4 NHL FanDuel Studs to Target on 10/16/19
Spending up in any Daily Fantasy lineup is how to get the superstars and the highest upside players in your lineup. In NHL DFS, it’s different than paying up in sports like NBA or NFL. Someone can be one of the highest-priced players at his position a put up a total dud of a performance, and paying that much for him would be a huge mistake. Let’s make sure we are paying up in the right spots when building our lineups tonight.
Wednesday's slate is a six gamer with some of the NHL's biggest stars available for us to select in our FanDuel lineups. So which ones do we want?
Connor McDavid, Center, Edmonton Oilers
FanDuel Price: $9,300
On a night packed with good center options, Connor McDavid still stands out above the rest. He was finally held off the scoresheet on Monday, after having four straight games with multiple points. His Edmonton Oilers get to face a Philadelphia Flyers team that lost in Calgary the night before and had a Corsi% of just 38%, per Natural Stat Trick. McDavid is second only to teammate Leon Draisaitl in ice time per game among forwards in the league, as the Oilers just don't have the depth to rely on any other line when trying to come back in games. gives Edmonton a decent chance of winning this game as -130 favorites. The combination of the ice time, matchup, and McDavid's elite skill make him the top play at the center position for Wednesday night's slate.
Sidney Crosby, Center, Pittsburgh Penguins
FanDuel Price: $8,700
The battle of Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia superstars commences when Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins take on Nathan MacKinnon's Colorado Avalanche. Crosby's side is the one that is the most intriguing here. He has a point in every game this season, and multiple points in four out of six. Despite not having Evgeni Malkin in the lineup the Penguins have not missed a beat as they scored seven goals in each of their victories over the weekend. Colorado, despite being 5-0 to start the year, hasn't been the best possession team. They have allowed the eighth-most shot attempts per 60 minutes at five on five as they have a young defense group that may still be trying to find their feet. Crosby can take advantage of the younger players who won't be able to think the game as quickly as he does, something he has been doing for his entire career. The Penguins have the second-highest implied goal total of the night with 3.32, and Crosby could have another multiple-point game if the Penguins are going to reach or surpass that total.
Alex Ovechkin, Wing, Washington Capitals
FanDuel Price: $8,700
Alex Ovechkin did his thing on Monday when he appeared in this space. A goal, an assist, and six shots is basically what we have come to expect from him when putting him in a DFS lineup. Now on Wednesday, he faces the Toronto Maple Leafs who are in the second half of a back to back after playing Minnesota at home on Tuesday night. This could mean Ovechkin will be shooting on Leafs' backup goal Michael Hutchinson, who allowed five goals in his only start this season and had a lowly .887 save percentage last season.
Ovechkin is leading the league in shot attempts by eleven over the next closest player, so he doesn't need a second invitation to fire the puck at the net. He has one of, if not the highest floor in daily fantasy hockey because of all the shot attempts. This game has a 6.5 goal total, with the Washington Capitals favored at -130. If the game goes in the direction those lines suggest, Ovechkin is likely to be involved in some goals tonight.
Mikko Rantanen, Wing, Colorado Avalanche
FanDuel Price: $7,900
Mikko Rantanen hasn't shown any signs of a player who was out of shape after a contract dispute kept him out of most of training camp in September. He has started the season very well, with nine points in the first five games. Of course, he gets the benefit of playing on one of the league's best lines with Nathan Mackinnon and Gabriel Landeskog, but right now he leads that trio in goals and points. This unit was on the ice for 102 of the Avalanche's 258 total goals last season. Taking a look at numberFire's Daily Fantasy Heat Map, we can see that the Colorado Avalanche are implied to score 3.18 goals on Wednesday. If Colorado are going to get to that, these guys are going to have to carry their weight. Rantanen offers the best floor/ceiling combination of wings in the $7,000 price range due to his consistent role as a top-line player and the ability for his line to completely take over a game.
Nicholas Vazquez is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Nicholas Vazquez also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username hbyanksman. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.
