NHL Grind Down: Wednesday, November 11th
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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Montreal Canadiens at Pittsburgh Penguins – 07:30 PM EST
| Montreal Canadiens | Pittsburgh Penguins | ||||||||
 | Carey Price |  | Marc-Andre Fleury | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 9-5 | |||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | Team Stats | 2.21 | 2.00 | 15.90% | 88.60% | ||||
In a battle between two squads that plan on making deep runs into the Eastern Conference playoffs, the Canadiens head south to take on the Penguins at the Consol Energy Center. The Canadiens defeated their arch-rival Boston Bruins on Saturday, and appear to be back on track after a mini-slump. While Carey Price is still slated to miss another week, Mike Condon has played extremely well in his absence and is surrounded by a very strong defensive hockey club. Max Pacioretty may be the most offensively gifted player on this roster, the fact that the Canadiens have a ridiculous nine skaters already with double-digit points and own the best 3.69 goals/game both highlight this team’s immense scoring depth. With the Penguins allowing the third fewest goals per game on the young season (2.00 GA/G), the secondary scoring options are likely better served for GPP use in this matchup, but the Pacioretty/Plekanec/Gallagher line will certainly be on my radar. On the blue-line, it remains a two-headed monster by fantasy standards as both P.K. Subban and Andrei Markov are tied for second in the NHL among defenseman with 14 points. With a 13-2-1 record, the Canadiens are certainly one of the best teams in the league and can’t be ignored (specially on a two-game slate), but leaving Pittsburgh with two points is rarely easy.
The Penguins failed to complete the sweep on their four game tour of Canada as they lost 5-2 in Calgary on Saturday, but now own a 9-2-0 record since starting the season with three straight losses. Facing the Montreal Canadiens is daunting, but no team in the NHL can match Pittsburgh’s pure offensive firepower. It’s been an eerily slow start for Sidney Crosby, but he’s averaged 1.34 points per game throughout his stellar career and there’s simply no reason to be worried about him. With the top line struggling, it looks like Mike Johnston has decided to shake things up and Beau Bennett looks poised for a major fantasy upgrade as he’s been skating in Patrick Hornqvist spot on the right-side of Mr. Crosby this week in practice. Bennett is a former first round draft pick who put up some gaudy offensive numbers in the minors, so he’s a very compelling value play if he stays on the top line. Evgeni Malkin centers the “second” line for the Penguins, with snipers Phil Kessel and David Perron playing alongside him. While those are the two lines you’ll likely want to focus your attention on tonight in cash games, Chris Kunitz and Patric Hornqvist (with Nick Bonino in the middle) do form quite the formidable third scoring line. Kris Letang is the clear #1 target on the Penguins blue-line, and despite the tough matchup, he’s well worth consideration as the point man on the Penguins lethal #1 power-play unit.
Elite Plays
MON: Max Pacioretty, Tomas Plekanec, P.K. Subban, Andrei Markov
PIT: Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Phil Kessel, Kris Letang
Secondary Plays
MON: Brendan Gallagher, Alex Galchenyuk, Tomas Fleischmann
PIT: Beau Bennett, David Perron, Patric Hornqvist
Edmonton Oilers at Anaheim Ducks – 10:00 PM EST
| Edmonton Oilers | Anaheim Ducks | ||||||||
 | Ben Scrivens |  | Frederik Andersen | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 5-10 | 5-7 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.60 | 3.13 | 22.90% | 79.20% | Team Stats | 1.60 | 2.40 | 13.00% | 90.60% |
The Oilers have lost two straight games and, with just ten points on the season, find themselves in the cellar of the Western Conference. They’ll head to “The Pond” to take on the suddenly resurgent Anaheim Ducks tonight, and things don’t look promising for them again as they’ll be without Connor McDavid for the most of the season and were defeated by this Ducks team in all four meetings last year. The McDavid injury was devastating to this team, but with Jordan Eberle finally back in action Todd McLellan has utilized last year’s first round pick Leon Draisaitl as the center on the top line (alongside Taylor Hall and Eberle) with the intention of keeping some semblance of a balanced scoring attack. While that top line is the most dangerous, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Nail Yakupov are two former first overall draft picks that certainly have a nice offensive upside on the second line. With Justin Schultz still out of commision, Andrej Sekera and Oscar Klefbom are the only two Oilers defensemen who should be on your radar tonight.
It was a disastrous start to the 2015-16 season for the Ducks, but they’re finally back to full health and despite an overtime loss against the Coyotes on Monday night, they’ve still collected nine points over the their last five games. As the biggest Vegas favorites on the two game slate, Anaheim will almost certainly hold the highest ownership percentage this evening, and with Edmonton allowing 3.13 GA/G this season, it’s for good reason. Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf are one of the most dangerous duo’s in the NHL and are hands down two of the top options on this short slate. They’re joined by Patrick Maroon both at even strength and on the power-play and are tough players to fade in cash games here. Ryan Kesler has struggled out of the gates this season, but picked up a goal and an assist against the Coyotes on Monday and already has a 40 goal season on his resume. He centers Jakob Silfverberg and Carl Hagelin on the second line and that group appears to be a very nice GPP target. On the blue-line, Cam Fowler, Hampus Lindholm and Sami Vatanen all see time with the man-advantage and hold very similar fantasy values. With the best matchup on the board, they’re all fine options tonight as well.
Elite Plays
EDM: Taylor Hall
ANA: Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf
Secondary Plays
EDM: Jordan Eberle, Leon Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
ANA: Ryan Kesler, Patrick Maroon, Carl Hagelin, Jakob Silfverberg, Cam Fowler, Hampus Lindholm, Sami Vatanen