NHL Grind Down: Saturday, December 31st
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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.
Note: As always, if you want to try a new DFS site, be sure to click through a RotoGrinders link and use our DraftKings promo code and FanDuel promo code to receive the best perks in the industry.
Washington Capitals at New Jersey Devils
| Washington Capitals | New Jersey Devils | ||||||||
 | Braden Holtby |  | Cory Schneider | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 20-9-5 | 14-15-7 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.65 | 2.09 | 17.60% | 85.80% | Team Stats | 2.25 | 2.94 | 15.10% | 82.60% |
After losing 2-1 in a shootout at home to these same New Jersey Devils the Capitals have decided to try to switch things up a bit. Nicklas Backstrom leads the team in points with 29 and he will still have Marcus Johansson on his left but will see a new face in Justin Williams on the right wing. Johansson is the one to pair with Backstrom here as he has seven of his 24 points while playing on the top unit of the Washington Power play. It’s more than likely that’s the Devils will try to shut down Alex Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov and T.J. Oshie which would make the Backstrom line the one to target for your cash game plays. Ovechkin is always in play if you can afford him as he leads the team with 16 goals on 128 shots. John Carlson quarterbacks the top power play unit from the point and has been producing lately as evidence of his two goals and two assists over the last four games. Carlson does only have 18 points on the year so maybe he is starting to heat up but in the meantime Dmitry Orlov has snuck up the Capitals scoring chart with 15 points which makes him a much cheaper option if you need some salary relief. Washington needs to get back on track as they have just one win in the last five games so maybe shuffling up the lines will help here tonight.
New Jersey has had problems all year with the latest one being the injury to Taylor Hall who has 23 points in the 27 games he has suited up for. Mike Cammalleri, Travis Zajac and Kyle Palmieri will not only skate as the team’s top line they will be the first unit to hit the ice when the Devils draw a penalty. Cammalleri was hot right out of the chute since returning from injury but has since saw his production drop off quite a bit while Palmieri has been able to rack up two goals and five points in the last seven games. New Jersey has only scored 17 goals in the last 11 games so maybe passing on them here for cash games isn’t a bad idea. P.A. Parenteau has scored four goals and five points in the last seven games as he leads the team in that department from the second line. Adam Henrique and Beau Bennett join him at even strength but quite frankly it’s pretty hard to recommend anyone but Parenteau from this line on home ice. John Moore has been getting the first shot on the power play from the point but it’s actually Damon Severson who has more points and more ice time than Moore has seen. The Devils don’t score much so using them in anything as a tournament play seems like wasting money to me.
Elite Plays
WSH: Nicklas Backstrom, Alexander Ovechkin
NJ: None
Secondary Plays
WSH: T.J. Oshie, Marcus Johansson, John Carlson, Evgeny Kuznetsov
NJ: Travis Zajac, Mike Cammalleri, Kyle Palmieri, Damon Severson, P.A. Parenteau
Buffalo Sabres at Boston Bruins
| Buffalo Sabres | Boston Bruins | ||||||||
 | Robin Lehner |  | Tuukka Rask | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 13-14-8 | 19-15-4 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.17 | 2.66 | 22.30% | 74.10% | Team Stats | 2.37 | 2.42 | 13.80% | 86.60% |
Buffalo is quickly becoming one of the worst teams in the Eastern Conference as they are tied with the New York Islanders with that dubious distinction. With just 77 goals on the season it’s going to be hard to look at the Sabres for any kind of DFS value but we at least have to try. Ryan O’Reilly is out with an emergency appendectomy which leaves the top line to be Marcus Foligno, Jack Eichel and Matt Moulson. Eichel could be used here as a one-off as he skates on the top power play unit that has scored three goals over the last five games. Eichel also has recorded six goals and five assists in the 16 games he has played so far this season. Sam Reinhart has been hot of late from the second line as he has two goals and four assists over the last five games. Kyle Okposo and Zemgus Girgensons are his line mates and make for a decent GPP option in the early slate. Evander Kane has dropped to the third line but has produced three of his eight goals over the last five games. Defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen leads the team in points with 24 and has tallied one goal and 13 assists while the Sabres have the man advantage. He quarterbacks the top unit and has been pretty solid for most of the year. Buffalo lost at home to Boston on Thursday night so there’s really no reason to think they can win on the road.
With their win on Thursday night the Boston Bruins were able to move into third place in the Atlantic Division with a 19-15-4 record. Ottawa is just two points above them so a win tonight could get them closer to the division leading Montreal Canadiens. It looks like second liner David Backes has suffered a concussion and will be out at least a week as they try to figure out how bad it is. This has forced Claude Julien to use his top line of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak as the go-to line when the Bruins draw a penalty. Marchand leads the team with 30 points while Pastrnak leads the team in goals with 19. This line looks good to go for your cash game endeavors this afternoon. Ryan Spooner jumps up to the top power play unit from the second line making him a decent one-off play here as he has racked up three goals and three assists in the last five games. If it’s a GPP play you are looking for you can always pair Spooner with his line mates in David Krejci and the very cheap Frank Vatrano. Torey Krug is the defenseman you want here as his six assists in the last five games has moved into fourth on the Bruins scoring list with 20 points. Look for Boston to score a few goals tonight in front of the home crowd.
Elite Plays
BUF: None
BOS: David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand
Secondary Plays
BUF: Jack Eichel, Rasmus Ristolainen, Kyle Okposo, Sam Reinhart
BOS: Patrice Bergeron, Torey Krug, Ryan Spooner, David Krejci
Columbus Blue Jackets at Minnesota Wild
| Columbus Blue Jackets | Minnesota Wild | ||||||||
 | Sergei Bobrovsky |  | Devan Dubnyk | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 25-5-4 | 23-8-4 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 3.44 | 2.06 | 28.00% | 81.40% | Team Stats | 3.14 | 2.00 | 17.50% | 85.60% |
In what could be termed as the game of the day the Columbus Blue Jackets will take their 14 game winning streak to Minnesota to face the Wild who have a healthy 12 game winning streak of their own. Something’s gotta give. Columbus has a plus 48 goal differential going into this one as that is tops in the league. Brandon Saad, Alexander Wennberg and Nick Foligno occupy the second to fourth spots on the Wild scoring chart with Wennberg leading the team with 24 assists. As always the Blue Jackets have some decent one-off plays when they hit the road and Cam Atkinson is one of them. He leads the team in points from the second line with 35 points. 17 have come with the man advantage while two of those points have come while the team was down a man. Throughout all of this Atkinson also leads the team with 98 shots on goal. You could go to the well with his line mates in Brandon Dubinsky and Boone Jenner but they just don’t produce for my liking in a cash game scenario. Sam Gagner joins Atkinson, Wennberg and Foligno on a top power play unit that has lit the lamp in eight of their last nine games. Gagner has a very respectable 14 goals and 14 assists in the 33 games he has played in. Zachary Werenski is the defensive choice here as he quarterbacks the team’s top power play unit. Werenski has registered 14 of his 24 points while Columbus had the man advantage. With two teams on winning streaks and leading the league with the least goals against this one sets up to be a good one.
Minnesota has a comfortable lead for second place in the Central Division as they have won the last 12 games they have played. Eric Staal is starting to fit in nicely as he centers the top line with Zach Parise and Jason Pominville. Staal’s eight points in the last six games gives him 30 for the year and the team lead while Parise has registered as goal and two assists in the last four games. Jason Zucker, Mikko Koivu and Mikael Granlund skate as the team’s second line as they have combined for six goals and 13 assists in the Wild’s last six games. I’ve mentioned it before and I will say it again, when a team is running as good as these guys are it seems everyone gets in on act. Charlie Coyle has turned it on from the third line has he has amassed nine points over the last six games which puts him tied with Staal for the team lead at 30 points. Ryan Suter and Mathew Dumba take the points on the power play with Parise, Staal and Coyle. Both make for decent plays here as Suter sees the ice a bit more as he is averaging over 27 minutes per game. There’s not much more to say on this one except sit back and enjoy it.
Elite Plays
CBJ: Alexander Wennberg, Cam Atkinson
MIN: Eric Staal
Secondary Plays
CBJ: Nick Foligno, Sam Gagner, Zachary Werenski, Brandon Saad
MIN: Zach Parise, Charlie Coyle, Ryan Suter, Mikko Koivu, Mathew Dumba
Montréal Canadiens at Pittsburgh Penguins
| Montréal Canadiens | Pittsburgh Penguins | ||||||||
 | Carey Price |  | Marc-Andre Fleury | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 22-9-5 | 24-8-5 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 3.03 | 2.25 | 20.20% | 80.90% | Team Stats | 3.43 | 2.78 | 22.50% | 79.70% |
Montreal broke their three game winless streak with a 3-2 overtime win in Florida on Thursday night. The Canadiens still hold a four point lead over Ottawa for first place in the Atlantic Division even with some of the injuries they have sustained. Max Pacioretty has taken control of his team as he has racked up 15 goals and 15 assists on a team leading 104 shots while Phillip Danault and Brendan Gallagher skate on the top line next to him. Danault hasn’t been bad lately as he has recorded four of his 16 points over the last six games. Alexander Radulov makes for a decent one-off play here as he gets the top power play minutes with Pacioretty while skating with Paul Byron and Torrey Mitchell. Shea Weber will play in his 800th game tonight so look for him to be a little more amped-up than usual as he will quarterback the team’s top power play unit. Although Weber does have 20 points on 92 shots it’s been the streaky Jeff Petry that has sneaked back up on the top power play unit. Petry leads the team with 27 shots over the last six games while garnering three goals and two assists. Montreal may be able to improve on their 7-6-3 home record tonight as the penguins top goaltender will not be in between the pipes tonight.
Pittsburgh head coach Mike Sullivan has termed goaltender Matt Murray as week-to-week with a lower-body injury. For some reason I think the Penguins will be just fine as they have won their last three games and sit in second place with53 points in the Metropolitan Division. Sidney Crosby makes for a good one-off here if you can afford him as he leads the team in goals and points with 26 and 42 respectively. Bryan Rust or Connor Sheary could be used to offset Crosby’s high price as they skate on the top line with him. Evgeni Malkin and Patric Hornqvist are now joined by Carl Hagelin while Chris Kunitz will skate on the third line with Phil Kessel and Nick Bonino. Kessel is also s decent one-off play here as he joins Crosby, Malkin and Hornqvist on the Penguins top power play unit that sees at least 60% of every man advantage. Kessel has 15 of his 36 points on the power play while Malkin leads the team with 26 assists and 114 shots on goal. Justin Schultz is the choice on defense as he has six points in the last five games while quarterbacking the team’s top power play unit. Pittsburgh is 16-2-2 in front of the home crowd and will certainly be tested tonight by the Atlantic Division leaders.
Elite Plays
MTL: Max Pacioretty
PIT: Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin
Secondary Plays
MTL: Shea Weber, Alexander Radulov, Jeff Petry, Paul Byron
PIT: Patric Hornqvist, Phil Kessel, Justin Schultz
Carolina Hurricanes at Tampa Bay Lightning
| Carolina Hurricanes | Tampa Bay Lightning | ||||||||
 | Cam Ward |  | Andrei Vasilevskiy | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 16-12-7 | 18-15-4 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.59 | 2.62 | 20.20% | 90.70% | Team Stats | 2.81 | 2.76 | 22.60% | 79.20% |
Carolina has won four of their last five games including an impressive 3-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks last night as they had control of the game from the get-go. The Hurricanes need to keep grinding it out as they are only three points away from the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The top line of Jeff Skinner, Victor Rask and Derek Ryan has been a bit quiet of late as they only have Skinner’s goal and Rask’s assist to show for their work over the last five games. Both players lead the team in points so I wouldn’t be opposed to playing them in a tournament tonight. The line I do like is the Sebastian Aho, Teuvo Teravainen and Lee Stempniak line. All three players have registered three points each over the last five games with Aho sitting in third on the hurricanes scoring chart with six goals and 13 assists. Elias Lindholm has been getting in on the scoring of late as he has two goals and two assists over the last five games. With the injury to Justin Faulk the only other options on the back line are Brett Pesce and Noah Hanifin. They both play on the team’s top power play unit along with the top line so using either one id fine if you are stacking Carolina tonight.
Tampa Bay is another team that is close to swiping the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Their 18-15-4 record has them at 40 points which is one above Carolina and two below the Boston Bruins, who hold the eighth spot as of now. Nikita Kucherov makes for a deent one-off play here as he centers the top line along with Ondrej Palat and Tyler Johnson. Kucherov missed seven games but has come back with three points in two games as he still leads the team with 13 goals and 33 points in the 30 games he has played in. You can use the whole line if you are looking to stack the Lightning but if you like playing pairs then Tyler Johnson is the one you want with Kucherov. The whole line is the top power play unit but Johnson has recorded ten of his 21 points while on the power play. Brian Boyle joins the power play from the second line as he skates with Valtteri Filppula and Jonathan Drouin as its Drouin who makes another decent one-off play here. Four goals and three assists is the stat line for Drouin over the last five games which gives him a total of 21 points in 29 games played. Defensively Victor Hedman is the man you want to target tonight as he quarterbacks the team’s top power play unit that has scored eight times over the last nine games. This game should be a close one as Carolina has tightened up their defense over the last six games.
Elite Plays
CAR: Jeff Skinner
TB: Nikita Kucherov
Secondary Plays
CAR: Sebastian Aho, Teuvo Teravainen, Victor Rask, Noah Hanifin
TB: Jonathan Drouin, Tyler Johnson, Victor Hedman, Ondrej Palat