguably be even better. His SOG volume is off the charts and he’s currently averaging 6.5 shots per game. The only “disappointing” statistic comparatively speaking is the assists with just three in six games. Meanwhile, Mikko Rantanen has seven assists, so that feels like something fluky that will normalize over time. As I mentioned, the matchup isn’t a prime as others, but it also isn’t one that should scare us away. The Penguins are around league-average in the majority of defensive/goaltending statistics to start the year. Given that they’ve had some favorable matchups against the Blackhawks, Capitals, Flames, and Blues, I’d argue they are below-average at the moment. At potentially muted ownership compared to usual, give me MacKinnon every day of the week.