NHL GPP Plays: Tuesday, October 13th
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 Page to confirm that the goalies listed below are starting prior to game time.
Eddie Lack, Carolina Hurricanes – In our GPPs we are ideally looking for three things: we want a goalie that will not only win the game, but who will also see a lot shots and come at a discount. Lack represents all three of those tonight. The Florida Panthers are a great matchup for Lack, they were ranked 25th in goals per game last season, but still fired over 30 shots per game. Not to mention Florida was shut out in Philadelphia last night and they are playing in back-to-back road games. Lack was very good last season with the Vancouver Canucks (2.45 GAA, .921 SV%), and I think it is just a matter of time before he becomes the Hurricanes’ top goalie. Thanks to his inexpensive salary across the industry, Lack is my top value goalie.
Other Goalies To Target – Carey Price, Keith Kinkaid, Brian Elliott
CENTERS
Eric Staal, Carolina Hurricanes – Normally I am not a big fan of the Carolina Hurricanes’ offense, but they are sneaky tonight facing a Florida Panthers team playing in consecutive road games. On top of that, we should see backup goalie Al Montoya in the crease as Roberto Luongo should get the night off. Staal is by far the Hurricanes’ biggest offensive threat and I think he produces a multi-point game in this one.
Evgeny Kuznetsov, Washington Capitals – If you are looking for a value center with big-game upside, Evgeny Kuznetsov makes a great play. Kuznetsov will center Alexander Ovechkin at both even strength and on the Washington Capitals’ number one power-play unit. Having exposure to one of the NHL’s elite snipers at a discounted price is never a bad idea in tournaments. The 23-year-old Russian is extremely talented and he could not be in a better spot to produce.
Other Centers To Target – Jeff Carter, Tyler Johnson, Aleksander Barkov
WINGERS
Johnny Gaudreau, Calgary Flames – Johnny Gaudreau and the Calgary Flames’ top line would normally be quite popular at home tonight, but with them facing the St. Louis Blues, I expect most fantasy owners to look elsewhere. Gaudreau is off to a nice start (4 PTS, 6 SOG, 2 GP) and I would not be surprised to see this line go off, despite the tough matchup.
Patrick Eaves, Dallas Stars – It appears as though Patrick Eaves has been promoted to the Dallas Stars’ top line to play with superstars Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin. The Stars are an explosive offense and I expect them to be one of the higher-scoring teams tonight with the Edmonton Oilers in town. Dollar for dollar, Eaves is my top GPP play of the night.
Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay Lightning – With the Tampa Bay Lightning playing their second consecutive road game in Detroit tonight, I don’t see them being very popular in large-field tournaments. The Bolts’ so called second line (Ondrej Palat, Tyler Johnson and Nikita Kucherov) is capable of exploding on any given night, and Kucherov is the top option of the three.
Chris Kreider, New York Rangers – The New York Rangers tend to get overlooked in GPPs because they don’t really have one potent line, and their scoring is spread out amongst the top three lines. Kreider is generally low percentage owned because he skates on the Blue Shirts’ second line and number two power-play unit. Make no mistake, Kreider is a goal scorer (21 G, 188 SOG in 2014-15) and has that big-game upside we require.
Other Wingers To Target – Vladimir Tarasenko, Max Pacioretty, Joe Pavelski
DEFENSE
Justin Faulk, Carolina Hurricanes – Staying with the Carolina Hurricanes theme, why not pair offensive defenseman Justin Faulk with Eric Staal. For the same reason I like Staal, I also like power play quarterback Justin Faulk. Tired teams take penalties and Faulk should light them up with the man advantage. With his high salary, I don’t see him being a popular play.
Other Defensemen To Target – Aaron Ekblad, Justin Schultz, Tobias Enstrom, Christian Ehrhoff
Good Luck Grinders!
Pepsi7