NHL Grind Down: Monday, January 25th
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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Buffalo Sabres at New York Rangers – 07:00 PM EST
| Buffalo Sabres | New York Rangers | ||||||||
 | Robin Lehner |  | Henrik Lundqvist | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 19-25-4 | 26-17-5 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.23 | 2.60 | 20.70% | 80.50% | Team Stats | 2.79 | 2.58 | 17.30% | 79.30% |
The Sabres were blanked by the Detroit Red Wings on Friday night and now find themselves once again in the cellar of the Atlantic Division. They’ve posted an ugly 4-9-0 record over their last 13 games and will open up a tough three game road trip tonight at Madison Square Garden. Only the Anaheim Ducks are averaging fewer than Buffalo’s 2.23 goals per game this season and, with the Rangers allowing only 2.21 goals against per game at home, this looks like an easy situation to avoid in your cash games. Ryan O’Reilly continues to be an offensive force for his new team and leads Buffalo with 17 goals and 23 assists in 48 games this season. He’ll center the top line alongside Evander Kane adn Matt Moulson and also lead the charge on the #1 power-play unit. Jack Eichel is still very much alive for the Calder Trophy this season and, with a healthy dose of his minutes coming alongside O’Reilly on that top power-play unit, is a fine tournament option. Rasmus Ristolainen is in the midst of the best season of his young career and is locked into 25+ minutes of ice-time a night. With the Rangers owning a subpar 79.3% penalty kill, he has plenty of upside here as well.
The Rangers have been a force on home-ice all season and will put their 17-5-2 home record on the line tonight against the visiting Buffalo Sabres. New York should be angry after being shutout in Ottawa yesterday and they’ll likely be quite popular this evening against the lowly Sabres. The Rangers looked a bit lost without Rick Nash yesterday, and while Alain Vigneault has said he should be ready to return tonight, reports are that he was limping badly before the game yesterday and his return is certainly not guaranteed tonight. Even with Nash out of action, New York still possesses two strong forward lines. Vigneault went with Zuccarello/Brassard/Fast on one line and Kreider/Stepan/Miller on the other against Ottawa yesterday. Both Derick Brassard and Mats Zuccarello are averaging a point per game on home ice this season and still carry very reasonable asking prices across the industry. On defense, Ryan McDonagh saw his four game point streak snapped against the Senators, but has still amassed a goal and six assists over the last eight games. Keith Yandle has posted 25 points in 48 games this season and remains a threat on the point of the #2 power-play as well.
Elite Options
BUF: None
NYR: Derick Brassard, Mats Zuccarello, Derek Stepan, Ryan McDonagh, Keith Yandle, Rick Nash (if he healthy)
Secondary Options
BUF: Ryan O’Reilly, Evander Kane, Jack Eichel, Rasmus Ristolainen
NYR: J.T. Miller, Chris Kreider, Kevin Hayes, Jesper Fast, Dan Boyle
Boston Bruins at Philadelphia Flyers – 07:00 PM EST
| Boston Bruins | Philadelphia Flyers | ||||||||
 | Tuukka Rask |  | Steve Mason | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 25-17-5 | 20-17-8 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.96 | 2.60 | 26.00% | 84.90% | Team Stats | 2.24 | 2.60 | 17.10% | 78.40% |
The Bruins didn’t play their best game of the season against the Blue Jackets on Saturday, but ultimately picked up a 3-2 shootout victory and have now won four of their last five games. They’l head out for a quick one game road trip tonight in Philadelphia hoping to avenge to previous losses this season to the Flyers. The Bruins were ecstatic to get David Krejci back into action earlier this week and his presence gives Claude Julien two very solid forward lines to throw at the Flyers. Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand headline the top forward line, but it’s been their “third wheel” Ryan Spooner wielding the hottest stick. Spooner has picked up assists in each of the last two games and posted two goals and 11 assists over the last 12 games. Krejci regains his role as the center on the second line and will be joined by the dangerous Loui Eriksson and David Pastrnak. Eriksson has scored a goal and added two assists in two meetings against the Flyers this season and remains criminally underpriced on a few sites (FanDuel) for a guy with 15 goals and 24 assists in 47 games this season. On defense, both Torey Krug and Zdeno Chara see plenty of run on the Boston power-play and will look to take advantage of the Flyers subpar 78.4% penalty kill.
The Flyers saw their last scheduled game postponed on Saturday so they should be should be well rested for tonight’s tilt against the Boston Bruins. They’ve dropped each of their last two games and really need to make a run quickly if they have hopes of making the playoffs in the crowded Eastern Conference this season. Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek are easily the top options on a nightly basis and join Wayne Simmonds on the Flyers lethal top forward line and #1 power-play unit. While they’ll likely be shadowed all over the ice by the Bergeron/Marchand combo, both Voracek and Giroux have tallied five points in the two prior meetings with Boston this season. Alternatively, Brayden Schenn has posted four goals and five assists over the last nine games and joins the trio of forwards from the top line on the #1 power-play unit. On defense, both Shayne Gostisbehere and Mark Streit see a heavy workload including time on the point of the power-play. Gostisbehere dished out a pair of assists against Pittsburgh on Thursday and has now tallied 19 points in 27 games this season. Boston has been rock solid with their penalty kill lately, but both blue-liners look like fine options regardless.
Elite Options
BOS: Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, Ryan Spooner, Loui Eriksson, Torey Krug
PHI: Claude Giroux, Jakub Voracek, Wayne Simmonds, Shayne Gostisbehere
Secondary Options
BOS: David Pastrnak, David Krejci, Brett Connolly, Zdeno Chara
PHI: Brayden Schenn, Michael Raffl, Mark Streit
Montreal Canadiens at Columbus Blue Jackets – 07:00 PM EST
| Montreal Canadiens | Columbus Blue Jackets | ||||||||
 |  | Joonas Korpisalo | |||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 17-27-5 | |||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.69 | 2.56 | 17.20% | 85.10% | Team Stats | 2.47 | 3.20 | 17.20% | 81.10% |
The Canadiens finally snapped a five-game losing streak with a 3-2 shootout victory over the Maple Leafs but have posted an NHL worst 5-16-1 record since December 1st. However, this team still has aspirations of being a major player in the Eastern then they absolutely have to take advantage of this home-and-home series against the cellar dwelling Columbus Blue Jackets. With Columbus allowing a league worst 3.20 goals against per game this season, it may be wise to ignore the Canadiens recent struggles. Max Pacioretty is the catalyst of this offense and leads the team with 19 goals and 17 assists in 48 games. He scored a goal n their only other meeting this season and is a top tier play tonight alongside both Tomas Plekanec and Brendan Gallagher on both the top forward line as well as #1 power-play unit. On defense, P.K. Subban saw his six game point streak snapped on Saturday, but he’s picked up points in 9 of the last 11 games and has logged over 30 minutes of playing time in each of the last two games. His 2.3% shooting percentage is unsustainably low so take advantage of the discount on the sites where his price has fallen.
The Blue Jackets will take the ice tonight with the worst record in the NHL and have now dropped three straight games after losing in a shootout against the Bruins on Saturday. While Montreal has been an absolute disaster lately, it’s still very tough to trust anyone from Columbus in cash games. Scott Hartnell and Brandon Saad are tied for the team lead with 16 goals and 16 assists each and skate alongside Alexander Wennberg on the top line. Saad has posted 11 goals and 8 assists in 23 home games. Alternatively, Brandon Dubinsky centers Boone Jenner and Cam Atkinson on a very capable secondary scoring line and Columbus also welcomed Nick Foligno back into action on Saturday. It’s been a disaster season for Foligno, but he did score a goal against Montreal in their first meeting and still sees plenty of run on the #1 power-play unit. He posted 31 goals and 42 assists in 79 games last season and therefore has some GPP appeal. On defense, the newly acquired Seth Jones is logging huge minutes with his new team and has tallied five assists over the last five games. Meanwhile Jack Johnson sees the bulk of the playing time on the point with the #1 power-play unit and has three goals and three assists in ten games this month.
Elite Options
MON: Max Pacioretty, Tomas Plekanec, Brendan Gallagher, P.K. Subban
CBJ: Brandon Saad, Scott Hartnell
Secondary Options
MON: David Desharnais, Alex Galchenyuk, Andrei Markov
CBJ: Nick Foligno, Brandon Dubinsky, Boone Jenner, Seth Jones, Jack Johnson
Detroit Red Wings at New York Islanders – 07:00 PM EST
| Detroit Red Wings | New York Islanders | ||||||||
 | Petr Mrazek |  | Jaroslav Halak | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 24-16-8 | 25-15-6 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.44 | 2.48 | 17.10% | 80.60% | Team Stats | 2.72 | 2.41 | 17.80% | 87.80% |
The Red Wings dropped a tightly contested 4-3 decision to the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday and will embark on a three-game road trip that begins tonight in Brooklyn for their first meeting of the season against the Islanders. Detroit has posted a 6-3-1 record over their last ten games and own an impressive 13-6-3 road record on the young season. The Red Wings find themselves in second place in the Atlantic Division in large part due to their balanced scoring attack and while that’s good news for Coach Blashill, it’s not ideal for daily fantasy purposes. With that said, the Wings have recently shuffled up their forward lines and now have two clear “scoring” lines. Henrik Zetterberg and Dylan Larkin are tied for the team lead with 32 points and are joined by Justin Abdelkader on a very dangerous top line. Alternatively, Pavel Datsyuk looks to be back to full speed and centers Gustav Nyquist and Darren Helm on the second line. Datsyuk posted a goal and two assists against New York last season and, despite being held off the scoresheet in each of the last three games, has posted a goal and seven assists in ten games this month. On defense, Mike Green is set for as many minutes as he can handle on the point of the #1 power-play unit with Niklas Kronwall watching from the press-box, but his upside is limited thanks to New York’s excellent 87.8% penalty kill.
After having their last game postponed due to Winter Storm Jonas, the Islanders will be eager to hit the ice against the Detroit Red Wings tonight at the snow covered Barclay’s Center. New York picked up a much needed 5-2 win on the road in Ottawa on Friday and have now won three of their last four games. They’ve posted a strong 15-7-3 record on home ice this season and are averaging 2.96 goals per game in front of their home fans. John Tavares will likely draw the most attention from both the fantasy owners and Pavel Datsyuk, but it’s but Kyle Okposo leading the charge from the second forward line. Okposo scored a goal and added an assist against Ottawa on Friday night and has posted 7 goals and 15 assists in 24 home games this season. The underrated Frans Nielsen joins him at both even strength and alongside Mr. Tavares on the #1 penalty kill. Brock Nelson picked up two goals and two assists in three meetings against the Red Wings last season and flashed his GPP winning upside with a hat trick (and an assist) last week against the Blue Jackets. On defense, Nick Leddy is locked into huge minutes with Johnny Boychuk sidelined and runs things from the point of the #1 power-play. He’s picked up points in three straight games and is still underpriced throughout the industry.
Elite Options
DET: Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk, Dylan Larkin
NYI: John Tavares, Kyle Okposo, Frans Nielsen, Nick Leddy
Secondary Options
DET: Gustav Nyquist, Justin Abdelkader, Tomas Tatar, Mike Green
NYI: Ryan Strome, Brock Nelson, Marek Zidlicky
Calgary Flames at Dallas Stars – 08:30 PM EST
| Calgary Flames | Dallas Stars | ||||||||
 | Karri Ramo |  | Antti Niemi | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 21-21-3 | 30-14-5 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.69 | 3.00 | 14.90% | 75.00% | Team Stats | 3.22 | 2.65 | 21.60% | 79.10% |
The Flames have been one of the most disappointing teams in the league this season and just simply can’t seem to gain any momentum. They’ll head to Dallas tonight to close out of five game road trip and have actually defeated the high-flying Stars in each of their first two meetings. With that said, this Calgary team has struggled on the road all season (7-13-3 road record) and Dallas has posted a very impressive 18-6-0 record at the American Airlines Center, so pump the brakes a bit. Johnny Gaudreau is far and away leading the Flames’ with 20 goals and 26 assists in 46 games this season and is the top fantasy option here tonight. He’s joined by Sean Monahan and David Jones on a very dangerous top line that is certainly capable of a GPP winning performance against the sometimes soft defense of the Dallas Stars. Sam Bennett has shown the offensive upside that made him the 4th overall pick in the NHL draft last season as the 19 year-old has eight goals over the last six games and joins Mikael Backlund and Michael Frolik to give Bob Hartley a nice secondary scoring option. It’s a crowded blue-line for Calgary as Mark Giordano, Dougie Hamilton, T.J. Brodie and Dennis Wideman all have plenty of offensive talent while also also receiving playing time with the man advantage. Giordano has racked up four goals and 14 assists over his last 15 games and is the top option.
With Dallas owning an 18-6-0 home record this season and welcoming in the defensively inept Calgary Flames to Texas, this looks like the chalk play of the night. The Stars remain the fastest paced team in the NHL this season (116.5 CP60) and also trail only the Washington Capitals with 3.38 goals per game on home ice. Only Patrick Kane has posted more points than both Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn this season and they’re clearly two of the premier plays of the evening (and dangerous fades in cash games). Jamie Benn has been an absolute beast on home ice; posting 20 goals and 15 assists (and a +15) in just 24 games. Patrick Sharp has found himself back as the “third wheel” on the top line which is terrific news for his fantasy outlook. Jason Spezza will likely be a bit overlooked tonight, but he’s heated up with five goals and 13 assists over this last 17 games and makes for a very compelling GPP play. With Calgary owning the league’s worst penalty kill (75.2%), John Klingberg shoots up my rankings as the point man on the lethal #1 power-play unit. He’s cooled down a bit lately, but still owns 39 points in 49 games. Jason Demers scored a power-play goal against the Avalanche on Saturday and, as he’s starting to see consistent PP time, he looks like one of the better value plays on the blue-line.
Elite Options
CGY: Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan, Mark Giordano, Dougie Hamilton
DAL: Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn, Patrick Sharp, Jason Spezza, John Klingberg
Secondary Options
CGY: Sam Bennett, Jiri Hudler, Mikael Backlund, David Jones, T.J. Brodie, Dennis Wideman
DAL: Patrick Eaves, Valeri Nichushkin, Cody Eakin, Jason Demers, Alex Goligoski