NHL Grind Down: Friday, December 9th
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The RotoGrinders NHL Grind Down article will give you an in-depth analysis into the NHL schedule. This article will break down the numbers for every single game and give you analysis on which trends you can exploit. While matchups are a major factor in daily fantasy hockey there are plenty of other factors to consider such as injuries, salaries, and more.
The analysis should point you in the right direction, but it is still up to you to decipher the information and make your own selections. Hockey is an extremely high variance sport. The best choice is not always the right choice but following the trends will win you money over time.
Remember, these writeups are done prior to lineups being released, so make sure to check our Starting Lineups page to ensure the recommended options are playing.
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Washington Capitals at Buffalo Sabres
| Washington Capitals | Buffalo Sabres | ||||||||
 | Braden Holtby |  | Robin Lehner | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 15-7-3 | 10-10-6 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.60 | 2.24 | 14.80% | 82.50% | Team Stats | 2.08 | 2.50 | 23.00% | 75.60% |
The Washington Capitals finally have all of the pieces in place to make a serious run for the cup. T.J. Oshie returned from injury last game and took his spot on the right wing next to Nicklas Backstrom and Marcus Johansson. This line gets plenty of ice time when the Capitals draw a penalty. Alexander Ovechkin anchors the team’s top line while Evgeny Kuznetsov and Justin Williams join him when Washington is at even strength. You could use Kuznetsov or Williams as a cheap play to pair with Ovechkin but neither get too much exposure to him when the Capitals have the man advantage. If you are going to go on cheap then maybe Johansson is the target here as he has grabbed three goals and two assists over the last five games with one of each coming on the power play. Backstrom leads the team in points with 22 and nine power play points so it becomes pretty clear in a hurry as to which players to target tonight. John Carlson is the play from the back line as he is tie for the team lead with 15 shots over the last five games and has added two assists along the way. Carlson quarterbacks the team’s top power play line along with Ovechkin and the Backstrom line. The only reservation I have tonight is the fact they are playing in Buffalo with this being a rematch game from Monday night where the Capitals came away with a 3-2 overtime victory on home ice.
The Sabres are another team that has seen some players that have been injured returning to the lineup. The big one is Jack Eichel as he has five points in the five games he has played in since he has returned with four of the coming with the man advantage. Head coach Dan Bylsma seems to have constructed two solid lines to face Washington for tonight’s game. He has done this before only to mix them all up again which, in my opinion, has no real value as the players need at least a few games to figure out where each will be on the ice. Eichel will center Evander Kane and Sam Reinhart while Ryan O’Reilly will center Kyle Okposo and Brian Gionta. The only problem I have here is Gionta as for my money I would rather have Matt Moulson on that line, but that’s just me. One would have to imagine that Bylsma will try to get the Eichel line the better match ups but that doesn’t mean that O’Reilly and Okposo aren’t good plays here as they join Eichel and Reinhart to form 80% of the Sabres top power play unit. Buffalo has scored six power play goals over the last five games and defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen has been in on four of them. He is the play here on defense as he is obviously the quarterback on a power play that has suddenly come alive thanks to the return of Eichel. As far as other defensemen go, I would probably look elsewhere tonight.
Elite Plays
WSH: Alexander Ovechkin
BUF: Jack Eichel
Secondary Plays
WSH: Nicklas Backstrom, T.J. Oshie, Marcus Johansson, John Carlson
BUF: Ryan O’Reilly, Kyle Okposo, Rasmus Ristolainen, Evander Kane, Sam Reinhart
St. Louis Blues at New Jersey Devils
| St. Louis Blues | New Jersey Devils | ||||||||
 | Carter Hutton |  | Keith Kinkaid | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 15-8-4 | 12-8-6 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.73 | 2.73 | 21.30% | 87.00% | Team Stats | 2.56 | 2.68 | 16.90% | 85.20% |
The Blues are simply going to have to find a way to win on the road as they lost their seventh road game last night to the New York Islanders. The Islanders have been playing better of late as that was their fifth win in six games but with all the offense this team has, scoring two goals is almost a joke. It didn’t take long for Robby Fabbri to reconnect with Vladimir Tarasenko as Fabbri had a goal and assisted on the other Blues goal last night. Jori Lehtera centered the dynamic duo but appeared to be dropped to the third line in favor of Patrik Berglund. I’d stick with Tarasenko and Fabbri here though as they have combined for 11 points over the last five games. The second line of Jaden Schwartz, Paul Statsny and Alexander Steen should be the line to target here though as I have a feeling the Devils will be busy trying to shut down the Tarasenko line. Kevin Shattenkirk remains the go-to guy on the point as he has registered five of his 17 points over the last five games. Head coach Ken Hitchcock is notorious for shuffling up the line when things go bad, which is why it’s probably a good idea to check out @jprutherford tomorrow for any line changes. I am seeing where some folks have the Blues putting Tarasenko with Steen and Schwartz but with them playing last night and no morning skate today, I find it hard to believe as there was nothing in last night’s game log to indicate any change but it does make sense. This would mean that Lehtera has been demoted to the third line while David Perron would be on a line with Fabbri and Stastny.
If you go by the numbers the New Jersey Devils should win this one going away. They are the only team in the league without a regulation loss on home ice while the Blues are a pitiful 3-7-1 away from Scott Trade Center after last night’s game in Brooklyn. The Devils played a chippy game against the Canucks on Tuesday night as they almost saw teammate Travis Zajac get checked from behind and go head first into the boards. He would later return to the game but Vancouver defenseman Philip Larsen would not be as lucky. On what seemed to be a clean hit behind the net, Taylor Hall was able to catch Larsen with his head down and hit him hard to the ice. Larsen appeared to hit his head on the way down. Thankfully Larsen is okay and was released from the hospital yesterday. Hall will skate alongside of Adam Henrique and P.A. Parenteau which makes him a nice one-off play tonight as he has 17 points in the 17 games he has played in thus far. Henrique and Parenteau are okay but are not even close to what the New Jersey brass were looking this season. Henrique has 11 points while Parenteau has nine. This can only mean that the line of Mike Cammalleri, Travis Zajac and Kyle Palmieri will be the line to target tonight for your cash game options. Zajac has registered six points over the last four games and leads the team with 21 points while Cammalleri has 17 points in the 19 games he has appeared in. Defenseman Damon Severson is the play here as he’s been inserted back on the top power play unit and is fourth on the team in scoring with 15 points.
Elite Plays
STL: Vladimir Tarasenko
NJ: Travis Zajac
Secondary Plays
STL: Robby Fabbri, Kevin Shattenkirk, Jaden Schwartz, Alexander Steen
NJ: Taylor Hall, Mike Cammalleri, Damon Severson, Kyle Palmieri
Columbus Blue Jackets at Detroit Red Wings
| Columbus Blue Jackets | Detroit Red Wings | ||||||||
 | Sergei Bobrovsky |  | Petr Mrazek | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 15-5-4 | 13-11-3 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 3.17 | 2.17 | 24.60% | 81.30% | Team Stats | 2.41 | 2.67 | 14.60% | 84.10% |
Defenseman Zachary Werenski has missed two days of practices for personal reasons and will be back for tonight’s game against the Detroit Red Wings. That’s good news as he has registered 17 points so far this season with eight of them coming with the man advantage. The top line of Alexander Wennberg, Nick Foligno and Brandon Saad all have over 21 points so far this season which would make them a decent option for your tournament plays tonight. The second line of Boone Jenner, Brandon Dubinsky and Cam Atkinson also make for a decent GPP play with Atkinson being a nice one-off play here as he not only leads the team with 23 points he has also registered four goals and 18 shots over the last five games. Sam Gagner is another nice one-off play as he plays on the team’s fourth line but has garnered 17 points with seven of them coming with the man advantage. He also has lit the lamp three times and has added two assists over the last five games while playing on the team’s top power play unit.
UPDATE
It looks like Nick Foligno has fallen ill and will not play in tonight’s game.
I guess winning five of the last eight games wasn’t good enough for head coach Jeff Blashill to stick with the lines he’s been running out there on almost a nightly basis. Thankfully he has kept Henrik Zetterberg together with Anthony Mantha and Tomas Tatar. Zetterberg has netted three goals and added two assists over the last fine games to lead the team with Mantha not far behind with two goals and one assist. That makes seven points in 12 games while Tatar is probably the player you do not want unless you are using them as a full line stack although four of his last 11 points have come in the last five games. Could these coaches possibly be learning that it’s best to keep lines together? Obviously not since Dylan Larkin now has two new line mates in Luke Glendening and Frans Nielsen. This is actually good news for Nielsen has somehow managed 15 points so far this season while having a plethora of different wingers over the first 27 games. Larkin should help him out here as all he has to do is feed the young winger who has eight goals on 75 shits so far this season. Gustav Nyquist and Thomas Vanek have a new line mate in Riley Sheahan so only time will tell how the last two lines are going to be used. Mike Green is the choice on the back line as he has registered four of his 16 points over the last five games. Niklas Kronwall is listed as being on the power play, which he is. The problem is that his better days have already gone by. We can easily see that by the two assists and 12 shots he has accumulated in the first 14 games he has played since being injured. Detroit beat writer Ansar Khan has reported that there could be some lineup changes tonight as it appears there are a few players battling some minor health issues.
Elite Plays
CBJ: Alexander Wennberg
DET: Henrik Zetterberg
Secondary Plays
CBJ: Nick Foligno, Zachary Werenski, Cam Atkinson, Sam Gagner, Brandon Saad
DET: Anthony Mantha, Mike Green, Dylan Larkin, Gustav Nyquist
Edmonton Oilers at Minnesota Wild
| Edmonton Oilers | Minnesota Wild | ||||||||
 | Cam Talbot |  | Devan Dubnyk | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 14-11-4 | 13-8-4 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.93 | 2.61 | 21.70% | 83.70% | Team Stats | 2.76 | 2.04 | 16.90% | 83.80% |
Before last night’s game in Philadelphia the Edmonton Oilers switched up their lines and the results were interesting to say the least. If it was offense they were looking for, they got it as the Flyers were more than hospitable in terms handing out power play chances. Connor McDavid and Milan Lucic saw a new line mate in Drake Caggiula which as you can imagine, saw his ownership skyrocket on Thursday night as he tallied an assist as he played on the team’s second power play unit. The second line of Patrick Maroon, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Jordan Eberle has gotten lost in all of the McDavid excitement and can be used as a GPP play here tonight. Eberle leads this group with 22 points in 29 games. Leon Draisaitl and Mark Letestu join McDavid and Lucic on the team’s top power play unit but the problem here is that they play on the third and fourth lines respectively which would make them decent one-offs along with Eberle. Now, you could try to catch lightning in a bottle by pairing anyone of them with one of their line mates, but they get their best looks at the net while playing on the power play with McDavid. Andrej Sekera and Oscar Klefbom have both had their chances to quarterback the top power play unit as the Oilers have been flipping back and forth. The job is now Sekera’s to lose as he tallied a goal with the man advantage against the Flyers. Minnesota is a tough team with Devan Dubnyk between the pipes so I wouldn’t expect another five goal outburst tonight.
The Wild finished their recent five-game road trip with back-to-back wins in Edmonton and Toronto. Tonight the Oilers try to get some revenge fresh off of playing in Philadelphia last night. Last game Nino Niederreiter was put on the top line alongside of Eric Staal and Charlie Coyle and should be the line you look to for your cash game play tonight. Zach Parise was put on the third line but still sees the top line when the Wild draw a penalty. Although Parise does have 53 shots on goal he only has registered 9 points in the 18 games he has played in. Jason Zucker and Mikko Koivu make a decent tournament play here as they have a combined seven points over the last four games playing from the team’s second line. Ryan Suter and Jared Spurgeon get the call when the Wild go on the power play with Suter being the play here as he ranks third on the team in scoring while logging over 27 minutes of ice time on a nightly basis. After scoring six power play goals in four games they have come up none over the last five games. Minnesota needs to work on drawing penalties as they have only had ten chances in the last five games.
Elite Plays
EDM: Connor McDavid
MIN: None
Secondary Plays
EDM: Milan Lucic, Jordan Eberle, Leon Draisaitl, Andrej Sekera
MIN: Eric Staal, Charlie Coyle, Jason Zucker, Mikko Koivu, Ryan Suter, Nino Niederreiter
New York Rangers at Chicago Blackhawks
| New York Rangers | Chicago Blackhawks | ||||||||
 | Henrik Lundqvist |  | Scott Darling | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 18-9-1 | 17-8-3 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 3.59 | 2.52 | 22.40% | 84.70% | Team Stats | 2.71 | 2.39 | 16.30% | 71.40% |
With Rick Nash out of the Rangers line up they will look to Derek Stepan, Mats Zuccarello and Chris Kreider to keep them afloat in the Metropolitan division of the Eastern conference. Only three points separate the top team from the fourth team in that division so a win tonight could go a long way. The top line was able to score on the power play early against Winnipeg on Thursday night but it was the second line that scored with the man advantage to take home the 2-1 win. Kevin Hayes scored the goals while J.T. Miller assisted on the winning goal. Michael Grabner leads the team in goals with 13 and joins them to complete the second line at even strength. Either line is fine for tournament play tonight. I know there are only six games tonight so trying to choose any more than one of these guys for cash games may prove to be fatal as Scott Darling has only let up five goals since taking over for Corey Crawford last Saturday. Ryan McDonagh is the choice on the blue line as he gets most of the minutes when the team has the man advantage. Chicago is 12-2-2 on home ice and maybe a Rangers win tonight is asking for too much tonight.
The Blackhawks have been able to hang on to first place in the Central division despite losing the services of Jonathan Toews over the last seven games. He will not return tonight as Marcus Kruger is back between Marian Hossa and Ryan Hartman on the team’s second line. Hossa makes for a decent one-off play here as he not only has three goals in the last five games, he also leads the team with 14 of them The top line is the one that you will find in most of your cash games as Patrick Kane, Artemi Panarin and Artem Anisimov are the team’s top three scoring leaders. Panarin leads the team with 16 shots in the last five games while Kane has registered four assists to lead the team over that same time frame. Duncan Keith is the play on the back line as now Chicago has been hit with the injury bug again as Brent Seabrook will sit this one out. Keith will play on the top power play unit with the Kane line and the best guess here is that maybe defenseman Brian Campbell will join them or possibly Hossa.
Elite Plays
NYR: None
CHI: Patrick Kane
Secondary Plays
NYR: Chris Kreider, Derek Stepan, J.T. Miller, Kevin Hayes, Ryan McDonagh
CHI: Artemi Panarin, Artem Anisimov, Duncan Keith, Marian Hossa