NHL

4 NHL Studs to Target on 11/7/19

Johnny Gaudreau looks set to get going on Thursday. Who else can we count on when spending up?

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.

A large eleven game slate awaits NHL daily fantasy players on Thursday, making up for some smaller slates on some other days of the week. So let's take a look at some studs we can roster tonight.

Aleksander Barkov, Center, Florida Panthers

FanDuel Price: $8,000

Yet to score an even-strength goal this season, Aleksander Barkov has still been a solid fantasy asset to start the year. He hasn't struggled to score at even strength in the past, with 22 goals of that nature last season. He has maintained value with his assists, recording 15 in the 17 games the Florida Panthers have played. We'd like to see some goals, though, if we are going to pay up, and there are reasons to believe he is due for positive regression.

Barkov has been shooting at a 7.1% clip this season, but in his career, he is at 13.5%, per Natural Stat Trick. That should bounce back this season, as a 35-goal scorer from last year who is only 24 years old is unlikely to have lost his scoring touch to this degree.

The Panthers are implied for 3.32 goals tonight against the Washington Capitals, the fifth-most on the slate. Capitals projected starting goalie Braden Holtby has not been good this season, with a save percentage under .900%. Barkov is an interesting tournament option who might get lost on such a large slate.

Johnny Gaudreau, Wing, Calgary Flames

FanDuel Price: $7,300

Another player who has been somewhat unlucky this season has been John Gaudreau of the Calgary Flames. He is shooting at a 7.7% mark this year, which is 50% worse than he shot last season. Like Barkov, he has been able to keep up in fantasy production with assists, 11 in 15 games.

Johnny Hockey could kick it into full gear tonight against a New Jersey Devils team that has struggled to keep the puck out of their net. They've allowed the fourth-most goals per game thanks to poor goaltending from Mackenzie Blackwood and (tonight's projected starter) Cory Schneider. The Devils are also killing off only 75% of the opposition's penalties, as we can see on the Daily Fantasy Matchup Heat Map.

Gaudreau carries numberFire's highest fantasy point projection at the wing position tonight. He's at a cheaper price than we might have seen if he was scoring goals like normal, so he is in play in both tournaments and cash games.

Dougie Hamilton, Defense, Carolina Hurricanes

FanDuel Price: $6,500

Dougie Hamilton has been one of the standout defensemen in fantasy hockey this season. His 16 points are behind only John Carlson for defensemen. He currently is receiving the most power play time per game in his career, and it has paid off thus far.

Tonight, the Carolina Hurricanes have a dream matchup against the New York Rangers. The Rangers are coming off a back-to-back and have been struggling defensively all season. They allow the most expected goals against per 60 minutes (3.89). This is reflected in the odds, as has the Canes as a -250 favorite and gives them the best implied team total with 3.89.

Hamilton has always had a high shot attempt rate, giving him a high floor. With his added power play time, his ceiling is increased, as well, making a play in cash games and tournaments tonight.

Darcy Kuemper, Goalie, Arizona Coyotes

FanDuel Price: $8,400

Darcy Kuemper was a surprisingly solid goaltender last season for the Arizona Coyotes after Antti Raanta went down. This season, he has been even better, posting a 1.69 goals against average and a .940% save percentage.

The Coyotes face the Columbus Blue Jackets, who are scoring the second-fewest goals per game this season. They also have the lowest implied goal total on the slate (2.50). Kuemper stands out as the best goalie play of the night given his recent play and matchup, and he projects as numberFire's highest-scoring goalie and best point--per-dollar play at the position on Thursday.


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.