NHL

NHL Daily Fantasy Helper: Tuesday 12/4/18

A ten game schedule greets us on Tuesday night. So, who can you trust in NHL DFS?

A good chunk of you probably already play daily fantasy football, and I'd be willing to bet a significant portion have also tried out daily fantasy basketball and baseball. But hockey? Hockey?

It's time to give it a try over on FanDuel, because it's a ton of fun. And our analysis and projections can help you win.

To help, let's take a look at some goalies, high-priced skaters, and lower-priced players to target for today's slate.

Goalie to Target

Jonathan Quick ($7,700): The Los Angeles Kings are likely to start Quick against the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday night. Quick looked much better in his two starts since returning from injury, posting 30 or more saves in both games. This included a 34-save shutout over the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday night. His lateral movement looked like the Quick of a few years ago and the rigidness that had plagued him early in the season was gone. Arizona has won three straight games and does have 15 goals in their last 5, which makes Quick no lock, but the price is so low for a home goaltender. Wait for other confirmations first to see what else may pop up unexpectedly. Backups may create a few opportunities tonight.

High-Priced Skaters

Alex Ovechkin ($8,800): Ovechkin is a bit of a risk on Tuesday night. Why? The Vegas Golden Knights are playing some of their best hockey of the season, having won four of their last five games. This is while scoring 21 goals and allowing just 8 over the previous 5 games. However, the Washington Capitals forward is consistently around 20 FanDuel points every night over the last 4 outings. His shot volume on net is around four a night, and even Ovechkin has admitted as much. He has fared well against likely starter Marc-Andre Fleury, and the Capitals' top line may just surprise tonight. Quietly their power play has been near 30% over the last 10 games. David Pastrnak($8,300) and Cam Atkinson ($7,200) are solid tournament options as well because of their goal potential in Tuesday's matchups.

Auston Matthews ($8,500): Matthews and the Toronto Maple Leafs land themselves a good matchup against the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday night. Buffalo is not rested and coming off a third straight loss. Toronto averages 4.15 goals per game on the road and Matthews has three goals and an assist in his return from a shoulder injury two games ago. While the Sabres are not giving up a ton of goals of late (14 in their last 5 games), their scoring chances per 60 have been slowly creeping upward. The Toronto power play converts at 29% and is one of the most feared units in the league with Matthews on the ice. Nathan MacKinnon ($9,100) has to be considered on Tuesday night along with Sidney Crosby ($8,900) in what could be a wild rematch in Pittsburgh. MacKinnon had four points, and Crosby fired off a hat trick in their first meeting of the season.

Value Skaters

Frank Vatrano ($3,700): The Florida Panthers are a dicey play as a whole, and so is Vatrano. However, the winger is playing against his former team, the Boston Bruins. He has points in his last two games and his floor is about 2.25 shots per game and nearly 1 block per contest. If Vatrano sees any power play time, that is a bonus. Florida's projected total of 2.64 goals feels a little low. This has the look of a safer punt play than it appears on the surface. Other choices on Tuesday may include Andrew Shaw ($3,700) and Sam Gagner ($3,400). Both are currently seeing first line time for their respective teams.

Scott Mayfield ($3,800): Mayfield is a deep tournament play on Tuesday, but he still delivers 10-plus FanDuel points a night. That value will allow one to fit in higher-priced stacks. He also has five assists in his last five contests. Combine that offense with 18 shots on goal in his previous 8 starts and the defenseman provides an adequate floor to build on. Alex Goligoski ($3,900) is another option to look at on Tuesday night. Wait for line shifts because some value plays may come into focus, as injuries and illnesses are everywhere right now (over 100 total at press time).



Chris Wassel is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Chris Wassel also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username chriswassel. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.