NHL

4 NHL Studs to Target on 11/27/19

Auston Matthews has a new coach and a great matchup against the Detroit Red Wings. Who else should we look at tonight?

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.

The Wednesday before Thanksgiving always gives us a healthy helping of hockey before a day off for most of the league. This year we have 13 games to dig our teeth into, so let's look at the star players who we think will eat on this slate.

Auston Matthews, Center, Toronto Maple Leafs

FanDuel Salary: $8,400

The Toronto Maple Leafs have won their first two games under new head coach Sheldon Keefe. Auston Matthews has three points in those two games, benefiting from more freedom under Keefe. That's not to say that Matthews needed a new coach to get him going, his 16 goals are tied for fourth in the league. He also has been getting his shot off consistently, ranking ninth in shot attempts per 60 minutes, according to Natural Stat Trick.

The Leafs get to face the Detroit Red Wings tonight in a great spot, as we can see on the NHL daily fantasy matchup heat map. They are -210 favorites and have an implied goal total of 3.75, the highest on the board tonight. They face a penalty kill that has killed just 73% of their times shorthanded. The goalie in net for the Red Wings will likely be Jonathan Bernier, who has saved just 89% of shots he's seen his way, which is below league average. In our projections, Matthews is close to Connor McDavid in fantasy output but comes in at a $900 discount. He's worth playing in all formats tonight.

Brad Marchand, Wing, Boston Bruins

FanDuel Salary: $8,500

Brad Marchand has possibly been overshadowed by his Boston Bruins teammate David Pastrnak this season, but he has been excellent in his own right. Marchand now has more points than Pastrnak, as his 42 is third in the entire league. It's his recent hot streak that has vaulted him up the scoring leaderboard, with multiple points in four straight games. He is actually first in overall points per 60 minutes, with a whopping 5.38.

On Wednesday, the Bruins are in Canada's capital to face the Ottawa Senators. The Sens allow the second-most shot attempts and third-most expected goals on a per 60 minutes basis. Ottawa takes the third-most penalties per game on the slate tonight, and that spells trouble for them against Boston's top-rated power play. Marchand might be lower owned than his teammate Pastrnak and makes for a good pivot or a pair if you wanted to play them both.

John Carlson, Defenseman, Washington Capitals

FanDuel Salary: $7,400

John Carlson continues to lead all defensemen in scoring with his 36 points. That also puts him at fifth in the league in scoring. He had an eight-game point streak snapped last time out against the Vancouver Canucks but should be able to get back on track tonight.

The Washington Capitals host the Florida Panthers in a game with a 6.5 over/under that should be a back and forth track meet. The Capitals have the second-highest implied team total at 3.55. They will go up against Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky, who has been disappointing in his first year with Florida. According to Hockey Reference, his goals saved above average is -11.81. If he continues to struggle, Carlson and company should be able to feast on goals in this game.

Frederik Andersen, Goalie, Toronto Maple Leafs

FanDuel Salary: $8,200

Frederik Andersen looks like the goalie to spend up on tonight. As mentioned before, the Leafs are the biggest favorite of all the 13 games going on tonight. They are facing the Red Wings, who are the lowest-scoring team in the NHL, with just 2.26 goals per game. Andersen has been solid this season, with a .916 save percentage and 4.21 goals saved above average. While Andersen is somewhat expensive, he's not at the top of the pricing tier for goalies, and clearly has the best matchup and best chance to win based on the odds. He will likely be a popular option across the site but is definitely worth considering for your lineups tonight.


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.