NHL DFS DraftKings Snipes - Wednesday October 3rd, 2018

NHL DFS DraftKings Snipes – Wednesday October 3rd, 2018

The NHL offseason is officially behind us. It is time to gear up. Take off those skate guards. Re-tape that stick. Rev your Zamboni! The Stanley Cup party has come and gone for the Washington Capitals and it is time to reload for 2018/19. Another NHL season means another NHL DFS DraftKings. The goal is to help you build a winning lineup through the use of analytical strategies and advanced statistics.

Hockey may not have the DFS popularity that larger market sports have attained. It is a game of speed, vision, and hand-eye coordination. It is on the rise and there are plenty of opportunities to fill your pockets. The fast-paced style of play and ongoing line changes makes it a difficult to predict outcomes. However, with the use of advanced statistics, you can find an edge in each slate. The goal (pun intended) is to leverage matchups to help you win. That is where we at FantasyCPR step in. We want to help make ease the selection process to give you that edge.

There are a few strategies to consider before picking your lineup on DraftKings. First of all, make sure you know the lineup requirements and the scoring system. Generally on DraftKings, you will start 2x Center, 3x Wing, 2x Defense, and a Goalie.

The scoring on DraftKings is as follows:

Player

Goal +3

Assist +2

Shot on Goal +0.5

Short Handed Point Bonus (Goal/Assist) +1

Shootout Goal +0.2

Hat Trick Bonus +1.5

Goalie

Win +3

Save +0.2

Goal Against -1

Shutout Bonus +2

Now let’s take a look at some strategies I like to utilize.

Strategy 1: Start with your goalie

Take a look at the Vegas odds to exploit the easiest matchup. That goalie will be pretty chalky most nights. Any goalie is capable of winning any night, but why not choose the goalie with the best odds to win. A goalie can make or break your night, and you want that win.

Strategy 2: Stack, Stack, Stack

This strategy will sound familiar if you have played DFS in another sport. It is a popular tournament strategy if you pick the right team to stack. There is plenty of opportunity to find a one-off that has goal and assist potential. But why not grab that whole line to see if you can capitalize on the scoring chances. A few lines in recent memory stick out as great stacks. That 70’s line in Los Angeles had a lot of success, Tanner Pearson, Tyler Toffoli and Jeff Carter. Another line that was successful was the Blackhawks Patrick Kane, Artemi Panarin and Artem Anisimov.

Strategy 3: Superstar Defender’s line mate

You could spend chalk money on Brent Burns, Erik Karlsson or Drew Doughty. But that won’t help you stick out in a tournament. If you want to win, you have to take some chances. Find the best defender on a team, and grab his line mate. They may not have the scoring upside the superstar has, but they are value picks that help save your money to spend on your goalie or stack. Who knows, maybe they are the beneficiary of a play opening up or setting up their partner.

Play around with your lineups. Find a strategy that you feel most comfortable with, and have fun with it! Get in front of the mirror and start practicing your best Celly after dominating your tournament. I will be active on Twitter @rickyolshansky as news breaks before and during each slate. So feel free to follow me there, and as always, stay up to date on FantasyCPR for all of your hockey content. Best of luck to all!

NHL DFS DraftKings Snipes – Centers

Auston Matthews Toronto Maple Leafs ($7,000)

A lot of attention may go to the newly acquired John Tavares, and for good reason. He is a stud! But let’s save $400 and go with another high-caliber center with serious scoring ability. Vegas odds has the Leafs as -220 favorites over the Canadiens, which bodes well for Matthews. He has a good rapport with his team and should flourish no matter who he lines up against. His Corsi and Fenwick % were down slightly last year, but still hovered around 50%. I expect those possession numbers to increase this season. Could see different line combinations in Toronto, as Matthews may move to the 2nd line. Moving away from Mitch Marner may hurt, but opposing teams will have to decide who to match their top defensive line against in Matthews and Tavares.

Sean Monahan Calgary Flames ($5,900)

Monahan had a strong season finishing with 31 goals and 33 assists. He had 30 shots on goal in his last 10 games of the season. The matchup looks good as Vancouver ranks 22nd versus the position. He is back from injury and had a big preseason. Don’t be worried that he starts on the road as he actually performed better away from home. Last season he had 19 goals and 16 assists on the road. Monahan was fifth on the team in shots on goal with 202.

Also Consider: Evgeny Kuznetsov ($6,400), Jesperi Kotkaniemi ($2,500), Mikael Backlund ($5,000)

NHL DFS DraftKings Snipes – Wingers

Mitch Marner Toronto Maple Leafs ($6,000)

Marner is one of those stack options for you. If you chose Tavares, don’t hesitate to pair Marner with him. He avoided a sophomore slump and improved by eight points. Marner finished last season with 22 goals and 47 assists. He should not regress at all being moved off of Matthews line with Tavares stepping in as a great goal scorer and proven set-up man. In fact, Tavares’s ability to clear space and set up teammates could cause an uptick in goals for Marner.

Johnny Gaudreau Calgary Flames ($6,400)

Don’t let Johnny Hockey’s size fool you. Sure, he may use an intermediate size stick with a 55 flex. It has not hampered his ability to produce at the NHL level. Gaudreau had his best season last year finishing with 84 points. He had a ridiculous 60 assists in 80 games. On top of that he finished with 227 shots on goal. Gaudreau broke out in a big way in possession metrics as well with a CF% of 54.5 and a FF% of 53.2. He is a big part of the power-play unit with three goals and 21 assists.

Danton Heinen Boston Bruins ($4,200)

Heinen is a cheaper option who flashed last year in Boston. In his first full season, he finished with 47 points. He looks primed to join the second line with Jake DeBrusk and David Krecji. His CF% and FF% were stellar at 54.7 and 55.0. He still has a lot to prove at just 24 years of age, but he flourished when given the opportunity. The Bruins do come in as underdogs, but it remains to be seen if the Capitals experience any Stanley Cup hangover.

Also Consider: Johnathan Drouin ($5,000), Patrick Marleau ($5,200), James Neal ($5,500)

NHL DFS DraftKings Snipes – Defense and Goalies

Morgan Rielly ($5,800)

Reilly sits with the best matchup against a young Montreal team who finished 6th in the Atlantic Division last year. He had seven assists in the last ten games of the season. He blocked 84 shots, which was low for him and could get that number back into triple-digits.

Joakim Ryan ($3,000)

If you are looking for the defensive value strategy discussed earlier, look no further than Joakim Ryan. The young blue-liner could see a bump in statistics paired with Brent Burns or Erik Karlsson. Ryan can only benefit from playing with either of these offensive threats. Ryan’s opportunity to earn an assist increases sharing the ice with either of those two stars.

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Also Consider: Marc Edouard-Vlasic ($5,000), Jake Gardiner ($4,700), Victor Mete ($3,400)

Frederik Andersen Toronto Maple Leafs ($8,400)

Going with strategy number one? Then Frederik Andersen is your guy. The defense may not be top-notch in front of him, but the Leafs will have one of the most explosive offenses in the NHL this year. Andersen will save a ton of shots, maybe let in a few, and still earn the 3 points for the win. Spend up on him as having the best odds of the slate to get a win. Another way to play it is to avoid the chalk altogether. Andersen could be a good cash play, however if you are trying to take down a tournament, check out the next guy!

Mike Smith Calgary Flames ($7,500)

This matchup is a good one for the Flames. They are up against lowly Vancouver Canucks who are coming off a 7th place finish in their division. The Flames however, have a great young squad that can really do some damage on offense. Between Gaudreau, Monahan, Matthew Tkachuk, James Neal, Mikael Backlund, There are just too many options for the Flames and they should overwhelm the Canucks in the game.

Tuukka Rask Boston Bruins ($7,700)

He may be matched up against the Stanley Cup champions, but the hope with this pick is that the veteran Rask steals a win while the Capitals hangover bleeds into the first game of the season. Tuukka Rask is known around the league as one of the better goalies, and on any given night he could get you a shut out, or hold a team to a limited number of goals.

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Hope you all enjoyed this article. If you are interested in playing on other sites as well, be sure to check out FantasyCPR’s own @MattyMcMatt17 for more great content on Fanduel. Best of luck, and let’s hope for those hat tricks.