4 NHL FanDuel Studs to Target on 2/4/21

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 from paying up in sports like NBA or NFL. Someone can be one of the highest salaried players at his position and 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.

Thursday night's slate is eight games, as the Minnesota-Colorado game has been postponed.

Auston Matthews, Center, Toronto Maple Leafs

FanDuel Salary: $8,700

Yes, the Montreal Canadiens will be heavily utilized against the Ottawa Senators. However, Auston Matthews may be, too, and that is fine. The Vancouver Canucks are a disaster defensively. They take the most minors in the league (13.4 penalty minutes per game), allow the most shots (36), and give up 3.68 goals per contest (fourth-most in the league). All the Toronto Maple Leafs' center has done is score a goal in five consecutive games and averages nearly four shots per night.

This is a way to use Matthews as a lone wolf or to pair him on the power-play with other Toronto players. The Maple Leafs top the league in power-play percentage at 43.3%. It may not matter who is in the net for Vancouver. Toronto's man advantage is successful because of how many chances they create from moving the puck so quickly. Matthews' shot release is also one of the fastest in the league.

Also, Vancouver has played awful against teams that can create a high tempo (Montreal as a glaring example). Matthews should get a litany of chances almost by default on this night.

Alex Ovechkin, Wing, Washington Capitals

FanDuel Salary: $8,400

Alex Ovechkin has not scored goals like he normally does this year (two goals in seven games). Some of that is because of the four-game interruption due to COVID protocols, but some may be from his utilization. He has played fewer than 15 minutes in two games this year, and that may be partly for resting the forward a little.

The New York Rangers are a team that Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals typically thrive against during the regular season. Ovechkin has scored 35 goals in 59 career games against the team from Gotham. In his last game (versus the Boston Bruins), Ovechkin had eight shots and totaled five on goal with four scoring chances. Also, he played 23 minutes and looked more like the Ovi we are accustomed to.

Elsewhere, look at Brendan Gallagher from the Montreal Canadiens. He has a good chance of scoring a goal versus the Ottawa Senators.

Jeff Petry, Defenseman, Montreal Canadiens

FanDuel Salary: $5,500

A stud can be a stud without a high salary. The most expensive defenseman on this slate is John Carlson at $7,200. However, Jeff Petry is the highest point-producing defenseman from a DFS perspective. He averages 18.76 FanDuel points per game. And he does take on the Senators tonight.

The great news for Petry's outlook is that his salary has stayed the same. How? No one should question these things. Petry now has five goals and eight assists on the season. Why stray when the formula keeps working? That is the argument here. Petry should see several opportunities against one of the worst defenses in a decade in the NHL. Ottawa has easily given up more than four goals a game on the road so far this season.

Carey Price, Goalie, Montreal Canadiens

FanDuel Salary: $8,600

Carey Price carries some risk going against Ottawa, but the goalie has allowed just two goals in each of his last three starts (all wins). The only real question is does Montreal allow enough shots to make Price worth the salary.

He has not played the Senators yet this season, and in his last four games, he has seen around 25 to 30 shots on net. That would be about the threshold to make Price a worthwhile add on Thursday night. Price would again likely have to give up two goals or fewer to top 20 FanDuel points. Also, Price would have to get the win.

The tricky part about this slate is waiting for confirmations and COVID. Wait to see who else may start when it comes to finding viable alternatives among the studs.

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/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.