NHL Grind Down: Wednesday, December 9th
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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Boston Bruins at Montreal Canadiens – 07:30 PM EST
| Boston Bruins | Montreal Canadiens | ||||||||
 | Tuukka Rask |  | Mike Condon | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 14-9-3 | |||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 3.23 | 2.85 | 30.70% | 78.00% | Team Stats | 3.32 | 2.21 | 22.20% | 86.30% |
Rivalry Wednesday finally lives up to its nickname as one of the greatest rivalries in the NHL will be renewed tonight in Montreal as the Canadiens welcome the detested Boston Bruins to the Bell Centre. The Bruins were badly out-played in their 3-2 loss against Nashville on Monday night and have managed just 17 SOG in each of their last two games. After seemingly hitting their stride with a five game winning streak to close out the month of November, they’ve now regressed by losing three of their last four games. Montreal has posted 4-2 victories in each of the two prior meetings between these teams so far this season and Boston hasn’t beaten their rival since game #5 of the Eastern Conference Semi-finals during the 2013-14 season (a series Montreal eventually won in 7 games). While this is clearly a very difficult matchup, it’s hard to ignore each of Boston’s top two forward lines on just a four game slate. The key to this game for Boston will likely come down to their success with the man-advantage, as they enter tonight’s action with an NHL best 30.6% penalty kill. However, things won’t come easy for them as Montreal sports a very solid 86.3% penaly kill.
The Canadiens have uncharacteristically dropped two straight games, but they own a 10-3-2 record at the Bell Centre this season and have established some degree of dominance over this Boston team in recent years. Despite their recent struggles, they’re still likely to be rather popular selections regardless on such a short slate. The Brendan Gallagher injury has sent their forward groupings into a bit of chaos, and it looks like we’ll see all new lines tonight. Max Pacioretty is the top offensive weapon for this team and leads the team with 13 goals and 12 asssits through 28 games. He’ll likely have the full attention of defensive stalwarts Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand, but picked up a pair of points in the two prior meetings with Boston this season and has proven to be somewhat matchup proof. He’s slated to be joined by both Alex Galchenyuk and Sven Andrighetto on the top line, with Tomas Plekanec dropping to the second line to play alongside Lars Eller and Paul Byron. However, with the Boston Bruins owning an uninspiring 78.0% penalty kill, it’s Plekanek and Galchenyuk that look to be the top secondary options up front. Both P.K. Subban and Andrei Markov thrive on the point of the power-play and are top-tier options on the blue-line.
Elite Options
BOS: David Krejci, Torey Krug
MON: Max Pacioretty, Tomas Plekanec, P.K. Subban, Andrei Markov
Secondary Options
BOS: Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, Loui Eriksson, Zdeno Chara
MON: Alex Galchenyuk, Lars Eller, Sven Andrighetto, Jeff Petry
San Jose Sharks at Edmonton Oilers – 09:30 PM EST
| San Jose Sharks | Edmonton Oilers | ||||||||
 | Martin Jones |  | Ben Scrivens | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 14-12-0 | 11-15-2 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.65 | 2.62 | 18.20% | 80.70% | Team Stats | 2.46 | 2.93 | 18.70% | 80.20% |
Tuesday welcomed the long-awaited return to the ice for Logan Couture but it wasn’t enough to end the Sharks skid as they fell 4-2 to Calgary to extend their losing streak to four games. They’ll head to Edmonton tonight looking to turn things around before falling too far behind the Los Angeles Kings in the Pacific Division. San Jose’s recent struggles are concerning, but the matchup against an Oilers team that has allowed 2.93 goals against per game this season is just too good to ignore. Couture’s return secures Peter DeBoer hopes for two balanced scoring lines as Couture will join Patrick Marleau and Joel Ward on one line with Joe Pavelski and Joe Thornton (with Melker Karlsson) carrying the offensive load on the other. All six forwards see plenty of run with the man advantage which should bode well for them against the Oilers mediocre penalty kill. Defensively, Brent Burns has already racked up 10 goals, 12 assists and 126 shots on goal making him one of the premier plays of the evening on the blue-line.
The Oilers pushed their winning streak to a season best three games with a 4-2 win over Buffalo on Sunday evening and will look to keep their undefeated home stand intact tonight against the Sharks. Edmonton certainly won’t be winning any defensive awards this season, but even without Connor McDavid, they still have plenty of offensive firepower. While Logan Couture return to the San Jose lineup is bad news for opposing forwards, Taylor Hall is one of the most talented players in the NHL. He’s racked up 11 goals and 17 assists in 28 games and has developed a very nice rapport with impressive rookie Leon Draisaitl. With Teddy Purcell geting a crack to join them on the top line, Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (with Jujhar JKhaira) will look to supply Todd Mclellan with some consistent secondary scoring. The Sharks are solid defensively, but Edmonton can really make them pay in a hurry if they show up with tired legs after battling Calgary last night. Justin Schultz has regained his role as the point-man on the top power-play unit and carries a very reasonable asking price across the industry, making him a solid value play on defense.
Elite Options
SAN: Joe Pavelski, Patrick Marleau, Logan Couture, Joe Thornton, Brent Burns
EDM: Taylor Hall, Leon Draisaitl
Secondary Options
SAN: Joel Ward, Melker Karlsson, Tomas Hertl, Paul Martin
EDM: Jordan Eberle, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Teddy Purcell, Justin Schultz, Oscar Klefbom, Andrej Sekera
New York Rangers at Vancouver Canucks – 10:00 PM EST
| New York Rangers | Vancouver Canucks | ||||||||
 | Henrik Lundqvist |  | Ryan Miller | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 18-7-3 | 10-11-8 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.82 | 2.00 | 22.50% | 84.10% | Team Stats | 2.62 | 2.76 | 19.00% | 79.30% |
The Rangers begin a three-game tour of Western Canada tonight in Vancouver with the hopes that their win in Ottawa will snap them out of the mini funk they’ve been in for the last two weeks. Their recent struggles combined with the Derek Stepan injury caused Alain Vigneault to shake up his forward lines as Derrick Brassard and Mats Zuccarello have vacated their spots alongside Rick Nash and instead will be joined Kevin Hayes on the second grouping. However, their new roles didn’t slow either down on Sunday as Brassard netted a pair of goals against the Senators. Rick Nash remains an extremely dangerous weapon on the wing of the top forward line and joins both Brassard and Zuccarello on the #1 power-play unit which should bode well for all three against the Canucks middling 79.3% penalty kill. Oscar Lindberg should benefit from his new title as Nash’s center and is one of the better value options on tonight’s slate. Defensively, both Ryan McDonagh and Keith Yandle soak up nearly all of the available playing time on the point of the power-play making both very strong plays on the blue-line.
Only the Toronto Maple Leafs have picked up fewer wins than the Vancouver Canucks on the young season (10-11-8 record), but they looked to have some of their old “mojo” back on Monday night against Buffalo. They’ll have their hands full tonight as they battle a New York Rangers team that has surrendered the fewest goals against per game in the NHL this season (2.00 GA/G). The Canucks are the true definition of a one-line hockey club, and while that’s not the best news for Willie Desjardins, it does simplify things from a fantasy perspective at the very least. Daniel Sedin enters tonight’s game ranked 5th in the NHL league with 31 points (in 29 games) and is the #1 option from the Canucks. As usual, he’ll be joined by his brother Henrik every single time he takes the ice. Jannik Hansen looks like he’ll maintain his spot alongside the Sedin twins on the top forward line, which solidifies him as a fine value play. It was an absolute disastrous start to the season for Radim Vrbata, but he finally looked like the sniper we’ve grown accustomed to against Buffalo on Monday as he picked up a hat trick and fired six shots on goal. He’s still too risky for cash game use (specially in this matchup), but has plenty of GPP upside. Both Alex Edler and Yannick Weber are generally steady cash game option on defense, but their upside is very much limited against the Rangers top-notch 84.1% penalty kill.
Elite Options
NYR: Rick Nash, Mats Zuccarello, Keith Yandle
VAN: Daniel Sedin, Henrik Sedin
Secondary Options
NYR: Derick Brassard, Chris Kreider, Oscar Lindberg, Ryan McDonagh, Dan Boyle
VAN: Jannik Hansen, Radim Vrbata, Chris Higgins, Alex Edler, Yannick Weber
Pittsburgh Penguins at Colorado Avalanche – 10:00 PM EST
| Pittsburgh Penguins | Colorado Avalanche | ||||||||
 | Marc-Andre Fleury |  | Reto Berra | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 14-10-2 | 12-15-1 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.31 | 2.35 | 16.50% | 83.00% | Team Stats | 2.75 | 2.89 | 18.80% | 80.20% |
Pittsburgh will finish up their four-game West Coast road trip tonight in Denver with hopes of putting an end to their current two game skid. Despite arguably the most offensive firepower in the league, the Penguins have struggled lately and own just a 5-6-2 record since their impressive 9-4-0 start to the season. Evgeni Malkin is off to another fine start to the season (12 goals and 13 assists in 26 games) and teams up with Phil Kessel and David Perron to form a very dangerous scoring line, but Mike Johnson has really struggled to get any consistent scoring from his handful of other offensive superstars. However, both Sidney Crosby and Chris Kunitz look to be finally coming alive offensively and they’ll be joined by former first round pick Beau Bennett on the top line tonight, making him a fine value play. Defensively the Penguins have been without Kris Letang for the last two games and his status is very much in doubt for tonight’s game as well. In his absence David Warsofsky took over the reigns as the quarterback of the top power-play unit and has put up some respectable numbers at the AHL level, making him an intriguing value play. Alternatively, Olli Maatta has scored goals in consecutive games and would become the Penguins’ most reliable defenseman, locking him into 20+ minutes of ice-time and a healthy dose of power-play time as well. Sadly, Pascal Dupuis announced yesterday that his blood clot condition would force him to retire from the NHL which could lead to some inspired play from his former teammates tonight.
The Avalanche salvaged a split of their home-and-home series against Minnesota with an overtime victory on Monday night, but still find themselves in the cellar of the Central Division with any playoff hopes already in serious jeopardy. They’re a disaster by Corsi standards and the Penguins’ are allowing just 2.35 goals per game this season, but it’s still impossible to ignore their lethal top scoring line. Matt Duchene leads the way with 14 goals and 11 assists on the young season, with his line mates Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog nipping at his heals. All three plays were early first round draft picks and are certainly capable matching Pittsburgh’s pace while they’re on the ice. However, unlike Pittsburgh, Patrick Roy is really hindered by a lack of depth up front. On defense, Tyson Barrie scored a goal and added an assist against the Wild on Monday and now owns 3 goals and 15 assists in 25 games. He’s logging huge minutes on a nightly basis and has taken advantage of his chances on the point of the #1 power-play unit.
Elite Options
PIT: Evgeni Malkin, Phil Kessel, Sidney Crosby
COL: Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog, Matt Duchene, Tyson Barrie
Secondary Options
PIT: Chris Kunitz, David Perron, Beau Bennett, Patric Hornqvist, Olli Maatta, David Warsofsky
COL: Jarome Iginla, Carl Soderberg, Erik Johnson, Francois Beauchemin