NHL GPP Plays: Tuesday, January 5th
Every Tuesday and Thursday I am going to give you my top tournament plays for all Daily Fantasy Hockey GPPs (guaranteed prize pool). GPPs are a general term used across the industry for your big money tournaments.
GPPs are very different from your cash games and you use a different strategy with them. In our GPPs we are not interested in safe plays, since GPPs are all about UPSIDE. We want players who can explode, as all-or-nothing type players can become GPP gold, and your value players are just as important as your star players. You need your players to have huge nights in order to take down these big tournaments.
My goal is to provide players who will be under-owned and have that big game upside you are looking for. I will also try to find as much value as I possibly can. Now, let’s get to the NHL GPP plays!
Goaltenders
Make sure to check the RotoGrinders Starting Goalies and Lines Page prior to game time, to confirm that the goalies listed below are starting.
Ben Scrivens, Montreal Canadiens and Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets – I am not in love with either goalie tonight, but they both make solid options thanks to their inexpensive salaries. With the Canadiens healthy up front, they are a different team and they should be able to score enough goals to get Scrivens a win. He should also have plenty of save opportunities in this game as well. Hellebuyck has a tough matchup against the Predators in Nashville, but he has been outstanding this season (2.01 GAA, .929 SV%) and he is certainly capable of stealing another win for the Jets.
Other Goalies To Target – Henrik Lundqvist, Tuukka Rask, Karri Ramo
Forwards
Jakub Voracek, Philadelphia Flyers – Voracek has points in six of his last seven games and he is now skating on the Philadelphia Flyers’ top line alongside Wayne Simmonds and Claude Giroux. This trio has explosive upside versus a Montreal Canadiens team that can’t keep the puck out of their net. Unless you are a Ben Scrivens fan, this line is definitely worth stacking tonight.
Tyler Johnson, Tampa Bay Lightning – Johnson and his linemates used to be extremely popular in GPPs, but due to many injuries this year, this line has never really taken off this season. However, the upside remains and the entire line will be low percentage owned tonight. The Calgary Flames are still a team we can pick on, as they sit in the bottom third of the league in just about every defensive category, thanks in large part to their lousy goaltending.
Mats Zuccarello, New York Rangers – The Dallas Stars score a ton of goals but they also allow their fair share as well. Both Stars goalies (Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen) are capable of standing on their head, or looking completely awful on any given night. Zuccarello is moderately priced across the industry and he has that big game upside we require in our tournament play.
Thomas Vanek, Minnesota Wild – Playing on the Wild’s third line and top power play unit, Vanek makes for a sneaky GPP option on the wing. Columbus is one of the National Hockey League’s worst possession teams, which has resulted in allowing the 10th most shots against and the third most goals against per game this season. The Blue Jackets lead the National Hockey League in penalty minutes per game and despite all the practice, they have not done a good job killing off those penalties. Vanek has multi-goal upside and he won’t be highly owned in large field tournaments.
Other Forwards To Target – Evgeny Kuznetsov, Ryan Spooner, Nick Bjugstad, Jack Eichel, Artem Anisimov, Evander Kane, Valtteri Filppula
Defense
Shayne Gostisbehere, Philadelphia Flyers – The Montreal Canadiens looked much better in their last game with Brendan Gallagher back in the lineup, however he can’t play goal. The Canadiens will struggle in net until Carey Price returns from injury. As the Philadelphia Flyers’ power play quarterback, Gostisbehere has multi-point upside against a Canadiens team that allowed the sixth most goals against per game in the month of December.
Other Defensemen To Target – Matt Niskanen, Rasmus Ristolainen, Brian Campbell, Colin Miller