Victor Hedman Daily Fantasy News, Rankings, Projections

Nikitia Kucherov, Brayden Point, and Tyler Johnson are in an excellent spot tonight, as well as the entire Tampa Bay Lightening roster. Detroit will likely be without their most talented player Dylan Larkin. Detroit has given up 23 goals in their past five games. I expect Tampa Bay to come out strong after getting shutout at home against Minnesota the other night. Victor Hedman is the defenseman you want to correlate this trio with as he skates with Point and Kucherov on the top special teams unit.

Nikitia Kucherov, Brayden Point, and Tyler Johnson are in an excellent spot tonight, as well as the entire Tampa Bay Lightening roster. Tampa Bay has the highest projected goal total tonight at a whopping 4.64. Ottawa continued to be sellers at the recent trade deadline, and have now fired their head coach Guy Boucher. Since the trade deadline Ottawa has allowed 14.72 HDCA/60. Victor Hedman makes a nice addition to the stack, as he quarterbacks the team's top power-play unit against an Ottawa team who has continued to be poor on the penalty kill.

Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, and Tyler Johnson draw a fantastic matchup tonight at Madison Square Garden. The New York Rangers have been shorthanded 172 times in 50 games so far this season. That is good for the third most times shorthanded in the NHL. Tampa Bay is leading the league in power-play conversion percentage at 29.6% and New York has killed only 76.7% of their penalties. Look for Tampa Bay’s power play to have plenty of opportunities tonight and convert a couple of them. Adding power-play quarterback Victor Hedman is ideal in this matchup, and with salary restrictions it’s a sure way to be a bit more contrarian.

Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, and Tyler Johnson will look to stay white hot against a Florida Panthers team whom is playing on the tail end of a back to back. Kucherov carries an eight game point streak into tonight’s game, tallying four goals and 14 assists over that span. Kucherov has been lethal on the power play as well. With Florida’s less than average penalty kill percentage (76.3%), this line should have plenty of opportunities to score. While expensive, Victor Hedman carries a high ceiling, and correlates on the team’s top power play unit. He will likely come at much lower ownership as well, helping you diversify your stack in GPP’s.

Nikita Kucherov along with his line-mates Steven Stamkos, and J.T. Miller are in a great spot on home ice as they host the Ottawa Senators. Ottawa is ranked last in goals allowed (67), shots allowed per game (39.3), and penalty kill percentage (67.3%). They have also allowed 21 goals in their last four games. Victor Hedman appears to be likely to draw back into the lineup tonight, and would be the preferred option on defense.

Despite having 10 games to choose from tonight, the clear top line is Tampa Bay's top line which features Steven Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov, and recently acquired J.T. Miller. With a combined 34 points over their last 10 games, this line has been unstoppable for the Lightning this season. They draw a juicy matchup against the league's worst defensive team in the Islanders, who have allowed the second most shot attempts and the most scoring chances over their last 25 home games. Also featured on the league's second ranked power play unit, I especially like Stamkos, Kucherov, and Miller's chances of breaking through on the power play against an Islanders penalty kill that ranks 30th in the NHL this season. This will certainly garner their fair share of ownership on tonight's 10 game slate, but their steep price tags throughout most of the industry could lower their ownership; giving you leverage over your price sensitive opponents in tournaments.

If the Lightning do not come out with a flash against the visiting Oilers today, it is officially time to hit the (temporary) panic button. This is a great get-right matchup for Hedman and the Tampa offense as Edmonton struggles defensively at both 5v5 and on the penalty kill. Hedman, of course, has a key role bridging the gap between defensive and offensive zone time for the Bolts, and also walks the blueline on the high powered power play for Tampa. Hedman will not come cheap, but it is hard to argue his upside is not equally elevated today. With the Oilers allowing a high rate of shot attempts and scoring chances at 5v5 and high-danger shot attempts on the penalty kill, look for the Tampa offense to make up for their poor showing against the Bruins last night.

Anytime you can get a loaded top line as talented as Tampa Bay's at a relatively lower than expected ownership, it creates tremendous leverage in tournaments. With many likely opting for the second line tonight, such should be the case tonight for Stamkos, Namestnikov, and Callahan, who draw a juicy matchup at home against a struggling Toronto defense that owns the second worst xGA/60 since January 1st on tonight's slate. With 33 points in 27 home games this year, Stamkos has been unstoppable for the Lightning this season and will likely stay away from Toronto's shut down line for much of tonight's contest.

If you're looking to differentiate your lineup without completely fading the Lightning in a potentially high scoring affair, consider taking the second line of Tampa Bay which features Point, Kucherov, and Killorn. With a combined 25 points over their last 10 games, this trio draws a sneaky good matchup against a Toronto team that owns the worst xGA/60 since January 1st on tonight's slate. Also seeing time on the league's second ranked power play, this line should have no problems paying off their manageable salaries in a game Tampa Bay will look to continue their dominance in the Eastern Conference.

Since returning from injury five games ago, Victor Hedman has been solid. He has picked up two goals and three points to go along with six blocks and 14 shots on goal. He has put up better numbers on the season, but he's healthy and could put up decent numbers against the Los Angeles Kings tonight. Hedman plays in all situation and produces across the board which always makes him a high-floor play. However, playing on a team as offensively dynamic as the Tampa Bay Lightning are gives Hedman a high floor as he plays on the top power play unit and is in a great position to put up points.